and the crowd roared…

It was 1999 and Velvet and I were doing the World Celebration for Missouri Fox Trotters in Ava, Missouri.  It was night and Velvet was tucked in her stall for the evening.

I wandered up to the arena to watch the horses in the historic arena perform the gaits of the Missouri Fox Trotter.

It was the Four Year Old Stallion and Geldings class that I sat down to watch.  The riders and horses blew into the arena and the crowd studied the horse and rider as they passed by.  A black horse entered into the show ring with the rider a young blond woman.  The crowd watched the black horse and rider with curiousity.  She wasn’t one of the famous trainers riding in the arena.  Her blond hair was bright and she looked great riding that black horse.

The horse made a few laps around the arena and that’s when the magic started.  He started going faster…fast enough that everyone in the arena was staring at the black horse and blond woman.  A few people started to clap as they went by.  Bang, the horse got even faster.  Tbe crowd held our breath.  Everyone stopped breathing at the same time as we watched the black horse get faster and faster.  The black started passing the other horses.  The crowd started cheering when the black flashed by.  Change directions and finally, the fox trot was called by the announcer.  The black zoomed by and lapped all the other horses as the crowd screamed and yelled.  We were hysterical.  All of us were touched by the magic of the black.

Line up was called and when each judged looked at the black, the crowd roared!

It was said afterwards that the black had gone too fast and lost some of the gait.  The black did not win the blue ribbon.  It might have won second or third.  The black won the hearts of the crowd! The crowd cheered and roared with the black horse and blond woman went to get the ribbon.

I never ever forgot that night.  It was stallion named Camelot that won the hearts of the crowd.

Tomorrow, I take possession of my horse, won in a raffle at the Super Horse Show.  My horse is a direct son of Camelot!  My horse is black with a white blaze and four matching white socks.  My horse has the same grandfather as Velvet, Nichole Copple has rode Velvet to multiple world grand championships,  and the present day owners of the stallion Camelot have the last name of Copple.

You think I was meant to win the raffle horse?  It was meant to be.