I have a 21 inch medium brown saddle seat saddle for sale. This saddle is a Cliff Bansby and is in excellent condition. I do not ride saddle seat anymore and this is going to waste. Paid $2400 brand new. Asking $800. Email twinhills56@yahoo.com for more info and pictures.

I wanted to take the opportunity on this Thanksgiving holiday to thank all of you for your support, kind words, and participation here at AboveLevel.com. It’s been a whirlwind few months getting the website up and running, promoting it, and working on content. Since Oklahoma, I’ve been taking it a bit easier, trying to recover and get caught up on all those things that are neglected during the show season. I’ll probably continue to lay low through the Christmas holidays.

A few of the “horsey things” that I’m thankful for today are:

My old thoroughbred mare seems to be recovering from her strangles induced abscess…finally.

Miss Scarlet (My daughter’s injured Morgan) is well on her way to becoming a productive low level show horse and she and my daughter are having a great time together.

All the great friends and aquaintances I have made here on AboveLevel.com.

And… that Show Season doesn’t last all year long because I don’t think I would survive!!

Thanks again to all of you and have a great day!!!!

14.3 hands, ready for the Jr. Exhibitor, Amateur or at home person that wants a fun horse.  He just started his show career in 2008 and has many more years ahead of him.  He will be a fresh face in the tough Western divisions.  Would do western Equitation as well!  Bay, foaled in 2001.

I’m getting ready to start working my yearling with the hopes of showing him in the pleasure driving classes next year. I posted awhile ago about sending him off to a trainer, but decided that I’d like to try to get it done on my own. The trainer I work under has broke horses to drive, and worked at a well established morgan farm that had plenty of driving horses, but I don’t think she ever did it start to finish. So I have some help. I’ll be investing in all of the equipment here soon. I have to admit I’m excited to get this done and hope my boy is fairly cooperative with this whole thing lol. Any advice on the whole subject either breaking, training, equipment or anything else?? Good stories are always welcome too!

Check out the for sale page on our website and see if you can find someone you can’t live without!!  www.upnorthmorgans.com

Everything from weanlings to finished show horses, check it out.  thanks missy

TL Bobby SoxI’ve posted a video of him before, but I now have one that’s more visible.

Bobby is for sale at a reduced price. He’s a 15′2 hand gelding out of Nobility X Aff Marionette (1997).

I decided to convert him to Western Pleasure from Hunt Seat, and he’s taken to it very well. I have only shown him lightly, as I haven’t had the time or funds to do so more :(.

I attended the Equine Affaire at the “Big E” in Springfield, MA over the weekend.  I admit that one of the reasons I chose to attend was so I could see what the Arabian Association’s display looked like.  (See the post Morgan Promotion/Equine Affaire.)  I have to say that while the Arabian Association obviously spent a TON of money, the Morgan people did a lot more outreach and education while promoting the Morgan breed.  The Arabian Association was a co-sponsor of one of the many buildings that housed the Affaire.  That can’t be cheap!  But I never saw an Arabian horse or owner.  With diligent searching, I did find the Arabian Association booth with the sofas in the Breed Pavilion.  Again, they must have spent a TON of money, because they had the equivalent of 4 or 5 booth spaces at $750 per booth.  There were lots of handouts and pretty pictures on the wall space, but no one to ask questions of, or to buy a souvenir from.  If you found this space after spending the day shopping, I can understand that the couches were a welcome respite, because I promise you, you could literally shop until you drop!

There were three large buildings full of vendors selling everything equine-related that you could think of, from horse trailers to handmade soap.  There were tack shops and gift shops, manufacturers’ reps, and crafters.  I spent about 4 hours on Saturday exploring just one of the three buildings and felt like my feet were ready to fall off.  I really didn’t intend to spend any money, but of course I found books that I couldn’t live without, new technology that I thought could be beneficial to my horses, and Christmas presents. :-)  My friend Annette got the autograph of 2008 Equestrian Olympian Courtney King at the Purina Feeds booth display.

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Hello everyone!!
So, I decided to get rid of some of my unused tack. I’m a horrible tack hoarder - I hate to get rid of anything in case I may need it - which I never really do, I usually just go out and buy more ;P.

Anyway, I posted on Ebay a Circle Y Breast Collar. See pic

I don’t know if anyone’s intersted, let me know. I purchased it on Ebay a year or so ago, but never used it (go figure). It’s listed for $80.00 - if you wanna’ bid click on this link for Ebay

;) ;)

I have a few more items, including a Western Circle Y Show saddle (matches the breast collar) and some Mexican Silver show bits.

Hope you’re all having a good week!!!

CHEERS!!!!!

I have nominated Tim & Shirley O’Gorman for the Golden Reins Award.  The nomination had to be accompanied by an essay of 400 words or less.  I had a hard time reining in (no pun intended) my enthusiasm, so I would like to share the uncut version with the Above Level community.

                It’s All About the Horses and Their People

They were born with the passion.  Proximity made it Morgan horses.  Fate brought them together.  Love and mutual respect made them a team.

Separately and together, Tim and Shirley O’Gorman having been training horses, supporting the Morgan breed, and parenting young grooms for long enough to be eligible for this award.  They are trainers who epitomize integrity, honesty, and professional ethics. They work to model and enhance the Morgan industry, and they have a deep respect, care, and love for their people.

Tim started as a kid in his backyard (Adirondack State Park) in Colton, NY, buying, training, and selling horses with his grandfather’s support and advice.  That experience, with any horse he could get his hands on, taught him to treat every horse as an individual with its own particular strengths and weaknesses.  Living in upstate New York, not far from the Vermont border, he naturally came into contact with Morgan horses.  While still in high school he spent a summer learning from the venerable Fred Herrick.  He later gave up a full academic scholarship to Cornell University to attend college at the University of Vermont.  While at UVM he participated in programs at the Morgan Farm where, as a senior student, he won the annual yearling colt contest with Helicon Hermes.  The contest was judged by Dr. Paquette who was very impressed with Tim’s talent and encouraged him to pursue his passion.  This association, through Dr. Paquette’s daughter Conky, led Tim to Carousel Farms in Bellevue, OH where he had the opportunity to work with and show some of the great Morgan champions of the seventies.

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