Breyerfest Best Customs Contest

Kristian BeverlyLeave a comment

 A contest that Breyer held prior to Breyerfest was the Best Customs Contest. People were able to submit their customs into three categories. They were Excellence in Finishwork, Most Extreme Custom, and Best Custom for Performance. The top six in each category were displayed at the Clarion. Here’s some of the pictures I took of them!

By Amarna Productions

By Beverly Porter of Wildwood Customs
By Kentucky Equine Creations
By Melanie Miller
By Tiffany Purdy

By PawPrints Saddlery

I loved all of the entries but the dragon was one of my favorites.

So was The King of the Wind custom.

By Laura Skillern 

Also, if you know who created the models without tags, please comment! I’d love to give credit. 🙂

I also got to see the new premier model. She’s beautiful in person. If anyone’s looking to trade/sell one I’m interested!

Sending Them Off

Kristian Beverly6 Comments

I’m not going down to Pony Penning this year, but my friend Madison of Gyrfalcon Studios is. She and I both painted model horses for the Feather Fund  model horse auction. So I gave my models to her to take down. Last year I sent two in the mail and one ended up with broken ears. So this year I know they’ll get there in one piece.

I painted three foals during the summer for the auction. The model horse auction is unique in that the models being auctioned off are to be portraits of actual island ponies.
Soul Surfer

Suede

Galadriel’s 2015 Foal 

I am far from being a seamstress, but I did make pony pouches for them (and their future owners). 

Have fun in Chincoteague Madison!

Kentucky Derby Museum Part 2

Kristian BeverlyLeave a comment

After we walked around the museum we went outside to participate in the Historic Walking Tour.
Our tour guide showed us the jockey outside.  He’s painted every year to reflect the current winner.

Along the sides of the buildings are all of the winners of the Kentucky Derby winners.

 The Triple Crown winners are in gold with a crown.

Then we continued our walk and stopped at a garden before entering the race track.
In it was a statue of the first ever Derby winner, Aristides.
Pat Day  also has a statue. 
The racetrack was pretty. 
The tour ended with the resident real horses. 
Risen Warrior was born in 1996 and won over $500,000 during his racing days.
Winston, the mini horse, was born in 1993 and has lived at the museum for 19 years. 
Near the resident horse area was a garden which held the gravestones for five Derby winners.

Eight Belles, who ran second in the 2008 Kentucky Derby,  also had a memorial.
Going to the museum and being able to participate in the walking tour, was an educational experience. Going down to Breyerfest early was a great idea. 🙂

Kentucky Derby Museum Part 1

Kristian BeverlyLeave a comment

On Tuesday, Melissa and I arrived in Kentucky. Instead of staying at a hotel, we stayed at a Bed and Breakfast. There was a resident Border Collie named Fly.

From our window, we could see fields of horses and cattle.

The next day, we drove to Louisville to see  The Kentucky Derby Museum. It was my first time and it had been a while since Melissa had gone.
The Barbaro Statue stood out front. 
We took a tour, which included seeing the racetrack. But before getting into that, we walked around the actual museum!
Plenty of outfits filled the museum. Fashion isn’t an art that I’m into, but some of the outfits were pretty cool!
I loved the Derby Hats.

There’s a breyer!
The Winner’s Circle has a manikin of the current winner of the Derby in it. It’s updated each season, and this year it’s American Pharaoh. 

Loved his face!
Exhibit cases held tack, saddle clothes, and other racing memorabilia.
Affirmed’s saddle cloth
(Can’t remember who this belonged too)
(Racing saddle that I can’t remember who it belonged to).
Secretariat also had an exhibit.
 
Each Derby winner had a block that included their info, so here’s a couple of the blocks.

Before the 2003 Seabiscuit movie, there was this one. I saw it years ago on TV and it had actual footage of Seabiscuit racing.
I must say that my favorite part was the simulation ride. Melissa and I played four or so times. 
We also dressed up like jockeys. Five hours of  the drive down I decided to learn how to take selfies. Yay for texting and having a selfie savvy sister.
That concludes the museum part! Next comes the racetrack and a couple of actual horses!