Rebekah Keat & Siri Lindley—co-founders of Horses in Our Hands, which is dedicated to ending horse slaughter—discuss their respective entries into competing at the world-class level in the Triathlon. 
Lindley recalls that she started at 23 (late, she says, to take up the triathlon) and didn’t swim then, but worked intensely for the next eight years, until she reached her goal of becoming “number one in the world”—and became a coach of similarly-accomplished athletes. Keat grew up as a highly competitive athlete—competing most closely, it seems, with her more athletically-gifted twin sister—but found her sister-free niche in triathlon, and also found great success there: two-time Junior Triathlon Champion and three-time National Triathlon Champion. We discuss how the sort of fierce ambition and discipline required to excel in this 
grueling sport will put them in good stead having undertaken a major quest, like seeking to end horse slaughter. The pair, who are married, recall how and when animals became important to them, and both describe strong connections to animals as kids, though those connections manifested differently. Lindley recounts the pivotal story of rescuing a horse about four years ago, and how she got to wondering: “What, exactly, are we rescuing this horse from?” As part of her research to answer that question, Lindley remembers, she stumbled into an absolutely horrifying video of horse slaughter. Within moments, she’d shown the video to Keat, putting into motion the beginnings of what became Horses In Our Hand, a nonprofit involving a broad coalition of experts and high-profile figures committed to halting horse slaughter, aiming to achieve that result by way of focusing on lobbying Congress to ban the export of horses. They also outline the roles of the related In Our Hands Action Fund, and Believe Ranch & Rescue, in Longmont, Colorado. (https://www.horsesinourhands.org, https://www.facebook.com/horsesinourhands/, https://www.instagram.com/horsesinourhands/)
ALSO: I spoke briefly with Sue Wiese, founder of Operation Roger, a network chiefly consisting of truckers who use their rigs to help transport animals–who had been in shelters—to new homes across the country, as their trucking routes allow. Wiese mentions that Operation Roger is always seeking new truckers (figuring some would travel routes currently not covered), layover homes (a foster situation wherein animals await their next truck driver to take them to their forever home), and shuttle drivers, who, with regular vehicles, transport the animals to/from major stops where the truckers have done drop-offs or pick-ups. She notes that those interested in volunteering can text her at 682-622-1172, email her at operationroger01atyahoo.com or via the website: https://www.operationroger.com
COMEDY CORNER: Brian Regan’s “Animals” (https://brianregan.com)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: We didn’t play “Name That Animal Tune” today.
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