Hoofing It

 

Sea World's clydesdales have moved back to St. Louis following last month's transfer of the park--along with Sea World locations in San Antonio and Orlando, and Busch Gardens parks in Williamsburg, Va., and Tampa--from Anheuser-Bush to the Blackstone Group private equity firm. The clydesdales were a Sea World staple, and will be missed by the tourists and locals who were surprised to not see them during their holiday visits to the park.

On a recent visit, the paddock where the clydesdales had been kept was closed off. A sign on a chain read, "Clydesdales are no longer on display." Some visitors who stopped to ask about the clydesdales were told they were back in St. Louis doing other promotions for Anheuser-Busch.

Draft horses have represented Anheuser-Busch since 1933, when August Busch Jr. celebrated the end of prohibition with a ceremonial team of clydesdales pulling a Budweiser beer wagon containing the first legal case of beer from the Budweiser brewery in St. Louis.

The clydesdales have long been an internationally recognized corporate image. After Anheuser-Busch merged with InBev in July 2008, it sold Busch Entertainment Group--which had operated and controlled Sea World and Busch Gardens theme parks--to increase its focus on brewing beer. In October, the Blackstone Group agreed to purchase the theme parks from Anheuser-Busch InBev. The company promised few changes to the overall theme of the Sea World and Busch Gardens parks.

The Blackstone Group also owns the Merlin Company, which operates Legoland theme parks and Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New York.