Thursday, August 02, 2012

From Buckles

08-01-2012 07;32;05PM by bucklesw1
08-01-2012 07;32;05PM, a photo by bucklesw1 on Flickr.

Sidney Rink
Renowned mule, horse and elephant trainer.

"I wonder if CALECTO V can do this?"

Posted by Buckles at 8/02/2012 05:41:00 AM

7 comments:

Wade G. Burck said...

Probably not, but then again this horse couldn't win a Kentucky Derby. Different deals, dressage and high school. Dressage is judged against a standard, high school is judged by how good you or your mates think you have done.

Wade

02 August, 2012 07:11
John Herriott said...

Yes dressage is judged by standards, however there are alot of various levels that can be entered into, but the highest level that we wait to see is the "Grand Prix" and this will be the level of Miss Konyot and the Queens grand daughter will be showing and it is "awesome baby". High School [haute ecole] is the original of this type of riding and started in militaries and circus and dressage was a throw off for competition with certain standards. But high school has perservered in the circus over the years and is judged by its skill and audience appreciation. Alex Konyot was smart to get around the money horse set in the Palm Beach area and benhanced his career and abilities. His father and Sister also got around the horsey people but not as complete as Alex. Hence his daughter grew up in the world of dressage. I believe her brother became quite accpmplished with Hunter-Jumpers as well. But it all came about from the circus.

02 August, 2012 08:45
John Herriott said...

Sydney Rink was a black person who had a marvelous ability with training elephants, horses, mules, etc. We hear of him on the old Al.G. Barnes circus and then he went on to other shows and training. I saw in old Billboard that he was at a major circus training a young elephant named LaTina in Havre De Grace, Md. This elephant was named after the owners wife and thru the years she was known as just "tina" and is the elephant recently referred to by Buckles as being one that both he and I worked on early Kelly=Miller. johnny

02 August, 2012 08:53
Ole Whitey said...

Johnny: I think the show owner must have been Andrew Downey.

02 August, 2012 11:07
Dick Flint said...

Correct, but its Andrew Downie or, if his full name, Andred Downie McPhee, a Canadian and veteran showman by this time. The nucleus of his La Tena rail show was the amicable division of the Downie & Wheeler partnership. His La Tena Circus was out from 1914-17, then he leased the Walter L. Main name and continued until 1924 when the equipment was sold to Miller Bros for their revived 101 Ranch show. Missing the circus game, he then launched the first all-motorized circus from Havre de Grace before selling it to Charles Sparks. The downtown winter quarters building for his shows was taken down by 1930. Beautiful Havre de Grace sits at the head of the Chesapeake Bay and the mouth of the Chesapeake River. It was a "fast" town at the time, famous for its decoy makers and duck hunting and with a famous race course where Sea Biscuit once won a big race.

Like Downie, Sparks missed the business after selling out to the Corporation. Incidentally, Downie had a bungalow-style home in Medina, NY, during this same time period that still stands.
Dick Flint
Baltimore

02 August, 2012 13:00
Harry Kingston said...

I think Sidney Rink was on Christy Bros Circus in the elephnat dept.
Harry in Texas

02 August, 2012 15:35
Buckles said...

My dad said he got to know Sid Rink quite well when they shared the same baggage car and a tent in the infield on a series of fair dates.
He had three Hall elephants and Rink had his January mule act.
He was quite flamboyant, always in a Prince Albert coat so he may have looked like this picture in everyday life.

02 August, 2012 16:25

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