4/ MAY 2026 THE RIDER HON. COL. A.W. FINN CD: Founder


BARRY FINN: barry@therider.com Publisher/ Editor/Advertising Manager


GLENDA FORDHAM: fordhampr@rogers.com Entertainment Columnist


Follow us on: Established in 1970, Published By 1677849 Ontario Ltd.


From Our Founder


Remembering May 1985


The Rider was in two sec-


tions that was an oddity for the time. We are now two and some- times three sections and full colour each issue.


In 1976 there were no Bar-


rel Racing Futurities, but 8 years later in 1984 there were 53 with a total purse of $790,000.00 USD. That would


$2,484,698.00 in todays value. Heading the list for purses was Sterivet.


Cavalier Equestrian, Rogar


/STB and Ralston Purina be- came official sponsors of the Canadian Equestrian Team. Rogar STB took out a full page process colour ad in The Rider featuring the team.


Scientist believed they


found the cause of a mysterious seasonal disorder called Po- tomac horse fever, which causes loss of appetite and diarrhea, in an organism called Rickettsial.


This late in the breeding


season Ronzil Farms from Schomberg, Ontario were adver- tising five AQHA stallions.


Mary and Alf Annis took


out a ½ page to advertise their racing stallions.


Misty River Stable from


Kitchener, OB., and Tim Lawrence Stables were promot- ing stallions.. are there no more stallions out there?


Washington State Univer-


sity announced that they were working on an Equine infectious Anemia vaccine using funding from the Arabian Horse Reg- istry.


be Two Morgan horses broke


the auction record at the Ameri- can Morgan Horse Association Stallion service auction selling at $27,000.00 USD each. That would be $84,920.00 today.


The Rider was gearing up


our customers for the ORA Rodeo Season. Mike Corson was the featured cowboy in this issue.


Miniature Horses domi-


nated the second section of The Rider.


WHAO were promoting


their 1985 Horse Extravaganza at the Paris Fair Grounds, on June 21 -23.


Absorbine ran two full


pages in this issue. The Burlington Aldershot


Lions club had a full page for their International Show on June 14-16. Wayne Ormerod was the show manager.


My Turn The Rider will welcome


it’s 57th year in July. Over the years we saw so many hot shots come into the horse publication market and fail. Even one of The Toronto Star’s publications tried, copied our name and failed. It takes honesty and integrity to survive in this era of Trumped up fake news. This past 56 years have seen so many changes to the industry. On April 10th. I stopped by


the Ancaster Fair Grounds and watched as the Hometown Bo- nanza show was setting up. Nothing much has changed. the routine is the same. Horses un- loaded and into a fresh bedded stall. then groomed. I stopped and asked a horse lady what she was doing she said cleaning her saddle. Then I asked what’s a saddle. She was kind enough not to laugh and started explaining. I finally said I had an Emore Saddle from High River Alberta. All was well I think she knew I was playing games.


Then I found Don Bailey


and his nephew Adam setting up their booth and had a nice chat about yesterday. Then Jim Everett joined in. Not too many originals left. Many years ago I bought a harness from Don when I had my Saddle Bred Mare pulling my McLaughlin Cutter built in Oshawa, Ontario in 1910. I am patiently waiting for


the Rodeo season to get under- way. I ,ay just get a camper and stay over and try and relive those days 56 years ago, when you took your horse to an event in the back of a pick up truck. I remember well the 25th


Anniversary of ORA at the Walls Farm near Alliston. I flew in my plane with my wife Katherine and George Philips, promotion manager of Carling O’Keefe and his wife Katy. We landed in a farmers field behind the event. We spent the night camped out. Sometimes memo- ries is all that is left. OK lets deal with commer-


cials. I am very confused with the American Auto Industry. They all are blabbing about “Best In Class”. Now just what is that? Can anyone explain. For myself you can sum up the in- dustry in four words. Bubble, Box, Bubble Box… I drive a Box.


Winter has all but gone. I


can now reflect on the TV com- mercials that have annoyed me the most over the winter. The one from Door Dash is sicken- ing to say the leas. It features two people tumbling out of bed and staggering and falling down the hall. I’m not sure if it is drugs or booze. They make it to the front door and open it. There stands the delivery guy. They snatch the bag and slam the door in his face. Thanks for looking down


in this corner. Aidan Finn CD Founder of The Rider 1970


Honourable Kentucky Colonel Member OQHA Hall of Fame Member Can-Am


Equine Walk of Fame In Memoriam: Ken Peterson Horse Journal®


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Photo: In 2011, the 1991 Pan American Games Team was inducted into the Jump Canada Hall of Fame. Sandra Anderson, Danny Foster, Beth Underhill, Ian Millar and Dr. Ken Peterson attended to celebrate the honour. © Michelle Dunn.


Kenneth Peterson, a long-time supporter of


Canadian show jumping and the former chairman of the Canadian Equestrian Team, passed away in Ottawa in February, following a long illness. He was 87. Born in the United Kingdom in 1938, Ken


came to Canada in 1967 and worked as a surgeon at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Toronto beginning in 1972. Horses became an important part of the lives of Ken and his wife, Gillian, following a move to King Township in 1979. Ken became an avid sup- porter of the sport of show jumping in general, and Jay Hayes in particular, forming the Solid Gold syndicate, which purchased Zucarlos, the feisty grey stallion aboard which Hayes competed at the 1989 World Cup Final in Tampa, the 1990 World Equestrian Games in Stockholm, and the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where they were the top- placed Canadian pair. Peterson was a co-founder of the Colling-


wood Horse Show in 1987, alongside the Hayes and Chapman families, and helped organize many fundraising activities for the Jumping Team. Jay Hayes remarked, “His greatest strength was pulling people and their resources into the sport. He was a magician.” Gillian Peterson agreed, saying, “Ken persuaded many of his doctor friends from St. Joseph’s that they would LOVE to get involved with horses!” As an avid fox hunter with the Toronto &


North York Hunt, Peterson mingled with many TNYH members who were involved with the Royal Horse Show and the Canadian Equestrian Team. “He arranged coverage with his doctor friends so there was always a doctor on-site at the Royal!” said Gillian. “He competed a bit himself and hunted with the past (CET) chairman. They suggested to Ken that he might want to become in- volved with the team, and it seemed like a natural


Visit Fergus on his website at: http://www.fergusthehorse.com


progression.” Peterson became the chairman of the Cana-


dian Equestrian Team in 1991 and acted as chef d’équipe at the Pan Am Games in Havana, Cuba, where Canada won team silver and individual gold (Danny Foster) in show jumping. He supported the team at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics, and the Pan Am Games in Argentina in 1995, after which he be- came part of the transition team that formed Jump Canada. “Ken was always very enthusiastic. It was a great break from medicine for him,” noted Gillian. “He loved being involved with anything to do with horses.” Longtime Jumping Team member Beth Un-


derhill recalled, “His enthusiasm for the sport was infectious. He was always willing to be a part of it in any way: volunteer, owner, show investor, team manager, board member, owner’s committee… there was nothing he wouldn’t get involved with in order to move the sport forward. “He was in the warm-up ring, giving last


words of encouragement. He was always the first one to congratulate you as you walked out of the ring. He was the guy you wanted to be better for.


Just a lovely person ‒ I still think of him often.” Away from the horse world, Peterson also


pursued golf and fishing with equal enthusiasm. In 1997, Ken and Gillian moved to warmer climes in the Turks and Caicos islands, where they lived and where Ken worked as a urologist at a small clinic for the next 20 years before returning to Canada. Peterson leaves his wife, Gillian, and daugh-


ters Jayne, Nicola, and Caroline. A Celebration of Life is being planned for later this summer. Watch


the induction video


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjlQGZ7PpIU &list=PLsxQmBvJIqhVmynvYrEePPjZ_i5NEBd2 G&index=44


Opinions expressed in this newspaper, including those in Letters To The Editor, are those of the authors and not necessarily those of this publication.


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