Dentist, staff ditch cars due to high fuel costs story goes global

Arlington, Wash.鈥擶ith gas prices continually on the rise, Dr. Keith Leonard and his staff decided it was time to search for alternative solutions to driving.

So on June 25, they ditched their cars for the day and rode horses into the office.

They had no idea their story would reach people as far away as India, Africa and China.

“We decided that when gas got to $4 a gallon, we would all ride in,” Dr. Leonard said of the unusual commute, which was picked up by news outlets worldwide thanks to the story running in the Associated Press. “I was just so surprised by the interest it sparked. It’s been over a week and we are still getting calls.”

To stage their unique commute, Dr. Leonard and his team obtained a special permit to ride the horses the four miles from his house which served as the meeting point. Because horses are not usually ridden within city limits, the city declared the 12 participants鈥?0 horses and two bicycles total鈥攁 parade. A local radio station carried the bulk of the ride on the air鈥攖alking to Dr. Leonard by cell phone鈥攁nd many of the people listening in houses nearby rushed out to greet them on their journey.

“People had camera phones and cars pulled over,” said Dr. Leonard, a general dentist for more than 30 years and former Washington State Dental Association board member. “It turned out to be so much fun.”

Although not personally a horse owner, Dr. Leonard does pasture them on his property. He said he isn’t ruling out another “Ride A Horse To Work Day” (unofficial title) and that even if the office doesn’t commute via horseback again, there will definitely be more occasions for his younger patients to take a ride after an appointment. He plans to have the horses at the office at least one more time. Those who take him up on the offer will be awarded with a T-shirt that reads, “I Participated in Dr. Leonard’s July Commuter Challenge.”

And as one of his pediatric patients told him, “This sure beats the eraser you usually receive,” referring to the post-appointment gifts Dr. Leonard hands out to children.聽