Schaumburg Toyota Car Show

My friend Cindy got talked into this one - showing her 1986 Toyota MR-2 in the "Old School" division at a car show at Schaumburg Toyota.  Apparently the day before, when she brought it in for an oil change, the service techs begged her to bring it, and much to my surprise, she decided to do it.  When she asked me to tag along, take some pictures and keep her company, I jumped at the opportunity to do something so unique!

Cindy's little blue baby is in such pristine condition for a 1986, it's disgusting.  It only has 37,000+ miles on it, too!  Everything is in stock, original condition.  It was a rare and unique color blue as well - not the easiest color to find in that year's model.  I learned that the MR-2 was the car of the year in 1986.

Cindy had lots of people stop by to check out her car - she drew crowds!

Cindy actually bought this car at Schaumburg Toyota in 1986.  It was her first ever "new" car that she bought for herself, which explains the sentimental attachment.  She even still has the original invoice!

The radio station B96 was there, playing loud, lively music, and revving up the crowds for the raffle & car contest.  They had everything from loudest stereo to best light display, etc.

This was my first attempt at taking pics at a car show - it was a bit challenging, low lighting with only the overhead parking lot lights.  Cars are very reflective, and overall, it's a tough situation to shoot in.  Some of the light displays on the cars/trucks were amazing!  Their car payments must equal my mortgage!

Here is just a quick sampling of some:

This was too funny to not take a picture of - you should have seen the guy that owned the car - I'm surprised HE didn't make it scrape - he really has no room to talk!

Lastly, a couple pics of my favorite car of the night - a beautiful1960 something Chevelle SS.  I like 'em old school, big metal cars with big AMERICAN engines :)

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Branding at the Keuring

What is a Keuring, you ask?  Good question, because before last weekend, I didn't know either.  A Keuring is an evaluation of breeding horses and resulting offspring.  The jury addresses conformation, movement, & pedigree as related to the breeding goal & evaluation for soundness & ability for performance at the highest level of sport competition.  They judge mares, foals, yearlings, and stallions.  Some are judged "in hand" meaning they are walked around the arena, and some are judged free-jumping (no rider) over jumps.  They are also measured and depending on acceptance, branded.

The Keuring I attended and photographed last weekend was at the beautiful Claybrook Farms in Ithica, Michigan.  It is a picturesque farm in the middle of nowhere on a gravel road.  I am so glad I had my GPS to get me there!  Waino Pihl, Susan Taylor, and their entire family gave me the warmest welcome and really made me feel like a part of the family.

The Keuring itself was a learning experience for me photographically - you can always check out the proofs on my website CLICK HERE  The toughest part was the weather not cooperating!  When I got there Sunday, the weather was beautiful, clear, and sunny.  Of course on Monday, the day of the Keuring, it was overcast and raining all morning!  I was able to compensate with my photography for the outdoor photography, but admittedly, I struggled with the indoor.  It was so dark, and so overcast, it was virtually impossible to capture high action free jumping.

For me, the most interesting part of the process was the branding!  In my 25+ years around horses, I have never actually witnessed a horse being branded before.  At this facility, they used a hot brand.  Some places now use cold branding using liquid nitrogen, but that was not the case here.

The brand being heated in the oven in preparation for application

The KWPN Dutch Warmblood Brand

The super-heated brand is literally pressed onto the horse's left rear hindquarter, above the gaskin.  It makes a scar where the hair won't grow back, or if it does it will be white (or black, if it's a light colored horse).

The location of the brand

I was absolutely amazed at the lack of response from the horses involved.  No twitch, no tranquilizer. The handlers were extremely experienced, and simply covered the horse's left eye with their hand so they couldn't see what was coming, and the entire process was over in a split second.  The horses didn't fuss, whinny, kick, or really show any pain at all!  I am sure it wasn't pain-free, but I've seen a horse react more to tightening a girth than to this branding process.  The worst part was the smell of burnt hair!  Yuck.

Here is a fun series of images as a horse was being branded - it was so quick!  I really thought this was the most amazing process to watch, and I hope you've enjoyed reading about it.

The final brand, close up!

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