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Interview with Tracy Buckalew

Well, we wrapped all of the scenes with Blade. We got some incredible shots. Blade did a fantastic job with all the zombies piling on top of him.  While I was there in Conyers, I was contacted by Tracy Buckalew from Gaited Horse On-line magazine to do a story on me and my horses. As it turned out, she lived 30 minutes away, so I told her to come on over to see what I do. It is really hard to do interviews over the phone. It is hard to explain what I do in person, let alone over the phone or email. Tracy's arrival was a bit of a shock when she showed up in a beat up old truck. But I like the fact that she borrowed a friends old farm truck and drove 30 mins without air conditioning to get her story. She could have done it the easy way like most reporters do and talk on the phone. So, after a few minutes of teasing her about her "ride", she got a complete education on what I do with horses. You can read about it when the story hits in July. I'll link it here when it is posted. I just wanted to say thanks to Tracy for being a good listener and understanding why and what I do.
  
It was pretty hot here during filming, so I was glad I didn't have to put on zombie make up. My sister Kimberly and my Dad were my stunt safety with Blade, so they had to zombie-up and be part of the scene. Pretty scary stuff. Blade must of thought that these were the ugliest people he has ever seen as the mob of zombies devoured him (its a movie, it's not real folks).  Ride Fast... Take Chances!  

Blade in the Shade

We were waiting for a few scenes, so I had to rest Blade next to the
trailer in the shade. It is going really good. We've got rehearsal
today and then on camera for the next few days after that, Looking
forward to the Van Bert Farms clinic coming up. Hope to see you there.
Make sure you go see Jonah Hex movie coming out June 18. You'll see me
and Blade. Ride fast... Take chances!

On the Set of THE Walking Dead

It has been really good here on the set. Atlanta has been hot, but I've been training Blade early in the mornings when its cool. Here is a practice shot of Blade rearing up at the training center. The Georgia clay gets to be a pain, trying to keep clean. It's a good thing he's a red roan, but his white legs get pretty red.

The main actor in the scenes I'll be shooting is Andrew Lincoln. I've been working with him to ride Blade, but I will also be doubling him as well. It is quite a challange training horses for movies, let alone people. Andrew will do well. Most actors are actually great students because they know how to take direction. It is also alot of fun to get Blade doing things he's never done. Whoever says that a movie set is "quiet" has never been on a movie set. We've got motorcycles, gunfire, mic booms, and lots of people running around and his attention has to be on me. I believe every horse should be able to handle noise, scary objects and distractions by looking to me (or their rider) for the answer. 
 
This is Andrew Lincoln in costume riding Blade. It's typical on movies that you train for a shot and then 10 minutes before you are about to shoot, someone from wardrobe or set dress comes along and tosses a backback into the mix. On Jonah Hex, we rehearsed the transfer from horse to the train in costume (which was very hot in New Orleans) and then at the last minute they handed us these very heavy boots, trenchcoats and burlap sack masks and said that we had to do the stunts with them on. I learned that you gotta be ready, both you and the horse for anything.

Blade got busted for parking in a tow zone. Well, he is a Mustang. We've got a day off tomorrow, so I hope to get a bunch of stuff done. Looking forward to the Clinic at Van Bert Farms and the one in St Charles during the PCB Rodeo. Plus we've got the Ponca, Nebraska PRCA Rodeo to perform at in 2 weeks as well. Gotta Ride.  Ride Fast... Take Chances! 

Started Shooting Stunts Today

Things are going great. We started shooting the series today. We did a cannon roll over today. No horses, just a car with a nitrogen cannon device underneath that is triggered to flip the car over. The weather has been perfect, but I really hate the traffic here. It reminds me a lot of Los Angeles. I'll get some photos up as soon as I can.
Ride Fast...

In Atlanta for rehearsals and scouting locations


I am here in Atlanta for rehearsals for Walking Dead TV series. Have been scouting locations, setting up shots and training Blade for his scene. I will be doubling one of the stars, Andrew Lincoln. I am also training Andrew to ride Blade in the shot as well. Andrew is doing really well. I have been working on the safety for Blade and the rider as well. I spent 2 days looking for large foam padding. It is gonna be a great scene. Speaking of great shots, I saw the trailers for "Jonah Hex". Wow. it is awesome. The train transfer, train explosion, tent explosion, and stunts look fantastic. Can't wait until June 18 when it opens. Check it out and you'll see Blade and I on the big screen jumping on to the train and blowing up lots of stuff. Ride Fast...

Hitting the Road... again

Loaded up and hit the road this morning. Chantal and I are on our way to Atlanta via Van Bert Farms in Stanton, Kentucky. We are getting ready for a clinic in June and it breaks up the 12 hr trip to Atlanta for the horses. We'll be in Atlanta for 3 weeks shooting scenes for an upcoming tv show called "the Walking Dead". Blade will be working on this with me. After that we head back to VBF for a clinic. They are such wonderful people at VBF with awesome horses. I'll have 2 of my Rocky Mountain horses there at the clinic to show how great of a horse they are and how far they have come in such a short time. It will be a lot of fun. Should be a nice drive since I just got a ton of work done on my trailer and truck. New shocks, trailer saver, tires, trailer brakes, wiring, holding tanks, and hoses. Some people just don't realize how expensive it is to travel down the road. This is the start of my personal blog here, so I will let you know how I see things, good or bad. So, follow me and you can ride along and I'll give you an insiders look at what it really takes to have a life down the road with horses and how exciting, expensive, tiring, and rewarding it can be. 
I wouldn't change it for the world...


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