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Animal rights campaigners say the race is barbaric and horses have died

The organisers of a horse race which has been criticised by animal rights charities, are in talks with a council over running the event at a castle.

The Palio horse race, which originates in Siena, Italy, could be run at Caernarfon castle as part of a tour.

Ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair was criticised by animal rights campaigners for attending a Palio in 1999.

Caernarfon town council said health and safety issues would have to be answered before the race got the go ahead.

The Palio races, which originated in the 14th Century, are held twice a year in Siena.

Jockeys ride the horses bare backed around the city’s Piazza del Campo in a dash which lasts roughly 90 seconds.

As you can imagine there will be a lot of health and safety questions that would need to be addressed Catherine Owen, Caernarfon town council’s clerk

The horses represent different districts of the city and thousands of spectators watch from elevated buildings or the centre of the square.

But animal rights campaigners say the race is barbaric because many horses have died in its history.

Caernarfon town council’s clerk Catherine Owen said there had been an initial meeting with organisers of the race, who had visited the town to consider it as part of a Palio international tour.

If the race is given the go ahead, it would be run in September.

Ms Owen said: “As you can imagine there will be a lot of health and safety questions that would need to be addressed and lots of issues involving the public, the horses and the castle to be resolved.

“Nothing has been agreed at this stage.

“There will be several meetings before anything is passed and dates agreed.”

Ms Owen said organisers had picked Caernarfon because of the heritage value of its castle.

This is a really fun little story I found.  I found it on the www.thestarpress.com website

Reggie Miller? Get real.

Rick Smits? Close, but no.

Those three may have had a claim as some of the best athletes to display their talents for cheering crowds in Indianapolis at one time. That era ended Saturday night in Conseco Fieldhouse.

The new title holder certainly lacks the height of those other three. He doesn’t throw a football, shoot a basketball or dunk all over people.

He isn’t even a human.

He’s a monkey and he rides on the back of a dog with such grace and skill, the adjective I need to describe the sight has yet to be introduced.

You truly have to see Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey to believe it. And you just missed a golden opportunity last night as the 21-year old Capuchin monkey enchanted the several thousand Conseco Fieldhouse fans gathered for the spectacle that is the World’s Toughest Rodeo, a nationwide tour being filmed for a reality series on Spike TV (The Indy episode airs Feb. 12).

The little fella has gained worldwide acclaim thanks to YouTube videos and the 25-plus commercials he’s starred in.

Let me take this opportunity to remind you this is not a joke. The little monkey wears little chaps and a little black hat while riding atop a 5-year-old border collie named Toby.

A showoff with nearly two-decades of tricks up those little red sleeves, Whiplash went to his trademark side-saddle, one-hand-on-the-bar-the-other-in-the-dirt move while herding sheep into an imaginary corral.

Toby took a few tight turns at high speeds, but you didn’t see Whiplash eat any soil. He’s all athlete.

So you say Manning won a Super Bowl, Miller beat the Knicks and Smits proved the Dutch can dunk. But could any of them ride a dog while convincing stubborn sheep to stand where they wanted?

That’s right. Whiplash can and does it with a smile on his face.

Sprinkle in that showmanship, and he’s got the crowd on his little back pocket.

For owner Tommy Lucia Sr., Whiplash is just his “good old pal.”

The Weatherford, Texas resident rescued Whiplash from a crowded pen in Florida at the age of two months. Whip, as Lucia calls him, lives in the family house on the spacious ranch they call home.

Like any star athlete and entertainer, Whiplash can cop an attitude from time to time. He’s just part of the family, Lucia explained as his sons have been known to give and receive a little brotherly love with the primate. When he’s not riding Toby in front of thousands of fans, Whiplash hangs out in his bedroom and watches DVDs. Disney movies are his favorite.

People can’t get enough of old’ Whiplash. He recently performed for an army of Hollywood A-listers including Samuel L. Jackson (minus the snakes and the plane).

Lucia fields offers from around the world from people who want to see him perform. For 12 years, David Letterman’s people have called Lucia, but don’t expect Whiplash to be hanging on the coach next to Ball State’s most famous alum.

“I just didn’t want to put my animals in the position to be made fun of,” Lucia says. “They call me four times a year.”

A little ink time in The Star Press should be enough of a thrill, right?

Ultimately, it’s all about the reaction from the fans for Lucia.

“I do it because he brings happiness to people,” said his teacher and best friend. “I think it is a gift from God. No matter if they are poor or rich, he puts a smile on their face.”

After inducing more camera flashes than most monkeys could handle, it was time for Whiplash to call it a night. Riding off into the sunset (or the safety of the arena’s underbelly), Whiplash ignored repeated interview requests.

Diva.

I guess that just comes with the territory of dealing with the best athlete to ever draw praise from and Indianapolis crowd.

But give me the choice of eating dinner with Manning, Miller, the Dutchman or Whiplash — I take that crazy cowboy monkey every time.

Bring on the bananas.

                   Whiplash (Photo provided by ridewhiplash.com)

Technorati Tags: black hat, Cowboy Chaps, cowboy monkey, Leather Chaps, monkey, sheep dog, super bowl, Whiplash

My interest in things related to leather chaps, started with an even bigger interest in horses.  I have a big black and white cob that I used to drive and we used to do some weddings.  I soon realized that there were easier ways to kill yourself and shovel money in a hole in the ground for the priviledge.  I then lost some weight and was able to ride Jack, my horse.  The trouble was, e’d been loafing around in his field for so long with his buddies, that he didn’t really want to do anything else, so we had a few issues where I would try to ride him, and he would try to stop me riding him.

A friend of mine had a youngster at the time, still does, but she’d bred this foal and had started working with her using a natural horsemanship method.  When I could se the great results she was having, I investigated it too.  I looked into Parelli, bought the books and DVDs and went to work.  The result were amazing.  No miracles mind you, but the results were directly related to the effort I was putting in.  We were making progress, and Jack and myself are very happy with it. 

The Parelli program is superb, but it cannot be denied, it is very expensive.  I feel it’s been worth it, but a lot of folks just don’t have the funds to throw at it.  However, the detail sometimes is a bit much to take in, and kind of misses the overall viewpoints and principles which are often essential to gain a solid understanding of a topic.

I then came across a book by a chap called Clinton Anderson.  I’ve never met him, but he did apparently work for years with Pat Parelli and learned much of his ‘trade’ from Pat.  He then went off and followed his own path in the field of horse training.  I found this book really good.  It provides a good overview of many of the basics that sometimes get a little lost in the mass of detail of the Parelli Program.  I found it very useful to read about more or less the same thing, but from a different viewpoint.  It made many things more clear.  It was also really helpfull to read the comments from the two pupils used in Clinton’s book.  Both pupils are newcomers to natural horsemanship, and the horses are both animals with ‘issues’!

I wouldn’t ever say this book could take the place of the Parelli Program, but I’m really glad I bought it, as both information sources really complement each other.  Have a look at the link on the right or click Natural Horsemanship with Clinton Anderson.

I’m so glad I’ve drifted along the more rugged path of horse riding.  I’ve got my western saddle, my leather chaps and make sure that any other western wear I aquire looks like I’ve had it forever.  I’m done with the pomp and ceremony of the whole english riding thing.

Technorati Tags: clinton anderson, Cowboy Chaps, Leather Chaps, natural horsemanship, pat parelli, Western Chaps, western wear

I always had a game of Buckaroo when I was younger.  No leather chaps involved, just a funny looking plastic mule that you piled on the junk, until the mule had enough and fred it all across the living room!  Well, where did that word come from - Buckaroo.

I always figured it came from the word ‘buck’.  Lord knows I’ve hit the floor often enough as a result of being on the receiving end of one!

In doing my research about the whole leather chaps thing, I found the answer.  Way back in the sixteenth century, the Mexican horsemen who generally worked as labourers on ranches and missions were known as Vaqueros.  In Spanish, the ‘V’ is pronounced ‘B’, this would cause it to sound like Baqueros, which is indeed very similar to Buckeroos.  I guess, a rider of bucking livestock?

So simple when someone tells you!

Technorati Tags: buckaroo, Leather Chaps, livestock, vaqueros