Carousel Horses "Groomed"

The annual clean-up on the Carousel horses was completed in time for the thousands of riders during the Village Scavenger Hunt.

Grooming a carousel horse includes locating and fixing black marks, scrapes, worn paint and aging varnish.

• shoes dragged across paint leave black tracks that are hard to remove


• sunscreen from bare summer legs soaks into the varnish, softening it, allowing dirt to hold fast. Eventually this turns the varnish and paint into a rubbery skin that easily peels away from the white gesso layer.


• backpacks and studded jeans scratch and mar the paint on saddle decorations. These that also need to be .

This year a few hard knocks to tails and legs required structural repairs.