Rockbridge Hunt News -- July-August, 2000

Plan on bringing a dish and joining us for the potluck supper which will follow the August 5th section. You are on your own for dinner after the September 16th session. Each person attending will receive a substantial booklet prepared to accompany this program.

Reservations required please! Please return the enclosed form plus check by July 22th. Please do invite any friends you know who might be interested in fox hunting. This would be a good introduction to the sport, and get them off on the right hoof.

Part A - Tex Tilson Memorial Lodge - Lectures and discussion - 1:00 PM, Saturday, August 5, 2000

Peter Winants will speak on universal foxhunting practices, history, traditions, and literature. Mr. Winants is a former editor and publisher of The Chronicle of the Horse (retired, 1991) and former Director of the National Sporting Library (1991-1999).

David Bolen, MFH, will discuss some technical matters related to the Rockbridge Hunt territory.

David Conner, professional huntsman, will discuss hounds and hunting, foxes and coyotes, and conduct a kennel tour.

Pot luck to follow for those wishing to participate.

Part B -Meet at the ring at Hunt Inc. - Mounted work (unmounted observers are encouraged to attend!) - 3:30 PM, Saturday, September 16, 2000

Carol Atwood (and others?) will demonstrate proper and safe hunting equipment and talk about the qualities of a good hunting horse. She will also lead the "field" in several exercises demonstrating proper huntfield etiquette (emphasizing safety and courtesy). If demand warrants we will also do some field work practice "at speed."

David Conner will use a few of the Rockbridge hounds for a brief hunting demonstration with commentary on what the hounds are doing and the terminology used to describe hunting hounds.

There is a reservation form.

And on the evening of the 21st, there will be a party and dance.

Private property: We have permission to cross considerable private property when foxhunting. We also obtain permission to cross private property for various organized events. Rockbridge Hunt does not have authorization for every member to cross any and all private lands! If you are out riding on your own, you should always have permission before you cross private property. If you don't know who owns the land you're on, and/or if you haven't gotten permission to be on that land, you shouldn't be there!

In 1962, Riding to Hounds in America by William P. Wadsworth was published. In it he quotes his father's Hunt Bible. Both gentlemen, writing decades apart, cite the same problem: "During my years as master more farmers [landowners] have complained about individuals hacking across their land on nonhunting days or going to and from hunts than about any other single discourtesy." Obviously this is still a major problem.

Most of our neighbors are incredibly generous in allowing us access to their property. A phone call is usually all it takes to get permission to ride. Wouldn't you expect the same courtesy from anyone desiring access to your land? Trail riding is important for training horses and riders for the hunting field and for learning the territory. Feel free to call either David Bolen or Cindy Morton for suggestions or help in coordinating a trail ride.

Maps: Several requests have been made for maps of our hunting territory. As a byproduct of the endurance rides, topographical maps with trails drawn in are available for parts of our territory. Unfortunately these maps don't include property lines. Eventually digital versions of maps that show property boundaries will be available. We're waiting anxiously for those.

In the mean time, David Bolen, Blair Jones, Carol Atwood, and Cindy Morton are working on using GPS (Global Positioning System) units to locate known trails on digital versions of maps, probably based on United States Geological Survey topographical maps or aerial photographic images. These maps are available on the web and are distributed by Microsoft at the URL: http://terraserver.microsoft.com. This may turn out to be a practical and accurate way to generate high-quality maps. Maps that show property boundaries won't be available any time soon but a lot of the land that we hunt over is farmland with approximate boundaries marked by fence lines. We can probably use GPS units to establish reasonably accurate property lines in those cases. According to Blair, "We intend to show where trails and points of interest are located and generally help folks to understand the spatial patterns of the area we hunt."

This is going to take time. Please be patient. Printing a 24" by 36" map (aerial photos) would cost in the neighborhood of $6.00; and at the scale we are currently looking at it would take four or so maps to cover the territory.

The example picture following this should give you some idea of the detail available. Can you pick out the Rockbridge Hunt barn, riding ring and kennels? How about the huntsman's house and lodge? Parking lot? (Submitted by Cindy Morton and others)

The amount labeled dues in the budget probably seems like an odd figure. There are several reasons for this. Some members make monthly payments on their dues and haven't finished paying by the date of the annual meeting or by the end of the fiscal year. (Dues must be paid before the annual meeting if a member wishes to vote at the meeting.) Some members pay their total dues after the annual meeting but before the beginning of the next hunting season. (Members may not hunt in the coming year until last year's dues are paid in full.) In addition, landowners in Hunt, Inc. who are riding members are given a discount on their dues equivalent to the amount of a social membership (which is one half of the cost of a single riding membership). Also, new members pay an initiation fee. Over the years, dues collection generally has not been a problem.

Other income includes interest from the Tex Tilson Memorial Fund, outright donations to Rockbridge Hunt, and small, occasional disbursements from the Rockbridge and Augusta Farmers Cooperatives.

The amount listed for utilities covers the electricity in the barn and kennels (used for lights, fans, heat lamps, etc.), electricity in the lodge (lights, heat, kitchen appliances, etc.), the telephone in the lodge, and the dusk-to-dawn lights in the parking areas at the lodge and barn.

The amount listed for the office line in the budget includes a variety of things. As much as possible I tried to keep costs associated with specific activities. Printing and postage costs incurred as part of each activity (horse show, hunt ball, etc.) are listed as part of the costs for that activity and not as part of the general office costs. It still adds up to a lot of money. Breaking down the "office" supplies further, between fifty and one hundred dollars, for the year, was spent on each of the following items: postage to pay bills, postage to send the annual membership form, and banking supplies (checks, deposit slips, registers). Less than fifty dollars was spent on postage to send dues statements to members, and on rubber stamps (correct Rockbridge Hunt return address stamps for secretary and treasurer). Slightly more than one hundred dollars was spent on each of the following: fixture card printing and postage, and stationery. Some of these supplies (banking supplies and the rubber stamps in particular) should last for more than a year.

Future topics: Hounds, Upkeep, Gifts and flowers, Taxes, Dues and fees, Insurance. (Submitted by Cindy Morton)

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