Country Time Acres Blog

All smiles after placing at Devon.

Beautiful carriages can be seem at the harness competition.

     It’s  one of the oldest, largest and most prestigious horse shows in the country and I had never been there. This ten day event boasts that it attracts over 100,000 spectators and 1,500 horses. You might even see a celebrity such as Bruce Springsteen, his daughter, Jessica was last year’s “Best Child Rider” winner.  Just what’s so special about Devon?

     My day started off at the show arena. I guess I picked the wrong day to visit, halter class after halter class followed by thoroughbreds at the walk, trot and canter. As I have said before, if your not showing or there cheering someone on who is, it’s just plain boring!  It’s really not a spectator sport.

     I walked through the shops and had a bite to eat. I will say that there is a great variety of food and it all looks good and is not outrageously priced.  There are rides and games for the kids, as well as cotton candy and funnel cakes. My tour of the shops was interesting to say the least. Being a western girl I didn’t find the high fashion dresses to my taste. There were lots of beautiful hats but, with the threat of rain I decided to leave mine at home. There were a few items that drew my attention, the $800.00 pillow ( you have got to be kidding!), the $7,000.00 rocking horse  and the $15,000.00 bracelet. Do people really buy these things?  I did manage to find a treasure or two which included a crop that looked like a magic wond, a candy stick with a horse on it and I saved the best for last, a book “The Quotable Equine”.  Jim Dratfield was a really nice guy, great to talk to and a very talented photographer. For $20.00 not only did I get a beautiful book, but he autographed it for me.

     The action did improve later with the carriages and the harness competition. My biggest complaint is the seating. Due to the Grand Prix all the reserved seats were sold out, so we purchased general admission tickets. Little did we know that the reserved seat ticket entitled you to that seat all day. With the Grand Prix not starting until 8:00 p.m. there were hundreds of open seats and I had to stand. At 4:00 I decided I had had enough and sat down only to have a uniform guard tell me that without a ticket he had to kick me out.  When I left at 6:00 p.m. those seats were still empty.

    Overall, I’d say that if this is your thing then Devon is the show to be at. It is a tradition that has lasted 113 years and has made $335,000.00 for the Bryn Mawr Hospital.  Hats off to everyone who made it to Devon and especially those who left a champion.  Although it wasn’t my cup of tea, or should I say glass of wine, but, at least I can now say “Yes, I have been to Devon”.

For great horse gifts at fantastic prices visit Country Time Creations.

Did you visit?  Leave a comment.

Bull Riding at Cowtown.

Opening ceremonies at Cowtown.

     If you love the action of the rodeo than Cowtown rodeo in Woodstown, New Jersey is the place to be on Saturday nights. This rodeo dates back to 1929 when the rodeo was first held in conjunction with the county fair.  Today the rodeo  is still going strong thanks to strong family traditions and a passion for the sport. Every Saturday night beginning Memorial Day weekend fans gather to see  bull riding, bareback riding, team roping, steer wrestling, calf roping, saddle bronc riding and barrel racing.

     The action begins at 7:30 with the presenting of the American flag and the national anthem. Participants parade before the crowd and then the action begins. Some nights the crowd is entertained by special performers such as trick riders and ropers. There is  always the usual ice cream, soda and don’t forget the funnel cake and peanuts. There are plenty of cowboys and cowgirls, beautiful horses and don’t forget the rodeo clowns. For more information visit Cowtown Rodeo.

For great horse gifts and clothing visit Country Time Creations.

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Jenna and Rob Mermin, founder of Circus Smirkus.

Jenna and her pumpkin she painted with the Circus Smirkus logo.

While traveling this journey called life, one never knows where it will lead. After three years of teaching  horse behavior  and liberty I knew I needed something new to offer to camp programs. Fortunately, my family has had a pretty adventurous life so, inspiration isn’t hard to find. My daughter, Jenna is a circus artist and after watching her show I thought what a great idea, I’ll do a circus using my horses and so was born, Le Cirque of Horses. 

Jenna’s circus adventure started when she was in high school and she took an interest in a show called “Circus Smirkus”. This was a reality type program documenting the life of children who were part of this circus program based in Vermont. During the summer troupers travel and put on a circus, all the participants are children under the age of 18. When my daughter came to me and told me she wanted to audition for a spot at the circus camp I told her to “Go for it!”. This was a world wide search and I figured she really didn’t have a chance in heck of getting a spot.  Boy was I wrong! There were only four openings and she was was getting one of them and it would only cost $1,500.00. That’s a lot of dollars for a week of camp but, I knew it would be an experience of a lifetime so I dipped into her college fund and off she went. She spent one week in Vermont learning from the best in the trade which included people from all parts of the world. Children experience all parts of the circus arts including acrobatics, clowning, stilt walking, trapeez, tight rope, juggling, balancing and unicycle. The camp has very strict rules including diet, no junk food and three minute showers. Many of the costumes are hand made but, I sent several boxes of costumes for them to borrow. When we returned a week later to pick her up I was amazed at the performance the kids did for us and they looked great in the costumes I had sent.  Jenna didn’t put the experience behind her, instead she let it grow and began performing at hospitals and community events. Learn more about Circus Smirkus and Jenna’s Never Ending Road Trip.   Did you visit us? Leave a comment.

A carriage parade is one of the many events at Point to Point Steeplechase.

And their off!

Ladies grab your hat and your picnic basket and head to the 31st annual Point to Point Steeplechase to benefit the Winterthur Estate.  This year’s event is Saturday, May 3, 09 and will feature  racing, a painted ponies silent auction, kids coral, fun run/walk, carriage parade and historic auto’s. The painted ponies auction will spotlight heirloom rocking horses painted and signed by artist. Winterthur is a country estate with antique collections, gardens, an enchanted woods and library. Winterthur is located in Delaware’s beautiful Brandywine Valley. Point to Point is a major fundraiser for the estate. Learn more at Winterthur.org. Shop for jewelry and horse handbags at Country Time Creations.

Did you visit us? Leave a comment.