P2101

Sporting Horses

Steeplechase

Collins Cover Announcement 

SPORTING HORSES

STEEPLECHASE

The offering of this hand-painted COLLINS FDC begins one of the finest sets of the year -- Sporting Horses. A steelplechase horse must leap over a timed course of fences, walls, and other barriers. Points are awarded for best times and also for "clean" jumps where the horse does not make contact with the obstacle. It is, indeed, a most enjoyable sport to watch as rider and mount work together as a team.

My cachet for this new stamp is superb. Of particular interest and excitement in a steeplechase competition is the water jump. This FDC has the ultimate barrier. A red brick wall, a frame fence, and a blue pool of water all combine to challenge the horse. But that's not all as I've placed the stamp at bottom center and, fittingly, it and the postmark are also being jumped by the equestrian team. It's a very well executed design, and I believe that this cover could easily be chosen as "Best of Issue" by any cachetmaker.

Three other sporting horse FDCs will be offered in the near future in this COLLINS set. The stamps have Day of Issue postmark from Louisville in the Blue Grass State of Kentucky. The hand-painted cachet is an "entire" spanning the whole envelope. A wonderful horse and rider leap high over the shrub-lined waterjump as they complete in the demanding steeplechase. The first of four horses destined to be hobby favorites. Item #P2101. $11.50.