Blaze joins the team
Foxton’s horse-drawn tram’s newest member, a purebred Clydesdale, is settling in to his home.
Blaze the horse will be pulling the tram in the peak summer period after works on Foxton’s main road were finished.
Blaze was on loan from Clydesdale trainer and breeder Steve Muggeridge but with a $4000 donation from the Eastern and Central Community Trust, the horse could now join the team.
Foxton Horse Tram Society secretary Paul Matthews said it could be challenging acquiring a trained Clydesdale to help pull the tram but Blaze was well suited to the role.
The tram is one of Foxton’s most popular attractions, with a range of people coming to see the horses, Matthews said. ‘‘We have Japanese students from the Manawatu College that come to see them. Cameras are flicking all over the place.’’
The horses were well trained and only worked about four hours at any given time. ‘‘They are not working all the time. We carry bags of food and water for them,’’ he said.
As well as the challenge of funding the horses, it was hard to find good drivers to keep the tram going, Matthews said.
‘‘The drivers must be able to professionally manage the tram, which takes 20 passengers, but also hold a heavy truck licence so they can transport the Clydesdales from the paddock to the tram station.’’
Driver Jim White said the tram, which has been running for 30 years, was still a great attraction.
Blaze had been in Foxton for a few months and would be pulling the tram with horse, Peter, in January. ‘‘He’s unbelievable. He’s been magic,’’ White said.