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Help Me Name My Horse, Prize Offered


Update February 4, 2013: Winner declared.

Rodney is looking for his new show name.

I am terrible at names. Our 16 (?) year-old, roadside-adopted black Lab still goes by the name of Puppy, among other things. As a writer, the mot juste is of utmost importance to me. The responsibility of selected the perfect, appropriate, clever, long-wearing, easy to say/spell name paralyzes me into inaction. So, I am cloud-sourcing this. From what you know of or have read of Rodney, suggest a show name.

Seriously. He has to get his spring shots & the vet is going to ask what name to put on the Coggin’s. I need your help. Here’s what I’ve gone through so far.

Just Roscoe – He came with the name Roscoe and no show name, just Roscoe. Plus I had recently finished an essay in honor of a horse I used to ride with the show name Just George and I was feeling nostalgic. [George’s essay appeared in Horse Illustrated, Feb 2011]

Perpetual Motion – In a spirit of reinvention, we changed show and stable name. Rodney is staying as a stable name. We’ve been calling him that for too long to change now. [Square One]

Start Your Engine – Once we finally sorted out his meds, he calmed down – for a relative, Thoroughbred definition of calm – so PM was out. I’ve always liked SYE as a name but he’s not a racecar, more a high-performance, luxury sedan. [Gentlemen … ]

Joie De Vivre – This sentiment is more him, but a) he’s not Selle Francais, and b) can you imagine how this could be mangled over a loudspeaker?

Rodney’s Saga – Great free publicity but current plan is for blog life to be shorter than show career.

Please spread the word to anyone who might be good at pondering pet names. This is not a requirement, just a request.

The Fine Print
Winner: In the event of ties or similar entries, the winner will be the first to cross my eyeballs (or eardrums for the low-tech among us), regardless of any order or date on comments, messages etc. Some days you’re the windshield. Some days you’re the bug. If none of the entries tickle my fancy, the prize will not be awarded.

Deadline: The contest will be over when the vet draws blood and asks me what name to put on the test tube, most likely sometime this month, April 2012. (Update 4/20: Looks as if vet appt & therefore deadline won’t be until early May 2012.) (5/18: Make that at least JUNE 2012. Good thing we don’t have any shows planned.)(November 2012: No vet appt. No name yet. Fire away. At some point, I will have to pick a name, I will award the prize. Eventually.)

Prize: $25 gift certificate on Amazon.com.
OR
The same from the independent book dealer of your choice, provided I can reach their store online.
OR
Perhaps simply my undying gratitude, if the offer of money turns out to be a can of worms.

Rules: Rules will be added to, amended, or arbitrated at the sole discretion of the judge – me.

Entries: LMK. Blog comment, email, Facebook, phone, smoke signals. Of a preference, it would be nice to keep all the ideas together as comments on this post, but that’s not a requirement either, just me being OCD.

Caveat: Void where prohibited. Plus, I reserve the right to ditch the contest without notice if it turns out I have done something stupid &/or illegal.

Final note: If you help me find a brilliant show name, I have every intention of honoring my promise. The blather is CYA in case folks with briefcases start sending Cease & Desist letters.

Categories: Books, Horse Behavior, Horse Shows, Horses

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40 replies »

  4. Is it cheating to ask for a family tree of sorts so we can mangle a distant relative’s moniker into something new? Actually, I usually like coming up with names and I was a bit disappointed that my mare’s registered name is so dull. One of my friends just bought a little 7 month-old filly and is in the prcoess of coming up with a registered name. Someone on the sire’s side (I forget who, but possibly her actual father) is Red Barron, her dam is named Lilly. (Ug) I suggested Red’s Jazzy Baroness or “Jazz” for short.

  6. Someone to Write About
    caveat – doesn’t fit my own personal naming rules – but those are for dogs, *my* dogs – lol! I also agonize over it and take forever. Many of mine were named in a similar fashion to what you are doing here.

  8. I’ll start with these. Obviously, you can begin any of them with any prefix of choice (Ima, He’s A, or a stable name if you have one.)

    Rodney’s Limited Edition
    Pogo Styx
    Charmed Life
    Storm Chaser
    Mysterious Traveler
    Calypso Breeze
    Poetic Justice
    Galactic Pilot
    Steppin’ Off The Ledge (Steppin’ for short)
    Captain Quirk (OK, in all fairness that’s my autistic Red Dog’s second name)
    Sonic Rhapsody
    Shoot The Moon
    Pieces of Dreams
    The Buck Stops Here
    Mystical Skywalker
    Urban Interlude
    High Steppin’ Traveler (Yes, I like Steppin’ a lot!)Sultan of Swing
    Winning Ticket
    Chance Encounter
    Quid Pro Quo
    Boarding Pass
    Hell Bent For Leather
    One For The Road
    Hanky Panky or Hocus Pocus
    Vested Interest
    Quantum Leap
    Sans Souci (Means: Without worry)
    Rodney’s Flash Fiction
    Cloud Dancer
    Wayward Sensation
    Riotous Sonnet
    Short Circuit
    Magnum Opus
    Ima Halcyon Riot
    Rodney’s Redemption
    Strika Prose
    Paid In Full
    Fortune’s Storm
    Bold Proposal
    Rodney’s Epic Advance
    Regal Jester

  9. A few more …

    Smokin’ Brass
    Crown Achievement
    Ramblin’ Gizmo
    Rhythmic Metaphor
    Curious Dancer
    Sunday Byline
    Dramatic Entrance
    Sudden Victory
    Elegant Enigma
    Serendipitous Charm
    Patriot’s Pleasure
    Beyond Reasonable Doubt
    Writer’s Block
    Gratuitous Rebellion
    Accidental Irony

  11. Gotta say, I like Perpetual Motion even if it doesn’t describe his every waking minute anymore. My Toddy’s show name was Sweeney Todd, and he didn’t spend his every waking minute looking to slash someone’s throat and make meat pies … well, not after the first couple of years, he didn’t.

    You and I both know that the Saga thing is terribly terribly Terry Jones in a Viking helmet and braided beard, strolling through the streets of North Malden on an Icelandic pony … which may or may not be a bad thing.

  12. why not just “Rodney”? nothing wrong with a one-word name. or write out your and greg’s names on a piece of paper and try making an anagram of one or all of them. or just parts. too bad i can’t meet Rodney in person, most animals tell me their names, not their human names. if you’re into Tolkien, Rodney of Rohan – the Rohirrim were the horse people. (my service dog is registered as
    Lady Eowyn of Rohan). Or Sir Rodney. Gandalf (too bad he’s not gray) The Bay Behemith (spelled wrong but you get the idea.) ask rodney what he’d like to be known as. does he like carrots? The Carrot King. The Writer’s Rider. Flight of Fancy. or Fantasy. Tough Act to Follow.
    The Bay Bombshell..

  13. sir rodney of rohan (if you’re into tolkien)
    wrote a long post comment but it vanished. *sigh* story of my life.

  14. I was gonna suggest Hot Rod but now I see somebody got ahead of me. But I still think that would be cool 😉

  15. Suggestions from other sources for Thursday 4/12:

    Red Rascal
    Little Deuce Coupe
    Crown Vic
    Land Cruiser
    Peterbilt
    Rodney’s Saga
    Pony (as in Puppy. I countered with BIG Pony.)
    Another Chance
    Cadillac
    Flying High
    Sweet Karma
    Redefined
    On the Edge
    Simplicity
    Orchestrated
    Gospel Note
    All for love
    Hot Rod
    …or any variation of…my best..biggest…etc…hot rod
    Viva

  18. A couple more I like:

    The Full Monty
    Double Scotch
    Close Call
    Foolish Pride
    Twist Of Fate
    A Wrinkle In Tyme
    Tuesday’s Tryst
    Show Me The Money
    Rough Draft Rodney
    Good To Go
    Mystic Nomad
    Paper Tiger
    In Due Tyme
    Prodigal Son
    Fleeting Fancy
    Above Board
    Free Reign Rodney
    A Hard Day’s Night

  22. You know what? Perpetual Motion doesn’t sound like a show name, it sounds like the name of a horse that winner would ride. So rather than come up with one of my own, I say you go with that one.

  29. Pingback: 2013 In Review | Rodney's Saga
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