Blogging Along the Brandywine: 'Beer for my horses'

Blogging Along the Brandywine: ‘Beer for my horses’

Posted by Sally Denk Hoey on June 6, 2023

Steve, one of the Budweiser Clydesdale's at the Devon Horse Show. He's 10 years old, weighs 2,179 pounds and is 19 hands — 76 inches — tall at the withers.

OK my friends, let’s sing along with Toby Keith and Willie Nelson.

“And we’ll raise up our glasses against evil forces, singing …whisky for my men…Beer for my horses!”

I actually did give a can of beer to my crazy Anglo-Arab mount, a flashy show ring hunter, back in the day — and he liked it. Beer is made from grain, so why not?

But I digress.

A certain beer has plummeted in popularity and value lately. In fact, rapper Kid Rock recently used his automatic rifle to destroy a stack of cases.

White stockings are a must for a Budweiser Clydesdale.

So let me introduce Brett and Steve. Two “Gentle Giants” that my husband Tom and I met at “Cocktails and Clydesdales” at the Devon Horse Show last week. I grabbed a bottle of Dasani. It kept me on point — and I do have one, so read on.

Brett and Steve are part of the Budweiser Clydesdale hitch who arrived at Devon last week. They only need eight to pull the huge beer wagon, but always travel with two extras for backup.

The Clydesdale is a draft breed from Lanarkshire, Scotland in the valley of the Clyde River. A Flemish stallion was introduced to the mares in 1715, followed by some Shire blood. The modern Clydesdale came to America prior to the Civil War.

Steve, is a “wheel horse,” one of two of the largest horses that are closest to the wheel of the wagon. He’s 10 years old, weighs 2,179 pounds and is 19 hands tall. In horse speak, that’s 76 inches tall at the withers, the high point between a horse’s shoulder blades.

All of the horses are trained for a certain position in the hitch.

To qualify for the Budweiser team, Clydesdales must be geldings (neutered males), at least 5 years old, 18 hands (72 inches) tall at the withers, bay in color (dark brown with black mane and tail), and have four white stockings and a white blaze on their face.

They consume up to 50 pounds of hay, 20 quarts of grain, and 35 gallons of water a day.

Finally, a handler bought out big Brett from his stall so we could all experience his awesomeness.

And listen up ladies. In order to be an official Clydesdale handler, one needs to be 21 years old and have a CDL, a Commercial Driver’s License. Yes. All the handlers can drive those big horse trailers.

Later that evening, sitting in the grandstand, I was uncharacteristically sad.

I mean, how can you be sad at the Devon Horse Show with the Ferris Wheel lights sparkling over the treetops and the sweet smell of cotton candy in the air? I was watching amazing Olympic medalists, international equestrians, and their horses, clearing five and six-foot fences in the jumping class, and making it look deceptively effortless.

But I kept thinking about a hasty marketing decision and a precipitous fall from grace.

The Budweiser Clydesdales have been a symbol of the Anheuser-Busch family since 1933 when Prohibition was repealed. And admit it. Those who watch the Super Bowl for the commercials, beer drinkers or not, want to hear that familiar march and see the handsome, polished hitch of horses come prancing across the screen.

And even though Anheuser-Busch is now owned by a Belgian conglomerate, they’re as American as Mom and Apple Pie. These gentle giants have been quietly doing their thing for 90 years and doing it extremely well. They’re a brand icon.

So, after 570-some words, here’s my unbiased, non-beer-drinker’s point.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

About Sally Denk Hoey

Sally Denk Hoey, is a Gemini - one part music and one part history. She holds a masters degree cum laude from the School of Music at West Chester University. She taught 14 years in both public and private school. Her CD "Bard of the Brandywine" was critically received during her almost 30 years as a folk singer. She currently cantors masses at St Agnes Church in West Chester where she also performs with the select Motet Choir. A recognized historian, Sally serves as a judge-captain for the south-east Pennsylvania regionals of the National History Day Competition. She has served as president of the Brandywine Battlefield Park Associates as well as the Sanderson Museum in Chadds Ford where she now curates the violin collection. Sally re-enacted with the 43rd Regiment of Foot and the 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment for 19 years where she interpreted the role of a campfollower at encampments in Valley Forge, Williamsburg, Va., Monmouth, N.J. and Lexington and Concord, Mass. Sally is married to her college classmate, Thomas Hoey, otherwise known as "Mr. Sousa.”