4 SIDELINES SEPTEMBER 2013
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Letter from the Editor
Welcome to the 25th Anniversary issue of Sidelines Magazine.
Our founder
and publisher, Samantha Charles, started
Sidelines
in 1988 as a polo newspa-
per. Samantha launched a publishing business because of her passion for polo,
and 25 years later we are still going strong.
Sidelines
has grown – and changed
– but it still continues to be the ride of a lifetime.
I asked Samantha to write our “My Story” feature this month so she could
share the story of how
Sidelines
came to be, and I think you will enjoy her journey
that has led to our silver anniversary. Our special 25th anniversary section is a
great ride down memory lane, and I encourage you to travel back in time and
immerse yourself in our story.
From our “25 Things to Love About
Sidelines
Magazine,” to our “25-Year
Journey”
that features a front cover from every year, I think you will love this
issue. If you are a longtime reader you will relish this blast from the past; and
if you are a new reader you will enjoy learning about our evolution from a polo
newspaper to what we have become today.
We are now a slick monthly magazine devoted to the people and personalities
of the polo, hunter, jumper, dressage, eventing and foxhunting world. We cover
the horse world from coast to coast, across the pond and in Canada. We are fondly
called the
People
Magazine of the horse world and, in addition to introducing you
to horses, riders, trainers and owners in the horse world, we also sponsor dozens
of major horse shows and events.
If you haven’t discovered our social media presence, then I invite you to like our Facebook page, visit our website and
follow us on Instagram and Twitter. We always have great contests running via social media, and in honor of our 25th
anniversary we held a special contest for horses and ponies 25 years or older. We called it the “Oldies But Goodies”
contest and I was touched by how many beloved equines have reached the quarter-century mark.
During the contest, our Facebook friend Kate Almy, of Rhode Island, sent us a message saying, “Thank you for the
joy that your Oldies But Goodies contest postings are bringing into my life every day!” Kate, I couldn’t agree more – the
contest turned out to be a wonderful blessing.
One of our contest winners, Misti West, of Pennsylvania, also expressed her gratitude about our contest. She said,
“Thank you so much, I am so proud of my old man! I really
appreciate that your magazine has chosen to spotlight these
older horses and recognize that they’ve still got a lot to give
to the equestrian community.” Check out the “Oldies But
Goodies” contest pages in this issue to learn about Misti’s
horse, Mr. Clipper. I will give you a hint that Mr. Clipper has
easily passed the 25-year mark – he is 32-years-old and
Misti has had him since the day he was born! Now that’s a
blessing!
I asked our
Sidelines
staff if they had any “Oldies But
Goodies” and our California “West Side Story” columnist,
Holly Hugo-Vidal, had quite a gem for us – a photo of her on
legendary show jumper Idle Dice, who lived to be 27-years-
old. Idle Dice, or Ike as he was called, had quite a career
with Rodney Jenkins. While Holly’s photo is a gem, in the
early ‘90s
Sidelines
reported on another gem – show jumper
Gem Twist. Another true “Oldie But Goodie,” Gem Twist also
lived to be 27-years-old. Make sure you visit out “25-Year
Journey” feature in our anniversary section to see photos of
Gem Twist.
This past year I’ve encouraged everyone to Catch the
Sidelines Spirit, and this issue truly encompasses that spirit.
Thanks for being part of our journey
Jan Westmark-Allan
Editor-In-Chief
Sidelines founder and publisher
Samantha Charles and editor Jan
Westmark-Allan
Sidelines writer Holly Hugo-Vidal on the legendary Idle
Dice
Photo courtesy of Holly Hugo-Vidal
