The Horse Report — Goldens Bridge Hounds

AMENIA — The skies were cloudy, the humidity was at 100 percent and it did, in fact, rain on some of the riders. Nonetheless, the organizers of the Goldens Bridge Hounds hunter pace, held on Aug. 23, were pleased with the day and the turnout. Nearly 30 teams of two or three riders were sent out, according to organizer Donna Alderman, on a course that wound its way over the hills, through the woods and around the cornfields of the bucolic MeriMac Farm and its neighbors.

The hunter pace is a competition, but many people enter with little or no intention of competing. They are there to take in the beauty of their surroundings and the pleasure of riding on land they might not otherwise be able to access.

The hunter pace is designed with fox hunting as the model, so the pace is determined by a team of riders prior to the event. They ride the course at a pretty good clip, as though they are on a hunt and following hounds. The time it takes them to get around the course becomes the “ideal†time. It’s not exactly scientific, as the weather and footing can be different on the day of the pace from the day they did the pace-setting ride.

For those who were competing, the optimal time (or pace) was 56 minutes and 27 seconds. The top team Sunday clocked in at 54 minutes and 30 seconds; the riders on that team were Jennifer Tierney, Ona Hiser and Michael Nicklas.

This year the Goldens Bridge Hounds hunter pace was held in memory of Anthony “Tony† Schnelling, who died recently at age 62. Schnelling owned MeriMac Farm with his wife, Bettina Whyte, who survives him.

Hunter paces are held on Sundays. Following is a list of upcoming events:

Sept. 20, Millbrook Hunt hunter pace: Fraleigh Hill. Participants ride over miles of hunt country in the heart of Millbrook. Check Web site for info and registration forms at millbrookhunterpace.com.

Oct. 11, Beckenrah Farm hunter pace: Beckenrah Farm, home of Saida and Woody Baxt in Ancramdale. Pace to benefit the Columbia Land Conservancy. It is being called the ‘recession pace.’ Cost is $50 per rider, children under 12 are free, teens under 16 are free when accompanied by a riding adult. Informal dress. Check Web site for registration forms and releases at hunterpace.com.

Oct. 11, Goldens Bridge Hounds hunter pace: North Salem, N.Y. Contact  Elizabeth Almeyda at eaa203@aol.com.

Oct. 18, Rombout Hunt hunter pace. Contact ravenbrookfarm@optonline.net.

Nov. 1, Locust Hill Farm modified hunter pace: Hyde Park, N.Y., $1,000 in prize money. Informal dress. Check Web site for registration forms and releases at locusthillfarmllc.com or contact LocustHF@aol.com.