Step up boys! Here we go, commands Cathy Andersen from the drivers seat of her covered carriage.


Jimmy and Romeo, two of Andersens black draft horses, pull ahead, effortlessly gliding the 3,000-pound carriage, which at times is weighed down by as many as 30 people, through the streets of downtown Spokane.


Andersen and her husband, Clayton, own Andersens Classic Carriage, a 7-year-old Newman Lake, Wash., business that offers horse-drawn transportation service in the Spokane-Coeur dAlene area for almost any occasion, year-round.


It all began when we saw an ad in the paper for draft horses. We tried to ignore it, but we ended up buying three draft horses and a vehicle, says Andersen, a longtime horse lover. So, to justify having the horses and vehicle, I had to put them to work.


The Andersens currently own 26 horses, including three black Shires, six gray Percherons, two miniature horses, and 15 Morgans. They also own 10 horse-drawn vehicles, including three sleighs and various sized carriages and wagons. The carriages range from a vis--vis, which is a more traditional carriage in which two seats face one other, to the covered trolley-looking carriage, which seats up to 30 people.


Most of the carriages come from the Midwest, where theyre made by Amish people. She says the prices of most horse-drawn vehicles start at about $8,000, and the 30-seater they recently bought cost between $10,000 and $12,000.


Its that trolley-like carriage that youll find downtown this holiday season. Andersen says this is the sixth year that her business has given free rides to passersby during the holiday season. For the fourth consecutive year, the rides are being sponsored by the Downtown Spokane Partnership. Andersen waits in her red-and-green carriage, along with her Rottweiler, Max, outside of Saads Shoe Repair, on the 200 block of North Wall, for passengers. She then takes them on an eight-block route down Wall Street to Main Avenue to Washington Street to Spokane Falls Blvd., and back to Wall.


All other rides with Andersens Classic Carriage have to be arranged in advance, Andersen says. She carries sightseers on leisurely tours of Spokane or Coeur dAlene and dashes guests through the wintry wooded area near the couples Newman Lake home in a horse-drawn sleighassuming theres at least two feet of snow upon which the sleigh can run, she says. Otherwise, the Andersens own a sleigh that can be outfitted with wheelsin case its a mild winter.


Andersen also gives rides to birthday boys and girls in a wagon pulled by a miniature pony, and whisks brides and grooms away from wedding chapels to receptions in Cinderella style.


Weddings always are a lot of fun. People are happy, and by the time the bride and groom get into my carriage the hard part is over. I always hear a big sigh of relief, Andersen says.


On occasion, her job gives her a front-row seat for other heart-warming moments, such as marriage proposals and the renewing of marriage vows.


At other times that drivers seat can be downright chilly, such as during the storied winter of 1992-93, when the Andersens took a group of people out on an especially frigid sleigh ride.


We thought it felt a little bit cooler than usual, but we didnt know how cold until we got back to the house, turned on the TV, and heard that it was 40 below. They were warning people not to go out, Andersen says.


The holidays when the Andersens typically dont run their horses are on Fourth of July and New Years Evewhen theres too much potential for the horses or passengers to be injured by inattentive drivers.


The price for an hour-long carriage ride in the Newman Lake area starts at about $75, Andersen says. She says that the cost of a ride varies depending on the duration, the size of the vehicle requested, and the number and types of horses that have to be used to pull the vehicle.


Andersen operates Andersens Classic Carriage full time, and her husband, whos an attorney in Coeur dAlene, helps drive occasionally, she says.


She believes the business is the only one in the Spokane-Coeur dAlene area that offers carriage rides on a full-time basis. She adds that it only took about six months for the business to build up.


The best advertising for us is people seeing us on the street. Were pretty hard to miss, she says.


Andersens Classic Carriage typically doesnt have rides booked every dayexcept for during August and December, its busiest times of the year. When Andersen isnt giving rides, shes booking reservations, teaching others how to drive horse-drawn vehicles, and caring for and training her horses, as well as training other peoples horses.


Technically, a draft horse, which typically weighs about 2,300 pounds when full grown and can pull up to three times its body weight, can begin pulling a vehicle at age 4, but Andersen says she prefers to wait until the animals are older. She says its difficult to say how many hours are spent training each one.


Each horse is an individual, but I put a lot of miles on these horses before they ever go out on the road, she says.


Andersen doesnt allow her horses to pull a vehicle more than five hours on any given day or to work two consecutive days.


The horses welfare comes first, she says. She adds that the horses are fitted with pads that are placed between their feet and their shoes to help cushion their steps when theyre on hard pavement.


Andersen says the venture has allowed her to do the two things she enjoys mostworking with horses and visiting with people.


Im very fortunate to take something I like doing and then get up every day and do that, Andersen says.