Altadena's horsey set has its "AHA!" moment

Horse lovers and history buffs could enjoy several styles of riding at the Altadena Heritage Equestrian Block event: buggy riding, English riding, and charro riding. Photos by Laura B. Monteros

by Laura B. Monteros

Where but Altadena could you see a real live posse, charros, dressage, Western riding, a two-wheeled buggy, and horsewoman/aviatrix Pancho Barnes all in one day and all in one place?

Altadena Heritage combined a community picnic, equestrian show, and solemn—or not so solemn—dedication of the seventh Altadena Heritage Area on Saturday at the Happy Trails, Altadena event.  Members of the diverse riding community were on hand for the celebration.  An Altadena Heritage Area, or AHA!, is a street, neighborhood or place that stands out and has fostered its own community.

Altadena Heritage chair Mark Goldschmidt holds up a reproduction of the sign that will commemorate the Equestrian Block.

The newest AHA! is designated the Altadena Equestrian Block and is bounded by Altadena Drive, Casitas Avenue, Mariposa Street, and Ridgeview Drive.  It reflects an area where several stables and a polo grounds were located in the past, originally for the wealthy on Millionaire’s Row, and remains home to many horse properties. The previous six AHA! locations are listed on the Altadena Heritage website.

Altadena Stables on Ridgeview Drive by the Arroyo Seco was the center of the festivities, with demonstrations of various riding styles.  Plenty of free food was available, with nachos from El Patron, pulled pork from Susann Edmonds at Jabberwocky Foods, and a sinfully delicious chocolate cake from Patticakes.  Supervisor Michael Antonovich and his intrepid aide Sussy Nemer made sure there were plenty of tables, chairs and even tablecloths, and Terry Charles provided music.

Saddle up
The program opened with the presentation of the colors by horsewoman Taylor Cooper on her buckskin mare Marley.  Taylor later demonstrated Western pleasure riding, which is a slow, loose style similar to cowboy riding with the reins held in one hand, unique to Western riding.  Taylor has won several awards in the Saddle Seat and Western Show League throughout middle and high school, and lettered in Varsity Equestrian.

Historian Michele Zack recollected that the days of the horse in Altadena go back to the Mission era, when horses were put out to pasture in the shadow of the San Gabriels.  “Local Indians grew to become great horsemen,” she said, and they navigated their historic trade routes taking tar from La Brea as far as the Mississippi River.  

It was hard to get a picture of the cake (by Patticakes) before some folks had already dug in.

The Californios, who had 200 words for different kinds of horses, were some of the best riders in the world, she said.  “The horse’s role has diminished, but it’s still here in Altadena,” she said, adding that it’s a “quintessential experience” to see horses making their way up Lincoln Avenue.

Local writer Karen Bugge (Altadenahiker) emceed the program, starting with five members of Charros Unidos of Altadena.  The organization is 40 strong, and performed earlier at the Pasadena Latino Festival and Jamaica.  Charro riding is similar to dressage, in that the horses must be directed into complex movements with very little hand movement.  In a stunning move, a horse was directed to lie on its side for several minutes, joined by a second horse.  

The return of Pancho Barnes

Michele Zack shares some of Altadena's equestrian history.

Next up was Pancho Barnes (as played by Diane Patrizzi), granddaughter of Civil War aviator and Altadenan Thaddeus Lowe, who regaled the audience with stories of her wild west life as a stunt woman, aviatrix, and rider.  She was “an heiress with an evil way of not doin’ what I’m told to do if you tell me twice,” and opined that the Altadena Stables ought to be renamed the Happy Bottom Riding Club, after her dude ranch in the Mojave Desert.

 

When Debbie Hemela returned to her hometown of Altadena in 1980, the author of Debbie’s Book, a compilation of sources for entertainment art directors, promptly bought a horse.  Her friends said, “We’ve been telling you to buy a house, not a horse!”  Debbie has ridden the trail from Altadena to Mount Wilson.

Former Doo-Dah Queen Dianne Patrizzi essayed the role of Pancho Barnes.

Award-winning rider, Kaitlin Spak demonstrated dressage atop Soren Sabre.  Spak placed third in the Intercollegiate Horse Show National Championships in 2008, and eighth at the Intercollegiate Dressage National Championships in 2010.  The next rider, co-operator of the stables Terri Botfield, demonstrated the five gaits of an American Saddlebred on her horse Music.

Kaitlin Spak placed third at the Intercollegiate Horse Show National Championships in 2008; at the Intercollegiate Dressage National Championships in 2010 she placed 8th.

 

Stirrup old feelings
The program closed with Mark Goldschmidt of Altadena Heritage officially designating the area the Altadena Equestrian Block, and holding up the prototype of the sign which will be erected by the county.  The artwork, which captures the fun and fancy of Altadena riding, was created by Joseph Dawley.

We spoke with Desdy Kellogg Baggott, owner of Altadena Stables, afterwards.  She had earlier read a poem about the merits of horses over automobiles (no crank or clutch or unwanted noise).  The stables date back to the second decade of the 1900s, and Baggott purchased the land in 1973.  she was at the Saddlebred stable next door, and “I looked over the fence and saw that the horses here were not being treated right.”

Riding helps kids to build confidence, Baggott said.  Students are required to care for the horses after their lessons.  Both English and Western riding is taught at the stables, as well as dressage and driving.  “We don’t teach jumping,” Baggott stated, “because I can’t stand the sight of blood.  Especially my own.”

 

Altadena Stables owner Desdy Kellogg Baggett

As for all the hoopla of the day, Baggott said, “I thought that it was wonderful, and I own the stables, and it all fits.”

 

Since this was originally published, we've made some corrections and clarifications per Kaitlin Spak's her comment, below.