Racing

    I went to an amateur horse race for the first time last weekend. It was a photographer's gold mine with lots of action and bright colors. 

There were a lot of interesting faces to photograph.

I have read that some people look like their dogs. Doesn't this guy look like his horse?

    

Future jockey?

      

Hats are a big deal here.

This fellow has a hat

 and a tat.

It's a risky sport, but this jockey

looks as if he does not have a care in the world.

Pre-race planning.

Apparently this horse does not want to be dressed as a flag.

This horse is being ponied down to the starting gate. 

Another one is hand walked to the gate. It was all the man on the ground could do to keep the horse from pulling away.

 Riding a nervous race horse into the 

starting gate is a dangerous business.

This jockey thought he was going to 

have to bail out. 

But in the end everything turned out alright.

    I have a new feature on my blog. You can click on the flag at the top right hand side to translate to Spanish.

    As always, you can click on any photo to enlarge it to full screen.

    

Like A Twinkie!

     I went out early this morning looking for bugs. I stepped just into the edge of the woods and right away I found this Praying Mantis. Mantises sit very still until an insect comes close enough to catch. This one moved because she was startled. She looks so much like the surrounding plants that I never would have seen her if she had held still.

    It did not take long for her to catch an insect. Her spiky front legs helped her to hold onto her prey. She began by biting off the head.

    She was willing to tolerate me as long as I did not get too close. This ugly glare reminds me of my dog's eyes when she is in possession of a favorite toy.

    The black dot in the middle of her eye is a pseudopupil. Mantises have compound eyes, no pupil.

    Apparently the best part is in the middle. Sort of like a Twinkie.

    Now she is done with her breakfast and she licks the last bits off of her "hands."

    In some parts of the world there are mantises large enough to eat mice and toads. I don't believe I want to see that!