Couple offering old-fashioned wagon rides

COLUMBUS - Two area horse lovers are looking to bring back a touch of the old west through their business Diamond D Wagon Rides.

Verny Swanson and Jeremy Coe officially opened Diamond D Wagon Rides a month ago and since then have participated in the Antique Tractor & Gas Engines Show, parades, children's days at churches and a company picnic.

Swanson said she grew up around horses, and this was a dream she has had for a long time.

“I have been around horses since I was 2,” she said. “This was just something we always wanted to do.”

The wagon is pulled by a pair of experienced Percheron horses, Coe said, and is available for countryside rides, weddings, birthdays and any other special occasion within a 60-mile radius of Columbus.

“Some people would rather have horses” than a limousine, he said. “If they wanted us to do a funeral, we would do a funeral.”

Coe said there is something more relaxing about riding in the open air at a slow pace than inside a stuffy vehicle racing to its destination, noting their wagon, which will hold up to 12 people at a time, also is less costly than other alternatives.

Currently, the business is operating on a seasonal basis, Swanson said, but if bookings go well she would like to make it a year-round service.

“I would plan on getting a bobsled team,” she said. The pair also is in the process of obtaining a removable cover for the wagon to make it more comfortable for younger and older riders.

Contact either Swanson at 270-5134 or Coe at 920-1347 for rates, location and more information.

“We'll give them an old fashioned country ride,” Swanson said.