Elwyn "Al" Ames (La Porte, Ind.)
- 50-plus years shoeing
- 2600 horses per year
- 10,400 hooves per year
- 130,000 horses done in a career
- 520,000 hooves done in those years
Yep, Still doing what he does best. That's worth a moment of reading and a little pat on the back. The farrier's name is Elwyn Ames. Everyone knows him as Al. He has handed down the trade to his son, Mike, who has been shoeing for 35-plus years now.
Al is 75 years old, and still out 5 days a week shoeing. When a schedule is 2-3 weeks out to try and get one horse in for a trim, that speaks volumes for the work he has established over the years and for the clients he keeps. He was my farrier for my navicular youth horse back in the mid-80s. I won a lot of ribbons on that horse because he kept him sound. But my biggest "thank you" comes from a day in May of 1987. I was home from college and knew I didn't want to return in the fall. As Al was shoeing my horse I now realize he was "vetting" me. As he trimmed and tapped I would be asked, "You ride colts?" "Yes," I told him. A few more taps, "You bale hay?" "Yes," I told him. On to the next hoof, "You do chores and clean stalls?" "Yes," I replied again. He even asked me what I "was?" I chuckled and told him I was German, Scottish and my mom was purebred Polish. He stopped tapping that last hoof and looked up at me with a wink and a ""your dad is a better man than I'll ever be."" We shared a laugh and two days later his son called. We have been married over 26 years now. Our son has also learned to shoe but not sure he will be filling the shoes that came before him.
While Al and his son have built a thriving business and the trade has been good to them, it is often not the work they will talk about. It is the people and the relationships and the "Oh no" when a horse is put down they have done for most of its life. Shoeing has been a good living and an honorable trade for Al, but I think he would say it is the people he has met along the way that mean the most. I know I was lucky enough to have him work on my good horse back in the day but even luckier he shared his son with me. My tribute is a little different. There is so much more to farrier than just shoes and nails.
— Joan Ames (La Porte, Ind.)
