The Maker's Mark Secretariat Center is a non profit facility located in the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. We are dedicated to reschooling, and showcasing the athleticism of the off track Thoroughbred so that they can go on and become ambassadors for the breed in second careers. We are also committed to educating the public about these wonderful horses: We welcome visitors of all ages, interns, and volunters . This blog publicizes unofficial updates on our horses and our programs. For more information, visit www,secretariatcenter.org or www.facebook.com/makersmarksecretariatcenter








Thursday, June 28, 2012

Videography 101

By: Liz Rigby


My day does not get off to the best start. My alarm did not go off at 6:45 at usual. I blame it on the fact that my cell phone is so old that Fred Flinstone has a more up to date phone that I do. But it also could have been because I completely forgot to actually set an alarm, either or. Moving on…. Due to the fact that I woke up late, I didn’t have time to do my hair. On the bright side, it still looked mediocre from last night. I made the executive decision to just let it be free and flow in whichever way it pleased. I arrived at work with a 12 pack of Dr. Pepper for the MMSC staff, and by their excitement you probably would have assumed I brought a gallon of wine and a ‘MMSC is closed for the day' sign. They do say horse people are crazy right? This act of kindness instantly won me another ‘Intern of the Day’ title.

Susanna informs me that I will be videoing the riding lessons for the majority of the morning. Last time I videotaped, the results were so horrendous and shaky, that it looked like there was an earthquake occurring. I’m pretty sure a five year old, with a two second attention span, who had a Redbull for breakfast could have done a better, more stable job filming. The issues with videoing are this, for one, instead of a monopod to keep the camera steady, we use a tripod and then only use one of the three legs. It makes a ton of sense, I know. It has become a monopod by default and is awful to use. The next problem was that since my hair was not flowing quite as elegantly as Pegasus’s mane, I was blinded half the time as my hair turned into a tornado of sorts, with a little sand storm effect thrown in there for good measure. It was quite distracting. Overall the videos turned out surprisingly, much better than my last attempt. The amount of sand that ended up in my cheetah flats however is a whole other story.

For the third time in a little over a week, our newest horse Great Life, who is known around the farm as Brady, has thrown a shoe. It’s pretty impressive really considering on Tuesday he managed to throw his shoe, step on the nail, and then have the farrier come out and glue on a new shoe. The next two days he was on stall rest, and before we put him back out to pasture last night, barn intern Shelby, packed his hoof, and then duct taped around it for extra security. How he managed to have lost his shoe over night, none of us will ever know, but here he is again, in a stall, waiting to have his shoes put back on. Perhaps he likes the idea of having a different pair of shoes every day, and I for one cannot fault him for that. Brady heads off to his new home tomorrow and I hope his new family is prepared to have a full blown shoe addict on their hands.

Friday, June 22, 2012

How the MMSC functions on a luncheon day..

By: Liz Rigby

If any visitor had come to the MMSC this morning they would have been witness to a whirlwind of activity as we all prepared for our afternoon event: a luncheon for the National Horse Center, hosted by the Fresian Association and the Paso Fino Association. This luncheon included 50 people, seven MMSC staff, three Paso Finos, four Friesians, and a catering crew.

Before I continue, let me tell you about an ingenious plan I recently devised to ensure all interns work to their full potential and receive recognition at the end of each day. Every afternoon, one lucky deserving intern is crowned ‘Intern of the Day.’ I took the initiative and voted myself President of the voting committee. To date, there are no other members of this committee. Also, to date, I have won the coveted title four days in a row.

The MMSC was abuzz with activity preparing for our guests; barn crew sweeping, knocking down cob webs; office crew polishing furniture, cleaning bathrooms and the like. I was assigned “flower arrangement” duty. I spent the morning foraging through the rose bushes outside the office for possible contenders for what I was hoping would turn out to be a Martha Stewart look-a-like bouquet for our front desk. I ended up with two mismatched bouquets in vases, which I half filled with rocks from our driveway (Susanna told me I cut the stems too short and needed to add height), two hands full of thorns, and a few bare looking flower pots around the farm which I had ravaged for blooms. I learned today that flower arrangements are not my forte.



As I fought with rose bushes out front, Catherine conquered the large John Deere tractor and harrowed the arena for our guests’ demonstrations. She even managed to back the large machine into the garage when she was finished! When the morning began I was winning the race for intern of the day, however after Catherine’s success, she was only behind me by a hair. Shelby spent her lovely morning mopping every moppable surface of the MMSC office, including the bathrooms. And for that, I voted that she received ‘Honorable Mention’ in this nose-to-nose race. Our new intern Kiley was summoned to spit-shine the barn. New intern hazing at its finest. I’m proud to say that when she was finished, the barn looked stunning for our arriving horse guests. As Today was Kiley’s first day, she did not receive one of my nominations.



At noon the Secretariat Center opened up its doors to all luncheon guests. After eating, mingling, and enjoying horse demonstrations, all of us were greeted at the front of the MMSC by two horse carriages, each pulled by two stately looking black Friesians from the draft barn here at the Kentucky Horse Park. Our great neighbors gave visitors rides around the property, the four veteran Friesians were perfect gentleman! They stood as still as statues as visitors climbed into their carriages, were gentle enough to pose for pictures, and they willingly endured the hot sun so everyone could have a ride.



We all also had the privilege of watching a demonstration by the Paso Fino Horse Association which is located in Frankfurt, Kentucky. They even allowed all spectators to ride any of the three horses that they had brought. Riding the Paso Finos was a very unique experience, especially for this intern who was unfamiliar with the breed’s distinctive gait. Compared to our large strided Thoroughbreds, the Paso Finos moved like professional tap dancers as they toted member after member around the arena. What great sports they were as we all tried our best to become accustomed to their smooth ride and swift feet!

As the last car rolled down the drive way, business as usual picked right back up at the farm. The horses were fed, stalls were cleaned, and who do you think won ‘Intern of the Day’? Yes, shocking to us all, my winning streak continues….

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Melding Interests at MMSC



By: Liz Rigby

The first two days of my communications internship have flown by, and I could not be more excited for what this summer has in store. I am Liz Rigby, a senior majoring in Equine Business Management at the University of Kentucky. I started riding around the age of 4 and like most horse crazed girls, I eventually convinced my parents to purchase my first horse upon my 12th birthday. As a freshman I joined the UK Equestrian Team. This has been a great experience and has helped me to improve my riding skills tremendously over the past 3 years. The MMSC internship appealed to me because I liked the idea of trying to meld my long term interest in horses with my aspiration of having a career in the communications industry.

Friday I took the day to become acclimated with the property, office, horses, and staff. I helped organize the lobby, learned the rules of the barn, and familiarized myself with all 12 of the available horses. Susanna, the MMSC director, Erin, the administrative assistant, and I spent all day Saturday creating and editing the videos for a few of the newer horses. What a great learning experience for this new intern! Although I am familiar with youtube and the process of making sale videos for horses, the attention to detail and the time that goes into making the final product was shocking. The hardest part was finding a song that matched perfectly with the horse’s personality and rhythm of its stride. Many of our first song choices did not fit. Songs were too short, too fast, or too slow. Lyrics were all wrong. The message didn’t fit. After we decided on a song, we then searched for video segments that highlighted the horse’s ability and potential. For some horses that meant finding clips of their bomb proofing, for others it showed their jumping potential and for some it showed their athleticism for dressage. After hours of hard-work, when we were content with the final results, we decided to post them and are doing so today! Be patient, the upload process takes some time.

My summer internship has already been exciting and educational and I can’t wait to see what else is in store for me and the rest of the MMSC team as the weeks fly by.