Monday through Friday, Larry Chafin drives a log truck for McCollum Logging, at the controls of a 450 horsepower diesel engine.
Come the weekend, the Virginia native trades in a steering wheel for a set of leather lines and a two horsepower—hitch of Belgians pulling a variety of carriages and wagons.
Chafin and his wife, LaDonna, who also own Roger’s Floral, leapt into the carriage business after buying a 27 acre ranch in 1996.
Chafin’s logging buddies wouldn’t recognize him on Saturdays when he trades jeans and hickory shirt for dress slacks, a fancy vest and top hat.
“When I was young, my dad plowed with horses,” Chafin said of his interest in horses. “I’d sit on those horses all day just to be able to ride them to the watering hole a mile away.”
Today, Chafin Farm at 39975 Mountain Home Drive, is home to six Belgians and five Appaloosas.
“Donna bought three horses at auction when I was at a wedding,” Larry said of the farm’s rapid growth.
The family’s Belgians include Joe, 16, Jingles, 9, Doc, 8, Rowdy, 5, Belle, 12, and Pete, 8.
“We bought our first carriage before we bought our first horse,” LaDonna said. “Justin and Carla (son and daughter) had carriages at their weddings and I always wanted to have one.”
The Chafin’s first wagon was bought at auction in Turlock, Calif. Today the Chafins are Oregon’s dealers for Roberts Carriages. Their barn is filled with nine carriages and three sleighs in a rainbow of colors and styles. Dark green, white, black, burgundy…at prices starting about $3,000.
The Chafins have sold carriages to customers in Florida, Arizona and California among others, via their web site.
“In Tracy, Calif., we sold a wagon to a customer on the condition that I show him how to drive it,” Larry said with a laugh. “It was fun.”
Business has boomed, the Chafins say.
This summer they are booked for 17 weddings, five parades and two open houses. They also work two weeks at Christmas with Flinn’s Tours in Albany.
Their most memorable events though have been bringing Santa Claus into the Valley River Mall and providing tours during Mom’s Weekend at Oregon State University.
“We’re also popular at proms and Christmas Ball,” LaDonna said.
Many hours of hard work go into making the carriage ride a dream come true for a young bride.
Preparation for a 1 1/2 hour afternoon wedding begins about 6 a.m., Larry said. Each animal gets a thorough bath, the carriage is cleaned and all equipment is loaded into the farm’s large stock trailer.
Chafin has already spent two to three hours the night before polishing metalwork on the harnesses.
By the time the horses and carriage are unloaded, rides given for about 90 minutes, everything is returned to the trailer and hauled back to Sweet Home, Chafin has logged a 12 hour day.
Then, the horses have to be tended to for the night.
“Before we bought the horses, I was 40 pounds heavier and had high blood pressure,” Chafin said. “My doctor couldn’t believe that I had lost the weight and my blood pressure went down. He asked me what I’d done differently and I told him we bought the horses.”
The Belgians are a gentle horse considering they dwarf regular breed animals. They are strong, have good feet and have few health problems, Chafin said.
Their hooves are huge. A set of shoes can cost $150 per set, so Larry learned to shoe the animals himself. He shoes them every six to eight weeks.
The harness equipment weighs 80 pounds each and costs up to $2,000, Larry says.
Each horse is fed hay and grain in an individual stall in the Chafin barn. Each one is tied up during the feeding process so Larry can work individually on voice commands with them.
“I hook them up every chance I get and I get in all the time I can with them,” Chafin said. “It’s a big operation and it takes a lot of work but we love it.”
The Chafins credit Everett Jacobs with helping them learn about draft horses.
“Everett has taught us so much,” Larry said. “He logged with horses and broke Jingles. I’d be lost without him.”
Chafin said the family’s business really took off after Jacobs took them under his wing.
Chafin has worked his way up to a four-horse hitch but says his goal is a six-horse hitch and the opportunity to compete at the state fair.
“That is a ways off,” Chafin said. “That will take a lot more work.”
Life with Belgians is interesting, Chafin admits.
“We used to ride horses all the time,” LaDonna said. “We haven’t ridden them in two years.”
Learning to control the mammoth horses has had its ups and downs, both Chafins agree with broad grins on their faces.
“I’ve got stories a mile long about that,” Larry said with a big laugh.