810-Lancaster Farming, Miniature Horse Racing is Growing Attraction BETH MILLER Cumberland Correspondent NEW BLOOMFIELD (Perry Co.) Mister Lee may be small, but he certainly is fast. Mister Lee, a miniature horse owned by Rosalie Boyer of New Bloomfield, is so fast, in fact, that he may end up being one of the stars in the growing sport of miniature horse racing. “The more people clap, the fas ter he runs,” said Ed Fach, Mister Lee’s driver. Boyer, who also breeds minia ture horses, said Mister Lee really showed his potential on Aug. 8, 1993, at Falabella Downs in Get tysburg. He ran the fastest time ever for a miniature horse under 34 inches by trotting over the quarter-mile track in 1 minute, 21.39 seconds while pulling Fach behind him in a small two-wheeled cart. Boyer said she hopes Mister Lee sets some more records this year. She also hopes her horse will help build more interest in the sport of miniature horse racing. That interest slowly has been Mister Lee practicing for the first time this year at the Newport track. I, Saturday, <luly 2, 1994 growing since the International Miniature Trotting and Pacing As sociation was begun in October 1992, Boyer said. She said one of her main goals right now is to form a chapter of that association in Pennsylvania. Other states that already have miniature horse racing clubs are Florida, North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia, Boyer said. To build interest in the sport in Pennsylvania, Boyer is trying to gel more tracks in the state and this area sanctioned for miniature horse racing. Boyer said her interest in minia ture horses came years after she already had been interested in full size horses. “I’ve been around horses since I was 17, riding just for fun,” she said. “My husband and 1 would buy quarter horses, keep them for a while, then sell them.” Today, Boyer has seven regis tered miniature horses. They in clude Mister Lee’s mother, tow of his full sisters, and a half-sister. She said she started dealing with miniature horses in 1987, when she bought her first pair. fjWY K S ZGHDFW P J V R I B Y L T P R O T E I N E C H U C K I S F L A N K Q R I NUODNUOR GCWBUBNL ZME ERTWO G S T E A K S I KLSFLPCN Boyer said she bought them just because she liked them. Mister Lee is the only one of her miniature horses that she has raced. She had decided to race the four-year-old stallion because she didn’t need him for breeding. Her first year of racing last year was a real trial and error experi ence, Boyer said, but she and Fach had a lot of fun learning the ba sics, including the best system of harnesses to use. All that improvising paid off, however, she said. She hopes the experience she gained last year will pay off some more this year since she has Mister Lee entered in a stakes race in Florida. The racing season, which be gins in May, could be pretty busy this year, if she is able to gel more area tracks sanctioned for races. In any case, Boyer said she plans to enjoy Mister Lee, even if it’s just by practicing at tracks like the one at the Newport Fair grounds or by showing him in lo cal parades, where she plans to have him pull a miniature stage coach. oC w«rner,. yer at ;iver, Ed Fach get Mister Lee hitched up for the first time this season. Farm Safety 4 Just Kids LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.) Parents are you concerned that 8,000 kids under age 14 die each year from preventable accidents? Instead of saying, “Isn’t that a shame,” which doesn’t remedy the situation, learn ways to prevent accidents. Farm Safety 4 Just Kids in Lan caster County is holding a safety session at the Farm and Home DBEEF FLAXK RIB IRON iIN ZINC PROTEIN D COW Center on July 11, from 7to 8:30 p.m. Sherry Burgers, program direc tor for the national Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, will be the speaker. Dr. Albert Price, who heads the Lancaster Chapter, said, “If a dis ease came along that affected one in four children, we would spare no expense to find a cure and be quick about it.” Price is disfressed that so few parents attend these type of meet ings. which are held to raise safety awareness and educate parents about safety precautions. Discus sion is also being held about deve loping a safety camp for children. This meeting is for any adult who cares about kids. There are no fees to join and you do not need to be a health professional. For more information on Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, write or call Dr. Price, Roseville Pediatrics, Lan caster (717) 569-6481. o£x
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers