Saturday, June 24, 2006

Public Rehearsal

Last night we had the chariots and the mustang, "blade" in front of an audience for the first time. I want to thank everyone for coming out to help us. We had about 150 people from young and old come out and give us support by cheering and clapping. We are doing it again today at 2:00pm to give them another go before we put on the show here on July 14 and 15th. "Blade" which is the WAHL Mustang Project horse, was awesome. He was so calm, my dad rode him around the arena. Tommie let the kids pet him too. You wouldn't believe he was running around the plains and public lands of the NorthWest just a year ago. I can't say enough about our interns. These girls came to help and learn. We have been working on many projects and they are keeping up the pace. Most places have one breed of horse or discipline. Here, we have a big American Cream Draft, Wild Mustangs, Quarterhorses, Foals, a yearling, trick horses, driving horses, and starting horses under saddle and sensory training. They are doing a great job. Lori, Jen, and Katy. Thanks girls!
Ride Fast... Take Chances!
karen

Just found this picture of me with Chuck Norris and his beautiful wife, Gena. (Yes, I have a "Total Gym" and I love it! It actually does what they say it does. No gimmicks, no quick fixes, just simple daily routines and you'll get results.) They came to the Cavalia show in Glendale and I gave them a tour of the stables after the show. I am a black belt in TKD and he was such an inspiration to my family when I was growing up. His determination to always be a good guy, use technique over violence, and a role model to millions is what makes him a great guy in my book. karen  Posted by Picasa

Tuesday, June 20, 2006


Here is Tommie and I side by side with both chariot teams. We are having a public rehearsal here on Friday at 7pm and Saturday at 2pm. It is free to anyone who wants to come and see how we put our acts and horses through the paces. We'll also take time after the rehearsal to talk to everyone too.  Posted by Picasa

Here is a great shot of the chariots in action. We are splashing through the mud at our outdoor arena here at the Wahl Equestrian Center. Tommie is right behind me with the other team. It's a blast!  Posted by Picasa

Everyone wants to see the model of Tommie Turvey's "Joker" for the upcoming Breyerfest. Here's a glimpse of it and it looks awesome. He is such a powerful proud horse. Come to Breyerfest and see us in action. Posted by Picasa

Here I am with 2 of the Chariot Horses. Theya Caesar and Spartacus, two stocky tough bad boys part haflinger and quarterhorse. They have been working great. We'e been driving them every day with the school program and the interns.  Posted by Picasa

Friday, June 09, 2006


Here's my rig to take the "Great Gladiator Chariot Race" down the road. A Dodge Turbo Diesel Dually One Ton with a 6 Horse EXISS Extreme Trailer. SPONSORS! Plenty of room for logos if we like your product. We are looking for a major sponsor to jump in we'll add their name to the title of the act. (contact jamie @ 815-626-3155) Posted by Picasa

Tuesday, June 06, 2006


After sifting through a bunch of memorabilia and souveniers from my run with Cavalia, I finally found my photo with Richard Gere. I am in my show make up, and this was taken during our San Francisco run in 2003. We opened the US tour there. Richard was very personable and animated. I would love to work with him on any project. Posted by Picasa

Saturday, June 03, 2006


We filmed interviews for our HD Television Series while we were at the LA Equestrian Center in Burbank.I'm the one leaning on the fence, our Hollywood film crew and the executive producer of "Extreme Horsemen", Dafna Yachin. (with sunglasses on.) Posted by Picasa

Here is Tommie Turvey and I, Karen Turvey with William Shatner during the Charity Dinner and Show. Tommie just finished performing and Lyle Lovett was getting ready to hit the stage. Bill is such an inspiration to us. The vitality and exuberance he has is contagious. We are looking forward to working with him and his wife Elizabeth again. Posted by Picasa

Here is Tommie Turvey with his horse, Joker and San Diego's morning television celebrity, Rod Luck. After the Friday morning spot, the show sold out all of it's tickets to the Night of the Horse. Joker seems pretty happy about that! Posted by Picasa

Training & Summer Fun

Wow. Just when I think I get caught up. We have been concentrating on the horse training this month. Our new apprentice, Lori is doing well. With the 20+ horses we have coming and going here it is a lot to keep up with. Everybody keeps emailing me with questions on the horses, so here goes. Pokerjoe is doing great. He won over a ton more fans during our California trip. Joker and Ace are doing fine. We got Joker's package for his Breyer horse and it looks awesome. What a great representation of him. Breyer did a great job. I'll get a photo of Tommie and Joker on my blog as soon as I can. Ace is still a little sweetheart. Tommie's mustang, Blade which is part of our Wahl Mustang Project, we got last year at the BLM adoption. He is doing great. What a relationship they have. I can't even believe the bond and respect they have for each other. He'll be making his first public appearance at our public rehearsal coming up in a couple of weeks. Sugar, our American Cream Draft is as big and beautiful as ever. On a sunny day in the paddocks, she is just a sight to see. I'm looking for a ring curb for her so we can get her ready for bareback (rosinback riding). She would shine in the spotlight for sure! The chariot horses are coming along great. My team for "Xena" is a beautiful pair of dark bay with black mane Morgan horses. They are lean and quick and gorgeous. (Just like Xena!) The other team for Maximus is Ceasar and Sparticus. They are Quarterhorse/Haflinger cross. A big matched pair of stocky horses with attitude. They are rock solid with the "buzz cut" to match. Our riding horses, Cees and Sparky are loving it when we hit the trails. We have had a lot of time to ride the trails around the facility and it has been lots of fun. Tommie is also training Cowgirl, owned by Ginger Ryals. He is working with her to polish her bow, pedestal, laydown, and other tricks. This week for the school, we went over the entire week of driving. The chariots are a favorite. Who ever sees them wants to drive them. We couldn't race during the school, but we discussed and explained each step and what needs to be done to get them to race and show ready. They really understand what it takes to make a great act. It's not just a pretty horse and a few tricks. You have to treat every step and every aspect with care. Every part of your act must have a reason. Next week we start with building your act on what you have now. This gets people to work with what they know now, and how they can make it better. We do this all the time and it really stimulates you to really thinking of fun things to do. With Cavalia, all of the trick riding routine was from working with each rider and seeing what they can do. Then we matched the horse to their ability and then put them in a sensible order to really maximize the effect. We would build up slowly, throw in a curveball, come out big and then when you thought it was over, come back even bigger! That's what we teach is how to create that magic and type of thinking. We've got a bunch of drill teams and mounted shooters coming to see what they can do to spice up their acts. Mounted shooting isn't an act per se, but they are being featured in many shows and they need to build the excitement and showmanship while they are shooting. I think it will be great. Everyone loves to hear applause.
Well, that's just a sample of what's happening. We still have the TV show, Training videos, new merchandise, on-line website and more to come. Tommie, my husband Jamie and I are really working hard to make this work. Thanks to our sponsors like Wahl Clippers, Absorbine Products, Guardian Horse Bedding, and Northeast Conversion Trucks who help make what we do possible for you. Our goals are very high, but we know this business and we know there are many people out there with the same attitude we have. We love horses and want to make them shine and have fun. We want to show everyone how much fun it is to be extreme! We feel anyone who rides a horse is extreme. The horse is your partner and we will show you how we do it, while we have fun and get you to the next level. Our next clinic here will be July 14-16, 2006 in Sterling, IL. We have lots planned, so check the website. I know we will have info on it soon. Ride Fast... Take Chances!
karen

Tommie Turvey performs with Pokerjoe