THE FULL STORY: A classically-built chestnut stallion with a flaxen mane and tail, Kennebec Count was one of the first Morgans to leave his mark in the sport of combined driving. Bred by Margaret “Peggy” Gardiner of Maine, Kennebec Count was sired by Kennebec King out of Helen May, her tenth and last foal. An ardent Morgan breeder, Gardiner knew Count had the ability and the “can-do” attitude to perform any task. When competitive driving became popular in the 1970s, Gardiner gave Larry Poulin – now a world-famous horseman -- his first driving lessons. And what better horse to pair him with than Kennebec Count? They met in 1975, and the rest is history. In 1983, Poulin started competing Count and his son Kennebec Russel in combined driving events. After sweeping the East Coast CDEs in 1985, they became the first Morgans to win the United States Equestrian Team National Pairs Championship. That same year, as members of the USET, they represented their country at the World Combined Driving Competition in England, placing first in Dressage and eighth overall out of 45 pairs. USET National Pairs Champions again in 1986, Poulin and his marvelous Morgans also won the Concourse d’Elegance at the Morgan Horse Grand National. 1987 saw them return to USET competition in the world championship games in Germany. There they were the highest-scoring American entry, winning the cones phase and placing second in Dressage. The year 1988 was Count’s last in competition. Though 18 years old, he did not disappoint, winning his third USET National Pairs championship in style. From there, it was on to Poulin’s training facility and a career as a lesson horse and training video model. Count went to stud in 1992, siring 60 registered foals before retiring in 2002. His offspring continue his legacy at Kennebec Morgan Horse Farm in Woolwich, Maine. Today, thanks in part to Kennebec Count, Morgans are the dominant breed in competitive driving.
|
