This past Saturday October 6th, Kimberton Hunt turned out beautifully and in force for the 78th annual Chester County Day in the village of Birchrunville.
The representatives of “the Day” glowed about the setting in the village, the friendliness of our members and how beautiful everything was!
Thank you to everyone for your support and for the effort you all put into looking spiffy for the 200+ spectators that attended the morning’s event with the Kimberton Hounds kicking off Chester County Day 2018.
Good Morning & Welcome to the 78th Annual Chester County Day!
The Kimberton Hunt members, friends, horses and hounds are happy to be here today! My name is Barb Mueller, I am the Joint Master of Foxhounds. My parents; Sandy and Barbara Dunn have been at the helm of Kimberton Hunt for the last 45 years. I look forward to the traditions continuing for my children who are here today. We are a small, family-oriented club that encourages new-comers to the sport as well as children and those that have loved the thrill of following hounds for many years.
We are here in the quaint village of Birchrunville where things look much the same as they did when Kimberton Hunt was formed in nearby Kimberton in 1870. The homes, hills and valleys surrounding us this morning were standing here then. The beautiful home of our hosts, Mr. & Mrs Dulchinos was built in 1842. The architecture is quite different than the surrounding area because the owner Mr. Griffith was also a minister
along with running his cobbler shop in the small building behind the house. The front room facing the hill is quite large for the period and looks to have been used as the village chapel. This little hamlet of Birchrunville contained all the needs of its residents in the 1800’s. At the crossroads a school, cobbler shop, blacksmith, several mills, general store, a stage stop & hotel, meeting hall, seamstress, post office and even a bakery and “ice cream saloon”! Amazing that all the needs could be met right here in the valley!
Today Birchrunville is a frequent stop on bike tour trips, foodies looking for a reservation at the Birchrunville Store Cafe or locals and those out for a drive in the country stopping at the new and delicious Butterscotch Bakery! I previously mentioned that the Kimberton Hunt was formed in the nearby village of Kimberton in 1870. Farmers in the area would keep a few hounds and a riding horse in order to join together and have a bit of fun over these very same hillsides. Then, as is now, the fox was never harmed in the pursuit. The fox can often be seen waiting for the hounds on a hillside until they get a bit closer to make the game more interesting for the fox. The fox is always in charge of our day; how far we will go, where we will go and how fast we get there! Many times after a hunt a local landowner will stop me to say they watched the hunt while drinking their morning coffee and saw the fox slyly evade the hounds and walk off in the opposite direction as the hounds searched high and low for him! Similar to a game of Wiley Coyote and the road runner, the road runner is always going to come out on top and that coyote will keep trying!
Speaking of the hounds.
The hounds and huntsman are the hub of our wheel! The entire hunt revolves around this special relationship between human and animal. When he blows his horn, talks to the hounds or tells them commands thirty hounds take heed. Sometimes hard to believe when your one house dog ignores you when you call!! The hounds are bred generation after generation to chase a fox that they will never catch and to please their master- the huntsman! Our hounds are specifically Penn-marydel hounds which were originally bred for the PA, MD, DE area and our thick forests and steep hills. Hounds with a loud voice and stamina were needed. As you are driving around the area this morning listen and you may just hear those hound voices from miles away!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BomFdO2hxWy/?taken-by=fancyfarmerpa
So what is the huntsman saying to the hounds?
Each huntsman has their own particular commands they use for their pack of hounds. The words the huntsman is saying may sound like gibberish to us but the hounds know exactly what is expected of them. Commands such as “come to me”, “hurry up and catch the rest of the pack”, “go away from me and hunt the woods in that particular direction”, “good job hounds”, “fox here”, “load in the truck” or “go back in the kennel”. The huntsman also uses his horn to communicate with the hounds and the riders. He will blow different calls on the horn to mean the hunt is starting or ending, the hounds have found a fox, the hounds are running a fox, the fox has gone to his earth and the run is over.
I’d like to debunk a few myths for you this morning and explain the attire that everyone is wearing:
- Foxhunting is for the well heeled. Not even close! I’m a teacher after all! Riding with us this morning we also have farmers, therapists, blacksmiths, and students.
- You have to be young, fit and brave to foxhunt. Nope! Today some that are riding with us are 80 years old and some are still in Elementary school! Some of our riders enjoy the speed of the chase and some don’t go faster than a trot. At the end of the day everyone had fun and was a part of the hunt!
- The fox is scared to death. Nope, not true. As I said, the fox is very much aware that the hounds are too slow and frankly not smart enough to catch him!
- The hounds are vicious. Couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact just last Saturday one of the younger hounds here with us today invited himself to a picnic just down the road and had to be retrieved later because he was playing with the kids and catching tennis balls! Typically though the hounds are on a mission and totally ignore house dogs, people they don’t know and anything other than the huntsman and fox!
- Foxhunters tend to ride wherever they wish. Really?? NO way!! I’ve grown up in this area along with my parents who have run Kimberton Hunt for over 45 years. We are members of the community and pride ourselves on keeping landowners happy. We don’t ride anywhere without permission and often have to cancel hunting because the ground is too wet. Our sport can continue on only because of the kindness of our landowners and we are cognizant of that everyday!
The history of what we are wearing:
We are traditionalists if nothing else! Riders are asked to dress neatly and uniformly out of respect for the history of our sport, the landowners and observers. Once the uniform is understood it is easy to identify who the players are in the sport!
- Red coats- are actually called scarlet or pinque coats. These designate staff, for instance the Huntsman, Phil Shirk and me as the Master of Foxhounds.
- Male members that have been awarded their colors also will wear a pinque coat. Being awarded your colors is akin to earning a Letter in high school sports!
- Black coats are made of heavy melton wool to both keep riders warm and protected from the brush in the woods. Members that have been awarded their colors will have a colored collar added to their coat along with buttons from the club.
- If you’re going to be very particular the coats even have different number of buttons indicating staff, member or Master of the Foxhounds….admittedly we here at Kimberton are not always that particular!
- The ladies riding side saddle today are riding the only way a proper lady would have ridden a horse traditionally. This was true from the 1300’s right through the early 1900’s! Side saddle fell out of favor as ladies were beginning to wear pants and could ride like their male counterparts. Today side saddle is having a resurgence in popularity. The ladies with us today will compete in horse shows side saddle and even race and jump aside!
- A few riders today have worn the non-formal attire or tweed coats to
demonstrate. These coats are worn in the fall, are typically lighter weight and not used for a formal hunt such as we have here today. These coats would be worn in September and October by staff and members alike. Brown boots are the norm with a tweed coat. - Riders all wear a stock tie around their neck fastened with a large pin. This tie is basically a long piece of fabric that could be used as a tourniquet, sling or bandage with the pin to secure in case of emergency.
- Safety is paramount. All riders must wear a protective helmet and you will see some now wearing safety vests that inflate if you should unfortunately become separated from your horse!
Kimberton Hunt has a busy calendar in addition to our foxhunting!
We are hosting our 74th annual Horse Show this coming April . Information is available this morning in the tent to sponsor a class, advertise your company or otherwise support these beautiful hounds here this morning!
Our club also has lots of social activities for riders and non-riders alike! We have a fantastic themed formal party and auction every February
that also serves as a fundraiser for the club. You can follow the Hunt Club on Instagram and Facebook for information on all these events which are open to the public!
As we depart today please remember to listen for these Kimberton Hounds and the sound of the horn as we continue on our day in the woods directly across the road from where your cars are parked. To us, foxhunting is a passion that is enjoyed all winter long, two days a week. We enjoyed giving you a glimpse into the inner workings of Kimberton Hunt and welcome you to find more information on our website at
kimbertonhunt.org! I hope that you enjoy your day in our little piece of paradise!
Thank you.
