We’re back again! Why? Because while trying to find out more information about the mysterious and elusive cowboy family who rode horses through New York City’s Central Park (see our post titled: A “cowboy family” on horseback spotted in New York City’s Central Park!) we came across a set of pictures perhaps even more unique. No drum roll needed here because the cover picture to this post already gave it away. Yes, a set of photos depicting a lady out for a pleasure ride on a horse, in the middle of New York City’s Times Square! And not just Times Square, but horse riding in what appears to be all over Midtown Manhattan. I guess the crowded subways and hard to hail yellow cabs just became too much for her 🙂 At first we thought these photos were surely “photo shopped.” But after taking a second look, it’s clear that they are real. And, she’s obviously done this more than once, because if you look closely, it’s not the same horse in each picture. There are pics, as you will see, in front of Grand
Central Station, the Museum of Natural History, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Intrepid Museum/Aircraft Carrier, and more. Just amazing and daring if you ask me. I mean heck, have you ever tried to drive a car in New York City or been a passenger in one of those yellow cabs with the crazy drivers behind the wheel? I can only imagine riding a horse!
Is it even legal to ride a horse in the middle of New York City? It sure is. According to Article 34B of the New York State traffic laws, you can ride. You basically have to follow all of the same rules as a car, plus a few additional ones that are specific to horses, i.e. you can’t carry anything in your hands that would prevent you from holding both reins (I guess they never heard of Western Style) and you must wear a helmet. I assume it must also be legal because there are plenty of mounted police riding horses in New York City, and surely they wouldn’t break the law 😉
Because of all the mounted police, the sight of horses around Times Square isn’t so unusual. Nor are carriage horses that can be seen and heard all around Central Park. But to see an average citizen, out for a stroll on their personal horse, plodding along in the busiest parts of the city, that’s almost unheard of. Not since the days before cars was that a common site.
So the pictures around the city’s greatest tourist attractions got me thinking… could we market this to all the horse lovers out there? A tour of Manhattan on horseback? “Bring your own horse or we’ll provide one for you!” “Sleep next to your horse at our stables and save $400 a night off those outrageous NYC hotel prices!” “**Free breakfast for you and your horse with each night stay! **no charge for oats, hot milk is $1.50 additional” Of course I’m joking. It would never work… we all know that half of you would never trade in your cowboy hat for a helmet 🙂
All kidding aside, riding a horse around Manhattan, while seemingly a bit scary, sounds like a lot of fun. You’ve got a better vantage point to see all the sites, you can go around at your own pace (have you ever seen how fast those New Yorkers walk?), it’s probably no more dangerous than taking one of those yellow cabs, you can avoid getting mugged on the subway, and parking (which is normally impossible to find if you have a car) would be a breeze (just insert your horse perpendicular to two parked cars). Plus, if you like to turn heads, think about all the attention you’d receive (yes, you’d have to dress in your finest given all the pictures you’d be in).
Well, hats and helmets off to the brave and adventurous lady in these photos (please will you reveal yourself? So many questions we’d like to ask). We hope to join you some day, but in the meantime, “Happy Trails!” Or, should I say, “Happy asphalt and watch out for that pothole!”? (More pics below:)
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Incredible!! The power of the internet…after almost 6 months we finally tracked down the “cowboy family” Thank you for coming forward Cliff, and we will definitely be in touch to get those pics!
Hey there my name is cliff Schadt I’m a horse trainer and clinician out on Long Island, I was part of the “cowboy family” in the park. I have pictures from that day email me at nf—[email protected]