The Year in Horses: 1980

1980

• The Summer Olympics were held in Moscow, but several nations, including the United States and equestrian powerhouse West Germany, sat them out to protest the Soviet
  invasion of Afghanistan.
  This helped open the door for the Soviet Union
  to take home gold in team dressage, team eventing, and team show jumping on
  home turf.

Left: Horse Illustrated’s October 1980 cover featured an Arabian filly named “Alove Dove.” Right: Our out-of-place review of the Lincoln Continental Mark VI Click thumbnails for larger images.

In the Pages of Horse Illustrated
In recent decades, it wasn’t uncommon to see feature articles in Horse Illustrated on selecting the right pickup truck. Makes sense, since horse people do need a safe, reliable vehicle with enough power to haul horse trailers, deliver a load of hay and generally stand up to the wear and tear of farm life. You know what else is good at doing all that? A Lincoln Continental.

Maybe that isn’t entirely true, but in 1980, we saw fit to share with our readers a review of the Lincoln Continental Mark VI. “In our book, the Lincoln Continental Mark VI is a champion with real class,” we gushed. We referred to the gas mileage of 15 mpg as “modest,” whatever that means. The review was sandwiched in between a roundup of veterinary news and a short feature on feeding pleasure horses. How did we tie it in to horses? We didn’t.

Sorry, gearheads, but I think our luxury car review is one feature we won’t be bringing back.

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