Posts: 4,596
Threads: 333
Joined: Dec 2013
Finn and Sputnik got to strut their stuff at the Rye Homecoming parade this afternoon. We've been busy showing goats, vacationing, and trying to keep up with life so we haven't had time to drive them since last month at the State Fair. They weren't as "sharp" as they were this summer, but they remembered their lessons and were very good boys in spite of the long break. We were a little late for the lineup (someone gave us the wrong information), so we had to race past a long line of old tractors to get to a good spot. The fellas were a little nervous about passing all those big, smelly, noisy, backfiring things, but with a bit of encouragement they kept up a good trot and we made it to our place behind the horses. Barking dogs and cheering, waving crowds did not faze them at all.
The team was a big hit with the locals and got a lot of cheers. It was a very short parade but lots of fun. The weather was beautiful--clear, crisp, and cool but not windy. Getting back in the driver's seat reminds me that we need to make sure to get out and do this more often, not only because it's good to keep the boys sharp and in good physical condition, but because it's just plain FUN!
Posts: 1,491
Threads: 349
Joined: Dec 2013
From your attire I assume they are the Rye Spartans? You'll need to figure out runners for your wagon before long!
Goatberries Happen!
Posts: 4,596
Threads: 333
Joined: Dec 2013
No, they're the Rye Thunderbolts (purple and white/silver). We were going to put a purple cloth on the side of the wagon and pin white thunderbolts to it but we ran out of time.
Posts: 560
Threads: 35
Joined: Dec 2013
It amazing how far they have come, especially Sputnik. What fun.
Posts: 4,596
Threads: 333
Joined: Dec 2013
Thanks, Nancy! They really are fun, and Sputnik has really surprised me too. He's a good boy and he seems to really love it when we give him a job.
Posts: 4,596
Threads: 333
Joined: Dec 2013
Rye Homecoming was today and Phil and I hitched up our chariots for parade! Phil wore his Thor thunder god outfit. The theme this year was pirates, but we didn't know that so we went with the Thunderbolt theme since we can't go wrong with that. The football team is the Rye Thunderbolts or "T-Bolts" as they are known locally.
I went with sort of a lady Thor outfit. The T-Bolt's colors are purple and silver so I was going to wear a purple cape with my silver dress until I realized that we used all the purple material to line the coffin in our Halloween goat hearse last year. So I found a leftover scrap and made a sash instead. The wonderful purple wig came from Phil's mother and it was perfect for the occasion!
Finn and Sputnik were pretty good considering how little we've driven them lately. I think we've only been out once since the International Goat Days Festival six weeks ago. Sputnik thought it was a race, not a parade, and he kept trying to trot ahead and pass everyone. Luckily he's very good at the "whoa" command but it meant that we went along in short bursts where we trotted and then screeched to a halt before trotting on when the parade got far enough ahead.
Finn took a more leisurely attitude about the whole thing and almost got left behind a couple of times. Finn loves attention and doesn't mind lingering in the street while people admire him and take pictures.
Chat
