December 2011 Holiday Parades – Horse Riding Opportunities

Update: The Wylie parade scheduled for 3 December has been canceled due to weather and will not be rescheduled. Allen will make a decision on their parade by noon Sunday.

The Holiday Season is upon us, and along with the Holidays come holiday parades. Tracy Matern has put together a list of the Parade details for the 2011 season. There are often multiple cities having parades the same day (and sometimes at the same time). The parades likely to have higher participation from TTPA members are flagged in red.

Tracy also offers a couple of tips:

We decorate with Christmas garlands and bows and with battery operated lights for the night parades. The rule we enforce the most is “Please do not speed up to go back to your trailers after the parade…no trotting, cantering,etc. as this has resulted in accidents and injuries in the past.”

Save some “Parade energy” for the Fort Worth Stock Show Parade. It is the largest all equine parade in the world. Last year, four of us rode in it and we had a fantastic time.

Also take a look at the Parade Riding Tips on the Trinity Trails Blog site.

Please let Tracy know if you plan to attend any of these by email at bobtracy@dfwair.net or via home phone at 214-495-7493 or cell phone 214-392-2288.

We will need a utility vehicle or golf cart to pick up poop for some of these parades. If you (or perhaps a non-riding spouse) would like to volunteer to help out, please coordinate with Tracy.

Pooper Scooper requirements are indicated under the parades that require it (so far Melissa, Wylie and Allen). Last year, Brian Collins of McKinney Stables and a friend were a huge hit with the crowd. Brian drove a golf cart and his friend scooped the poop on the fly with a shovel and placed in a muck bucket in the back. They weaved in and out of the different horse groups and seemed to be having a great time. We can borrow the TTPA gator but we need a couple of volunteers to drive it.

November 19

Watters Creek Lighted Carriage Parade
Start 6 PM
Line Up 5:30pm
We stage in the parking lot just off the west side service road south of Watters Creek and Bethany Street

December 1 (Thursday)

Denison
Start 6 PM
Line Up 5 PM
Contact: Denison Area Chamber of Commerce
Phone: 903-465-1551
Fax: 903-465-8443
Entry Form on-line by Friday, Nov 18
Staging: On Crawford Street
After registering, they will send us a line up position
No entry fee; cash prizes

December 3

Rockwall
Start 9 AM
Theme: “My Favorite Christmas Movie”
Registration Form
Contact: 972-722-6001
Route: Old Downtown Square behind Courthouse

Melissa
Start 10 AM
Theme: Sleigh Bells Ringing
$10 Entry Fee & Entry Form (already paid and sent)
Must have “pooper scooper vehicle”
(there is also a Holiday Bazaar at Melissa High School from 11am-4pm)

Van Alstyne
Start 4 PM
Theme: “A Reason for the Season”

Wylie

2 Dec Update: Rainout decision will be made at 3pm. Contact Tracy for results after that time. If canceled, the parade will not be rescheduled for this year.The parade has been canceled.

Start 5:30pm
Staging 3:30pm
Judging 4:45pm
Theme: Festival of Lights
$25 and entry form by 11/23/11; prizes
Contact: First Baptist Church of Wylie
Debra Tobolka, Administrator to Missions Pastor
Phone: 972-442-2261
Fax: 972-442-6154
(Wylie Arts Festival also starts at 10 AM)
They would like us to have a pooper scooper vehicle.

Whitewright
Start 5:30 PM
Judging: 5 PM
Line Up 4-5 PM
Theme: Santa’s Workshop
Contact: Cathy Pierce at the Whitewright Chamber of Commerce
mailto:chamber@whitewright.org
Phone: 903-364-2000
Staging: American Legion Hall

December 4

Allen
2 Dec Update: Rainout decision will be made by noon Sunday
Start 2 PM
Last year needed pooper scooper vehicle

December 10

Flower Mound
Start 10 AM
Registration form due December 2; no fee; non-cash prizes
After registration form is received, they will send additional information the first week of December
Contact: Kimberly Cheek at the Town of Flower Mound
Phone: 972-874-6276
KIMBERLY.CHEEK@FLOWER-MOUND.COM
Fax: 972-874-6471
Action item: Make sure they allow horses

Royse City
Call for Start Time
Contact: Royse City Chamber of Commerce
Phone: 972-636-5000

Josephine
Start: 3pm
Staging: 2:15pm
Contact: Police Chief Daniel Jacobs
Phone: 214-229-8901

Blue Ridge
Start 7 PM
Staging 6:30 PM
Theme “Christmas Movies”
Contact: Danna Amaya, Water Secretary, City of Blue Ridge
Phone: 972-752-5791

Dannaa.blueridgecity@lemkepc.com

Farmersville
Start 6:30 PM
Theme: “A Very Frosty Christmas”
Contact: Cynthia Clark at the Farmersville Chamber of Commerce

c.clark@ci.farmersville.tx.us
Phone 972-782-6533
Fax 972-782-6603
Staging by the old cotton mill

January 14

Fort Worth Fat Stock Show Parade
Start 11 AM
Contact: 817-877-2410

5 Horses Stolen

On the night of Wed Nov 2, 2011 5 horses were stolen from the Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, Ark. The trailer they were stolen in was found in Oklahoma.

The horses stolen were:
Grey mare 15.1 hands
Buckskin Mare 14.3 with black and silver mane
Black Gelding with a Rocking M brand and blaze face
Sorrel Gelding with a Rocking V on left front Shoulder branded with a backwards L and a K Black Mare

If you have information please call Ty Lester 501-454-5774.

You can read about the theft at http://www.bannernews.net/blog/?p=7010&mid=51

If you want to put up a flyer on the missing horses, you can download a pdf with pictures at http://www.trinitytrailriders.org/StolenHorses.pdf.

Please be on the alert and report any horses matching the descriptions. Time is critical.

Beware of Cracks on Trail

The prolonged drought and intense heat have caused major cracks in our trail.

The trails are still open for those brave enough to venture out, but we recommend you use caution when riding on the trail as horses can easily trip in the cracks.

TTPA Workday – 7 AM Saturday 13 Aug 2011

Yes we know it is hot, but the exciting news is that the new re-routed trail segment between Brockdale and Collin Park will be completed this week.  So now we need to go out there and do some trimming!  We will start early in the morning to beat the heat.

Charlie will have our gator and will try to arrange to have a 2nd gator or cart to get us out there to do the work.

Meet at Brockdale at 7 AM
Bring gloves, water, trimmers/pruners.

May Trail Ride Canceled

Due to the recent outbreak of the EHV-1 virus in western States, the TTPA is canceling the May Trail Ride that was scheduled for Saturday 21 May.

The consensus of the TTPA Board is to err on the side of caution and cancel the ride scheduled for Saturday due to weather and statements issued by Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC).

Here is the latest statement from TAHC that is posted on their web site. http://tahc.state.tx.us/

Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) officials are continuing to trace exposed horses that attended the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Western National Championships event that ended on May 8 in Ogden, Utah. There are currently 26 known horses in Texas that attended the event. Those 26 horses and a total of 323 more cohorts (stablemates) of the 26 are currently being held under movement restrictions across the state.

Texas has currently only detected one confirmed case. That horse sought treatment at a veterinary clinic in far West Texas and has subsequently returned to New Mexico where it originated. A second horse located in Jack County has been classified as “suspect” and is pending further diagnostic testing. The TAHC is following the U.S.D.A. guidelines for clinical and suspect cases which have very specific criteria to meet the case definition, and for now suspect and confirmed cases will be the two types of cases reported.

The epidemiological investigation of all 300+ plus horses that reportedly attended the event continues nationwide, and the number of Texas horses identified as exposed may increase in the following days. Although mandatory cancellation of future events is not anticipated, the TAHC suggests that horse owners consider the risk of participating in upcoming events scheduled for this weekend and/or co-mingling their horses with other horses and equipment (trailers) of unknown history. Because the incubation period is usually about 4-6 days or less, even a one week voluntary stop movement may be enough to nip the cycle of transmission between horses before it grows in scope.

Horse owners should contact event organizers in advance to ensure that scheduled events have not been canceled. Some other states have established emergency rules for entry as a result of this situation, so if interstate travel is planned, owners and/or veterinarians writing health certificates should check in advance to ensure they meet all entry requirements. Finally, it is recommended that all newly purchased horses or introduced horses to a premise should be isolated to help prevent the accidental introduction of EHV-1 (and other diseases) onto the premise.

While no local horses have been identified as sick or exposed to the virus, the TTPA Board feels it is prudent to be safe and keep horses at home for the next two weeks until the situation is under control.

As a second precaution we will be dumping the communal water troughs at trail heads until the crisis passes. This is a temporary measure for the next two weeks only.

Hope to see you all next month.

Notice: East Fork Park Closed for Sewer Upgrade – Trail Head Remains Open

East Fork Park, including the horse camping area, is currently closed. The East Fork Trail Head southwest of the main park remains open.

The City of Wylie is working to upgrade the sewer facilities at East Fork, tying the main restroom facilities directly into the Wylie sewer system. No firm dates are available on the duration, but the work is expected to take about two weeks, which would be until around the end of May 2011. You can check on status by calling the office during regular business hours: 972-442-3141.

If you are looking for horse-camping alternatives, there is nothing particularly close. Two options are:

Platter Flats, OK on Lake Texoma. Note that a current Health Certificate is required when crossing state lines.

Lake Ray Roberts State Park Isle du Bois Unit near Pilot Point, TX offers primitive camp sites for campers with horses.

Beware of the new water line trench at Highland Park Trail Head

TTPA recently put in an additional water line at the Highland Park Trail Head. The line runs from the water trough to the new water spigot. There is dirt covering the trench for the water line, but after rain the trench becomes very soft and horses can sink down several inches if they step where the trench is located.

To see the trench, cross the white gate like you were going on the trail, and then look down. You will see deep horse tracks in the ground where horses have stepped in the trench.

Until we can bring out additional fill, please use caution.

Update: Jack Gilstrap has fixed the trench problem! Thank you Jack for your prompt attention to this issue.

Currently the Corp of Engineers is planning to conduct a controlled burn the week of January 10th – 14th. This will effect access to the Trinity Trail in that we will be closing the portion of the trail, north of the Brockdale Equestrian area for the safety of the public and users of the Trinity Trail. The trail will be closed only for the duration of the controlled burn, which is expected to last the majority of the day. We will have a firmer schedule as we get closer to the execution and we will pass on that information as it becomes available.

Update 1/20/2011: The burn was canceled due to heavy snow. The trail is open.

Thank you for sending us your info. We look forward to seeing you.