The Beauty that is the Clydesdale

I'm now on the airplane and am at risk of having my BlackBerry confiscated as I write this final blog. The trip to Anheuser-Busch's headquarters was one of my favorite trips! Honestly, the best part was seeing the Clydesdale horses and dalmations in the barn. They are so.....beautiful! It takes your breath away. The barn does not smell a bit and is a national historic landmark built in 1885. Each of the Clydesdales has a name and a stall right next to one another. It's so sweet. I'll have pictures by tonight that I can show you. The dalmations are their companions. They live together in what looks like a Hollywood set. Honestly.....it's so shocking. They're treated like gold. They weigh between 1600-2400 pounds each and are at least 6 feet tall. They drink 30 gallons of water a day, they consume 50-60 lbs of hay and 20-25 quarts of feed. They're big guys and believe it or not, they're on the road 300 days a year! In fact you'll love this, they threw out the first pitch yesterday at the St. Louis Cardinals game (whom I should mention are 5-1 to start the season and won the World Series in 2006).

One interesting fact that I didn't know until I got there is that Anheuser-Busch owns the largest herd of Clydesdales in the world with about 250 horses. Pretty amazing!

Some other interesting facts that surprised me. Over 8% of their annual revenue comes from theme parks. They are one of the biggest theme park operators in the U.S. and own properties like SeaWorld, Busch Gardens and Sesame Place. They manufacture their own aluminum cans and recycle 25% more than they make. They're one of the world's largest recyler's of aluminum cans. In 2008, they were ranked the No. 1 beverage company in Fortune Magazine's Most Admired U.S. And Global Companies list. Not bad!

So I know what you are thinking? Did I have a beer? Unfortunately I did not. Didn't have a chance. We were so busy and we had to run to the airport right after the show to catch our flight. Personal preference....Bud Light .