Olympic Farriers Honored with Medal Ceremony by Worshipful Company of Farriers

The podium was crowded at the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, London on the summer night of July 29th. The Olympics had begun a few days before. The world had arrived in London. At nearby Greenwich Park, the eventing was in full swing.

A team medal ceremony was in order; even though they represented different nations' teams, they were all from the same tribe: Team Farrier, indeed, in more ways than one.

Anyone who has ever said, "That farrier deserves a medal" had their wishes come true that night.

The farriers standing together for the official photo represented countries from as far away as Australia.

They were the guests of the famed Worshipful Company of Farriers.

Each farrier was presented with a certificate and engraved silver medal by the Master of the Company, Mr Stephen Scott.

"The Company decided to hold a reception to mark the contribution made by the team farriers, both from the UK and overseas, to the success of the London 2012 Olympics," Mrs Clifford told the Hoof Blog via email.

"We were very fortunate to be able to hold it at Woolwich Barracks, thanks to the Commanding Officer and staff of the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, which made it easy to transport the farriers to and from Greenwich Park.

Farriers, dignitaries and hosts at medal ceremony: Captain Richard Todd, Troop Captain, King's Troop; Robert McIntosh (UK); Ben Benson (UK); Major Mark Edward, Commanding Officer, King's Troop; Lee Collins (UK); WCF Upper Warden, Major General Sir Evelyn Webb-Carter; Nicholas Deacon (UK); Marcus Thorne (UK); Sandy Parker (Australia); James Goddard (UK); WCF Master, Mr. Stephen Scott; Ian Hughes (UK); Paul Armstrong (UK); Jim Blurton (UK); Jay Tovey (UK); David Le Corre (France); Per Christofferson (Denmark); William Mulqueen (UK); Simon Persse (UK); WCF Middle Warden, Mr Simon Fleet; WCF Renter Warden, Mr Wayne Upton. (Farriers are listed by name only; dignitaries and hosts by name and title.) Photo provided by Gillian Harris, Forge Magazine.

 The evening began with a champagne reception, followed by a two-course buffet dinner.

"Each farrier was presented with a certificate and engraved silver medal by the Master of the Company, Mr Stephen Scott; sadly and inevitably, not every eligible farrier was able to attend, as some had to be on duty that evening, but those who couldn't get there will receive their certificates and medals in due course."

The silver farrier medal carries the Company's coat of arms. The reverse of each has the individual farrier's name engraved on it. The Company's motto, Vi et Virtute ('By strength and by virtue') is at the bottom.

Invited official team farriers (listed alphabetically by last name of farrier) who could not attend were:

• Rene Biella (Colombia),
• Gerardus de Crom (Holland), 
  
• Guillaume Duhamel (Chile),
• Yves Joosen (Saudi Arabia),
• Dieter Kroehnert (Germany),
• Todd Meister (USA),
• Brendan Murray (UK),
• Andrew Nickalls (UK resident, looking after the New Zealand team), 
• Randall Pawlak (Canada), 
  
• Nigel Perrott (UK resident, looking after the Ireland team), 
• Sergio Pinto (Portugal),
• Haydn Price (UK), 
• Damien Rotkopf (Portugal), 
  
• Mark Skippon (UK),
• Stephen Teichman (USA),
• Gaelle Terranova (Portugal), 
• David Watson (Thailand)

The Clerk said that those team farriers were either obliged to work at that time, or had not yet arrived.

The group included a team of British farriers working under London Olympics Lead Farrier Jim Blurton; they provided services to countries that were not staffed with a team farrier. They were also stationed at each arena and warmup ring, as well as staffing the Olympic forge at Greenwich Park. They were highly visible on the telecast of the equestrian events, as one farrier was stationed at the out gate of the main arena, where one of the BBC/NBC cameras was pointed for each dressage rider and showjumper.

Mrs. Clifford continued, "We have received very positive feedback from those who were there, and the event achieved its aim of recognizing the commitment made by the farriers to the well being of the horses involved and to the success of the Games overall."

Woolwich Barracks, home of the King's Troop, Royal Artillery was the site of shooting events for the Olympics, and hosted the farrier reception. (michaelpead.co.uk photo)

About the King's Troop: The Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in London, was built in the late 1700s as the home of the Royal Artillery. The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery moved from the St John's Wood Barracks to their new quarters and stables on the Woolwich site in 2012, bringing with them a complement of 75 or thereabouts horses, historic gun carriages and artillery pieces used for their display. The Barracks are the site of shooting events at the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.

About the Company: The records of the City of London Corporation show that on 27th March 1356, in the 30th year of the reign of Edward III, the Mayor, Henry Pykard, summoned before him all the farriers of the City to deal with the many offenses and damages which had been committed by "people not wise therein" who kept forges in the City and meddled with practices which they did not understand, to the greater detriment of the horse. The Mayor ordered the choosing of two Wardens who were given full power to oversee and govern the trade and to deal with any default.

It may be 650 or so years later, but the Worshipful Company of Farriers is still overseeing the trade--in London and throughout the United Kingdom. Farriery in Britain is regulated by an Act of Parliament which requires that only professional farriers in possession of the Company's Diploma can shoe horses.

Hoofcare and Lameness thanks Mrs Charlotte Clifford, Clerk of the Company, and Gillian Harris of Forge Magazine for their kind assistance with this article. 

Click to read more about (and order) the #1 reference book for hoof anatomy in the world!

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.  

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Best of 2008: World Champion Farrier Clock Is in a Class of Its Own

Please double-click on the image to enlarge it and see details of the shoes. The image is extra-large for this reason. For those unfamiliar with elite farrier pursuits: these shoes were made from cold bars of steel, heated in coal or gas forges, and crafted using only hand tools such as hammers, rasps, pritchels and fullering blades. No power tools were used...although I can't vouch for the making of the clock! Photo courtesy of Carl Bettison.

World Champion's shoes and year of championship:
Left top to bottom: Fullered hunter shoe by Richard Ellis (1997)
Heart bar shoe by Jim Blurton (2005)
Hind heeled cob shoe with toe calk by Paul Robinson (2008)
Center: front fullered Clydesdale shoe with toe clip by David Wilson (1985)
Right top to bottom: French hind shoe by Grant Moon (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994)
Front fullered wide-web straight bar shoe by Darren Bazin (2000, 2002, 2004)
Hind calk-and-wedge roadster shoe by Billy Crothers (1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2006)
(Note: shoes identified by Fran Jurga, corrections are welcome!)

Looking back on 2008, there are some stories for the blog that have been in the pipeline for a while, dangling for details. This one definitely falls into the category of "Best of..." on several levels. I was challenged by labeling the shoes in the photo, but today I feel brave and am taking a stab at it.

The story begins with our friend Carl Bettison. Carl is a farrier and supply company executive for Stromsholm in England; he is also the new owner of Gibbins, the farrier apron and work clothing manufacturer.

But Carl's life this year is defined by being an executive of a different sort. He is the master of the Worshipful Company of Farriers, which is a livery company of London. What started 600 years ago as a craft guild to protect the practice of farriery in the city of London has evolved into a high-powered members-only "club" of influential professionals from all walks of life. The twist is that the club is still charged with the protecting the best interests of farriery and in fact, is the benefactor and advocate for the farrier educational system throughout Great Britain.

Since I have been involved in farriery, there have been four "masters" of the company who were farriers: Howard Cooper, Mac Head, Simon Curtis and now, Carl Bettison. It is an incredible honor and also an incredible duty to hold this office. I can also remember that Princess Anne, daughter of Queen Elizabeth, was the master one year. Normally, however, the master is a "normal" non-farrier member of the company. That would usually be a successful businessperson in London executive circles.

Some farriers are members of the company and participate in the events and programs, but all farriers are technically products of the WCF through the examination process that qualifies farriers in the UK. When a young farrier successfully completes college and the rigorous three-year apprenticeship, s/he earns the title of DipWCF, for the "Diploma of the WCF".

Among Carl's innovative activities since taking office was the commissioning of a centerpiece for a fundraising auction, the shoe-plaque/clock you see in the photo with this article. It's quite spectacular but even more so when you realize the sources of the shoes:

"I asked all the Calgary (Stampede) World Champions from UK plus Ireland to make a shoe each. Then Richard Ellis, helped by his father, made this clock. It was sold at a Worshipful Company of Farriers Auction last Friday for £5000 (approximately US$8000). The winning bid was placed by Grant Moon on behalf of Sarac Hotels Limited," Carl writes.

The clock wasn't the only interesting item in the auction. Carl mentioned that other items included a signed photo of European champion eventer Zara Phillips (grand-daughter of the Queen, daughter of Princess Anne) and her top horse Toytown, including a horseshoe from Toytown, authenticated and signed by her faithful farrier, our friend Bernie Tidmarsh from Wiltshire. (Toytown was injured just before the Olympics and Zara missed Hong Kong.)

Also on the list included the lucrative promise of a day's fly fishing in Scotland with Ayrshire farrier Jim Ferrie, and a day's golf at Woburn for three people with Billy Crothers.

This was no backyard auction. Carl reported, "We were lucky to have Hugh Edmeads, the chairman of Christie's (art auction house) in South Kensington (London) as our auctioneer. The total raised was £8240."

Thanks to Carl for this news, and thanks to the individual champions for pulling together for this project. If it looks like the British Isles dominates the world championship, it is quite true, although several Americans have won, as well. It is interesting to note that until David Wilson won in 1985, the champions were British born and trained: Bob Marshall, now of Canada, and Dave Duckett, now of the USA.

Another bit of interesting trivia here is that of the seven British Isles champions, four of them are originally from the tiny nation of Wales.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

First Canadian Farrier Earns WCF Advanced Credential: Congratulations to Gerard Laverty

Gerard Laverty AWCF, right, observes one of his farrier students at Kwantlen Polytechnic University outside Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. In November Laverty became the first Canadian to receive an advanced qualification from the Worshipful Company of Farriers. Ten out of eleven of his current students are women. (Photo credit: Canada.com)

In November, Kwantlen Polytechnic University farrier faculty member Gerard Laverty became the only farrier in Canada, and joined a handful of farriers in North America, to officially receive an elite designation as an Associate of the Worshipful Company of Farriers (WCF) of London, England.

A native of Northern Ireland, Gerard has represented Canada in international farrier competition. He previously earned the journeyman and therapeutic endorsement certification levels through the American Farrier's Association.

"I didn't know what I was getting into," Gerard said recently. "The AW (examination) requires a horse to be shod with therapeutic shoes and you produce a specimen shoe. It's more modern than the AFA's TE test. You have an hour to repair a hoof crack, or open an abscess, or do a resection. They tell you which to do. And for the specimen, they give you three pages of shoes that you might be asked to make."

He had to take the practical test twice, making four long trips from Vancouver to London. Before taking the test, he spent time working in Scotland with Allan Ferrie FWCF for coaching, and with Gary Darlow in England.

His individual test called for him to shoe the front end of a horse with a pair of straight bar shoes. The frog could not touch the bar when the foot was loaded and the solar border had to be relieved.

For the modern materials portion, he had to create a toe extension and work on a quarter crack. Glue-on shoes such as the Imprint thermoplastic shoes are allowed, as is Vettec's Equithane. Part of that test involved determining if the horse was sound. "You have to take the horse out and judge if its sound or lame. You have to declare it. That after you declare it, the judges trot it to see what they think of your evaluation."

The Associate level is designed to test a farrier's ability to do referral and/or therapeutic work. In the paper "So You Want to Be An Associate", Simon Curtis FWCF writes: "They are looking for you to convince them that you have a depth of knowledge of anatomy, conditions and diseases of the foot, and how conformation affects the gait and the foot, and vice versa. You need to show traditional forging skills and be able to apply them to an individual horse. You need to show a range of shoemaking skills in different materials including fabricating.

"They are assessing your ability to think on your feet when confronted with a task that you might not have experienced. You need to be able to use and have an opinion on the modern materials listed. You need to be comfortable looking at x-rays and assessing a horse with a veterinary surgeon.

"The above list of skills is quite wide ranging. However, it is only what one would expect a farrier engaged in remedial or consultancy shoeing to possess. The veterinary examiner is looking to see if you could partner him in treating farriery related conditions. The farrier examiners are looking to see whether they could refer a case to you."

Laverty takes great pride in teaching students farrier skills at Kwantlen's nine-month course. He joined Kwantlen in 2003, bringing with him 30 years of industry experience and added his name to the impressive list of faculty at Kwantlen that has included Hank McEwen and the late Cindy Dawn Elstrom.

Gerard’s career began with a three-year apprenticeship in Dublin, Ireland, with the Irish Horse Board. He graduated with a gold medal in both theory and practical skills. Gerard moved to the U.S. in 1981, then immigrated to Canada and began a business in Prince George, British Columbia.

The Worshipful Company of Farriers offers one examination above the Associate, called the Fellowship (FWCF), which is the highest qualification from the company and perhaps the most difficult farrier examination in the world. Farriers with this qualification have the highest level of farrier knowledge and skills, and must be able to present their knowledge to an audience in a lecture or paper form similar to a masters thesis.

For more information about the Kwantlen farrier program, please visit: kwantlen.ca/trades . You can also email Gerard Laverty or call him at 604.599.6177.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

Friends at Work: Lauren Carey Aces Farrier Apprenticeship, Wins Worshipful Company's Essay Contest

Lauren Carey DipWCF is a rookie farrier in England. She's just completed her four-year apprenticeship, as required by the Farriers Registration Act, and is launching her own business in Peterborough, a city north of London.

What sets Lauren apart is that she has excelled in her training and recently was named the national first place winner in the Worshipful Company of Farriers' essay competition.

Farrier instructor Alan Woodyatt said of Lauren: "I have been involved with the Diploma exam students for 18 years and she was very nearly the best student I have taught for the anatomy written paper and 'hands-on' horse assessments."

And that is very high praise, indeed!

Congratulations, Lauren!

Read all about Lauren and how she earned her rewarding new career in this British newspaper article.

PS It's interesting to see that Lauren is shown working with the horse's foot on an American-style hoofstand. Not too many years ago, when Welshman Tommy Williams ran the farriers college program in the UK, hoof stands were banned and he used to rant and rave about how farriers shouldn't learn to shoe with a stand. They weren't allowed in farrier competitions, either. Things must be changing (in a few small ways) in England!