Attention is often paid to forging temperatures, hammer blows and anvils, and rightly so. There are other aspects of forging that are equally important, yet don’t get as much consideration. “A lot of people have problems because they’re just all over the place,” Sacramento, Calif., farrier John Williams told attendees at a late summer forging clinic at The Horseshoe Barn. “They’re just spread out all over their anvil. They throw their stock up there, any old place, and then they just take their hammer to the stock.”

What do a hammer handle and a wooden spoke from an Amish buggy have in common? For Hall Of Fame farrier Roy Bloom, both represent quality and durability.

“And though she be but little, she is fierce.” Helena famously des­­cribed Hermia this way in A Mid­sum­mer’s Night Dream. In fact, since William Shakespeare’s words first were uttered on stage in the late 1500s, it’s been used countless times to describe people and things. When Placerville, Calif., farrier Marijke Ellert opens up her rig, the quote is there for all to see, emblazoned on the back wall. The word “FIERCE” is prominent by appearing in all capital letters.