It's true — visitors to the Coeur d'Alene Carousel have been riding on a horse with no name.

Actually, 13 of them.

"I noticed this year, the kids gravitate to the ponies with names," Coeur d'Alene Carousel Foundation member Rita Sims-Snyder said Friday.

"They'll say, 'How come my pony doesn't have a name?' and I’ll say, 'They haven't been adopted yet," she said. "Then they'll pat the pony's head and say, 'Ohhh.' It's so sweet."

Community members have 13 opportunities to add to the legacy of the historic Coeur d'Alene Carousel by adopting and naming one of these nameless wooden equines.

The seven that have been adopted have been given the names Shelly's Spirit, War Pony, Edison, Hope, Lucky, Jubilee and Mrs. P's Magic Pony.

"My mom adopted the first pony," Sims-Snyder said. "That was Shelly’s Spirit, in honor of my sister."

Adoption for an inside pony is $10,000. Adoption for an outside pony is $15,000.

Some people might think that's expensive, Sims-Snyder said, but other carousels have been known to ask up to $100,000 for naming rights.

"We only have a limited number of things we can adopt out," she said, adding that once a pony is named, "it's named for life."

"I think for most people, when they walk in, some may remember it from when they were kids," Sims-Snyder said. "We're creating the next history. We're creating the next memories."

The Coeur d'Alene Carousel, along with many nonprofits, suffered this year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although June ridership was slightly higher than 2019, the rest of the season took a dive.

"It was a very up-and-down year," Sims-Snyder said. "We were down 2,000 riders in July. That’s a huge hit to our income."

It takes $48,000 per year to run the carousel, including staffing, insurance and utilities. If even just a couple ponies were adopted, it would really help the carousel get through this unpredictable year, she said.

"For us, a simple adoption of panels, ponies, floor tiles, helps us immensely to get through to next season, which we hope is normal," Sims-Snyder said.

If the smoke in the air permits, she said the carousel will be open this weekend.

www.cdacarousel.com