Was it Silent King?

[Gingerwitch]

I have been racking my brains since the "do you remember when" post about all the things that have changed over the past 40 odd years and one of the posters mentioned the horse in the mag that had to be pts as it went through the trailer floor. I stopped reading that mag after that - but the post brought back loads of memories - was the poor horse called Silent King? and you were supposed to be able to go and see him at various shows and it was "your pony" type thing.

Sorry if this has already been done - but I am too lazy to check on the original post !

 

[scally]

Yes it was and I believe he was with Emma Gascoine as she "won" the chance to have him in the mags comp and was showjumping him.

He was a chestnut arab if I remember correctly, I also remember when they announced who had won him, how unfair it was that there are so many readers poniless and he went to one who already had her own.

 

[Achinghips]

Yep, it was Silent King - that bought back some memories. Always thought it must have been so negligent of them to have a rotten floor to the trailer.

 

[Gorgeous George]

I remember that as well, I also remember being so upset when he died.

 

[nicolaread]

What is this all about? ive neva heard this story before!

 

[Achinghips]

A horse mag from the early 1980's, they bought a horse which then belonged to the readers and someone won it on loan. It''s foot went through the trailer floor and it had to be shot. Can't remember if it was when it was onloan, or when it was in the care of the magazine.
Lovely Arab chestnut boy.

 

[brighteyes]

Wasn't the replacement called Electra?

 

[scally]

Not sure I remember a Freddie a little Welsh Chestnut pony.

 

[nicolaread]

ahh i c. thats really awful, if it was out on loan you would hope they would look after it better + if it was in care of the magazine you would hope they would know better!!

 

[Crazy Friesian]

Very sad about Silent King. You would have thought they would've been more careful about the floor.

I do remember Freddie though. In the time when I would have given everything to own my own pony...

 

[nicolaread]

i remember freddie! lol he was horse and pony magazine! lol i remember he used 2 go out on loan as well didnt he? didnt horse and pony do a competition to win a horse as well?

 

[dorani]

I remember about Silent King, being an Arab fan but not what happened to him. Poor boy.

 

[trundle]

It was all in Horse And Pony magazine.

I had a poster of Silent King on my bedroom wall, and i remember crying when he went through the trailer floor. Like Scally, i can also remeber telling my mum how VASTLY unfair it was that he went to someone who already had a pony - i would have done anything to have my own pony.

 

[finkle]

It was me that initially recalled this pony in other thread and have racked my brains as to the name of him.

The riders name Emma Gascoigne rang a bell but did this pony have a stable name...Im sure I remembered him with another name but just cannot recall it. Driving me nuts!!

 

[trundle]

Wasn't his stable name Shazam or something like that? I was quite little when i began reading H&P, and it took me a little while to figure out that Silent King and Shazam were one and the same horse!

 

[Nosey]

Yeah I remember him and he did well to dispell the myth of Arabs not jumping!! In fact our superstar little BSJA pony at the time was half Arab and he had similar breeding on his Arab side.
I always thought the replacement was a bit of a disappointment...sweet pony and all that but not doing the same level of exciting things that SK was.

 

[pinktiger]

i sold my awesome pony in the 80's and he was bought by someone who had entered a 'win a pony comp' the mag people and winners came to view him and try ect and he was featured in the mag ect ect!!!! He went to a lovely home and did really well with the winners, bless, reading this post brought back all those memories of him and i do still have the mag featuring him (sad i know)!!!

 

[Barleyboo]

I remember. It was such an awful shock to open the magazine and see the announcement that he was dead, and in such a terrible way. I had posters on my wall as well and loved reading all about him. Poor horse.

I'm not a horse snob in any way and much prefer natives to 'posher' breeds but I liked that Silent King was a bit different. Freddie was ok but you see ponies like him everywhere, there was nothing special about him so he seemed a strange choice of replacement.

 

[ladymeade]

Sorry - I'm somewhat late to the party but I remember Silent King very well from the magazine. He started off with Alison (Ali) Howard who had a lot of success with him in BSJA competitions and then he went to Emma Gascoigne (think she was from a show jumping family). Horse & Pony (think that was the magazine name) readers were allowed to have a go on him if they saw him at a show. I had a school friend who also competed at that level and I went to see her compete at a BSJA show held at the Royal Norfolk show ground and Ali was there with him too.

PS - hope it's ok to resurrect such an old thread!!

 

[Highflinger]

Gosh yes I remember Silent King and also thought it very unfair that he went to someone who already had ponies! Even as a child I always thought there was something a little "manipulated" about the whole thing and what happened in the end was very sad but also seemed a bit odd and possibly not the entire story.

 

[ladymeade]

Gosh yes I remember Silent King and also thought it very unfair that he went to someone who already had ponies! Even as a child I always thought there was something a little "manipulated" about the whole thing and what happened in the end was very sad but also seemed a bit odd and possibly not the entire story.

Agree! A bit weird.. I remember reading Bridget Le Good's (editor) article on his death and thought how sad and what a waste. I also thought he was already doing well under his first rider and thought some of the training methods being used by the new owner were a bit strange (& he stopped being successful too)

 

[Clairelrutherford]

Oh wow I remember SK from Horse & Pony mag! Would love to read the articles about him again and see pictures of him. Does anyone still have those mags?? I wasn't aware of his tragic end until I read this thread. Such a sad end to a story that captured my imagination in my early teens

 

[Ali howard]

I remember Silent King like yesterday ... he was a pony in a million. I had him at 4 years old and by the time he was 7 he was jumping for England with me in Denmark and Belgium. He was one of the most generous kind natured ponies i ever rode and i was gutted when he had to leave our yard when i was 16. Such a sad end for such a talented pony with so much left to offer

 

[Ali howard]

It was me that initially recalled this pony in other thread and have racked my brains as to the name of him.

The riders name Emma Gascoigne rang a bell but did this pony have a stable name...Im sure I remembered him with another name but just cannot recall it. Driving me nuts!!

Shazam

 

[Ali howard]

Agree! A bit weird.. I remember reading Bridget Le Good's (editor) article on his death and thought how sad and what a waste. I also thought he was already doing well under his first rider and thought some of the training methods being used by the new owner were a bit strange (& he stopped being successful too)

He was a natural didn't need "training" he loved jumping