From a Press Release by Daniel Rieffer , Communications Manager, American Saddlebred Horse Association

Louisville, Kentucky - Jen Raynes’ heart of gold led her to Louisville. She ran into a parent of an ASHA junior member at a horse show in Scottsdale, Arizona, who convinced her to donate her time and talent to create a painting for the AHSA Annual Auction. She’s known as “Mad Dog” Jen, and she’s experienced absolute madness since leaving California Tuesday morning to get to the World’s Championship Horse Show.

Mad Dog Jen earned her title through an adventurous lifestyle that began around age 17 – heading off to Hawaii to cliff dive, repelling off mountain sides, riding motorcycles, she even became a firefighter for awhile. She’s also had horses. She says, “You can’t get the same thrill riding the same roller coaster year after year.”

For the last 15 years, Jen has been an artist and has been painting live at Quarter Horse shows since 2000. She was at one when ASHA youth member parent and staunch youth supporter Ron Merwin approached her and convinced her to come to Kentucky during our breed’s big week.

Jen has never been to the Bluegrass before. The Santa Cruz, Californian left the Golden State Tuesday morning. On the flight from Cali to a connecter in Chicago, a man suffered a heart attack. A call came over the intercom, “Does anyone have medical experience? Is there a doctor or nurse on board?”

“Well, I have medical training as a former firefighter. But I was waiting for someone else to volunteer because it’s been so long ago since I was a firefighter,” Jen said before jumping in to help out. She gave him a baby aspirin, put nitro glycerin under his tongue and was able to stabilize him.

“I held my finger over his wrist to check his pulse and kept it there for over an hour. At dinner last night, I could still feel his heartbeat in my hand,” Jen described the eerie after effects.

Distracted by the ordeal, Jen exited the plane and walked 15 gates before suddenly realizing, the painting! The painting she’d begun work on for the auction – her whole reason for taking the flight, coming to Kentucky – was back on the plane.

Painting in hand now, she’s ready to catch her connector to Louisville. But not so fast. Delayed. Weather. Jen had to stay the night. She finally arrived in Kentucky on Wednesday morning. But more hardship awaited her at baggage claim. The airline didn’t misplace her suitcase containing her clothes. They didn’t misplace her prints of paintings she’s done of dogs. They misplaced her main potential for making any sort of profit on this trip she’s made based more on goodwill than business. Her suitcase of horse prints, lost.

Without learning any more about her lost luggage, other than that she’d receive a call if and when it was located, she headed to Freedom Hall to set up and begin resuming work on her painting for the auction. She made a phone call while in the Saddlebred Center last night making sure the hotel was still holding her room. No, that didn’t happen, too. They had her room.

“The cool thing is I got a free flight since I helped the guy on the plane. And I got another free flight because of the delay in Chicago,” is Jen’s positive spin.

Mind you, she’s doing all this for free to benefit the association of a breed she’s never seen compete. This year’s World’s Championship Horse Show is her first Saddlebred show. But you couldn’t tell it from her painting, which is turning out to be an intensely colorful and unique work of American Saddlebred art. Its finishing touches will be added during the auction in the Mary Room of the Executive West Hotel today.

Despite the never-ending and exhausting trip, her impressions of Kentucky and the WCHS have not been tainted. After all, it was part of the lure which drew her here, and it hasn’t disappointed.

By Daniel Rieffer

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