Volume 3, Issue 3 / October 2002

VHA Attends Caroline County Agricultural Fair

     Several members of the Virginia Horseshoers Association attended the Caroline County Agricultural Fair on July 13, 2002. The Fair was held at the Virginia Bazaar in Ladysmith, Virginia. This was the first time the Fair was held at this facility and it turned out to be a pretty spectacular event. Fair coordinators did a great job accommodating the VHA. They had two Army tents available for us and had signs announcing the VHA. Those in attendance spent the day practicing for the upcoming Orange County Fair contest, performing forging demonstrations to onlookers, answered forging and horseshoeing questions and practiced their overall forging techniques. Everybody had a really enjoyable time despite the high temperatures and humidity. The VHA looks forward to demonstrating their skill and talent again next year at the Caroline County Fair.

2002 Orange County Fair Clinic/Contest
Another Terrific Year

     The Orange County Fair Clinic and Contest held on July 26 & 27, 2002 was once again a tremendous success this year. It was unfortunate that Dave Ferguson was unable to be our clinician and judge this year but Scott Collier did a great job and went to a lot of effort to ensure that this was still going to be a terrific 2 day event, and it was! Scott contacted Bob Davis and he was gracious enough to be our judge for the contest.

     The contest was well attended again this year with approximately 30 competitors. The competitors put a lot into this competition and it showed. It was a pretty hot and humid day and rain was in the forecast and when the rains came, they came hard. Of course, that never slowed up the competition. Competitors were right in the middle of class 4 for the Novice and Intermediate divisions when the sky opened up. The competition continued with an additional 5 minutes being added to the class. Although the competitors got pretty soaked, they turned in some pretty terrific shoes. I remember Bob saying that each class in each division was very difficult to judge. He has been our judge before and was very impressed with the improvements competitors had made in their forging skills and their technique.

     The clinic was very success as well. Scott worked wonders to finds clinicians within the VHA to deliver a very informative and well worth attending clinic. Eddie Watson demonstrated making a heartbar shoe as well as how to make apples from pipe using a treddle hammer. Butch Hockaday presented a demonstration on tool maintenance while Pat Conner provided hands on assistance to competitors in the Novice and Intermediate divisions of the competition. Gene Levines gave a demonstration on keg shoe modifications. After the clinic, there was an auction and raffle and the funds raised were used to cover expenses associated with the clinic and contest.

     The VHA would like to thank Denn*s Farrier Supply, Mid-Atlantic Farrier Supply and Russell Hite Leather for attending and setting up at the clinic. The VHA would also like to thank Jock Owings for assisting the judge and Dave Martin for being the official timekeeper during the contest. A gracious thank you goes to Scott and Melinda Collier for putting together another successful VHA event. We recognize your sacrifices and the time and effort you spend putting all this together. The VHA would also like to remind the membership how very fortunate we are to be able to call on Bob Davis at the last minute and have him willing to do whatever it takes to help us out. The next time you see him, thank him and others like him for their efforts and commitment to the industry, because without them, where would we all be?

2002 Orange County Fair Contest Results

Division I - Novice-Keg Shoe

Class 1 - Speed Forging/Front Straight Bar/Rocker Toe
     1. William McCurdy  2. Derin Foor
Class 2 - Pair Fronts from Hinds/Side Clips/Roll Toe
     1. Derin Foor            2. Kristine Hamilton
     3. William McCurdy
Class 3 - Pair Hinds from Fronts/Full Fit Toe/Quarter Clips/Extended Heels
     1. Derin Foor            2. William McCurdy
     3. Kristine Hamilton
Class 4 - Pair Handmade Fronts/Plain Stamped/Toe Clip
     1. Kristine Hamilton  2. Derin Foor
     3. William McCurdy
Champion - Derin Foor ~ Reserve Champion - William McCurdy

Division II - Intermediate Handmade

Class 1 - Speed Forging/Front Straight Bar/Plain Stamped
     1. John Kern             2. Ben Pittman
     3. Jeremy Shelley    4. Kate Gooding
Class 2 - Pair Hunter Fronts/Fullered
     1. Kate Gooding      2. John Kern
     3. Elmer Glick          4. Ben Pittman
Class 3 - Journeyman Class/2 Pair AFA Convention Shoes/Plain Stamped - Front/Toe Clips - Hinds/Quarter Clips
     1. Billy Wood           2. Ben Pittman
     3. Kate Gooding     4. John Kern
Class 4 - Pair Light Draft Fronts/Draw Inside Heel/Toe Clip/Plain Stamped
     1. Ben Pittman        2. Billy Wood
     3. Kate Gooding     4. John Kern
Champion - Ben Pittman ~ Reserve Champion - John Kern

Division III - Open-Advanced Handmade

Class 1 - Speed Forging/Front Straight Bar/Fullered
     1. Patrick Bone      2 .Sam Gooding
     3. Bryce Burnett     4. Brian Gregory
Class 2 - Pair Hunter Fronts/Toe Clips/Fullered Heel to Heel
     1. Sam Gooding    2. Gene Levines
     3. Brian Gregory    4. Russ Hite
Class 3 - Journeyman Class/Same as Division II - Class 3
     1. Patrick Bone      2. Russ Hite
     3. Sam Gooding    4. Brian Gregory
Class 4 - Two-Man Draft/One Front/Fullered/Scotch Heels/Toe Clip - One Hind/Scotch Heels/Toe Clip
     1. Gene Levines/Shannon Leuser
     2. Patrick Bone/Bryce Burnette
     3. Russ Hite/Ben Pittman
     4. Billy Wood/Bobby Hill
Champion - Patrick Bone ~ Reserve Champion - Sam Gooding

So You Call Yourself a Farrier, Well Are You?

Are you a farrier?
You are if you are "One who shoes horses"
Source: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
You are if you are "A shoer of horses, a veterinary surgeon"
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1996

Do you practice the art of farriery?
You do if you perform "The art of shoeing horses"
You do if you perform "The art of preventing, curing or mitigating diseases of horses and cattle, the veterinary art"
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1996

A Certified Farrier certified by the American Farriers Association has knowledge, skill and experience in the following:

Ligaments - definition, purpose, uses, names and all characteristics of ligaments.
Tendons - definition, what each does, the origin and insertion of each, injuries to tendons and how the farrier can help
Bones - all from the carpus down as well as growth plates and joint problems
Leg Problems -founder, laminitis, bone spavin, bog spavin, carpitis, splints, curb, shoe boils, corns, navicular, bucked shins, osslets, sheared heel, ringbone, sidebone, pedal osteitis and stringhalt
Horseshoes - types of horseshoes including normal and corrective, their features and how they affect the horse
Circulation - how the system of the hoof and leg work, arteries, capillaries and vein
Hoof Structures - location, construction and function of all sensitive and insensitive hoof structures
Gait Problems - definition, contributing causes and shoeing remedies for: stumbling, overreaching, scalping, speedy cutting, interfering, forging, knee hitting, elbow hitting, cross firing and brushing
Conformation - ideal hoof and leg conformation, abnormal hoof and leg conformation

A Certified Journeyman Farrier certified by the American Farriers Association has knowledge, skill and experience in the following:
Bones - all leg bones, front & hind, how bones are formed, protected, function and all problems associated with them
Tendons - all front and hind tendons, their construction, function, origin and insertion, consequences stress of one tendon will have on others
Ligaments - all ligaments in both front and hind limbs, construction, origin, insertion,
function and relationship with tendons
Circulation - within the hoof and lower leg, function and construction of veins, capillaries and arteries
Hoof Structures - elastic and inelastic hoof structures, construction, function, location and how they contribute to a sound, healthy hoof
Pathology - detailed knowledge of founder, laminitis, bone spavin, bog spavin, carpitis, bucked shin, splints, navicular, curb, shoe boils, capped hock, pedal ostitis, ringbone, sidebone, sheared heal, stringhalt and what the farrier can do to help the horse
Horseshoes - all types, normal and corrective and what each one does for the horse
Gaits - all gaits, their definition and differences; gait problems * forging, brushing, speedy cutting, scalping, crossfiring, elbow hitting, overreaching

     So, are you a farrier? Certified or not, if you have knowledge, skill and experience in the above and shoe horses for a living, you bet you are. Know your skill level, stick to it, work with others to improve or increase it and above all else, stay committed to your trade. Attend seminars, clinics, meetings and contests. Each of these events will allow you the opportunity to increase your knowledge, broaden your outlook and viewpoint and meet those who can help you become a better farrier. Investigate new ideas and techniques, maybe it will help you, maybe not, but at least you tried. You are truly a very important and necessary provider for the horses health, soundness and well being.

 Emil Carre

     Hammer and Tongs is sadden to report the death of Emil Carre. Until March 2002, Emil had served as president of the American Farrier's Association, was a leading clinician and speaker on lameness-specialty farriery and was a Certified Journeyman Farrier. Emil had "retired" from his position as full-time specialty farrier at the Pioneer Equine Hospital in Oakdale, California last year.

     Should anyone desire to make a contribution to the AFA in memory of Emil, the office has been instructed to maintain a separate accounting on these funds until after a determination is made by the Board of Directors at their October, 2002 meeting as to how these funds may be best utilized. You may send your donation to the American Farriers Association, 4059 Iron Works Parkway, Suite 1, Lexington, KY 40511.

American Farriers Association Annual Convention

     The 2002 American Farriers Association Annual Convention will be held from February 25 to March 1, 2002 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The AFA is starting to update their website with convention related information. Visit it often for plans, schedules, events and convention related news. Currently, the AFA has posted the convention registration form which can be viewed and printed using Adobe Acrobat Reader. The early registration fee for members in good standing is $160.00; the onsite registration fee is $240.00, so plan to register early. Spouse and guest fees are $25.00 for early registration or $30.00 for onsite registration. The deadline for early registration is January 31, 2003. The web address for the AFA is www.americanfarriers.org.

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