Why Worry?

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Hunt Reports

By Norman Fine

The Why Worry foxhounds
Charles Sainsbury-Plaice photo

"Would you like to ride up with me?" asked George Thomas, MFH and huntsman of the Why Worry Hounds. Thomas is a direct descendant of the Bywaters family of Virginia—renowned foxhound breeders of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries—and he hunts a pack of Crossbred hounds, most of which carry the old Bywaters bloodlines. The meet was at Basset Hill in Aiken, South Carolina, home of Ward and Mary Lou Welsh. I was being offered a chance to watch a lovely pack of hounds work their country.

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A Boxing Day Meet in South Carolina

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Hunt Reports

By Jeanie Thomas, MFH

Louisa Davidson photos

We had the South Carolina version of a blizzard on Boxing Day, but we and some of our hardiest of members decided to brave the elements and go hunting anyway. It had rained all night then turned to sleet and snow, which carried on all day and into the evening. Cancelling was an option but not one we wanted to use. We have always hunted on Boxing Day since the hunt was started, so we hated the thought of missing it this year, especially since the scenting would hopefully be better and we were meeting at our favorite fixture.

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Some Good News from England and Northern Ireland

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Hunt Reports

By Ian Anderson, ex-MFH

Lynne and Ian Anderson, ex-MFHs
Ginni Beard photo

Northern Ireland
Yesterday evening the Northern Ireland Assembly rejected a Hunting Bill that was introduced into the Assembly by Green Party Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Brian Wilson. This Private Member’s Bill was virtually identical to the Hunting Act of 2004 in England and Wales, so its rejection by the Assembly sends a strong and clear message to Westminster: the Hunting Act is a bad law, and we in Northern Ireland do not wish to repeat the mistake.

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Whiskey Road Hunt Week, Aiken, SC

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Hunt Reports

By Betsy Parker

Betsy and friends escape frozen Virginia for a week of hunting in warmer climes. We bring you her daily blog, exclusive to Foxhunting Life. 

First Installment

Don Palus, Dawn Cline, Maggie Johnston, and Jackie Burke stretch their horses' legs in the Hitchcock Woods in preparation for Hunt Week in Aiken, SC.

It poured rain last night. Woke up several times with rain pelting the tin roof of our cottage, but when I opened the door to see if we were going to float away I couldn't help notice it was weirdly warm. Like sixty degrees warm! Odd.

This morning dawned light and sunny and toasty warm. I stripped down to just my turtleneck layer for the horse trials next door.

At Full Gallop Farm, they hold training horse trials—intermediate level all the way down to beginner novice—attracting hundreds of competitors. Our Hunt Week crew is volunteering for duty to "earn" the right to school/ride/hack over their hundreds of acres of cross country jumps, show jumping fences, and dressage arenas.

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