"I am pieces of all the places I have been, and the people I have loved. I've been stitched together by song lyrics, book quotes, adventure, late night conversations, moonlight and the smell of coffee"
- Brooke Hampton
- Brooke Hampton
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December 3, 2019
Isn’t funny how a bit will evoke a memory? I ordered this bit in 1986 at the AQHA Youth World Show, then in Tulsa, OK. The maker is Sunburst Bits and I used it on a lot of reiners at that time in my life. It has hung on the wall for a number of years until Ranch Riding became popular in Arabian showing. Every time I use it now I think of the days of the VQHA Pomana Reining Sweepstakes at the LA County Fair, the big AQHA shows at Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara National Horse & Flower Show, and the reining stakes at Santa Anita and Del Mar. That bit competed in all those shows. An era, sadly, gone bye. |
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December 8, 2019
Another bit, another set of memories..... I won the Trail Horse Sweepstake Class at the Region III Arabian Championships one year in Reno, NV. The very dear client that owned the horse took me to one of my favorite tack stores, D Bar M, and bought this bit as a bonus for doing well. Best bonus a horse trainer could ask for! Great owner, great horse, great show, great town and a great bit, I was in heaven. |
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December 12, 2019
Dr. Seuss said “Sometimes you never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory”. I won a national championship once in Louisville using this bit made by the late Bill Stewart. As we walked into the the bar at the Executive Inn West to celebrate that night, the band played Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me To The Moon”. Today is Ole Blue Eyes’ birthday. So I post this picture in honor of memories of that horse, Frank and this bit. I loved all three! |
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December 20, 2019
Someone said once, “The best things in life are the people you loved, the places you’ve seen and the memories you made along the way” I acquired this bit in the mid 1980’s from a dear client that was in her 70’s. She told me she purchased the bit from Felix Guitron Sr 20 years prior when her son rode with Felix Guitron Jr. I later rode a few good Quarter Horse reined cow horses in the bit and have dusted it off as of late to show some Arabian ranch riders. I think it is a classic example of that type of bit and love the Las Crucas mouthpiece. Best of all it reminds me of that sweet lady and the places where she showed with me. I am so grateful she came to visit me several years ago in Del Mar when she was well into her 90’s. She passed away shortly after that. Here is to Ruth, the bit and my friend Murray Griggs who asked me to post another”bit memory” |
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December 31, 2019
Thomas Carlyle said, “Man is a tool-using animal”. This is one of my favorite tools. Made by my favorite bit maker, the late Bill Stewart, the shanks he called “teardrop” and the mouthpiece is called C-port. The teardrop cheeks evolved over the years and there are slight differences in them depending on the year it was made. I guess that is why I own several. In 1996 my wife, Dawn, rode Vals Roubear to National Championships in both Open Trail and Amateur Trail at the Arabian Nationals with this bit. The only time an amateur rider won both the open and the amateur divisions. I rode Magnums Shogun to the Arabian Western Trail National Championship four times with this bit. No other horse has done that. My wish for all our friends tonight is that you may find the kind of good fortune in 2020 that we have found with this bit. HAPPY NEW YEAR AND GOD BLESS! |
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February 3, 2020
Virginia Woolf is credited with writing, “I can only note that the past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time. It expands later, and thus we don't have complete emotions about the present, only about the past.” In 1997 the late bit master craftsman , Bill Stewart, called me and said “I just made a bit that makes me think of you”. I told him to send it and Bill asked what mouthpiece I wanted. He then said, “If you like it send me a check, if you don’t send the bit back”. The shanks are made from a shoer’s rasp and there is a silver casting of a horny toad on each shank. He called that mouthpiece a “c-port” cathedral. I thought better than to inquire why he thought of me when he made the bit and immediately put a check in the mail. I’ve shown a lot of horses in that bit, particularly at the Scottsdale show coming up in 10 days. Years later I think of that phone conversation and all the wins with this bit and grin from ear to ear. I guess Virginia had something there. To celebrate February, I write this post with the fondest regard and wish the best of luck to all our friends going to Arizona. See you there! |
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"Memory... is the diary that we all carry about with us." - Oscar Wilde