Today marks the first day of the Year of the Horse. The horse is the seventh creature represented in the 12 year cycle of the Chinese zodiac. Each creature is said to have attributes that exude a spirit on those born in the creature's particular years.
People born in the years of the horse are described as communicable, clever, talkative, cheerful, perceptive and friendly. These people like to entertain and enjoy large crowds. They also have trouble accepting failure but know when to stop pursuing something that isn't working - leading them to sometimes fail at accomplishing tasks, which can lead to pessimism. Horse people cannot be constrained and can come across as superficial. As they are independent, they have trouble taking advice. They are also known to show their tempers and are not good with money. Now aside from dealing with money can these attributes be associated to an actual horse? Trevor Graham, manager of Twin Oaks Farm, an equestrian training centre in south Richmond, thinks a lot of the horse's zodiac characteristics are true of real horses. "I would say that's a pretty close vision of what it's all about for horses," chuckled Graham. Graham says horses are fickle characters that frighten easily. "A horse won't take any crap from anybody and the moment it feels restraint or restricted it bolts."
But he reminds us that horses, like humans, also have an infinite number of differences. "I can show you cranky old mares and cranky old boys. But for the better part, that describes the horse quite well," said Graham. Some of Richmond's most famous athletes are horse people, which falls in line with horse people's affinity to entertain others and their appreciation for large crowds. Among these athletes are Scott Hannan, born Jan. 23, 1979, a professional hockey player for the San Jose Sharks, Kyle Hamilton, born Feb. 26, 1978, an Olympic rowing champion, and Jason Jordan, born May 30, 1978, a retired professional soccer player who played for the Vancouver Whitecaps. Another famous horse person from Richmond was Harvey Lowe, a radio personality and world yo-yo champion, born Oct. 30, 1918, passed away 2009.
