I've always been fascinated by the 'Pony-Pulls' they have at one of our local Autumn country fairs. Pound for pound these little guys show more energy & unbridled enthusiasm than the huge draft horses that also compete in this type of event. The adult horse teams often pull weights up to 18,000 lbs which is incredible to watch.
These little guys pull a much smaller load in comparison, but the best thing about them is the way they seem to really enjoy the competition. I think it's something akin to the way a race horse, running side by side & neck to neck with another horse really is trying, all by himself, to beat the other horse. The jockey is pretty much just along for the ride and it's the horse's heart & spirit that determines the outcome in that indefinable moment.
You see something similar with these teams, when competing. There's a certain something in the look in their eyes, seconds before they're released to try their 'Pull'. The best thing is the way their owners put more concern to their well being than winning a prize. Their drivers often wave off any more attempts when they know their little guys have given enough. It really touches the heart, how much concern is shown to them, and always elicits a big round of applause from the gathered crowd. All in all, the finest side of both horse & man.
The original Pen & Ink of this work took me months to complete because of the countless tiny dots of ink that makes up the image. It's probably the reason I don't do Pen & Inks very often. Here's how we use Doc & Pete as greeting cards in our new Etsy store.
WATCH YOUR STEP !!
My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.
These little guys pull a much smaller load in comparison, but the best thing about them is the way they seem to really enjoy the competition. I think it's something akin to the way a race horse, running side by side & neck to neck with another horse really is trying, all by himself, to beat the other horse. The jockey is pretty much just along for the ride and it's the horse's heart & spirit that determines the outcome in that indefinable moment.
You see something similar with these teams, when competing. There's a certain something in the look in their eyes, seconds before they're released to try their 'Pull'. The best thing is the way their owners put more concern to their well being than winning a prize. Their drivers often wave off any more attempts when they know their little guys have given enough. It really touches the heart, how much concern is shown to them, and always elicits a big round of applause from the gathered crowd. All in all, the finest side of both horse & man.
The original Pen & Ink of this work took me months to complete because of the countless tiny dots of ink that makes up the image. It's probably the reason I don't do Pen & Inks very often. Here's how we use Doc & Pete as greeting cards in our new Etsy store.
WATCH YOUR STEP !!
My eBay store has prints & greeting cards of this image & others.
My Cafepress store has more samples on my 2nd new website.
My Etsy Store has more samples on my 3rd new website.
