A wild pitch Mustangs Sold
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MUSTANGS are like the Western rangelands where they come from dusty, sun bleached, disatnt, untamed.  They are not the pretty animals portrayed in Old West lore and car ads.  Their manes do not flow beautifully; they're often matted, like breadlocks.  They don not gallop gracefully; they dart, lurching away from any sudden movement or approaching human.

A first encounter with a wild horse like meeting a troubled teenager. They ware uncomfortable making eye contact, and something in their body languagde says, unequivocally," "go away, dude."  Horse lovers look beyond all this.  An earthy crowd of farmers, riders, ranchers and breeders who gathered in a mountin chill last weekend at the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington, sees the mustangs through more paractical eyes.

Sure, the horses are symbols of wide open spaces, covered wagons and all that.  But on this day, they are viewed mostly as cheap,. raw talent, promising packages of survivor instincts and good genes that, if harnessed, could become the stuff of powerful aborers, loyal companions and sure footed athletes.

The people have come to the Shenandoah Vakllley in oversized trucks and trailers from as far away as Ohio and Kentucky, all in search of a bargain.  The U.S. Department of the Interiors's bBureau of Land Management is about to conduct another of its adopt a wild horse auctions, with more than 100 mustangs up for grabs.  The minimum bid is $125 peanuts, if the animals turns out to be an able farm hand, stud or trail blazer.

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