Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse, and Other Race Horse Tales

By Carol Parks Morrison

This book about young colts and fillies learning to be race horses takes place on a small farm in Indiana. The farm has a half-mile training track surrounded by a woods pasture, hay fields, and various small lots used for keeping the horses outdoors. It has one main horse barn with stalls for training the horses, a second large white barn for equipment and hay, and a small shed with extra stalls.
The farm is owned by Pops and his wife Grams. Many of the stories relate to the work Pops does with the horses. Pops has broodmares who give birth to their colts in early spring. Grams, Pops usual helper, leads the mares while he begins breaking their colts to lead, drive, and prepare for racing.
The main character for these stories is Liz, their granddaughter, who lives on the next farm, a small distance from Pops race barn. Liz loves the horses, especially the foals. She enjoys naming them and talking to them. Liz has many adventures with Pops and writes letters to tell her cousins what is happening at the farm.
One mare and her four fillies born over a four-year period give Pops all he can handle. Their individual habits and unusual personalities present interesting situations. Pops wanted horses with spunk, and they pour it out daily. Pops must fully concentrate to overcome their habits and train them properly.
Liz grows up knowing happiness and excitement, as well as sadness and heartache. These young colts and the mares who mother them present all sorts of life lessons for Pops, Grams, and especially for young Liz. This book tells Lizs story as she lives near Pops farm, knowing these lively horses. The farm is owned by Pops and his wife Grams. Many of the stories relate to the work Pops does with the horses. Pops has broodmares who give birth to their colts in early spring. Grams, Pops usual helper, leads the mares while he begins breaking their colts to lead, drive, and prepare for racing. The main character for these stories is Liz, their granddaughter, who lives on the next farm, a small distance from Pops race barn. Liz loves the horses, especially the foals. She enjoys naming them and talking to them. Liz has many adventures with Pops and writes letters to tell her cousins what is happening at the farm. One mare and her four fillies born over a four-year period give Pops all he can handle. Their individual habits and unusual personalities present interesting situations. Pops wanted horses with spunk, and they pour it out daily. Pops must fully concentrate to overcome their habits and train them properly. Liz grows up knowing happiness and excitement, as well as sadness and heartache. These young colts and the mares who mother them present all sorts of life lessons for Pops, Grams, and especially for young Liz. This book tells Lizs story as she lives near Pops farm, knowing these lively horses.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jul 25, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496925886

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© 2014 Carol Parks Morrison. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 07/22/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4969-2587-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-2588-6 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Introduction

Note from the Author

Heartfelt thanks

An Introduction to Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse, And Other Race Horse Tales

A Filly Is Born

The Orphan

The Orphan’s Mother

Learning to Live Alone

Remembering Mama

A Visitor

The Workout Begins

Fall at the Farm

Weaning the Colts from Their Mothers

How Pops Learned about Race Horses

Learning from the Best

Leo, Higgins, and Scarface

A Day at the Horse Sale with Pops

Judy, the Pony

Liz Writes To Her Cousins

Grams Writes a Sad Letter

Training Begins for Leo, Higgins and Scarface

Grams Explains The Little Brown Jug to Her Grandkids

Liz Learns a Lesson From Chester Cornelius

Another Trip with Pops

The Family of Horses from Razzle Dazzle

Razzle Dazzle: One Good Mare

Martha, the Winning Filly

Aunt Helen, Razzle Dazzle’s Second Daughter

Millie, Kicking Filly

Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse

Glossary

Introduction

Setting:

A small horse farm in the Midwestern state of Indiana which has a half-mile training track, surrounded by a woods pasture, hay fields, and various small lots for the horses to remain outdoors. There is one main horse barn with stalls for training horses; a second barn for equipment and hay; and small shed with extra stalls.

Time frame:

Liz’s early youth, from about eight-years-old through her grade school years. Her observations and her participation with Pops over those years at the farm.

Cast:

Pops: the owner of a small horse farm, raising and training race horses. Many of the stories relate to the work Pops does with the horses and training the colts to lead, drive, and train for racing.

Grams: Pops’ wife and usual helper as he works with the mares and babies. Grams leads the mares while Pops guides their foals as he teaches them. Grams also tends the gardens, fixes the food, and cares for the visiting grandchildren.

Liz: Granddaughter of Pops and Grams, who lives on the next farm, just a short distance from Pops’ farm. Liz loves the horses, especially the foals, and enjoys her adventures with Pops.

Other Cast Members: Cousins of Liz named Hope, Maddox, Drew, John Stephen, and Jansen, and their great-grandpa, called Big Grandpa.

The Horses: Various mares and their offspring. In particular, one mare with her four fillies, born over a four year period, and the challenges in training those horses. Some of the horses’ names have been changed, sometimes to names which happen to belong to actual horses racing, but their nick names are the names used on this farm:

Skittle, the Orphan Race Horse

Razzle Dazzle, Martha, Aunt Helen, and Millie

Chester Cornelius and his mother Elite

Leo, Scarface, and Higgins

Minnow Man

Judy, the Pony

Emery

Theme:

The happiness and heartache involved in raising horses, babies through brood mares, and the resulting lessons learned by the younger generation.

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Note from the Author

F or over forty years, my husband and I have lived on the horse farm providing the setting for Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse, and Other Race Horse Tales . These stories floated around in my mind for several years. My writing began when the fourth filly of a rambunctious mare was born. After her mother died of complications, the filly became the first orphan we had experienced on this farm. Our only granddaughter, Ava Elisabeth, Liz, fell in love with this little filly. Only five at the time, she insisted we call the filly Skittle and so we did.

Soon, I began writing sketches about our times with Skittle. The actions of other colts born to us made interesting stories, too. Describing their antics also provided more tales for youngsters. Before long, other friends suggested these sketches should be shared, not only with our grandchildren, but with children everywhere. The result is this book, Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse, and Other Race Horse Tales.

Throughout this collection of stories, I refer to the horses owned at this farm by the names and nicknames given by our family, like Skittle. These names do not refer to any horses racing today, but only to our own stock.

Carol Parks Morrison

Heartfelt thanks

M y heartfelt thanks to the following individuals for their knowledge, time, support, encouragement, effort, and enthusiasm for this publication:

Gail Cunard and Joanne Sowash Young, of the Harness Horse Museum, for their inspiration and encouragement;

Dr. Judith Leas Everson, for her tireless suggestions and editing;

Ellen Taylor, for keeping the Standardbred details accurate;

Sally Remaklus, for encouragement, for a final reading, and friendship;

Jo Pugh, for her eagerness to sketch, draw, and produce the farm diagram;

Dr. Jeannette Morrison, for her unending work with the pictures in the text;

Judith Swank Beecher, forever my encourager, friend, and dear cousin,

Jim Ritenour, for his faithful guidance during computer work,

George Ellsworth, for work with unusual photographs,

For images provided by Susan Fisher, Shelley Johnson, Kathy Gerasimof, Mark Hall, Photographer for the USTA, and the Delaware County Fair.

One more thank you: my husband Steve for his patience with all the rough drafts, all the shuffled papers, all the stacks of work completed, and for loving me even still.

An Introduction to

Skittle, the Orphan Racehorse, And Other Race Horse Tales

T his book about young colts and fillies learning to be race horses takes place on a small farm in Indiana. The farm has a half-mile training track surrounded by a woods pasture, hay fields, and various small lots used for keeping the horses outdoors. It has one main horse barn with stalls for training the horses, a second large white barn for equipment and hay, and a small shed with extra stalls.

The farm is owned by Pops and his wife Grams. Many of the stories relate to the work Pops does with the horses. Pops has broodmares who give birth to their colts in early spring. Grams, Pops’ usual helper, leads the mares while he begins breaking their colts to lead, drive, and prepare for racing.

The main character for these stories is Liz, their granddaughter, who lives on the next farm, a small distance from Pops’ race barn. Liz loves the horses, especially the foals. She enjoys naming them and talking to them. Liz has many adventures with Pops and writes letters to tell her cousins what is happening at the farm.

One mare and her four fillies born over a four-year period give Pops all he can handle. Their individual habits and unusual personalities present interesting situations. Pops wanted horses with spunk, and they pour it out daily. Pops must fully concentrate to overcome their habits and train them properly.

Liz grows up knowing happiness and excitement, as well as sadness and heartache. These young colts and the mares who mother them present all sorts of life lessons for Pops, Grams, and especially for young Liz. This book tells Liz’s story as she lives near Pops’ farm, knowing these lively horses.

A Filly Is Born

O ne spring day, when the sun was shining brightly, Liz walked across the fields and down the road to visit her grandfather, Pops. Pops had just pulled into his driveway with his horse trailer hooked onto his white pick-up truck. Liz had something in mind: she wanted to see what Pops was bringing to the farm.

As she walked along the short distance from her house to his barn, Liz hummed a little song. She sang out loud, listening to the birds twittering nearby, and trying to copy their songs. She listened some more. She tried again. Those birds sang so sweetly, with such a trill, that it was hard for her to mimic them. After a while, Liz just sang her favorite tune to herself.

Pops had mentioned that one of his mares, Razzle Dazzle, had given birth to a filly last week. Maybe that mare was in his trailer. If she was, the little filly would be there, too. She sure hoped this was why Pops had turned so slowly into his driveway. Maybe she would meet a new friend today.

Liz loved talking to Pops’ mares. She often climbed up the gates and peered into the horse lots to see them. Usually, the mares would walk right over to see her. She knew they were probably interested in the apples hidden in her pockets.

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Sometimes the mares came over for a visit. They stood still and allowed Liz to rub their heads. She talked as she rubbed them. Maybe her words were just chit-chat; that’s what Pops said. Nevertheless, Liz really believed those mares knew what she was saying.

Maybe Pops thought her chatter was just girl talk. Liz didn’t think about it much. She just talked to those horses. She asked them about their days. She pulled a handful of grass and fed it to them. She asked them if they wanted more. She asked them how they were feeling. Mostly she just rubbed their heads and hummed and cooed to them.

Today, she walked and sang. Then she began skipping. As she got closer, she became more excited. At the very last, she broke into a little run. Finally, at the barn, she saw that Pops had backed his trailer up to the barn door and was beginning to let down the trailer tailgate. She was just in time! Very soon, the mystery would be solved.

As