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Pleasures Past Carriages offers tours on large Santa sleigh
By Dan Eakin, deakin@starlocalnews.com
It's not dashing through the snow. And it's not a one horse sleigh.
But it might be something even better.
Instead of dashing through the snow, the sleigh takes people on a tour of Christmas lights on some of the finer homes in Old Town Coppell.
It easily holds 20 people, and maybe even a few more if several of them are small.
Dale Smart, who built the sleigh and owns it, and his nephew Garrett Smart who is managing the sleigh, are trying to get Guinness World Records to verify that it is in fact the largest such sleigh of its kind anywhere.
Whether or not, it is sure to offer a lot of fun to anyone who rides it. It was taken on a test run Monday night, creating a lot of attention as it wove through the some of the neighborhoods of some of the prestigious homes in Old Town Coppell.
People of all ages were on the sleigh, including a small baby, children, teenagers, young adults and a 77-year-old woman. There were smiles and cheers all the way, with Santa yelling the proverbial “Ho! Ho! Ho!” and the riders yelling it right back at him.
The riders “oohed and awed” at the beautiful homes which were equally lighted and decorated beautifully for the season. Christmas music played over the speakers which had been placed in the sleigh.
Dale Smart, who has operated carriages of various kinds and sizes in Highland Park and other places for the past 15 years, got the idea for the large sleigh a couple of years ago. He wanted to build it large enough to be handicap ready, partly so his mother, Maxine Smart, could ride on it. He made the area between the two back seats which face each other wide enough that wheelchairs could sit in it if necessary. An aluminum ramp is also provided.
Once on board, the handicapped person may choose to stay in the wheelchair which would be secured with straps, or get into one of the seats on the sleigh.
Smart, who has a full time job, said he operates the sleigh and other carriage services for added income, and really mostly for fun.
In Coppell, the sleigh rides are being managed by his nephew, Garrett Smart. Also, Santa Claus bore a great resemblance to Dale Smart's brother, Dwain Smart.
The Smarts are offering the sleigh tours to groups through Dec. 30, with the exception of Christmas Day.
Pleasures Past Carriages also offers 12 and 16 passenger wagonetts and classic four and six passenger vis-à-vis for Coppell Christmas lights tours.
Tours may be booked on line at http://www.pleasurespastcarriages.com/. For information, call 214-682-0727.
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