94 SIDELINES AUGUST 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
My fashionable stretch massage sessions
close to it, or he’d strike out at a pop-up photographer and tell him
a thing or two with his front feet, and I’m dealing with not only a “bit
fashionista” and a “fashion icon,” but a full-on “fashionista diva.”
I think I might need to start calling him C-Lo, of the J-Lo diva-
tude, or Chapdashian, of the Kardashian clan. He is “
Fashionably
Fashionable.”
Unfortunately
,
I am not.
So, when my horse’s fashionista tendencies begin to wane,
perhaps my fashionista tendencies will wax? In the meantime,
with the bit population in our bit box reproducing at a staggering
rate, my next purchase will need to be a bigger bit box, not,
unfortunately, another fancy show shirt, lest my horse wagers a
“sit in” when I put a halt to his diva demands!
is — it’s probably partying in a closet with the backup button-on
show collars!
I guess you can call me “fashionably late” or “fashionably
indifferent” or maybe even “fashionably
broke
” when it comes to
horse show attire. Now, if you ask me what my horse is wearing
at any given time or who his massage therapist, acupuncturist
or chiropractor might be —
now
we’re talking! I also know what
special Chinese herbs he’s currently taking. Even the brand and
type of shoes he might be wearing as well as the name of the new
saddle on his back!
In addition to all the above items, my horse also has very special
tastes and prefers to try a new bit every two horse shows or so.
He’s not a bit of a fashionista, he is a “bit fashionista!” We have
plastic bits, metal bits, rubber bits, chain bits,
titanium
and
leather
bits (cha ching?!) We have spoon bits, butterfly bits, customized
Shuttleworth bits, and every kind of snaffle bit you can find that’s
attached to a D-ring.
Our horse Chapeau tends to be a connoisseur of the bit and
his tastes range from $75 bits to the extreme $380 custom leather
bit, which did last in his mouth for showing for about six weeks —
a record. It appears my horse, not me, is a complete
first class
fashion icon.
Add this to his desire to “fashionably” show off his mother when
he first began contesting the Amateur Handy Hunter classes,
when he’d strike out at the backside of a jump if we turned too
A dapper, quite fashionable young Tommy
Serio
Fashionable Baby Linus, on the right, in Holland,
thus the reason for buying him!
Kathy Serio
Photo by Holly Gannon Taboada Photography
About the writer: Kathy Serio is an amateur
rider based in Wellington, Florida, where she
works full time in the equine pharmaceutical
industry. In 2012 she married her trainer of
12 years, Tommy Serio, who often calls her
“Lucy,” for “Lucille Ball.” Being trained by
her husband brings a whole new dimension
to riding as an amateur. Kathy spends her
spare time riding and laughing with her 2- and
4-legged gang. As Charlie Chaplin said, “A
day without laughter is a day wasted.”
