A scene from this summer’s Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park: This serious young rider is ready to, well, ride. Look at that focused expression.
Tag: Lexington
Kentucky Horse Farm
The grassy, rolling, limestone-based Kentucky countryside looks too perfect. Precise fencing geometries and gently rippling ponds are just too much. I’m reminded of the famous Microsoft Windows XP default wallpaper, “Bliss.” The key to making both images work, I think, is an overall very clean image with just enough small details and imperfections at the edges to show you that it must be real.
Ancona on Monster
Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky make for excellent people-watching. Designer Charles Ancona’s preferred mode of transportation is his color-coordinated Ducati Monster.
Have a Taste
Come for a taste of Bourbon among the aging casks. Woodford Reserve is a tasty whiskey.
Fire, Bottles, etc.
I know the clichés about whiskey and fire in a bottle, but this is just ridiculous. (From a recent trip with my co-author to Woodford in Kentucky.)
Riders at the Rail
At the Kentucky Horse Park, the Kentucky Summer Classic has wound down and Pony Finals are about to begin. This particular arrangements of trainers, riders, and well-wishers was arrayed at the the warm-up ring, and the gradient of shadows beneath the tree branches brought to mind some modern take on a Renaissance painting: linear, repeating patterns and strong, horizontal lines.
Scenes from Kentucky Horse Park
For my 500th Decaseconds post, I’m bringing you some photos from the Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park outside Lexington. The weather was fully as humid and sunny as the southern Midwest is fabled to be at the end of July, and these three images capture the different aspects of the place. This first image, of the model, captures the form and uniform (so to speak) that rigidly controls the event.
This image, on the other hand, shows one of the folks working behind the scene. Given his surf-ready hair, blue wayfarers, and general air of authority, I call this image “Bro-thority.”
Finally, I love this shot for the looks on the riders’ faces as they exit the ring—done, for just a moment, and proud or defeated or ambivalent but, at the very least, relieved.
Big Hat
Shooting candids at the Kentucky Summer Classic means some fantastic horse-show swagger. Though landscapes and architecture are more frequently my speed, I sometimes find a picture from my other work with so much style that I can’t help but include it.
Riding in Golf Carts with Dogs
I’ve always loved the link between riders and horses and dogs. Perhaps it’s the classic aristocracy thing, but there are few better looks than sitting ringside with a big, floppy dog, watching the ponies go around on a beautiful morning.
Copper Stills
The big, copper stills at Woodford Reserve are “where the magic happens,” and I have to admit: against the limestone backdrop, they certainly look impressive. Perhaps the whole scene is bit too carefully constructed for the tourists, but if the stills are real, and the whiskey is real, then I might as well just sit back and enjoy it.
Old and New Fermenters
Sour mash whiskey begins in these massive, cypress wood fermenters—and a bit like ice bergs, there’s a lot more happening below the surface. (This is the second floor; the fermenters are more than a story high.) In this century-old limestone building, the output of carbon dioxide from fermentation was enough to (almost) make visitors dizzy.
Kentucky Porch
Last week’s trip to Kentucky included a trip to Woodford Reserve, home of some tasty Bourbon whiskey and this lovely porch. The view does a lot to cement my idealized view of central Kentucky hills.
Infinite Fences
The Kentucky Horse Park (particularly at Pony Finals) is a Mecca for pony-obsessed folks around the continent. Even this tiny corner of the facility, all paddocks and fences and barns, begins to show how that came to be the case.
Carriage House in America
A trip down to Lexington, Kentucky for Pony Finals has us staying in a converted carriage house. “Cozy” describes the place well, with its rough, wooden surfaces and mid-twentieth-century-rec-room aesthetic. The juxtaposition of the modern TV and the old roof beams is more charming than awkward.
Decaseconds 