Intermission: Carriage ride!

Peter Atkins added greatly to our adventure by connecting us to James Houston, currently a carriage driver in Ocala. We knew nothing about him but Peter said he could take us on a 4-in-hand carriage ride and we said “hell yes!” We did not ask where to? Were the horses behaved? Was he an axe murderer looking for victims? Nope none of that. We just said yes. More faith. He turned out to be a lovely man on the phone so we scheduled for Thursday morning at 9AM. He worked out of a place called Cardinal Training Center, a large multi-facility center that used to be a thoroughbred training center. James oversaw a large barn with at least 20 horses, all owned by a single owner and his wife. He is a mechanical engineer by training. Horses, man, they will pull you out of even the most lucrative careers.

When we got to his barn at 9 sharp, he was already waiting for us with his team of 4 white, wait for it…..Lipizzaners!!! I had guessed Connemaras, or Welsh Cobs, but no.

He took us for a lovely ride through the expansive training center with a woman named Muffin (Margaret Smith) who is a leader in the United States Lipizzan Federation. She owns three at the moment, and is a retired accountant for the United States Treasury (we studiously avoided asking questions about the current administration). The horses pulling us had been imported from Lipizza, which is in Slovenia, with 4 other Lipizzaner horses. The barn also contained Canadian Halfbreds and Haflingers. They winter in Florida and summer in Barrington, IL. James goes with them, along with a flock of swans and flamingoes.