A love of horses and the ownership of a unique horse breed meant the cover of a magazine for Crystal Harper of Manor. Harper, who has lived in the area for four years, was selected along with her stallion to be showcased at the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair in Brandon, Manitoba this year.
Her Andalusian stallion, VMP Gitano De La Noche translated into Gypsy of the Night, is a rarity not only in Saskatchewan, but in Canada. The horse is also known as the Pure Spanish Horse and is a breed that developed in the Iberian Peninsula. The horses are known for their intelligence, sensitivity and docility.
In February of this year, Harper was given the honour of participating in the fair. "I was invited to participate in Stallion Avenue [also known as Breeds of the World] at the Manitoba Winter Fair which was at the end of March, beginning of April of this year. They contacted me because they saw him [VMP Gitano De La Noche] and he is an Andalusian, which is very rare around here. So they invited us to go and spend the week there doing demonstrations. Not everyone gets invited to go there, so it was pretty exciting to be part of it."
"He is only a five-year-old so we performed the skills that he knows, twice a day. We had a mini area that we performed in for the kids, and we were also invited to ride in the main arena three times throughout the week, which is a big privilege."
Harper stated that the experience was very rewarding for the participants and educational for the spectators. "There are a lot of different horse breeds out there. And it was nice to be able to show people the different breeds that exist. Some people think there are only quarter horses because that is the most common breed around here. So it was nice to be able to give them a different perspective."
While being on the cover of Horse Country magazine with a distribution of more than 15,000 is a special achievement, Harper's love for horses is what shines through when discussing her horse and business.
Harper, originally from Vancouver Island, has been riding since she was 11-years-old. Her love of horses led her to the continuation of her education following high school. "I went to Olds College and did the two-year equine science program in western training. So I train western and ride western, as well as English."
Her education has allowed Harper to establish a horse breeding facility in Manor. "We have a breeding facility, so he [VMF Gitano De La Noche] has had almost 20 foals now. I wanted something different and unique that had a lot of talent. We bought him when he was a year and a half old from British Columbia. He has a lot of talent. So, when people come out, they can see his babies too. We have horses for sale as well. And we also have our quarter horses and Arab horses that we ride at home as well."
Breeding is not the only thing this horse lover does; she also provides lessons to those in the area. "A lot of people don't know we are here. We have only lived on our farm here in Manor for four years. So we give riding lessons and do kids riding camps and all sorts of stuff like that. We give lessons daily if there are people that are interested. We have an outdoor arena, so summer is our busier time. I also have other clinicians come in and teach adults as well, so we are trying to host a lot of stuff here. We teach riders starting at the beginner level or kids that have never ridden a horse before as well as more advanced students."
Riding lessons are only $25 per hour if you own your own horse, and $35 per hour if you want to use one from Harper. Lessons can be set up according to the individual rider's schedule, with a lot of riders taking part in weekly lessons. If you are interested in taking lessons, contact Crystal Harper at 448-2272 or by e-mail at crystalhorseshoes@hotmail.com. She also has a website which provides information on lessons and displays horses that are available for purchase. The website is www.artesiansands.com.
