Marty Marten

The 1990s opened by showcasing a horse-human relationship in a film that went on to win the 1991 Best Picture Oscar Award. When “Dances with Wolves” filled movie theaters (remember those?) hearts thumped loudly. But for horse lovers everywhere the question remains, did hearts thump louder for John Dunbar or the dun horse ‘Cisco’? It was clearly a dynamic, productive and energizing time for the Boulder County Horse Association, and horse folks throughout Boulder County. The BCHA archives for the 1990s provided me with huge stacks of material. In the BCHA Horse Services Directory from that era it lists: a bale of brome grass/alfalfa mix hay for $4.00 a annual BCHA individual membership for $5.00 horse boarding near Rabbit Mountain for $40/month ($50 in winter including hay)! In the early 90s, Randy Winter was at the helm as President of BCHA. He was followed by Creighton Stewart. After his stint as president, Randy continued to write articles with a philosophical bent for the BCHA newsletter. He cleverly titled his column Centered Writing, a nod to famed New England horsewoman of the time, Sally Swift. For example, in February 1990 Randy wrote: Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side. There must have been something over there it wanted. Why does my horse, Gus, move on down the road? Usually it’s because he wants to get home quicker. Why do a group of dedicated people continue to travel the road? It’s to get to meetings….to discuss the future of a bunch of […]