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Photos by Bob Pennell Kaitlyn Walker, 4, and her mom, Kim, climb aboard Bill Devon's carriage for a ride through Lithia Park. Devon, 70, and his horse, Myles Standish, 11, have found the perfect jobs for retirement. Out to pasture but still at work Retired racer now spends time hauling tourists By BILL KETTLER ASHLAND -- Myles Standish used to earn his keep trying to win harness races. Now he pulls a carriage through a tourist town, nibbling carrots after each promenade through a scenic city park. Retirement is sweet for the big race horse. It's not bad for the man who puts him through his paces, either. Kaitlyn Walker meets Myles Standish, a retired harness racer who now pulls Bill Devon's carriage. Myles spends his days standing at a curb near Lithia Park, looking photogenic and patiently enduring greetings from youngsters, tourists and passing horse fanciers. Bill Devon sits high in the driver's seat of an immaculate white carriage, encouraging strollers to climb in behind him and take a ride. "Only $7 for a lovely ride," he said as a pair of potential customers stopped to admire Myles. The big gelding is 11, still young as horses go, but too old to race. Devon is 70. He and his wife, Martina, decided to retire someplace and run a carriage business. They originally planned to settle in Nevada, then realized it would be far too hot for them and the horse. They visited the Rogue Valley in the spring of '97, and like so many others "just fell in love with Ashland." They talked to city officials about setting up a carriage business, and things took off from there. Now they spend the warm sunny days hauling passengers up and down Winburn Way as it winds through through Ashland's showplace park. "We fit in very nicely around here," said Devon. "We're old time. With the old buildings (on the Plaza) we have a nice backdrop." When a stiff spring breeze made the Plaza pennants snap, Myles looked up and down the street, his ears cocked, trying to see where the noise came from and what made it. Devon said Myles, like most horses, reacts nervously to sounds he can't identify. "It's OK, Myles," said Devon. "It's just the wind." Myles may not understand the words, but Devon said he gets the message. "You get a rapport with your horse," he said, "and you can put him at ease. After all, I'm the guy who feeds him and takes care of him." Besides the park rides, Devon hauls passengers to special events like weddings and anniversaries. "All the young ladies, when they see that carriage, they want to get married in a carriage," he said. "The guys couldn't care less." Devon also explains the lingo of a bygone era with folks who stop to chat. "Is this a surrey?" asked Hatje Joswick, of Talent, as she inquired about a ride. "A surrey has a fixed top," said Devon. His coach, with its two facing seats, is a vis-a-vis, (from the French phrase for face-to-face). When Kim Walker and her daughter, Kaitlyn, walked past, Kaitlyn dawdled to admire Myles. The horse obligingly dipped his long neck for 4-year-old Kaitlyn to gently stroke his muzzle. Devon said Myles has a particular affection for young children. "They smell good. They've usually had a bath. They don't have underarm odor. They don't use aftershave or perfume. And sometimes they smell of food." Devon learned about horses during more than two decades of shoeing them. Wearing a western shirt, white neckerchief and tall cowboy hat, only his Yankee accent reveals his East Coast origins. Business was slow on a recent weekday afternoon, but Devon didn't seem to care. He said there will be plenty of paying customers during Ashland's busy summer season. "When you're retired, so to speak, you want some slow time." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA