The Lexington McKinneys are Lee, Laura and Ouisha. Ouisha is the one who makes the “to die for” custom sweaters. I got one for my mom for Christmas several years ago. In her silks colors with the farm motif on it. It was the best present I have given her in years.
Laura’s farm is known as Stoney Point and she is an agent at the Keeneland sales. She also buys hunter prospects for resale. Lee does racehorses, but if she had a jumper, she would probably go back into the show ring.
Kip Rosenthal’s “other” good grey horse was Goodboy Dee, a wonderful Junior Hunter, who later went to Gail Hulick.
Chantilly wasn’t owned by Tanrackin (I don’t think so anyway, unless it was later, but by then Meta would have been too big to ride a small pony). Are you thinking of their stallion, Chantain? I don’t know if he and Chantilly were related or not.
Remember Knoud’s on Madison Avenue? It was 2 blocks away from my high school so I loved going in and bothering the sales people.
Breeches were Harry Hall. I had long sleeve shirts (one with brown polka dots) that required cuff links. Brown hunt caps to match your brown field boots. Brown tweed jacket to match the brown boots and hat. Black boots with the patent leather cuff top. Dehner not Vogel as the custom boot choice. Pytchley riding jackets with bright linings (red, if I remember correctly). Chaps were just not done. Velvet chokers and velvet collars on your hunt coats (which were called hunt coats, not jackets).
Ladies side saddle classes over fences. Appointment classes (remember lunch boxes and stitched reins?).
Plaited reins.
Outside courses with huge coops and brush boxes with brush in them.
Bank jumps.
Hunt team classes.
People who field hunted showing and people who showed regularly hunting after Septmeber.
Maiden, novice, limit, and open eq classes.
Non-TB hunter classes that were separate from TB hunter classes.
Quarter horses instead of warmbloods.
Always being in a 2-point.
Galloping for real in hunter classes.
Your “show” horse that did eq, hunters, and the odd jumper class all at the same show and then hunted on Wednesday and Sunday.
Victor Hugo-Vidal’s voice booming over the show grounds without a microphone.
Overnight shows that were only 2 or 3 days long.
The L.V.I.S. show instead of the Hampton Classic.
Oldfield!
I feel old…
I don’t know if anyone’s posted this already, but what about when today’s famous riders were younger? Like Allison Firestone, for example. Anyone remember the ponies they rode?
Did THEY ride in rust breeches? 
Great photo!
Hey, I’m old enough to remember when God invented dirt. I rode western nearly all my life but I remember watching the hunters back in the 70s at the open shows I attended. I always thought the brown Deiners and brown hats looked gorgeous along with the subtle plaid coats the hunter riders used to wear. I also thought those rolled bridles looked pretty nifty on a horse with a nice head.
I will bet Weatherford that’s Mrs. Slater standing as judge in PamM’s picture. Think Mrs. V wore her hair longer. We do know who could tell us if that is she or not… 
Dublin – are you the DeeDee of Devon (and Protocol 
) fame??? I bought Protocol from you (if it is you) in 1976! (The one I really wanted though was Reality, but another Nimrod A/O got him…) Or was there another top rider at Sterling Stables named DeeDee in the 70’s?
Whatever happened to Diane and Johnny Johnson?
Small world!
LaurieB, where did “Marvin” ride? I thought Terry Rudd always showed S. Showdown when he owned him. As anyone ever matched that record, even Rox Dene?
Oh I still have my brown tweed custom made jacket.
It is lovely. I especially adore the collar that has the piece and button to turn it up and fasten in bad weather.
I don’t have any of the olde breeches though, haha, pre velcro some of those were. 
SoEasy, you must also remember all the good ponies that came out of Jack Trainor’s barn. Westwood Dinandan and Mimosa seemed to win everything.
I loved the outside courses also. Woodedge in New Jersey was one of my favorites and even the small ponies hacked on the outside course. Huntcap and Sugartown were fun too. I had one of those old fashioned ponies who could jump the moon, but he moved like an egg beater. The most honest, wonderful saint you could ever own. Everyone should start on one like him!
No I did not ride at All Around but saw them at most of the shows I competed at. Always was in envy of the horses…they always looked so good.
Shiny horses, shiny tack, shiny brass…Brenton Reef, Hot Shot Kid and so many others. That barn was pretty unbeatable in those days.
Now, Jumpsalot, you know the Welles didn’t let you wear that elastic thingie anymore than George let us. You stuck it up inside your hat because if you cut it off the cut ends showed.
There was a period when the cool look was to have the hunt caps match your coat and coordinate with your boots: green or brown coat with brown boots and cap; blue coat, blue hat and black boots. The coats had to be Pychtley.
What was really great were the outside courses. Then you really had to gallop.
dublin, since you are from the Woodinville area, do you remember someone named Karen Jensen, rode for Leon Butts (I believe he was based in Woodinville) and had a working hunter named GoRageous? She later moved to MN and that is where I met her…Ring any bells?
Laurie
In the um 70s ( boy that was a long time ago) I showed at Upperville My fav place in the small hunters and the A/Os we had to gallop around in the big ring with the trees then jump out over the wall (big solid with cement and rocks thank you) then gallop through the in and out BOY it was very very long and then back in over maybe another wall or a post and rail .There always was this very long in and out along the side where the garnd stand is>>> BUt for the classics you schooled over the bank in the am and that was very funny to watch lik e watching Katie (now Prudent then monahan )and OLD DOMINION canter up to the low part and he never unfolded just landed with his knees still bent and laid over on his side .Jimmy Woffard was schooling director and sniggered at that so I gallped up ( having evented my horse I wasn’t worried )Up one stride and down .BIG pat to my horse then after Jimmy said tahtwas good I said Um do “you think I could do the big one?”
And i did !!!
Boy was that cool
I loved Ruxton!!! Saw him in the working hunters at the Garden in the early 70s. What an amazing horse!
I had canary breeches, a hunt coat with a velvet color, cordovan field boots, a Prix des Nations saddle, hunt cap with elastic that I didn’t wear under my chin, velvet chokers, stock pins, etc. Also had grey Harry Halls, hunt coat with gold buttons, etc. The outside course at Fairfield was my favorite.
The brown field boots still sit in my closet waiting for a comeback…
This was prompted by a post on the “show ring no nos” thread.
Any show with any sense of its own importance used numbers that hooked on the back of your jacket. The only place you saw numbers with a piece of string was 4H shows.
That seems to have reversed now.
is that Mary Gray’s ring? I remember how he would push his hat back on his head. He was truly a wonderful rider and horseman.
Does S Pines still have the winter schooling series? In the 70’s, every weekend in the winter, a different person would donate their ring. The show would start at noon and run for about 4 hours (visiting pro’s were roped in as judges). No entry fees. No pressure. Just a marvelous way to get young horses into different rings under show conditions every week (alternating open and jr. shows). And the same person who hosted the show would have a party that night. So we would take our horses home at 4 and by 5 - 5:30 be back, still in breeches and boots, for a wonderful open house/buffet dinner party.
People would donate $50 or so for the season to fund ribbons and lunch for the judge. Otherwise it was all horsepeople trading off rings and jumps and hospitality.
And sometimes in mid-week word would spread that so-and-so was having open schooling. That meant that a course would be set up and anyone was welcone to hack/van over and school over the course.
What a wonderful way to start babies. I can especially remember Marie Reynolds trotting jump after jump on her young horses. I would look at them and think “What does she see in that thing?” Then, by summer, they would come out jumping really cute and winning. Remember Sincklefritz, Homegrown, and the “Cat” named horse (Catcando?)?
Stories about Marie and Snicky would make a thread of their own. LOL
madras jackets - yup - my first - blue plaid
button-front breeches - yup - in fawn worsted
colored braids - yup - in stable colors
outside courses - yup - gallop ‘n’ go - and in-and-outs set 1 for horses and 1 for ponies and the smalls were allowed to take 2, since they were set for larges
colored hats - yup - never had one (although my black faded so that everyone thought it was brown 20 years later when I was still wearing it!) - REALLY wanted a hunter green one - one young woman in KY made her own (recovered black ones - had every color in the book! - I was so jealous!)
rolled bridles - didn’t like 'em - I did same as someone else mentioned - bought a saddlebred bridle and used that, but replaced the rein with a braided (not laced!)
regulation heights!!! - yup - see head nodding vigourously with “if you couldn’t do the height, you stayed home 'til you learned how”
FUN - YUP - see head nodding even more vigourously in agreement with need for more fun and more breaks
division classes split up throughout day/show - YUP - this is a necessity if we’re to attract spectators
elastic hat bands - I believe these were ONLY on the velveteen hats - I never saw a velvet one with them unless they were put in by hand
Marlborough boots - in the $25 range - all my students bought them, wore them just enough to start breaking them in, then we took them to the shoeman who took them in a little in the lower leg and added a plain (NOT PATENT) cuff - and voila - custom boots for $35 max.
Jumper ring - there sure were jumpers on LI - Neal and Uncle Max, Danny and Little Scubbie, Harry & Snowman, Riviera Wonder, Windsor Castle, Ira and “the carat horses” - and tons of others I can’t remember now
A/Os - that got pinned for getting around in reasonable style while managing to keep their owners on board
so much fun… aren’t memories wonderful?
A full bridle, too. 
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
