Galloping into the new year

By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- If you hear sleigh bells and the clip clop of hooves while attending First Night 2002, turn around and say hello to Walker and Mick.
Be especially nice to Walker -- she's pregnant.
The horses -- two of the four assigned to the Mahoning County Sheriff's Department mounted unit -- will patrol from 5:30 tonight to 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. Walker and Mick will hang around the downtown venues on and near Federal Plaza.
First Night 2002, which offers 20 venues, is a family oriented, alcohol-free celebration of the arts. Partygoers can expect to find entertainment and food for all ages.
Deputy Sheriff Ty Kata, commander of the mounted patrol, will be atop Mick, an 11-year-old dark brown and white registered American Paint. Deputy Sheriff Christina Kachaylo will be atop Walker, an 8-year-old chestnut and white Tennessee Walker who is expected to give birth in June.
Duties: The sheriff's department joins Youngstown Police Department and Youngstown State University campus police in keeping an eye on the various festivities and warming stations. The officers will provide security and crowd control.
Speaking of crowd control, Walker and Mick have been taught to gently nudge with their shoulders if the need arises. They can also do an array of dazzling synchronized drills.
An inmate from the county jail has been assigned to follow them at a somewhat discreet distance and, well, collect whatever they deposit on the pavement.
With a straight face, Maj. Michael Budd said the inmate is looking forward to the assignment. "It'll get him out of jail for a while."
Aside from the sleigh bells, Kata said the horses will wear highly reflective fluorescent-yellow leg bands. The bands serve the same purpose as safety reflectors on kids' bikes.
Practice: Walker and Mick were out Wednesday with a light dusting of snow under their hooves to practice walking the Federal Plaza route, which is mostly brick pavement. Kata wanted them to become familiar with the route before New Year's Eve.
"They'll remember every bit of it," Kata said, patting Mick's neck.
Walker and Mick deftly negotiated steps that lead to building walkways at the east end of the plaza and showed off a bit for passers-by who, huddled against the bitter cold, smiled and waved.
"Everyone loves the horses," Budd said.
The horses paused at Market Street as their riders looked both ways then guided them across the busy thoroughfare. They attracted attention from motorists, some of whom waved.
The horses won't have much vehicle traffic to contend with New Year's Eve. Downtown streets will be closed, and trolley and bus service will be available to transport celebrants, Budd said.
Will the New Year's fireworks bother the horses? "Not a bit," Kata said.
Mounted deputies act as a deterrent to rowdy crowds, Budd said. The deputies' perch atop the horses also offers an excellent vantage point.
This is the MCSD mounted unit's first time at First Night. The unit, formed in June, worked the Canfield Fair in September.
Kata, 40, of Bristolville, owns Mick and three other horses. Kachaylo, 26, of Hubbard, said Walker is owned by Deputy Jerry Kline who, with his daughter, Deputy Michelle Kline, round out the mounted unit.
Budd said the sheriff's department's only expense for the mounted unit is the deputies' wages. "We provide an agency in which they can be mounted deputies," he said.
meade@vindy.com