A ghoul greets you on the road, a witch waves you in at the gate and a cowboy directs you to a parking spot. Are you at the latest Hollywood scary movie? No, its the annual Green Creek Hounds Halloween Hunter Pace, held Sunday, October 24! Jennifer and Roger Smith allowed the Halloween critters to share enjoyment of their land, and Kathy Rondell and Pat Hale, along with their crew of workers and volunteers, were the organizers.

Every year the Green Creek Hounds crew comes up with one of the most highly anticipated events and they never disappoint. The trail this year meandered through the White Oak Creek Fixture. The Trail Rider course was quite a bit shorter than the Field Hunter one this year, but it still contained several good jumps, two water crossings and a lot of varied terrain.

Except for the very beginning of the path which was graveled, the trail was very forgiving to unshod horses and there were many opportunities for a good canter or a side by side trot. The trail was mostly wooded which made a perfect backdrop to the ghosts, spiders, goblins, witches and various other beasties that would appear as the innocent riders proceeded on their way.

The decorations were provided by Baiba Bourbeau, Arthur Bourbeau and Beatrice Lamb and the poetic directional notices (similar to Burma Shave signs) were created by Christi Fowler. No one was injured by the creatures of the night, but one hapless horse was attacked by a falling Dracula. At least there were a few super heroes on hand to save the day.

The Field Hunter route followed the Trail Rider path but took many detours to add jumps as well as mileage.

The Halloween theme continued in the food, especially the desserts, with spider cupcakes and pumpkin cookies among other creepy delights.

Costumed riders are a big part of this hunter pace and there were many vying for the prizes this year. Most original were the nuns, Baiba Bourbeau and Beatrice Lamb, with second place going to the pilot being ridden by a flight attendant, Randi Goulding. The scariest prize went to Spiderella, Ali Merritt, and second place went to Ruth Ann DeHollander as a sorceress.

The funniest were Thing 1 and Thing 2 which were portrayed by Gwen Hunter and Suess Fraser with tiger woman, Mary Britt, taking second. Cutest kids were Caroline Bridges as Candy Land and in second place Sarah Bailey as a ceiling fan.

The best group went to the bunnies consisting of Sylvia Hamilton, Hanna Harris, Kathy Hodge, Shanna Moore, and Kelsey Marino. Second place was the village with Jennifer Smith, Roger Smith, Linda Ketcham, Sara Ketcham, Randi Goulding and Lauren Allen. Kids honorable mentions went to Victoria Bailey, Autumn Wanicka, Faith Wanicka, Kelly Cannon, Mekenzie Reynolds, Megan Alexander and Connor Moore.

The winners for the Field Hunter Division were Bill and Terry Boger of Simpsonville, SC, with a time of 1 hour, 34 minutes and 45 seconds. In second were Michael and Roberta Axelrod of Columbus, with a time of 1 hour, 34 minutes and 27 seconds. Third was won by Bill Anderson and Katie Ostrom, both from Cherryville, NC, in 1 hour, 32 minutes and 43 seconds. Donna Schwind and Elizabeth Watson traveled down from Johnson City, TN, to earn fourth place with a ride time of one hour, 37 minutes and 8 seconds. In fifth place were the team of Sylvia Hamilton, of Weaverville, NC, Hanna Harris of Black Mountain, NC, and Kathryn Hodge of Asheville, NC, with one hour, 41 minutes and 33 seconds. Eden Isbell from Gastonia, NC, was sixth in one hour, 41 minutes and 50 seconds.

The Trail Rider Division had a calculated optimum time of 1 hour, 31 minutes and 53 seconds. The winners were Carol and Caroline Bridges of Shelby, NC, with a time of one hour, 31 minutes and 50 seconds. Second place was won by Amy Cooke of Bostic, NC, and Emma Nance, Kristen Pearce and Jennifer Spratt, all from Rutherfordton, NC, in one hour, 31 minutes and 25 seconds. The team of Ellen Mercer of Roebuck, SC, Carol Anna McCarter of Lyman, SC, Allison Neely of Greer, SC, and Katie Tighe from Spartanburg, SC, were third in one hour, 32 minutes and 30 seconds. Fourth place was taken by Russell and Sally Rock of Campobello in one hour, 30 minutes and 50 seconds. Becky Bockoven of Marietta, SC, and Susan Melvin from Anderson, SC, were fifth in one hour, 30 minutes and 48 seconds. Sixth place were Lisa Spriggs of Campobello and Skyler Warren of Tryon in one hour, 33 minutes and 34 seconds. Honorable mention went to Baiba Bourbeau of Tryon and Beatrice Lamb of Inman, SC, who were only one minute 44 seconds off the optimum.

The Clemson Intercollegiate Eventing Team will host its annual event on Saturday, November 20, the Biltmore Equestrian Centers Hunter Pace will finish the years paces on December 5.

Events will continue straight through May with only a short break for the holidays.

Check the website, WCHPace.org, for all upcoming events, news, articles, photos, placements and contact information.

Lou and Jan Smith are the photographers for every event. Click on photos on the website to view the pictures or to place an order online.

For information on the Western Carolina Hunter Pace & Trail Ride Series e-mail series coordinator, Jan Smith, at Jan@WCHPace.org or call her at 828-894-8760.