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Sheik Island Farm, Pasco's largest show and polo horse farm, became fully operational as the county was seized with steeplechase-mania.
By CHASE SQUIRES
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 17, 2000
DADE CITY -- When she walked into the newly completed "big barn" at Sheik Island Farm, co-owner Kimberly Michaels said she knew she had it right.
"It was perfect," she said. "I was walking into the barn I had imagined."
Sheik Island Farm became fully operational in January. The estate is on a spit of land surrounded by the shallow waters of Lake Pasadena, just south of Dade City. The show-jumping, hunt-riding and polo-pony operation is home to 24 horses. Operators intend to make it a commercial breeding and training center.
With 15,000 square feet of space in the big barn, plus a nearby polo horse barn, and 100 acres of pastures surrounded on three sides by water, the operation is the biggest show and polo horse farm in Pasco. It came online just as Dade City caught the eye of the horse set with last month's steeplechase races.
Construction on the $1-million peninsula began in 1998 and is nearly complete. Financial manager Joan Rodgers said a "stick and ball" training field for training horses for polo matches is still in the works.
For Michaels, a 25-year-old rider who competes in international show-jumping events, the barn is the culmination of her passion for horses and equestrian sports.
Horses also bring Michaels closer to her partner, and father, J. Patrick "Rick" Michaels, who is an avid rider, a leader in the South Creek Foxhounds equestrian club and a major player in bringing steeplechase racing to Dade City.
"The sport is such a challenge. I love working with the horses. You get to know their moods and their abilities as you train," Kimberly Michaels said. "You get out there, and you're not only trying to control your own body, but you also have to be able to read your horse. There are times when you will be having a good day, but your horse is having a bad day. That happens."
Kimberly Michaels said she grew up riding in the area and has always enjoyed east Pasco's hills and lush surroundings.
The farm actually is home to three corporations. Sheik Island Farm owns the land and barn and is the name of the property. Cypress Ridge Farm is the show jumping arm, with Island Polo Inc. operating the polo pony business.
The "Sheik" in Sheik Island Farm has nothing to do with foreign oil barons. It was a family name of those who used to own the land, Michaels said.
The Cypress part was added when Michaels and investors were looking for the appropriate land and knew they wanted to be near water.
"I figured anywhere I looked would have cypress trees," she said. "Of course, we bought the only place without cypress."
The peninsula is instead dotted with towering live oak and water oak trees draped with Spanish moss.
Life at the farm revolves around the horses.
The day for farm managers Hank and Joanne Cannon begins sometimes before dawn, and always before 6 a.m. The two begin each day with a feeding, then move into a busy routine of exercising horses, washing them and taking care of the grooming and medical needs, followed by more feedings, more exercise and finally a late night snack for the horses before turning in.
Stalls are cleaned twice a day. The horses are also washed at least twice.
Hank Cannon said he vaguely remembers a half-day he took off -- back in November.
"You just love it, and there's always something to do," he said.
Inside the barn, there are decidedly Florida touches.
The roof is high and vented, and windows and doors are angled to take advantage of cool breezes blowing across the grassy valley. Even the shutters were custom-made to not only allow the horses plenty of fresh air, but also to lock tight quickly in the event of bad weather.
In the oversized stalls, horses Impetuous Force, Golden Ice and the 1,800-pound Tyson graze on hay and poke their heads into the breezeway to eye visitors.
Every sharp edge has been rounded. Anything that could poke, snag or injure a horse has been eliminated, Rodgers said.
No detail was left unchecked, Michaels said.
"Everything is functional, but everything is comfortable," Michaels said. "It's home."