Old-Fashioned Fun

The folks of the Bull Run Hunt have a darned good time with their horses and their hounds – and want their neighbors in and around Culpeper County to do the same. So when the Bull Run Hunt holds its annual Point to Point Races at Brandywine Park on May 4, the focus will be on not just the steeplechase, but also the family-oriented events and attractions that the race will bring with it this year.

“We’re aiming for it to be a day of old-fashioned fun for the young and the old and everyone in-between,” said Mary Potter, who is organizing the event. “The races will appeal to horse enthusiasts, but they’re just one aspect of the day. We’re also very much reaching out to the community and especially to families, with wholesome, old-timey activities of the variety that have traditionally been found at county fairs and carnivals.”

The gates will open at 11 a.m., and families will be able to enjoy such child-oriented pastimes as pony rides, balloon bounces, a hay ride, a mechanical bull, a blue grass band, and two perennial crowd pleasers: the Jack Russell Terrier races and the parade of foxhounds.

“Last year, we had a cow pile bingo that was pretty popular with the crowd,” Potter said, “but Bessie the cow had a sudden attack of modesty, and was reluctant to deposit the piles on the bingo sheet so we’re debating whether or not to try that one again.”

A Tail Gate Prize will be awarded to whoever puts together the most elaborate picnic spread –but for those not interested in cooking or bringing along their own food can enjoy the finger-licking fare from Hog Wild BBQ.

Vendors will be on hand, selling everything from fine wine to horse treats, and area merchants, including Janal Leather, will have booths with their ware on display.

And of course, there will also be horse races, which will kick off at 12:30. In addition to the steeplechase races, there will be some more informal, amateur runs, including a mule race, a draft horse race, a western race and a relay race.

The Bull Run Hunt moved from Manassas to Culpeper 18 years ago, and in that time, it has grown into one of the most popular hunts in Virginia, with any number of its 150 members getting together for rides as often as three times a week. Also in that time, the Culpeper area has changed, growing dramatically with an influx of new residents. During that growth, various individuals and corporations, interested in developing land used for the hunts, have tried to pit the public against the foxhunters, depicting them as wealthy dilettantes.

“Some people think of horse racing and fox hunting as something elitist for rich snoots only,” says Cathy Marco, who is helping organizing this year’s event. “While there is a certain emphasis on tradition, we’re a very friendly, open crowd. Our members include teachers and nurses and just plain good local people.”

She explained that for experienced riders, who go in what’s known as the first flight, it’s an extreme sport, with daredevils galloping over fences, through the woods, and across creeks. “But we have some riders, called hill toppers, who also just walk and sometimes trot behind them,” she says. “They enjoy the hunt for the beauty of the Virginia countryside, the sound of the baying hounds, and the occasional view of a fox on the run.” Marco explains that for fox hunters, it’s the thrill of the chase that matters, with the object being simply to sight the fox.

“We have three goals for this year’s Point to Point,” said Joe Kincheloe, the long-time master of the Bull Run Hunt. “We want to race, we want folks to get up close and meet our horse and our hounds; and most importantly, our goal is the same one that we have every time we saddle up for a fox hunt. And that is, for everyone to have fun.”

John Taylor, a Culpeper resident, is a member of the Bull Run Hunt and the author of five books, most recently “The Rivalry.”

Want to go?
What: Bull Run Hunt’s Point to Point Races
When: May 4; gates open at 11:00 a.m., first race at 12:30
Where: Brandywine Park, five miles south of Culpeper on Rt. 15
Cost: General Admission is $7; group and special rates available.
Who: To participate in one of the races, inquire about group rates, or to become a vendor or sponsor, contact, Cathy Marco at 727-8201
Why: Meet the hounds and horses, enjoy the rides, the games, and the food, and have a great time.