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It is not the bald eagle, but the horse that truly symbolizes Americana.There was a time when the worldwide perception of America was the dream to discover the western frontier as the wild horses roamed the land so regal, so majestic, so proud.America has changed and so has people's perception of the good old U.S.A., but the horse should remain as the regal beauty that it is and not as a stud producer or horse meat.As a sports fan, if I were asked who was the greatest American athlete of all time, I would consider such factors as dominance in their sport, drawing power and respectability. I felt:not Babe Ruth--he was not always respected,not Arnold Palmer--he drew the crowds but was not a dominator,not Bobby Orr--although he meets the criteria he was a Canadian, not even from the greatest himself Muhammed Ali--since he wasn't widely respected until well after his boxing career.The greatest American athlete of all time has to be that chestnut giant named Secretariat. He meets all the criteria. Every race horse since has been measured against Secretariat and there are no comparisons. The Equine Immunity Act Many Americans desire to ride a horse, but few can afford to own one. For those who cannot afford a horse there are many horse stables who rent out riding horses.Until recently horse riding rentals have been way down due to high litigation costs caused by horse related accidents. So Florida and 31 other States have enacted Equine Immunity Statues. Florida's Equine Immunity Statute can be found at F.S. 773.02. Except where provided, an equine activity sponsor, an equine professional, or any other person , which shall include a corporation or partnership, shall not be liable for an injury to or the death of a participant resulting from the inherent risks of equine activities and, except as provided, no participant nor any participants representative shall have any claim against or recover from any equine activity sponsor, equine professional, or any other person for injury, loss, damage, or death of the participant resulting from the inherent risks of equine activities.Equine Activity: Equine activity means everything from horse shows, fox hunting, trail riding, veterinarian treatment and the inspection of horses for sale. For further details review F.S. 773.01(3). Equine Activity sponsors: include individuals, groups, partnerships, corporations, stables, farms and promoters of such facilities. For further details review F.S. 773.01 (4). Equine professionals: include horse trainers, riding instructors and those providing horse care and equipment for profit. F.S. 773.01(5) Inherent Risks: means those dangers or conditions which are an integral part of equine activities, including but not limited to: a) The propensity of equines to behave in ways that may result in injury, harm, or death to persons around them, b) The unpredictability of an equine's reaction to such things as sounds, sudden movement, and unfamiliar objects, persons, or other animals, c) Certain hazards such as surface and subsurface conditions, d) Collisions with other equines or other objects, e) The potential of a participant to act in a negligent manner that may contribute to injury to the participant or others, such as failing to maintain control over the animal or not acting within his or her ability. F.S. 773.01(6). Participant: means any person whether amateur or professional, who engages in an activity, whether or not a fee is paid to participate in the equine activity.The Immunity Act is not a (horse) blanket coverage for everything and the equine activity sponsor or professional can be held liable for: a) providing equipment or tack that he knew or should have known was faulty so as to be totally or partially responsible for the injury; b) provided the equine and failed to make reasonable efforts to determine the ability of the participant as to match the participant with the appropriate equine based upon the participants representation of his ability; c) ... injury that was caused in whole or in part due to a dangerous latent condition of the land or facilities that was known to the sponsor, professional or person and failed to post warning signs;		d) commits or omits an act that a reasonably prudent person would not have done under same or similar circumstances or that constitutes willful or wanton disregard for the safety of the participant which act or omission was a proximate cause of the injury; or e) intentionally injures the participant. F.S. 773.03 The above limitations shall not apply the horse racing industry. For an equine activity sponsor or professional to avail themselves to the immunity of liability they must: 1. Post a visible warning sign, and 2. Give the participant a written document to sign. Both the sign and the written document must state: WARNING UNDER FLORIDA LAW, AN EQUINE ACTIVITY SPONSOR OR EQUINE PROFESSIONAL IS NOT LIABLE FOR AN INJURY TO, OR THE DEATH OF, A PARTICIPANT IN EQUINE ACTIVITIES RESULTING FROM THE INHERENT RISKS OF EQUINE ACTIVITIES. The written document warning may be used in lieu of posting the warning on site of the equine activity sponsor or professional, and shall be given to any participant in an equine event not on location of the equine activity of the sponsor's or professional's facility. F.S. 773.04. The immunity statute was enacted mostly because it is well settled that it is impossible to predict with absolute certainty an equine's reaction to such situations as sounds, sudden movements, unfamiliar objects, persons and other animals. Therefore the act seeks to protect the equine sponsor, professional or other person from liability in those situations where the horse becomes spooked and runs away causing injury to the rider, since this situation can happen regardless of the temperament of the horse and the experience of the rider. The issues that arise are usually based upon the allegation that a stable did not properly match the rider with a horse commensurate with the rider's representation of his abilities. An experienced rider would be less successful with this argument since it is deemed an experienced rider would be better able to regain control of a spooked horse before an injury could occur. The Florida Equine Immunity Act, however, does not differentiate between experienced and novice rider. In the above scenario, the stable would prevail regardless of the rider's ability because the propensity of a horse to run away or spook is a defined risk for which the act grants immunity. The rider would have to demonstrate that stable committed some other form of negligence or intentional act as described earlier to prevail. Attorney Marc Wites suggests that it would be wise for equine sponsors and professionals to have the rider fill out a questionnaire concerning their riding experience. The questionnaire will limit the plaintiff's ability to argue that the stable failed to determine the rider's ability and provide the appropriate mount.Attorney, Marc Wites also suggests that equine sponsor, professional or person should spend that extra buck on new tacks, even if the older ones, although still good, look worn, because a few more dollars now beats a costly lawsuit later. Discussion of Florida's Equine Immunity Act was gleaned from:Marc A. Wites, "An Analysis of Florida's Equine Immunity Act", The Florida Bar Journal, Vol. LXXI, No. 10, November 1997.Horse Rescue: For the past 8 years in Ocala, Florida the Equestrian Training Center and Horse Rescue has been caring for retired race horses and other abandoned horses. In the past 6 years 160 horses have been adopted out of their stables.Presently there are 64 horses at E.T.C. and Horse Rescue. Remarkably there is a 30 year old horse there who still strongly gallops with his 38 year old mother at the Horse Rescue, so you know that they are getting the proper care if they can live such a long quality life. It costs about $10,000 a month for this non-profit charitable organization to operate so please contact them at: E.T.C. and Horse Rescue, P.O. Box 770332, Ocala, Florida 34477 - Tel. (352)-591-1066 Animal Abuse:In the middle of the night, in Fairfield, Iowa, on March 7th, 1997 three 18 year old men broke into Noah's Ark animal shelter and bashed to death 17 cats with baseball bats. The Teenagers were charged with burglary and animal abuse.The case went to trial in November and one of the defendant's turned State's evidence. The farming community jury found the defendant's guilty of lesser misdemeanor charges mostly because the cats were treated as objects of little value. Sentencing still awaits at the time of this article, but if you care to contact the presiding Judge to voice your opinion please write to him at: Judge Daniel P. Wilson, P.O. Box 844, Appanose County Courthouse, Centerville, IA 52544 Steven Mark Logan, born in Rochester, New York 1957-BS New Hampshire College 1979. J.D. California Western School of Law; 1983 Former Prosecutor in Broward County, Florida-private practice emphasizing in criminal defense, civil practice and Animal Rights. He can be reached at 954 522 3902.