Horse-riding community members want to ensure Whidbey parades are representative of the equine-loving.
Rhed Locke, barn owner and horse trainer at Big Rhed Barn in Coupeville, spearheaded a series of public comments at Tuesday’s town council meeting concerning Mayor Molly Hughes’ decision not to allow Locke to ride her horse in this year’s pride parade and its implications for the future of horses’ participation in parades.
Locke, a California native, moved to Whidbey in 2023 and opened Big Rhed Barn a little over a year ago, driven by a lifelong passion for horses.
Participation in parades in Coupeville typically requires registration through the Chamber of Commerce, which Locke completed when she and two of her Big Rhed Barn students rode in the Christmas parade last December. There was no issue with their participation besides the “precarious” order in which she was told to walk in the parade, something the chamber controls.
“We were put behind the trolley cart and in front of a school bus that was in front of a fire truck,” Locke explained Wednesday.
Children collecting candy thrown from the trolley and adults interrupting the parade to pet the horses made for a chaotic environment that should have been prevented, even though the horses handled it well.
The situation this year, however, differed slightly. Hughes said the more informal pride and Halloween parades don’t require registration, so animals are not supposed to be allowed.
Locke sought — and was denied — permission to ride in this year’s pride parade when she asked Hughes the day of, a decision she was unhappy about given she had ridden in the previous year’s pride parade.
Public commenters vouched for Locke and her work as invaluable to the community, argued incidents with horses are usually the result of ignorance and stressed that horses’ parade involvement is necessary in honoring the town’s agricultural roots.
Although she agreed with these points, Hughes said the frustration was misinformed. This was also the first the council had heard of the issue.
According to Hughes, Locke’s participation on horseback in last year’s pride parade spurred “several complaints and several concerns,” leading to the rejection of her participation in this year’s parade. Although she alluded to other complaints that “people did not feel safe with the horse dancing around,” the only complaint Hughes elaborated on was one from the Coupeville Farmers Market, whose property the parade begins on.
“The Coupeville Farmers Market is in control of their space when they have the market. They are the ones responsible for the insurance. They are the ones that have the decision-making process,” Hughes said.
Nobody knew who had ridden the horse that the Farmers Market complained about, Hughes explained, so there was no way to contact Locke ahead of time. Instead, Hughes instructed the pride committee during parade preparation to fetch her if anybody asked about riding a horse — hence the day-of dismissal.
Locke opined Wednesday the issue is rooted in miseducation about horses, their needs and how they can serve the community. She plans on trying to ride horses in future parades.
“It’s not only important for members of the community to understand how animals work, but also the service members who guide us and make decisions for us,” Locke said. “And so I’d like to invite (the town council and the mayor) to come learn and be a part of the program that is part of the Coupeville community.”
