I had made an appointment with Roz' farrier James Gilchrist, and -having been exposed to quite a few farriers of the Prima Donna kind (i.e. at one barn in Germany we had to wine and dine the guy and sent him home with lots of bottles in order to entice him to show up again)- I was thrilled to speak with a very professional and nice guy on the other end of the line. Not only that, he was the first person I met in in Florida that thought having a Morgan was great!
The appointment was at 9:30 a.m., by 9 a.m. James and his farriers had rolled up and set up shop. JP would have been thrilled to see the meticulously arranged tools in the trailer.. Remy's feet got thoroughly examined, then James conferred with one of his farriers, and this very nice young professional got to work. It was the first time that Remy got hot shoes, and he stood patiently through it, just trying to lick the farrier's shirt from time to time. He was a good sport and quipped "No problem, I need a back massage anyway". Remy's feet looked awesome afterwards: He got a size bigger shoes with rolled toes and copper nails. I got explanations and questions answered (without having to prod and poke!), as well as comments on Remy's great feet and condition - and they even thanked me for having a well-behaved horse. I think I'm in love!
In talking with James it turned out we really got the Top Man: Most recently he was in charge of the WEG horses in Tryon, and I found the following on HorsesDaily:
The Official Farrier for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, the 1998 World Equestrian Games in Rome and the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, James Gilchrist AAPF works hard in Wellington, Florida shoeing dressage horses and jumpers for top riders and up and coming riders. It’s important to work with a good farrier with accreditation from the American Association of Professional Farriers. Gilchrist shared with us what he has seen change in the Dressage World during the last twenty years. “Those events were very stressful, you can only imagine, especially the dressage horses because it takes so many years to train one of them and most of the riders only have one Grand Prix horse at that international level. All their hopes and dreams are on that one particular horse and that one particular event. If something goes wrong, it’s not good for anybody.” A farrier for over 30 years, Gilchrist continues to shoe high performance horses. He said, “I started shoeing horses in 1980, full-time in Atlanta, and started coming to Wellington for the winters in 1981. I moved permanently in 1999. Mainly, I shoe jumpers and dressage horses, but I also do therapeutic shoeing. I’ve shod horses for client during every Olympics since 1988, dressage horses and jumping horses, once or twice a 3-Day client.” In talking about what changes he’s seen in the last twenty years, he said, “What has changed in the farrier industry in the 20 years is the technology and the footing. It’s unbelievable. We all use different types of shoes than we did back then because of the new footing that everybody uses in these dressage rings. It really affects the way we shoe these horses. We can use the technology to make the shoeing better." "Still, a lot of people don’t understand the importance of the footing yet, but it’s coming when everyone will understand. We are going with lighter shoes, and taking weight out of the heavier shoes on dressage horses. We hardly ever use bar shoes anymore. Twenty years ago, every horse had bar shoes at the Grand Prix level and lots of Small Tour horses. Everybody wanted them. Now, no one is doing that anymore. The footing makes all the difference. All the top dressage riders know. The dressage horses more than any other discipline work best on this new footing,” he stated. Gilchrist likes to keep things simple and basic, he said, “As far as what I’m doing on dressage horses, I try to keep it as simple as possible, do what’s best for the horse, and maintain a biomechanical, functional hoof. The horses stay sounder longer. When we alternate and change things on these horses, that’s when we get into trouble.” “My best advice to any rider from a show horse farrier is to just take your time with these young horses. Save them, don’t push them too hard. Bring them up the ranks as slow as you can, take good care of their bodies, their feet, and their minds. I’ve seen it both ways, the push hard and the taking time method. Take your time,” he advised.
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| All set up for the horse pedicure in the court yard |
There were other farriers working today in the different barns at WFEC. One drove up in a converted Freightliner truck. Wow! I just had to ask if I could take a photo, and the guys were very nice about it, the owner even offered to take the picture:
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| Freightliner farrier truck with living quarters |
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