Romancing a nag - isn't love grand?

This is a love story. This is the story of two old horses named Bill and Athena, both worn, both past their prime, both in a position in life where some might question whether they even have a place anymore.

But Bill and Athena not only have each found a place where they make an important contribution, they also have found each other. And their story embodies the power of an old cliche: Love conquers a lot.The horses are part of the therapeutic riding program at the National Ability Center in Park City. Bill came to the program in June, a former carriage horse with a swayed back and arthritic knees. A Belgian-Clydesdale mix, Bill was large, ungainly, rather homely. Horses have a definite social order, and it's safe to say that Bill was not on top of the ladder. Athena, on the other hand, was a quarterhorse, a former dressage competitor. At age 22, she was showing her age but still had that touch of class.

At first glance they seemed to have little in common. The first time Doug Dusenberry, who directs the riding program, saw them together, "it looked like Athena was pressing Bill up against the fence. And I couldn't get them apart. Then I realized that Athena was protecting Bill. I realized they had a thing for each other."

From that point on Bill and Athena became inseparable. Athena would carry on and whinny whenever Bill was taken out of the paddock, and Bill would seem lost without Athena.

Bill was used to give walking lessons. "We put students on his back and led them around," says Dusenberry. "He has a strong back and a kind nature. He was really gentle, and the kids loved him." Bill was not very pretty, but he sure was sweet.

Athena helped with all kinds of lessons - lope and canter, and both English and Western styles of riding.

Students at the center have all different kinds of abilities. The Ability Center opened its riding program to the community this summer, and about 20 percent of the students are not disabled. But the majority have disabilities of one kind or another.

The center is designed to provide a variety of outdoor, recreational experiences for kids with disabilities including skiing, fly fishing, river rafting, swimming and water skiing. But the riding program is one of their most popular programs, says Dusenberry. Horseback riding is good therapy, he says. It increases flexibility, stamina and strength. "Physical therapists tell us that the benefits we get in 15 minutes on a horse would take them an hour in therapy."