Sean Clancy

Steaming cup of Barry’s Tea, bags found yesterday in a teaming Harris Teeter in Purcellville, and a slice of fresh homemade coffee cake from the farm stand at the School Hill Garden in Round Hill, pay at the honor box. Quiet Sunday morning, another round of snow, more like flurries for now.  Winter training. Saranac … Read more

The sixth at Lingfield rolls down the backside. Horses are tepidly and tentatively secure in small paddocks on a brisk January morning. We touted a $21.20 winner in a 27-horse race at Cork. Constitution Hill, second favorite for Cheltenham, lines up for the Tolworth.  It’s the time of year to regroup, reload, reset for the … Read more

More snow. I just saw the headlights turning into the driveway, we have help. Another snow day for Miles. Not for the horses. Winter has arrived, which is good in the long run, we need winter, we need cold temperatures to balance the environment, the ecosystem. Remind me that in a couple of hours when … Read more

The sixth at Clonmel circles at the start, 3,400 meters ahead of them. Jeff, Annie and Andy decide on 10-inch, 8-inch, 6-inch boards in the new dining room. Miles shakes off the Christmas holiday vacation. Another load of laundry rattles, another one, sorted, awaits. Saranac kicks and paws snow in the back paddock, searching for … Read more

I hear him all morning long. “People don’t understand, everything you do with a horse is a calculated risk. Turn them out. Work them. Run them. Graze them. Everything you do is a calculated risk.” Allen Jerkens calculated risk with horses all the way to the Hall of Fame.  I’m no Allen Jerkens and our … Read more

Occasionally, you see or read something on Twitter, well, that’s worth seeing or reading. Frank Dick, a former athletics coach and now motivational speaker, offered one today. Dick told a story about a 9-year-old Scottish girl wanting to run the 100 meters. She ran her first one in 18 seconds, finished last in her mind, … Read more