A New Keswick MFH: Her Story
Sandra Forbush photo
If you are wondering where in the Keswick countryside the cover picture was taken, you are observant. It was not taken in Keswick but at Massie’s Corner in Rappahannock County where I grew up. My father, Wade Massie, loved to hunt foxes. My Uncle Jim tells how Pop used to get on the school bus in the morning and get off a few stops later where there would be a horse waiting for him. He would hunt all day with Ennis Jenkins, Larry Jenkins’ father, and get back on the bus in the afternoon. His parents were none the wiser.
Later Jack Bruce helped Pop put together a pack of hounds which Clint Eastham, son of famous hound breeder C.C. Eastham, would hunt for him. (It is kind of fun to think about how I would hunt with hounds and people with a lot of the same bloodlines sixty years later).
Pop also hunted with Rappahannock and was a whipper-in there. Current Rappahannock Master Oliver Brown likes to tell a story about how Pop could make any horse quiet. One day a visitor from New Jersey had come down to hunt. The visitor’s horse was rank, while Pop’s was going along well. Halfway through the day Pop offered to switch horses. By day’s end Pop’s new mount was going along on the buckle, and the visitor’s horse was jigging all around.
Cleveland Bays Bring Real Field Hunters to Upperville
If you want to see real field hunters at the Upperville Horse Show, the Cleveland Bay Hunter Division is for you. More than twenty-five percent of the entries in that division have seen service in the hunting field. Another twenty-five percent or so of the Cleveland Bay entries are still too young for the field, […]
Brian Kiely Wins Fourth National Horn Blowing Championship
Brian Kiely bested a strong lineup of fourteen participants to win his fourth National Horn Blowing Championship. / Liz Callar photo
Brian Kiely broke his own record by winning his fourth National Horn Blowing Championship. Since the start of the competition in 1995, five men have won the title twice—Andrew Barclay, Steve Farrin, Ian Milne, Adrian Smith, and John Tabachka—but with his fourth championship Kiely continues to move the goal posts for the rest of the field. Kiely is the new huntsman at the Potomac Hunt (MD), and his victory was accompanied by the cheers of his supporters led by retiring Potomac huntsman Larry Pitts.
The 2015 National Horn Blowing Championship was held at Morven Park on May 23, 2015 over the Virginia Foxhound Show weekend. The large crowd on hand under the Saturday night dinner tent listened enthusiastically to the fifteen entries in a strong lineup of contestants.
After the first round in which all participants blew three calls on their horns, three individuals were asked to return for a blow-off: Brian Kiely, Adrian Smith, and John Tabachka. This was an all-star lineup with all three finalists holding multiple titles. Adrian Smith is huntsman for the Metamora Hunt (MI), and John Tabachka is huntsman for the Sewickley Hunt (PA).
Haight, White, Barclay Inducted into the Huntsmen’s Room
Andrew Barclay (left) and Sherman Haight congratulate eachother on the occasion of their mutual induction into The Huntsmen’s Room at the Museum of Hounds and Hunting. / Douglas Lees photo
Three huntsmen, two living and one deceased, were honored the day before the Virginia Foxhound Show for their uncommon skill as huntsmen and for their contributions to foxhunting in North American. Sherman P. Haight, Jr., ex-MFH; William John White, Jr.; and Andrew T. Barclay were inducted into The Huntsmen’s Room of the Museum of Hounds and Hunting in ceremonies held at Morven Park on Saturday, May 23, 2015.
While recognized by this honor for their achievements in handling hounds in the field and producing the highest level of sport, each of these three men of disparate backgrounds contributed uniquely to our sport. Their stories are just as uniquely fascinating.
Advice From a Junior Whipper-In
Here’s astute, peer-to-peer advice for juniors aspiring to become honorary hunt staff. I can’t help but wonder how many huntsmen out there would love to have Carmen on his/her staff!
We, juniors, are the future of foxhunting. It is our responsibility to be knowledgeable and to keep this fantastic sport alive and traditional.
Have you ever peered past the first Field Master at those tiny white specs in the distance—the hounds—and wondered what’s going on up there, what that blast of the horn meant, where that scarlet-clad rider is galloping off to in such a hurry? Ever think about whipping-in?
What to Think About Before You Decide to Whip-In
Whipping-in can be the most exhilarating, amazing adventure ever, or it can be the most terrifying, stressful experience ever. It largely depends on how you handle the thrills and horrors that being a whip sends your way.
Whipping-in doesn’t only take place on your horse in the hunt field. It takes place in the kennels, in the stables, at home with a mountain of books, and in the mud on your backside watching your mount vanish into the distance.
Fort Leavenworth Valor Conquers the West; Will Invade Virginia Next
Fort Leavenworth Valor ’13 begins his day at Central States by capturing the English/Crossbred Championship. North Hills Kid Rock, last year’s Grand Champion of Show, was Reserve. Huntsman Stephanie Wilcox Carter, MFH shows Valor. Judge Cameron Sadler is standing (right). / Glen Carter photo
Fort Leavenworth Valor ‘13 was crowned Grand Champion Foxhound at both the Southwest Hound Show on April 18, 2015 and the Central States Hound Show on May 2, 2015.
Valor is a fitting name for Fort Leavenworth hounds, tied as the hunt is to that venerable military post in Kansas. Three Fort Leavenworth foxhounds have proudly carried the name, Valor, in the last thirty years!
Southwest Hound Show
Exhibiting hunts at the Southwest Hound Show included Brazos Valley Hounds (TX), Fort Leavenworth Hunt, and Independence Foxhounds (TX). Judges George and Jeanie Thomas, MFHs of the Why Worry Hunt (SC) were impressed by both Valor and the hound show. In a “joint communique” George and Jeanie write, “We like Valor a lot, and he showed the way a champion should. We found him to be a very nice hound with super conformation and correctness. He is a fluid mover and has a lot of power from his lovely hind end. Although he is not a big hound, he made up for it with his drive and verve. We are looking forward to seeing him in Virginia!”
Dr. Jock Tate Is New Master at Moore County
The Moore County Hounds (NC) has announced the appointment of Dr. Jock Tate as a new Master of the hunt. Jock, a veterinarian, has been a member of Moore County for more than a half century. He was awarded his colors back in 1959 by Pappy and Ginnie Moss, the hunt’s founders. Jock is described […]
The Keswick Hunt…In Motion!
Here’s Phil Audibert’s cleverly edited video montage of the Keswick Hunt’s 2014/2015 foxhunting season, set to the music of the Ryegrass Rollers. The fox, the hounds, huntsman Tony Gammell, Masters, staff, and the Keswick field members all play the starring roles in this fast-paced romp through the Virginia countryside.
Lady Masters of Foxhounds: A Round Table Discussion at NSLM
A round table discussion on the challenges faced by lady Masters will be held at the National Sporting Library & Museum, Middleburg, Virginia, on Saturday, May 23, 2015 from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. A panel has been assembled to hold a candid discussion on the topic the day before the Virginia Foxhound Show at Morven […]
The Blue Birdseye Stock Tie: A Smashing Style from the Past
Karen Ewbank is ready for cubhunting in her blue birdseye stock tie.
I want to tell you about a little-known yet colorful article of foxhunting attire from the past that deserves to be resurrected. When I first saw it under the huntsman’s scarlet coat I asked myself, “What in the world is that man wearing about his neck?”
Here was an experienced foxhunter who had been a professional huntsman and whipper-in for world-class packs in England, Ireland, and America, yet he appeared to be oblivious to “proper” foxhunting attire. I’m referring to Hugh Robards, huntsman of the Middleburg Hunt. Robards is also an author, a student of the noble art, and possesses an extensive library. I thought he should have known better, but I didn’t want to embarrass him, so I didn’t ask.
It turns out that I was the ignorant one, but, I suspect, I’m not alone in this particular matter. Robards, I was to learn, was wearing a striking article of traditional foxhunting attire—a blue birdseye stock tie—under his scarlet coat. During his twenty-seven-year stint as huntsman for Lord Daresbury at the County Limerick (IRE), both he and Daresbury wore their blue birdseye stock ties through the autumn hunting season.
How many foxhunters of today have ever heard of such a thing, I wonder? The better question, though, is wouldn’t it be great fun to bring back this handsome stock tie into our own hunting fields?