THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 29, 1994 TAG: 9407290522
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: KAREN JOLLY DAVIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHINCOTEAGUE LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines
Sixty-seven of Assateague's famous wild ponies were auctioned Thursday by the firemen who own the herd.
They were expensive this year. One foal went for a record-high $3,000, beating the old record by $500.
The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department made about $65,400 from the auction. Officials said that was $6,600 more than last year's total even though 20 fewer ponies were sold. The average price was $974.63, up from $675.86 last year.
Only 150 ponies are permitted at the federal wildlife refuge on Virginia's part of Assateague Island. The firemen use the auction as a way to thin the herd and raise money for the department. Part of the barrier island is in Maryland.
The auction started at 8 a.m. By 10:45 a.m. all the foals were sold. Elin Craing of Hagerstown, Md., bought a spotted filly that looked a lot like Misty, the pony made famous by Marguerite Henry in her book ``Misty of Chincoteague.'' Craing bid $1,500.
``When we left, my youngest said, `Buy a pony, Mama,' '' said Craing.
She and her husband, a surgeon, own 140 acres and used to keep animals. But they sold the animals when they went to Jamaica as missionaries seven years ago. Now he's retiring, Craing said, and they have time to deal with a pony.
``We've been planning on buying a pony,'' she said. ``It was just a matter of when.''
Greg Moody traveled from Colorado to get more Assateague ponies. He bought a chestnut colt last year, and this year spent $1,400 on a buckskin filly and another chestnut colt.
``We wanted more because the one we got is so nice,'' said Holly Moody, his wife.
This year, for the first time, the volunteer fire department is offering buyers the opportunity to register their ponies with the Chincoteague Pony Association.
Ken Snell Hardison, a fireman, said the new registry will be available for consultation when breeding the ponies.
``We wanted to keep the Chincoteague wild pony bloodline pure,'' Hardison said. ``We know that our ponies are healthy.''
Money collected from those joining the association will be used for feed, vaccines and veterinary care for the wild herd, he said. Memberships cost $100 for a lifetime and $10 for a year. by CNB