Gracie Torres Cavietta Quarter Horse, and Sharon Lupton, Corginuts and Sketches

We sat down with Gracie Torres of Cavietta Quarter Horse and Cattle Company today. Gracie and her husband Pedro have built a premier horse facility in Eastern North Carolina, hosting a variety of events reflecting the vaquero lifestyle. Let's see what drives this busy businesswoman and mom. 

Then we got a chance to meet Sharon Lupton, owner of Corginuts and Sketches who has turned her passion for Chincoteague ponies into a thriving business. Sharon is the winner of our 2020 Virtual Horses Got Talent art competition with her painting of Unexpected Visitor. Let's find out how she juggles business, family and fun!

Transcript

Rose Cushing 0:15

Thanks for tuning in to today's Horsewoman Podcast. Our show explores women in the horse industry as they share their dreams, challenges, and successes. What drives these women? Well, let's find out. We're here today with Grace Torres at Caveat A Quarter Horse and Cattle Company. And Gracie has done amazing things in eastern North Carolina with the development of her ranch. So I thought it would be very interesting for us to learn a little bit about Gracie and all the things that she's accomplished and where she's going. So tell me a little bit about your background with horses.

Gracie Torres 0:47

So when I was about three years old, and my parents decided they were going to buy me a pony, and none of us had had any horse experience in the past, but the pony was kind of a start for all of us. They had no idea what they were getting themselves into. So I started out with the pony. We rode some with my neighbors when I was little. I did a little bit of jumping when I was young. And then in high school, I started riding with Dave Laurie, who does the mountain shooting. And then I rode with a couple other great trainers, and then I met Pedro at a rodeo and fell in love. And um we got married and started the ranch. So awesome.

Rose Cushing 1:28

So you were on the the NC State um team too, weren't you?

Gracie Torres 1:32

That's correct. We um we kind of helped start up the the new edition of the North Carolina State University College rodeo team. We traveled to a couple of rodeos, Alabama, Texas, Arcana, um Tennessee, and then um graduated just after that. So um I ran barrels and a couple other kids did it with me. It wasn't a huge team while we were there, but we were hoping to get it up and rolling. So okay.

Rose Cushing 2:00

And the your first ranch was in Bunn. That's correct. So tell me a little bit about that.

Gracie Torres 2:04

We had a small place in Bun. Um it was awesome, but we outgrew it and we were keeping several horses, and then we started a small herd of cows, and the cows just weren't fitting in there, so we were looking to expand, and my parents said that they were looking to um get a new place also, so we went in as a family venture, um, which is awesome to be able to be with our family together. Um, so we moved out here to Elm City.

Rose Cushing 2:31

Nice, very nice. Now, how big is your your ranch?

Gracie Torres 2:34

We have 92 acres here. Um, most of it, we don't have any trails or anything, most of it is fenced for the horses and cattle. Um, we keep approximately 60 head of cattle here. Most of them are coriente or coriente longhorn cross. Um, we do some of the Mexican rodeo stock contract, and then we're starting to get into the rodeo contract, and then we've done some um, we do several sortings a year. Um, three man arena sortings, which is a little bit different than the ranch sorting, which is really, really popular, but it's still fun. Um we haven't classed doing anything with cows for that matter. And then we're we were hosting the North Carolina Ranch Horse Show series shows this year, which was really, really great, and we hope those will be even bigger and better next year.

Rose Cushing 3:14

Right. So um, with your your cow business, I know that before you we there was no cow events in eastern North Carolina at all, and it wasn't even a possibility. There wasn't even any to rent. So, how has that grown for you?

Gracie Torres 3:29

It's been it's been great. Um they're not cheap.

Rose Cushing 3:33

They're not we rented them a long time ago. It was very expensive just to rent them.

Gracie Torres 3:38

Um Pedro and I have been, you know, we try and run into some deals like anybody, um, but feeding them through the winter is really, really hard. So we try and keep mainly just our mama cows and their babies during the winter time. And um, you know, we try and find good deals when we can, but a lot of times you're just paying to have them because you enjoy them and you're hoping that they're gonna make you money in the long run. But one of our vents told us that um the best way to feed a cow was to sell it.

Rose Cushing 4:05

Right, right, obviously for cow person. Yeah. So there, um, yeah. So that so do you just do sorting or do you do roping or we do we do some ropings out here also, that's right.

Gracie Torres 4:18

And we we do the ranch horse shows. We're really, really passionate about ranch roping. Um the big loop roping, the no lopin roping, where you don't chase your cows because no good rancher likes his cows to be chased down. Um now we have a great appreciation for any kind of roping though, so we're we're happy to contract for team ropings or whatever that people want to pay us to do, we're happy to do it. Um, but we do we we love our ranch roping.

Rose Cushing 4:41

So now tell me a little bit more about what you've done here. I know you do all kinds of shows. We do. Um tell us a little bit about how you've grown that side of the business.

Gracie Torres 4:51

When we first moved in, we were just teaching some basic horsemanship lessons. Um as we as we started growing, we were able to expand our herd. We've done all kinds of camps. My favorite camps of the year are the ranch academies, and we've got a girls' ranch academy, a boys' ranch academy. So those are kids 10 to 17 or 18 years old, and um they come separate weeks. No combing length. Um, and it's a it's a week full of just riding and working cows and roping. We teach the kids everything from basic rope handling to you know roping their first cow or practicing what they already know. We've got a lot of kids that come in that are already established and they're just able to get a lot of good practice in through the week. We ride normally two times a day through the duration of camp week. And then we would do a ladies' ranch academy and an adult ranch academy, and we had two ladies' ranch academy this year because it was very popular, and I think everybody had a blast. Um, same thing. We we ride Friday night, uh Saturday morning, Saturday night, and then Sunday morning, and we work on anything from ranch cutting and herd work to boxing to ranch roping or tracking the dummy, anything, you know. We we have a good time doing it too. That looks like it, that's awesome.

Rose Cushing 6:08

Yeah. Did when you have the academies, do the folks stay on the property or do they go home at night?

Gracie Torres 6:13

They do. We actually have a cabin that we rent out throughout the year through Airbnb. So if people are doing layover with their horses traveling north to south, they can um have somewhere to stay. I can sleep up to six people comfortably in there. Um so I can either rent out the cabin for people who are coming to Ranch Academy or they can bring their tent or their horse trailer with living quarters or a camper, whatever they want to do, we're flexible. So um, but there is lodging on the ranch for people who need it whenever they're traveling. Do you have camper hookups? Not yet. That's something that we hope to do in the spring. Crossing our fingers, um, that would be great to have out here because I have people ask all the time. We have people coming from all over the place to get here, um, which is really, really great, and I want to be as comforting to them as possible when they're traveling. So we're really hoping to get those in in the spring. Awesome.

Rose Cushing 7:00

Very good. So, of all the things that you've accomplished, and Charlie Ann, of course, being the number one, right, her new baby girl. Um, what do you feel like has had the most benefit to the horse industry, especially in eastern North Carolina?

Gracie Torres 7:16

Well, um I I would like to say the fact that we're able to offer all kinds of cattle opportunities from lessons and clinics, because we do several clinics a year, to the horse shows and the sortings that we do and even the ranch academies. I I don't know if I could select any of those as the number one, but the fact that they've got somewhere to come to practice and it's not super expensive, and we can teach the lifestyle, um, the cowboy lifestyle, because we are really, really passionate about it, and we want to spread that love and the appreciation to people around us and let them know that there's a reason how we work cows, there's a reason why we work cows the way that we do. Right.

Rose Cushing 7:56

Yeah, so so I was looking at different things, and there's not much in eastern North Carolina other than you. As far as horse shows and things. I mean Williamston, but other than the arena in Williamston, there's really not too many opportunities, is there?

Gracie Torres 8:10

As far as venue rentals, yeah.

Rose Cushing 8:12

I don't think there's as far as horse shows and venue rentals.

Gracie Torres 8:15

There's a couple of really great little open show opportunities over here, and we try to support those as much as we can. I love taking my riders out to some of the local shows, um, and we love going to the Bob Martin Egg Center for their shows, and it's only 45 minutes up the road, so we really take advantage when we can when there's a show up there that we're you know, we we try to go. Um but we do offer our venue for rent for different things, and we have some barrel race, some MBHA shows out here during the year, and we try to do as much as absolutely possible because they say, you know, if you stay busy, it keeps you out of trouble.

Rose Cushing 8:52

So, what um of the things that you've accomplished, what do you feel like you're the most proud of? And it can be something you've done personally or the ranch or whatever.

Gracie Torres 9:01

Honestly, seeing where the ranch is now versus where it was when we moved in is a great, I mean it's very, very rewarding. We've put a new arena in with um with shoots and rope and boxes, and we just we love being able to use that. But I also have to say that I am extremely proud of the students that I coach. Um, it melts my heart to see them advancing in their horsemanship and just becoming good horsemen. When they come to me, they don't know anything or they know stuff that you know might not be as fine-tuned as it needs to be to be competitive. Um, and it's not all about competition. We always worry about the horse first. Horsemanship comes first before showing, before competing, before cattle work. You have to be able to have good horsemanship skills. Um but when I see my little kids and my adults like go in and do really well, or even if they're not bringing home any blue ribbons, if I can see that there's been improvement in their riding, that is what I am really, really proud of as a trainer and instructor. Very nice. So, do you guys train horses for people here? We used to. Um with the baby and with Pedro's leather work being as as um heavy as it is, I guess, and with the amount of cows that we're keeping now, it's almost impossible for him to keep training horses. We start our personal horses and we work with personal horses, and every now and then we'll help some clients with their horses, but we're no longer training. Um we're happy to teach people if they bring their own horse, we're happy to help them work with their own horse. Like we offer boarding opportunities with discounted lessons so they can learn how to work with their horse from us. Now, for your boarding, how many horses do you board now? A lot. Um we keep anywhere from 30 to 40 horses at any given time. The barn is full, it's a 20-stall barn. Um, most of those are boarding horses. We have a couple of lesson horses and a couple of personal horses, but at this point I think most of them are boarders, and our horses have kind of gotten kicked out into the chairs. Um we're trying to, Pedro and I were talking this morning about getting some more stalls added on the side of the barn so we have more room for layover um boarders, and for people who are coming for horse shows, we'd like to be able to offer more stalls um easier easily because right now we can accommodate them no matter what. It just means kicking a horse or two out of the barn. Sure. Now tell explain what layover is. So people who are traveling north to south or south to north on 95, we're not too far from I-95. Um, we offer stall board overnight or for a couple of nights a week. Um, and again, we rent the cabin um to those who need a place to stay. There are hotels in Wilson, that's easy to get to. We're not but a 15-minute drive from Wilson, so they can drop their trailer and the horses and go get a hotel room, or they can rent the cabin if it's not rent already rented. My mom also has a couple of rooms in her house. She does um some kind of bed and breakfast deals with most of the time. And we try and accommodate as many people as possible when they need it because we want this to be a a place for people to come and relax and know that they can count on good hospitality and and comforts of home, away from home. Very nice. Now, your your um events, if somebody wants to rent your venue, how do they reach you? They can call me on my cell phone, send me an email, check us out on Facebook, message me on Facebook anyway. You can possibly get in touch with somebody nowadays. I'll be glad to answer their phone calls, messages, whatever. Okay. Um, yeah, everything's on the website at caveat.com, C-A-V-B-I-E-T-T-A.

Rose Cushing 12:33

Now tell me about that name.

Gracie Torres 12:34

Caveeta. So, um, a caviar is a herd of riding horses that a ranch has. And Pedro and I were listening, we're big into cowboy poetry. We love the old vaquero style, and we listen to a lot of the old Western poetry, and I cannot remember off the top of my head who it was that had the poem, but we were listening to cowboy poetry one day, and the guy mentioned caveata, and that's just you know, like a little cave of which is the herd of riding horses that a ranch has, and we said, Hey, I really like that name. And at this point we were looking into expanding and getting the bigger facility, and I said, Well, we need to rebrand when we move, um, and and really um, I guess, show, highlight the the ranch life with the name, and I thought caveat was a really, really great way. And Pedro and I designed the brand ourselves with the help of my dad. He we brainstormed for probably two or three weeks before we came up with a good brand, but we all had a blast doing it.

Rose Cushing 13:36

Now you have also expanded your services into the Hispanic community. Lots and lots of cowboys that you know didn't really have a place to fit in. So tell us a little bit about that.

Gracie Torres 13:45

Absolutely. I'm glad you brought that up because I completely forgot since it's a brand new addition. Pedro's dad, Jesus Torres, puts on the only full-scale Mexican rodeo, which is it's not like a regular Americanized rodeo, it's not just bull riding and barrel racing or anything, it's a chariada, which is the traditional charro style of competition. It's the official sport of Mexico. And Pedro and his family came from Zacatecas, and the Lienzo, which is the name of the arena, is shaped like a keyhole. It's got a really big round top part and then a long alleyway that comes out the bottom. And it's really cool to see these guys in action because they wear their traditional charro attire with their sombreros and their moños, which is like a bow tie, and they have a very strict dress code and they have very strict rules on their facial hair and all that good stuff. It's a very pristine sport with a lot of class and tradition, and I love class and tradition. Um, that was one of the reasons I fell in love with Pedro early on, because he was, I mean, he was just a classy guy. Um, very gentlemanlike, and that's a I mean, it's kind of a way of life and a rule, just like being a cowboy. It's a lifestyle, and those guys are very, very passionate about how their horses look and how their um attire is presented and how um how their tack is. You don't see guys pulling up with raunchy horses and raunchy tack, they look very presentable when they come out, and we're glad to be hosting that out here. Um Pedro's dad Hazer's Torreas is really the the driver behind that, but I help him mark it and uh he did build the arena on Caveeta um property, so um, but it's a family ranch after all, and we're happy to have the whole family participating.

Rose Cushing 15:25

Well, I did a lot of research on that for um an article that I wrote for the magazine a while back, and for those of you that don't know, a charo is the highest level of horsemanship. He would be the man that owned the ranch, while the vaqueros were the cowboys that worked the ranch. So a charro rodeo is a real high level of horsemanship. And one thing that I have to say is that these guys really take care of their animals and the horse comes first. Absolutely. And they're very proud of all of their traditions and their pageantry, and it's quite something to see if you've never been to one.

Gracie Torres 16:00

Yes, yep, so and um Charlos Caballeros DNC is how you can find them on Facebook, and we've got a link on our website, cavieta.com. You can uh find updates on those rodeos on our website.

Rose Cushing 16:14

I understand you're having some traditional Mexican food at your stuff at all your days.

Gracie Torres 16:19

Yes, well, um we have food trucks. Anytime we do an event that's open to competitors or spectators, we do provide food. So I want to make sure that everybody gets a full belly. They can't complain about being hungry when they come out here. There is food. Um but Pedro's mom is doing a lot of the cooking for the chauteadas when when we have them, and she is amazing when it comes to making good Mexican food. So um, absolutely, if you don't come for the horsemanship and the cows, at least come for the food.

Rose Cushing 16:48

Well, it's really nice that you can give us a whole experience, yeah, you know, of what it would be like to really be in Mexico at this event.

Gracie Torres 16:56

Absolutely. I think it's great. Um, a lot of people are not aware that it's even a sport, and when they come, they're like, wow, this is a lot more amazing than I thought it would be. And when I say rodeo, a lot of people think that it's rodeo like rough sock events and stuff like that. And in reality, they do that stuff, but they do it, um, they're scored, it's nothing is timed. It's all on finesse and how beautifully it's done and how well your horse reacts. Um, you want a white horse, it's kind of like your reiners. In fact, they have a reining competition, it's slightly different from the American reining competition, but it is really cool to watch, and they have to have the same, you know, they've got to have a good slide, they've got a good spin, um, they've got a side pass and be able to back. It's amazing.

Rose Cushing 17:36

Another interesting thing about the the reigning class is in in the Spanish rein, the horse's back foot doesn't move, it actually digs a hole. Yes. So that's a whole lot more complicated to do than one just turning on his feet.

Gracie Torres 17:48

Absolutely. I've always admired it, and that's one of the reasons I met Pedro because he was spinning that horse. I was like, holy cow, that pivot foot is not moving. That's right. It was just so impressive to me. No, it's it's not easy at all. Um, and they've got to spin a minimum of three spins to each direction, and that inside pivot foot cannot move, and it's it's very impressive.

Rose Cushing 18:08

As a young woman, and you're a young woman, how what kind of advice would you give other young women about how to really be a force in this industry if they have that kind of passion? You know, what what should they do to grow themselves as well as the industry?

Gracie Torres 18:24

I would say always keep a positive outlook and pray because that's I mean, those are the most important things if you pray, um, and you and you can stay positive and not let anything drag you down because everything can stand in the way. Anything can stand in the way if you let it. Um you just gotta be determined to push through. It's you know, we've been blessed that we've had a very supportive family going through this, but a lot of people don't have that, so you just keep doing what you gotta do to make it through, keep believing in yourself. That's that's most of the battle. Um definitely reach out to your peers and ask them for help. The horse community is great because a lot of the trainers in the area are willing to help. You know, I still go and take lessons from people in the area, shout out to Tanya Morton. Um, I go out and ride with her on occasion for some lessons, and she she got me to my first ARHA show this year. Um and she's great with the youth, she helps out me with my students. Um but going back to your question, I think um just really make a plan, stick to that plan. If you have to make some some changes or some detours along the way, that is okay. Um Rome wasn't building a night, it takes a long time to get a following and to get to get stuff built up, but make yourself a plan and stick to the plan, be flexible.

Rose Cushing 19:46

One of the best advices I ever got in my business a long time ago was a jeweler, and the lady talked to me, and she was a very respected lady that ran a big show in Asheville. And she always said, Rose, if you be good to your customers, They will take care of you the rest of your life. And so I think that's such a prize information.

Gracie Torres 20:04

Absolutely. That is a great one. And we've had when we were in Bunn, I had some students that were in Bunn and they followed me up to Elm City, and that's been great because I've been able to watch them grow and flourish. And um, you know, I try and take care of them and they take good care of me. Um all of the clients that we have, I I brag all the time on Facebook about how we have the best barn family in the world, and I honestly think it's the truth. We've got the best boarders, the best students, the best um just everybody, everybody that's a part of Caveeta is amazing. There's no drama or relatively little drama. And um we just love each other and we take care of each other. And the people who come out and ride here, this is their home away from home, and they treat it like it is. They treat it like they don't want anything. So to go wrong, you know, they help out during horse shows, during clinics, whenever they can, they pitch in. That's great. That is great. All right. Well, thank you so much for your time.

Rose Cushing 21:00

I look forward to coming back and and filming some of your events. Um, I think we would very much like to promote the caveat not caveat, the avocado lifestyle. Yes. And so let's do some stuff in the future with that. Awesome, let's do it. That'd be great. I think that's really good to encourage people all those right techniques. Yes. So many people do it wrong and they don't realize that they're hurting the horse.

Gracie Torres 21:21

Right, yeah. I think that's in any discipline. I mean, but that's you're a true student of the horse if you keep on learning. You know, nobody starts out knowing everything, and I'm still learning myself. So very good. All right, thank you.

Rose Cushing 21:34

Thank you very much. Cushing Media is proud to present our first event for 2021, our Everything Equine Expo, a tribute to horse women. April 16th through 18th at the Lake Waukama Equestrian Center, Bill Thompson Lane, Lake Waukama, North Carolina. Our Colt Starting will feature six of the finest cowgirls in the business. Even the horses for Colt Starting will be fillies and provided by Lost Creek Cattle Company of Tennessee. Professional demos, trail challenge, colt starting, and equestrian entertainment show on Saturday night. Tickets available online or at the gate for just $30 for the entire weekend, including all events, or $15 per day. Follow us on Facebook at EverythingEquine Expo, a cushy media production. Here in Greenville, North Carolina today with Sharon Lovet, and Sharon has a business called Corgi Nuts Sketches. Sharon is a horsewoman and an artist, and she won our Horses Got Talent art contest that we did virtually last year. So I just wanted to take a minute and let you guys meet Sharon and find out what makes this lady tick. So Sharon, tell me a little bit about how you came to horses.

Sharon Lupton 22:56

Well, as with all little girls, I fell in love with all the little books, uh, Marguerite Henry's books. My first book was The Little Black A Pony, um, and of course the Walter for all the Walter Farley Black Stallion series. And uh I just I completely fell in love with horses when I was very, very young and never lost it. But because my father was in the Coast Guard, I was never able to actually own a horse. So I kind of lived vicariously through my friends and uh but never lost the love. Uh followed the secretary at Seattle Slough, affirmed, and fell completely in love with Steve Cawton. He was my boyfriend. I interviewed him one time. Oh, you make me sick. He was amazing. I bet so. But uh, and uh it's just it's just kept on. It turned into an art. I've been drawing forever, and it just turned into going going my love for them turned into my art and been going hard at it ever since. I love it.

Rose Cushing 23:56

So I noticed you paint a lot of ponies from the Shinkatig Island. So tell me a little bit about how you got involved with those.

Sharon Lupton 24:03

Well, again, like I said, the the Misty of Shinkatig books. Most little girls go through that and fall in love, and uh went to Shinkatig for a couple of times and then came we had a little bit of a break because I had kids and college and the whole nine yards, and I just didn't get back until 20 uh 16, I believe, and just started drawing them. Uh I actually hooked up with a group called um on Facebook called Ilo Shinkatig Ponies, and uh hooked up with them and started talking to them, and people would give me photos to play with, and I started selling them through them, and uh the following year, 2015, the most iconic pony on the island since Misty was a stallion by the name of Surfer Dude, and beautiful uh flax and chestnut mare with a half blue eye, a stallion, excuse me. And uh, so 2015 was his last crop, and we were all like, God, I'd love to have one of Surfer Dude's babies. I'd love to have. And this woman named Yvonne Shaw said, Why don't we pool our money together and put it on a buyback? And a buyback is basically a pony that you have that you donate the money to the fire department, they give you the right to name the pony. After that, your rights are gone, but the pony lives out its life on the island to kind of refurbish the herd. And uh, we were like, mmm, okay, so together we all got together, about four thousand four hundred people got together and raised $25,000.

Rose Cushing 25:36

That's awesome.

Sharon Lupton 25:37

And uh, she was the record buyback that year. Her name is Surfers Blue Moon, she's a beautiful black filly with bright blue eyes and a big white blaze. And uh, I like to say I I don't own a pony, I own an eyelash of a pony. Right. And uh the group has stayed together, it's called the Shinkatig Legacy Group. We've stayed together, and every year we collect money and we either buy one or two buybacks, and the rest of the money is donated to the library, the Shinkatig Pony Rescue, um, whatever we can find that's a good and the feather fund, which uh the feather fund is fantastic. We'll talk about that in a minute.

unknown 26:15

All right.

Rose Cushing 26:16

Well, the Shinkatig ponies are amazing. I I know I interviewed a girl once that had one and she did three-day eventing with him, and he was not only agile, he was very competitive in that sport, which is not easy for a little guy. Right, right.

Sharon Lupton 26:30

Well, and Shinkatig ponies have changed a lot in the past few years. The total herd was totally wiped out in 1962 from uh in the Easter storm, and uh so a lot of other blood from other uh breeds have been fused in, and uh most recently uh an Arabian stallion was added to the herd to help uh with the bloodlines and to bolster the herd. And so the ponies have gotten a little bit bigger and a lot more uh uh have a lot more endurance. But I've seen some of these ponies doing jussage, I've seen them doing um three-day eventing, I've seen them doing uh bat barrel racing and the whole nine yards, and it just amazes me what this does that what the the having these ponies does for these um kids. Um I'm a friend of mine named Lois Demansky uh sponsors a group called the Feather Fund, and every year they raise money to help um two or three kids buy one of the ponies at auction, and so um it's amazing to see what these girls um do with these ponies. They they're responsible completely for their care, their feeding, uh training, the whole nine yards, and it's just amazing to watch these young girls grow. I think it grounds them and gives them focus and gives them something to concentrate on instead of all the crazy crap going on in this world now. Absolutely. So yeah, I think it I think it it keeps them on the straight and narrow.

Rose Cushing 28:03

Tell me a little bit about for the folks that don't know about the pony swim, give us a little synopsis of that.

Sharon Lupton 28:08

Well, every year um they um the fire department, Shinkatique Fire Department, they actually own the herd. Um they go over and they bring the ponies across the Shinkati Channel. Um they don't swim the babies or the um or most the the young babies and they don't swim the older ponies, but they bring them across and the all the babies, which generally between 70 and 80 ponies born are auctioned off. The fire department chooses between 10 and 11, maybe 12 for buybacks to refurbish the herd. And it's a wonderful, it's a wonderful thing. I mean, it's the car the carnival goes on for a whole week. They have the pony swim and then they have a parade and they have the auction and then they have the swim back over. And yeah, I've been up muck deep in my um Carolina slippers, is what I call having mud sheep and down in them, and it's just it's a very electric atmosphere. I love it, I really do.

Rose Cushing 29:10

Well, what a great way to do uh population control on the island so that they can sustain themselves.

Sharon Lupton 29:14

Right, and the the herd the the herd is fully vetted, they get their shots. Uh most recently they've had had to deal with uh pithiosis, which is a swamp cancer, that uh took about 20 ponies so far. And so um they're very diligent about keeping these ponies inoculated and making sure that they're healthy, getting their teeth done, feet done, and and you know that doesn't that people would say that maybe does not make them wild or feral or whatever because but they are well maintained, and so you know they they they put a lot into these ponies.

Rose Cushing 29:48

Well, you know, there's a lot of of thoughts about that because I know that there's some herds, Corolla herd, for instance, that's not maintained at all. And and you wonder, you know, how do they find fresh water? And and and they obviously do, but I I think that from my point of view, I like that they're maintained.

Sharon Lupton 30:05

Oh yeah, I do too. I I prefer that because I mean with the mosquitoes and the sleeping sickness that comes with that and the range of other things. And I've never seen anything like that Pythiosis. It was nasty and it was killing young and old, and it was kind of scary.

Rose Cushing 30:20

Well, the whole Coggins vaccine came about because of the banker ponies, exactly. So so there is some controls that need to be done and checks and balances to keep them healthy. Oh, yeah. And it's still a celebration of what was once completely wild.

Sharon Lupton 30:32

Yes, I I I I went to uh the a pony pinning in the early 70s, and let me tell you the difference between what it was then and what it is now is insane because then it was like whoa, it was a free-for-all. People would go in, hand the people their money, and they'd throw three or four ponies into a back of a pickup truck and take off. And when I was there in 2001, I'll never forget this, as long as I live. There's two ladies that come there and had one a pony to take home with them. These two elderly ladies were trying to put this pony in the back of a minivan. The very next year is when they started you've got to have a horse trailer before you can even bid. But it was just so funny to see those two ladies trying to shove that pony into a minivan.

Rose Cushing 31:18

So many people don't realize that a horse is livestock, it's not a companion. He's not a puppy.

Sharon Lupton 31:24

It's not like that corgi end up sitting in the back of my car right now.

Rose Cushing 31:26

It's not a dog, not at all, for sure. So, what other things do you do?

Sharon Lupton 31:31

Tell me about you about your artwork and well, my art got started in the canine world because I used to show dogs, and um I uh I used that to pay for my my dog showing. That was my sin, was my dog showing that I had to pay for it somehow because my husband wasn't going to agree to coming out of family money. So I I started that way. I started as an a cartoonist for a uh dog magazine company in Wheat Ridge, Colorado called Hofflin Publishing. And I worked for them, sold them cartoons for about five or six years. They had like about three different publications, and I had art in every single one of them. I did covers and cartoons and the whole nine yards, and it was just um that's where I got started, and uh then uh it drifted back to the horses, and that's where the Shankatig just kept going and kept going and kept going. My first big painting was a secretariat from a photograph that Seth Hancock sent me when Secretariat died. I sent him a sympathy card and he sent me a picture. Very sweet, very sweet. Yeah, but uh it's just it's it's just kept right on growing, and I I met all these amazing people and people who are willing to share their photos with me, and I I'll paint anything once and try it.

Rose Cushing 32:45

Very nice. Now tell me about the series you do where people send you the photos and and they're near and far.

Sharon Lupton 32:51

Well, that's called the Love Chair Ponies of Shankate, and I had seen something where somebody was down on the the uh big Adirondack chair on the waterfront in Shankate, and they had their dog sitting in the chairs, and they were taking photographs, and I go, I wonder what you could do with the ponies and those. So the first year I I did it, I did it with Surfer Dude, the stallion that had passed away in 2015, and then three of his progeny in the other two chairs. So there's the L chair, the O chair, the V chair, which is a heart, and the E chair, the love chairs, and uh did that and it went well. And I was like, hmm, let's run with this. And so the next year, my partner Sue, who owns Blue Crab Treasures in Shankatig, she uh she said, Well, let's have a contest. So we have a contest where we choose, um, we have people send us photographs with their shirts on, and um they if they send them uh from where they're from, we take the pictures from the furthest away in the United States and the furthest away in the world. We've had them sent from Belize and Germany and all over the place, uh Washington State, uh parts of Florida. We've just been all over the place, and then we have the heart chair is voted upon by popular vote, and the fourth chair comes uh is chosen from all the people who chose who sent me photographs. So um I just started doing it, and it's been fantastic. I don't we don't allow doubles. We you know, every year you if you've been in a chair before you're not eligible for a chair again, and so it's it's turned out really well, and um I I I was really surprised at how how well it took off. I'm just really excited about it. So we have masks and shirts and coats, and we even had cornhole boards. That is so cool!

Rose Cushing 34:45

Well, the I the mask and the shirt that you have on is absolutely gorgeous. Now, how can people see them and order them?

Sharon Lupton 34:50

Um, this all comes from Blue Crab Treasures in in in Shinkatig, Virginia. Um, my uh Facebook page is Corgi Nuts Sketches, so any of my artwork, you just about everything I've done in art is there. But if you want anything specific with the love chairs on it, that is all Sue and at the Blue Crab Treasures in Shinkateg, sir.

Rose Cushing 35:10

And do you do commissions from people to paint their horses or their pets?

Sharon Lupton 35:14

Yes, I do commissions for just about anything. I'm not real great on people. I have done if you're hugging your horse and I can't see your eyes, I can do that. I'm not good on people's eyes, right? Um, but if you're hugging your puppy and I can't see your eyes, I can do that. But there you go. Yeah, I can I I I'll try anything once. I mean I painted tobacco barn last year, so yeah, I'll try anything once. And how do people reach you? Um, through my Facebook page, that's the best place to reach me. I don't ever answer my phone, so I I wouldn't call me. I I don't call me. If you can get me on I am Facebook page is Corkinut Sketches or Sharon Lupton on Facebook. Very good. Now what's left on your bucket list to do? Oh, my bucket list. Oh my gosh. Um well I wanna oh I wanna go see American Pharaoh. That's my bucket list. Um, um, but really left on my bucket list is uh to actually live in Shinkateg. That's my my goal for my life. And yes, that I think that's it. It used to be home own an Irish setter, but not anymore.

Rose Cushing 36:20

Well living on Shinkatag is it's not that far fetched, I'm sure that you'll make it.

Sharon Lupton 36:24

I'm I'm working on it. I'm I'm absolutely working on it. But um beyond that, it would uh I would love to go see the Salt River horses in Utah. I'd really like that. But yeah, I I I I really right now don't don't have a bucket list because I've done a lot here lately.

Rose Cushing 36:41

Well, you know, I go through spells where I have a lot of stuff on the list and then I'm happy to have nothing.

Sharon Lupton 36:45

Well yeah, my friend, my best friend and I, we just we we s we've decided that anything we haven't done before is on our bucket list now. You know, so we go, you know, she and I took a 13 a 13-day 12-state trip um all the way up to Maine and then down, and we were just like, what?

Rose Cushing 37:01

There we go. What's left? You're right. The spontaneous things looking at are by far the most fun.

Sharon Lupton 37:06

Oh yeah, they are. It's fantastic. Definitely.

Rose Cushing 37:08

Well, thank you for spending time with me, and I hope you guys enjoyed meeting sharing. And remember, if you want more information, you can go to CorgiNuts Sketches on Facebook or Sharon Lupton. We can't be successful without your donations as our partners. Every event that Cushing Media Productions produce donates one dollar from ticket sales to Cushing Equestrian Fund. Join us, Cushing Equestrian Fund, your trusted source in an emergency. Follow us on Facebook and you can donate on our website, www.cushingmedia.net. I hope you enjoyed today's show. Our souls wander in similar places. Even though we may not know each other, we touch the same wind, we walk under the same sky, and our hearts wander in the same dreams. We are one. Women, just like you and me. Thank you for listening.