Go Pony

Just when I've got things figured out...

2012-02-02T12:13:00.001-07:00

You would think, after 15 years together, I'd have my pony figured out.

Except not.

I've written in the past about just how dead-set she is against bits. Have yet to find one she really likes, blah-blah-blah, she goes best in her s-hack, so on and so forth.

Of course she had to prove me wrong yesterday. I've made mention of my bit collection and how it is almost physically impossible for me to get rid of any bits I own, and so always have plenty of bits floating around for various experimental purposes and kicks.

Just for some of those kicks, yesterday I pulled out the Myler Full Cheek snaffle I own. I used this bit on her quite a few years ago, when we were first starting out in NATRC. I don't remember if it was good or bad. The couple of ride photos I have of her in it, she's not tugging and fussing and pulling faces. Always a good sign.

Exhibit A: (It's hard to see, but trust me, it's the full-cheek snaffle. It's a picture of a picture, since my computer ate my flash drive that had all of the images of my ride pics I had scanned and I wasn't going to tear apart my ride scrapbook to rescan 'em all.)

Descanso Desperados NATRC
October 2002
Photo by Cheryl Erpelding

Especially when this is the alternative:

Chino Hills NATRC
April 2003
Photo by Ray Brezina

Safe to say she doesn't like the loose-ring, French-link snaffle. Especially since I have another several pics that look almost exactly like above.

So yesterday, out comes the Full Cheek again. And she decided it was perfectly acceptable.

Of course.

She ~~loves likes~~ tolerates the one bit I don't like to use. (Something about those full cheek pieces getting hooked on things like belts, belt loops, bridle cheekstraps, water troughs...get the picture?)

What I'd like to know is if it's the bit, or the mouthpiece. It's the Myler Comfort Snaffle with Twist. The slightly rigid aspect of the comfort snaffle means it's pretty solid in her mouth...not a lot of play or wiggle, so she fusses with it less.

*shrug*

Apparently she likes to keep things interesting.

Innocence

Orange Season

2012-02-01T16:20:00.001-07:00

January and February in Arizona means citrus season. Including oranges, like these delicious blood oranges from my backyard tree:

You just gotta get over the name and the ruby-red color inside
that gives them their name.

But that wasn't the kind of orange I wanted to talk about today.

This one is:

Yes, my Renegade is sitting on my guitar case.
Blending two facets of my life.

Also known as "Hunter Orange", "Safety Orange", and "Blaze Orange" in various applications, I'm specifically talking about Renegade's signature color: Sport Orange.

It's distinctive. It's hard to miss. On the rare occasion the boot might come off, it's easy to spot. It actually looks good on most color of horses.

(History Lesson: Ironically, I have only ever run with orange Renegades once...Mimi's very first pair, a set of Beamer's old boots, I co-opted as an experiment right before a ride to "see if they'd work." 25 miles later, I decided she needed her own set of shiny boots. Quite a few pairs, and five years later, they're still working. But because Mimi's registered name is Skip Me Gold, I usually ran her in Yellow Gold boots. That may have to change...I'm getting pretty attached to these orange ones.)

But in the last couple of weeks, I've taken to subconsciously surrounding myself with the color orange.

It's in a couple of travel mugs:

White one is actually plastic. Bought with ridecamp
and horse trailer-living survival in mind. The other
one is just pretty.

And in my exercise mat.

This was actually purchased a couple of years ago.

And of course, I'm proudly wearing my colors:

Jacket won at the McDowell Ride raffle in November.
A sign of things to come?
(Not pictured: the several Renegade t-shirts I possess.)

And then I got really excited when I found these boots from Ariat:

The same boots I already own and adore as fabulous barn work boots, but mine don't have orange on them. Is it wrong for me to wish for my current boots to quickly wear out so I can get these? (Good luck on that...Ariat boots wear like iron. These are 5+ years old, and my Terrains are 7+.)

And then they have these:

More appropriate for when I'm not hanging out in the barnyard. My own signature red cowboy boots may have some competition.

(Note: Not a spokesperson for Ariat. Just been wearing their boots for the past 16 years.)

And then there's this shirt:

I actually got this shirt about ten years ago (and worn it maybe half a dozen times since?) on a whim at my very last show. Wearing Western shirts (as opposed to the jackets and/or vests/slinkies that made up the Western Pleasure/Equitation outfits) for reining classes was very popular at the time. Not that it helped me do better or worse in the classes, but I felt more important. Or something. I justified it on the basis that: I was competing in something like 5 or 6 Reining and Western Riding classes, and more importantly, I liked the colors. (If the detail isn't showing up very well, it's orange, black, white, and lime green plaid.)

I kept the shirt as a fond memory of that last show, and have since discovered it's lightweight enough to make a good overshirt for riding. As if my wild tights weren't enough, right?

My next task is to get a pair of wild orange tights. I've already found a few fabrics online...

(Oh, yeah, forgot one of the more obvious...the blog color scheme. :))

Big Bad Arabian Stallion

2012-01-27T07:34:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind, since this actually happened last weekend, and I've kept meaning to go down to the barn and get pictures. Work/life has had other ideas this week. So you get the pictureless version.

Last weekend, I had the chance to ride the barn owner's Arabian stallion. Like, properly ride. I've hopped on him before for a few minutes, with too-long stirrups, and briefly experienced his Western Pleasure jog. This time, it was with properly adjsuted stirrups, all three gaits, around the arena for a good 20 minutes.

Awesome horse to ride. He's 25 years old, and with the exception of his locking stifles after about an hour of work, doesn't look or act his age at all. He's really well trained -- Western focus, but with enough cross-training in English to know how to stretch out and offer a gorgeous trot. If he were 10 years younger, I'd be offering to campaign him on the endurance circuit.

It's been a while since I've ridden that well-trained of a horse (besides my own, who, depending on the day, may or may not remember that she is, in theory, that well-trained) and it was sheer joy. It took me back to my riding origins and dropped me right back into my show-ring boots. Old habits die hard and are deeply ingrained, I guess, since I went right back to all of my OCD, show-ring micromanaging.

(Somewhere in the distance, Mimi grumbles, "And I had just gotten that all trained out of her, too...")

But it's kind of a different story when the horse likes being micromanaged and told what to do. Exhausting for 50 miles, but fun for short-term circles around the arena.

But just a little more gushing...you wouldn't know this guy is a stallion. He's so well-mannered and polite, and one of the sweetest horses in the barn. He truly loves people and is very affectionate about it. So yeah, despite the post title (and the typical stallion stereotype), this boy isn't bad at all. (Or big...maybe 14.2. But he's got presence and acts a lot bigger.)

Will get pics this weekend and post them of this gorgeous guy.

(And Mimi actually approves of him, since she didn't get all crabby and pissy that I had the nerve to ride another horse.)

New Job!

2012-01-16T20:07:00.000-07:00

I've been offered -- and have accepted -- a new job, official as of today: I'm going to be working for Lander Industries Inc., makers of the Renegade Hoof Boots!!!

Details to follow as I figure out exactly everything I'll be doing, but most of it will probably be computer-based, working from home.

I am so, SO excited about this opportunity!

On Trail Again!

2012-01-14T18:33:00.001-07:00

"...she's probably waiting in the wings for you to come along, let her ride again..."

- "Let's Take A Drive", Christian Kane

Okay, so I co-opted those lyrics for something slightly different than their original intended purpose, but it actually works...can't sum up the spirit of today's ride much better than that.

Yes, you read that right. After an embarrassing long hiatus in which we've done a few stints wandering around the neighborhood and a lot of arena circles, we got to go out on trail again today. Mimi was soooo happy to be out again. She does the arena thing because it's what Good Trained Ponies do, and because it's some form of exercise and beats sitting around the stall or pasture. It's not because she loves it. But she loves trail.

It was a small group ride today -- our boarding barn owner, another boarder, and one of barn owner's friends. One other experienced horse and two greenies. It ended up being a really good group because the two greenies are youngsters that Mimi has been around for the past seven years, and because they're younger and submissive to her, she considers them her "keep" and takes great care to look out for them.

She's everyone's favorite babysitter.

Sometimes when we're riding in a group, I end up going to the back because Mimi hates being crowded (only to think about my own negative reactions to crowded situation with too many people...wonder where she learned it???) and we can hang back and not get too hung up in the herd. Only problem with that is she is very competitive and doesn't like being last.

So today we compromised. Spent some time in the middle, some time in the back, and then some time up front...or near to it. The front horse for the day has a ridiculously fast walk that no one can keep up with (at 15.3 hands, it's understandable...), so keeping up with him was enough to keep Mimi from getting too hung up on the fact that she wasn't. actually. in. front.

We went to the San Tans...our old, familiar stomping grounds that Mimi and I know probably every inch of.

Seeing this view again is like being greeted by an old friend.

And I hate to admit it, but it was probably a good thing we had two soft, out-of-shape youngsters in the group, because Mimi and I both had to dig pretty far down to find our fitness levels. Five miles, mostly walking, with a bit of trotting (and cantering, if you're an exuberant pony that's stuck behind everyone and just wants to GO!!!), and we were all feeling it by the end. Fuzzy pony was definitely sweaty (in her defense, she has 2" of hair and it was 70*...) and I remembered some leg muscles that had been all but forgotten.

But we had So. Much. Fun!!!

Happy Pony got to Ride Again

it's cloudy and grey but we're still gonna play

2012-01-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

Turns out winter's not quite done with us yet here in the sunny Southwest. The supposed forecast was 70* and sunny. What we got was slightly different. But I'm not complaining. I'm rather fond of our brand of winter out here, and wasn't quite ready to face up to spring-like conditions.

Besides, cooler weather makes for cheerful ponies.

"Act your age" need not apply. She'll be 19 this year, and she
still can't leave well enough alone and stay out of other people's
stuff.

Cross-dressing for the horse world.
Blue jeans, cowboy boots. Helmet, English saddle.

The pony wasn't feeling particularly photogenic or cooperative today. In order to get this:

We had to go through several rounds of this:

Drama, drama, drama.

And it's not spring fever. It's just Pony.

Cruisin'

2012-01-01T19:09:00.000-07:00

Today, I embraced the one superstition that I follow -- that whatever you do on New Year's Day is what you'll spend the rest of the year doing. So I listened to my favorite music while driving (which is pretty much an everyday given as it is, but whatever...), curled up with a good book, blogged, and of course...

Rode. My. Pony.

One of the popular clinicians has a game/technique/training tool/exercise called "Cruising" that can be best summed up as putting the horse on auto-pilot. As in, drop the reins, hang on, and let the horse go. Only rule is that the horse has to keep going. No reins, no controlling where they go. Just hang on for the ride.

For a Type A control freak such as myself, doing this is akin to torture. Not only that, but I spent my first formative year of horseback riding in a huntseat English environment, which is all about lots and lots of contact, especially rein, with the horse, and that losing that contact is a fast way for your butt and the dirt to get really familiar with each other.

Spending the last 15 years riding a pony that is not only very forward, but has also perfected the art of the "drop-n-spin" (damn Quarter Horse blood), has taught me to ride with pretty constant rein contact, so I have maybe half a second warning before she pulls a fast one. (The theory being that where the head goes, the body follows...It hasn't always worked...)

So to challenge myself, Mimi and I went Cruising for part of our workout. On one hand, it was kind of easy. Mimi has extensive arena training, and would be considered to be a push-button rail pony: get her going and she just tracks along the rail, making circle after circle. It was easy to get into a rhythm and just hang on while she motored around. Exhilarating, actually. Liberating. One hand on the saddle (let's not be too daring here...'member that spin-n-drop?) one hand free.

(Watching the NFR [National Finals Rodeo] last month might also have shamed me into trying this, if the bareback and saddle bronc riders can stay on a bucking horse with one hand while the horse goes its own way. Never mind that it's only for 8 seconds and a good many of them don't stay on...minor detail...)

On the other hand: Mimi's a pony. Which means right about the time I start getting a bit complacent, her new favorite I-want-to-hang-out-at-the-gate-and-not-work attitude wakes up, she realizes that she can go wherever she wants to, and half a second later, she's made a sharp turn and a beeline for the gate. Yeah, glad I was still holding onto the saddle at the point. It didn't get her anywhere, since the only rule is that they can't stop. We looked like a pinball machine for a bit there, bouncing around in the corner by the gate until the pony resigned herself to the fact that her antics weren't getting her anywhere.

And then I had to take up the reins again because I can only give up that kind of control for so long. But for the remainder of the time, I was much more conscious about how much I was using the reins, and made a concerted effort to focus on lighter contact.

I've always had fairly soft, quiet hands when I ride...they're just controlling and reluctant to give up that release. (This is another good reason to ride in a hackamore.) I sort of hate to admit just how much I rely on my reins for control, balance and staying on...but I've had too many instances happen of where I lost my reins and then was totally sunk to be comfortable without that early-warning system that comes with constant contact.

Some days, hands-free lunge line school doesn't sound like a bad idea.

But hey, knowing a problem/weakness/area to work on is half the battle, right?

Caveat/Disclaimer/Et Cetera: I did this in a controlled environment -- a 180' x 75' sand arena surrounded by 3-rail pipe fence and closed gates. I did this on a trustworthy, reliable, sane horse that I am familiar with. I kept the exercise to a walk/trot for now. It's a good trust-building exercise, and great fun for the horse. But I would be very reluctant to try this on a young horse who isn't ready for this kind of freedom, especially at anything faster than a walk. It could go to their heads and get them a little overexcited and overwhelmed. No way I would try this in an open environment. Just use common sense and good judgment when deciding whether or not you and your horse are ready to try this.

New Year

2012-01-01T14:41:00.000-07:00

May 2012 bring in lots of smiles for all!

Happy New Year!!!

Resolution

2011-12-31T12:24:00.000-07:00

Who here likes to make ~~inebriated declarations of good intent~~ New Year's resolutions?

I actually don't.

To be more specific: I set goals for the year, try to plan things in advance, and accept that fact that 75% of those plans will end up getting kicked to the curb through little fault of my own.

So while I'm not completely against the idea of resolutions in general -- hey, they obviously work for a lot of people -- I have a tendency to go way overboard in the expectations department. I also might not be 100% in touch with reality some of the time. So rather than creating a list of unrealistic resolutions that then leave me with an abject sense of failure when they don't happen, I've settled on the more vague "plans and goals" approach.

Or maybe I just don't like the idea of being held accountable, even by myself, to declarations made when I've stayed up past my bedtime.

But even without specific goals/plans/outlandish fantasies in mind at the moment, I'm looking forward to writing 2012.

(Okay, okay, so I've got a couple things in mind: Keep up on blogging. I've gotten back into the habit of it again...Maintain it. And this past fall, I cracked down on my own health and lifestyle. Nothing drastic (I'll never manage to create a stir in diet-blog land with it), just taking a very sensible approach of watching my portions, eating a well-balanced diet, walking every day (2-4 miles), and some kind of resistance workout a couple times a week. It's working, and I'm slowly shedding pounds and feeling good about my own fitness and health. Keep at it.)

Superstition says that whatever you do on New Year's is what you'll spend the rest of the year doing. Superstitious or not, it sounds like a good excuse to go ride. :)

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T09:53:00.000-07:00

Merry Christmas from me and mine to you and yours!

Let the Record Reflect

2011-12-23T08:12:00.000-07:00

I love looking at ride records for both horses and riders. They really tell an interesting story, whether you're looking to purchase a horse with some endurance miles (Was he raced from the get-go, or started slow and taught to be in touch with his brain? Any pulls? What kind? What kind of ride does he seem to excel at?), or looking for bloodlines and/or close relations of a youngster (Please let him have even a tenth of the endurance talent as his mother/brother/second-cousin-twice-removed.).

The same goes for rider records as well: Did that bit of advice you got around the campfire come from someone with upteen-thousands of miles who probably knows what they're talking about, or an upstart flash-in-the-pan with a handful of raced LD miles to their name?

Too bad the records don't tell the whole story.

Let's use a very personal example: Me. Honestly, if I looked myself up on AERC, I wouldn't be too impressed.

2005-2011
17 rides
13 completions (9/9 LDs, 4/8 Endurance)
Pulls: 3 Rider Option, 1 Overtime
5 different horses

Nothing to brag about, right? There's a reason I don't sit around the campfire and offer too much endurance advice. I might be experienced around horses in general, but I still consider myself very much an endurance newbie.

But who wants the inside story? (For the sake of the rest of this post, I'll pretend somebody just raised their hand.)

To start: 17 rides in seven ride seasons? Some people get that to that many rides in one season. Lucky them. I've had to work around around: full-time school, part-time job, and limited resources, meaning sticking to in-state rides.

LD record? Nothing eyebrow-raising. A couple of Top Tens in there on Mimi. Full disclosure? They were small rides.

Endurance...ouch. In my defense, I turn to the pull codes. Three Rider Option. The story behind those? 1) I broke myself. 2) I broke myself. 3) I almost broke my horse but stopped before I did. The story I tell myself to make me feel better is that I've never had a vet have to pull me...I exercise common sense and good judgment...the truth? I'm a paranoid, slightly neurotic wimp without access to good pain meds.

Huh?

I'll be the first to admit that I don't have a high pain tolerance. My ankles were each responsible for a pull, and I've learned I can't ride with a sprained ankle. Some people can. But I always sort of sucked at the ride-without-stirrups thing and tend to rely pretty heavily on my legs for keeping me in the saddle and balanced. But the bottom line is, I don't really feel like giving myself permanent damage for the sake of a hobby, something I'm supposed to be doing for fun.

Overtime pull? Tough ride, bad weather, silly horses. 'Nuff said.

That last RO pull should really be a RO-Metabolic, but that was before they really started keeping track of the more specific RO pull codes. And the vets couldn't find anything wrong. But I know my pony, and she was at the "ADR" point -- Ain't Doin' Right. If we had kept on going, I know she would have tied up. We called it a day.

And the five different horses? Only one of them is mine. I have generous friends that need horses ridden. I'm happy to accommodate.

So, to sum up: I'm a paranoid, uber-conservative rider who still has a pain threshold, riding an older, not-entirely-suited-for-endurance pony who has given me enough scares and traumas to make me even more paranoid and conservative.

What the ride record doesn't tell you is how many hours I've spent training and conditioning. I believe it was Julie Suhr that said something to the effect of, "If you don't enjoy the training, you're in the wrong sport." Well, if it weren't for the training, I wouldn't end up doing much riding!

I love the training process...to me, that's where the most progress and bonding is done. I'm resigned to the fact that, at rides, I might only have 75% -- at best -- of my horse's brain, and that I'm kind of just along for the ride sometimes. But training rides? Those are the blood, sweat and tears that go into the foundation of getting to the actual rides. I wish I'd done a better job of keeping training records...I would love to know how many hours I've spent in the saddle and how many miles we've covered.

Moral of the story? Just like you can't judge a book by its cover, you can't judge an endurance rider by their record.

At least, not entirely.

'Tis the Season

2011-12-18T15:11:00.001-07:00

Mimi has her own Santa hat. On the years I 1) remember and 2) don't misplace it, I pull out the hat and take embarrassing pictures of the pony. It's the sort of activity that reminds her of a pony's station in life: to be a little girl's dress-up toy.

She finds it less than amusing.

This year, I not only was able to find the hat, I remembered to take it down to the barn before Christmas. Here's a few of today's antics and outtakes. I'm saving the "nice" one for Christmas.

It rained today. Funny, it rained last time I was down at the barn.
Mimi's over the rain.

For a sweet pony, she can pull the bitchiest mare faces.
Grouching at her stall-neighbor.

"Uh oh...I remember this..."

"Did I mention I hate you?"

Reward for tolerating five minutes of indigation: a warm beet pulp mash.
Stall-neighbor Ava wants to share. Only thing Mimi shares is flying
hooves and teeth.

A Bit of A Collection

2011-12-16T13:15:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make.

I collect bits.

I probably can't even count how many bits I've used/owned over the years. Start between "a lot" and "a ton" and go from there. It started with my show days and went from there. I think I probably used seven or eight different Western bits over the years, starting with a snaffle and very quickly moving into all manner of ported/shanked leverage bits. The joys of a young pony with no brakes and a young rider with no upper body strength. Shortcuts R Us. But I didn't know any different at the time. I was still trying to figure out how to ride a young horse, let alone train one.

English was easier...very quickly moved into a kimberwick and stayed there for pretty much our entire show career.

And gymkhana quickly complicated things again. Snaffle while I was still teaching her the patterns, then over to a mechanical hackamore when we started picking up the speed. But of course it couldn't be that simple...maybe one style of mechanical hackamore works better than another? And then on a whim, the week before our last show, I snagged an S-Hack while at the feed store. I had done about a year of distance riding at that point, and had seen distance riders using them. I figured I might eventually be able to use it. The real whim came about at the show when I put it on Mimi (without any testing/pre-riding at all) and ran all of the games in it. (And had some of the best runs ever.)

But distance riding really fed my bit obsession.

Mimi's always been a bit fussy. She has a low palate and a tiny mouth, and spends half of her time evading the bit rather than working with it. My trainer and I spent a lot of time swapping out bits, trying to find one she would work in. Fortunately, I learned my bit collecting ways very well from my trainer, and she had an entire box of bits to raid.

Distance riding also expanded my horizons and really furthered my education. For the first time, I was really examining the why of things, instead of accepting that something was "traditional and always done this way." Bit function was one of those areas of education, and that exploration brought me to the Myler bits.

I love Myler bits.

Mimi tolerates them.

I've gradually gotten rid of all of my other bits in favor of just keeping the Myler ones. I really appreciate their form and function and how they're designed to work with the horse. I feel like I end up with more of a connection and softer feel of the horse's mouth.

(Not a spokesperson/representative/paid mouthpiece for Myler. I just really like the product.)

And irony of ironies?

I barely use any of the bits I have.

As mentioned, Mimi really doesn't like bits. She tolerates the Myler ones. But she prefers to go bitless. Remember that S-Hack I mentioned earlier? Yep. That's her preferred headgear of choice.

It sort of looks like a jumble of purple spaghetti, but that's Mimi's trail bridle. Zilco Deluxe Endurance Halter/Bridle with the Wind Rider Aluminum S-Hack and Hought Beta-Biothane Noseband.

I really like the flatter beta nosebands that are out there now...much easier on their faces than the stiff rope-style nosebands. I've seen the rope-style used on horses that pull, and they eventually develop a bump on their nose from rubbing/pressure. Several layers of Vetwrap is supposed to combat this...

My major caveat on the hack: I prefer to use it on a horse that's already well-schooled in giving to pressure and going along nicely in a bit. Mimi responds really well to it, and I think a lot of that is due in part to the fact she's just happy it's not a bit, and therefore will cheerfully obey without fuss.

It still took me a couple of years of doing NATRC to work up the nerve to try it on her at an actual ride. She did great when I did finally use it, but then right about that time I started getting involved in endurance, and the idea of the faster pace and more race-like environment had me scrambling back to my comfort zone of a bit for our first year of endurance. October 2007, I used the hack on her at a ride, and haven't gone back to a bit since, except for schooling.

My preferred set-ups for schooling at the moment. Myler Kimberwick with Comfort Snaffle mouthpiece (MB02). It's considered a "Level One" (mild, typically used for intro level) mouthpiece. I like that it acts very much like a double-jointed snaffle, but it has less "play" in it and it's less work for the horse to hold it in their mouth.

I pulled off the regular kimberwick curb chain and replaced it with a biothane curb chain, because 1) the constant jingling from curb chains annoys me and 2) I'm lazy and hate having to always fiddle with the on/off of a curb chain. I like the ability to switch between the curb and snaffle setting on a kimberwick. When I was competing with this bit, I'd often start with the reins clipped to the curb setting, then switch to the snaffle setting after she settled down and quit pulling.

My only grumble is that they only stock the kimberwick in 5" sizes. Myler bits tend to run just a touch on the large side anyway, so 5" is really too big for pony's pea-head. They do custom orders , but I use a bit so little now that it hardly seems worth it.

Exhibit B is my "cowgirl" set-up. Myler Western Dee Snaffle with Sweet Iron Bristol Roller (MB11). Also a Level One bit. It's basically a "dog-bone" double jointed with a little spinning copper roller around the middle of it. Mimi works well in it, mostly because I think she likes the copper and sweet iron. She tends to drool and slobber after a while because she's so busy working the spinning mouthpiece. Not a good bit on days when we're working on "quiet mouth." Rides "looser" than the comfort snaffle because the joints on the snaffle have a lot of play between them. Not as good in the "subtle communication" department. But it's a pretty bit that appeals to my inner cowgirl. (Me, shallow?!?)

And then I've got several "homeless" bits...ones that live in my drawer of extra tack, ones that are either similar to something I'm already using, or have been tried and discarded as absolutely unsuitable by the Pony Committee of One.

Round up the usual suspects. Clockwise from upper left:
Myler Western D w/ Hooks, Mullen Triple Barrel MB32-3
Jumping Hackamore
Myler Loose Ring French Link MB10
Myler Full Cheek Twisted Comfort Snaffle MB01T

I've used all of these for training and rides (except the jumping hack...haven't done a ride with that yet, want to replace the noseband with one of the beta ones) at some point. The Western D was a good ride bit and I used that one several times, but the flat mullen mouthpiece made eating more difficult. A like something with a little more "lift" in the mouthpiece and more room for the tongue. The Loose Ring Snaffle is kind of a joke...I have more ride pics of Mimi's head almost vertical as she gleefully ignored my requests to slow down. And the full cheek snaffle is relegated to used as a training bit under strictly controlled circumstances only. Those full cheeks, while wonderful for teaching a young horse concepts like turning and steering, really suck when they get caught on various things...like the cheekpiece of the bridle, or your belt, or the water trough...ask me how I know this. ;)

And of course, I have a couple other bitless rigs floating around as well. This one's a vosal...mechanical interpretation of the old-time rawhide bosals. I'm on the fence about this one. Definitely a lack of fine-tune control. No side-to-side lateral control whatsoever. I still keep it around, though.

Not pictured is a traditional sidepull. Well, the braided nylon variety of traditional. It lives down at the barn as my "backup" headgear, but I rarely use it other than for aimlessly wandering around the arena for a few minutes. Requires way too much force to get Mimi, in a strong-and-opinionated mood, to listen to it. But I keep it around because it'll probably be a good young horse training tool in teaching them to give to pressure. But Mimi needs a little more authority in the form of the curb chain and leverage of the S-Hack.

And I have, of course, the rejects. Those aren't pictured, since they got sent on their way a while back. Aside from some of the show bits, I've gotten rid of comparatively few bits and/or headgear that I've used for distance. The ones that stick in my mind are:

- Myler Combo Bit with triple barrel mullen mouthpiece. I didn't care for this bit at all. It was too fussy to mess with, harder to use with a halter-bridle on pea-headed ponies, and it just seemed like it was too much at one time. Mimi hated it and fussed a ton with it on. Down the road it went.

- Myler Kimberwick with Forward Tilt Ported Barrel (MB36). I liked the comfort snaffle mouthpiece better. This was one of their Level 2-3 bits, and it was a lot of bit. It was great for the arena, but I tend to have "controlling hands" when out on trail, and prefer to ride with a mouthpiece that is a bit lighter and doesn't give them so many signals at once. Plus, I don't think Mimi's tiny mouth accommodated the more forward set of this particular mouthpiece. Didn't see the sense in leaving it around, so...sometimes I wish I'd held onto it, jsut in case I need it again.

- Dr. Cook's Bitless Bridle. As far as bitless goes, not my favorite option. Used it on the latter half of a NATRC ride and spent that seven-or-so-mile loop feeling like I was getting the proverbial middle ringer from the pony as she gleefully barged through it. Nice. Also didn't like the fact that it was tough to get it to release the pressure once it was tight. It found a new home pretty quickly.

To a lesser degree, I passed some of the bit interest along to Dad. His horses have been less complicated. Lucky him. His Foxtrotter mare Kelly came to us with a good old Tom Thumb snaffle and a habit of head-tossing. Gee, wonder why? We quickly swapped her over to a Myler short shank comfort snaffle and the head tossing really settled down, then several years later, put her in the same Myler kimberwick as Mimi. She really loved that bit, and when she went to her new home, we sent the bit with her in an effort to keep her happy and encourage the new owners to keep using said bit.

Beamer was even simpler...Myler English Dee snaffle with French Link mouthpiece (after schooling him in my Loose Ring snaffle...but the English D doesn't have the same "pull through the mouth" potential as the smaller-ring cheekpieces, and therefore doesn't need a curb strap attached...one less thing to fiddle with) for several years, and then transitioned him into an S-Hack. Sent both of those along with him, since he works well in both, but prefers the S-Hack. (Anything that makes eating easier...and it's less work, not having to carry a bit.)

And I have no doubt I'll still keep collecting as I eventually expand the herd, since I'm big on each horse having their own bit. You might say I'm a bit obsessed. ;)

When I Don't Ride...

2011-12-12T19:09:00.000-07:00

...I cook. In between all the other necessary tasks of life. Like sleeping.

I love to cook. And I've probably explained over a dozen times why I don't want to make a career out of it: It's something I really enjoy doing. The kitchen is one of my happy places. I don't want to ruin that by having it become something I have to do. Maybe that's weird -- after all, isn't the pinnacle of job searching finding something you actually like to do and then get paid for it? (Says the perpetually self-employed, jack-of-all-trades freelancer.)

But I digress.

Where was I?

Oh, yeah...I love to cook.

We've been having a colder and wetter earlier than usual winter this year in Arizona, which has sent me scuttling into the kitchen for warmth and sustenance. Today's offering? Red Velvet Hot Cocoa. I love all things red velvet, and even have a pancake adaptation. So this ended up being right up my alley. I've already been making homemade hot cocoa, so it was easy enough to adapt the basic recipe and turn out this delightful treat.

(No pictures, sorry...one, I'm a bad food photographer. Two, my camera and computer are temporarily not speaking to one another.)

So I'm sort of a bad person to get recipes from...my approach to cooking is very much that of an inexact art versus measured science. (Except baking. I still measure when baking. Otherwise, I subscribe to the "pinch of this, touch of that" method.) So I tried to guesstimate on amounts when recreating this recipe. Adjust the agave to your preference...I don't like my cocoa super-sweet.

Red Velvet Hot Cocoa
(per serving)
3/4 c milk
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
2 T blue agave syrup
red food color
heavy cream (less than 1/4 c)
1 T cream cheese

Heat the milk in a saucepan on the stove. While it's heating, mix the cocoa powder and agave together until it forms a chocolate syrup. May need to add a touch of water, or more agave to taste. Add food color to get desired shade of red. Stir into milk and keep heating until steaming. As it's heating, whip the cream cheese into the heavy cream, along with a drizzle of agave. Keep whipping (or use electric mixer) until you get whipped cream. Pour chocolate mix into a mug, top with the whipped cream -- the cream cheese gives it the "cream cheese frosting" effect.

It's a fabulous "special occasion" drink. Rather rich and I certainly couldn't drink it frequently. But it's the kind of recipe that would lend itself well to to being a holiday tradition sort of drink. Red Velvet Cocoa for Christmas Eve, anyone?

I'm going to start posting a few recipes here and there, especially things that I've found work really well at rides, either as pre-ride dinner or on-trail food. I can't survive on the Gu-and-Gatorade ride diet, so if you're looking for real food idea, check back here!

the weather outside is frightful

2011-12-12T11:53:00.000-07:00

So maybe "Let It Snow" is an exaggeration here in the desert (unless you were in Cave Creek/North Scottsdale last Monday when enough snow fell to turn the ground white for a short time), but we do occasionally have our own winter weather in the form of rain.

Today is one of those days. It started about 7ish this morning, and five hours later, it's still coming down. Not a torrential downpour, but a steady, consistent rain. It's really a lovely change of pace, and it really makes it feel a lot like winter for me.

It's also the kind of weather that makes me unashamed to pull the "wimp" card and be relieved I don't have to be out riding in it, making sure I get my conditioning miles. Cowgirl up? Nah, pass me another cup of hot cocoa and a fleece throw.

Mimi certainly isn't begging to be out in it, either. She really hates this kind of weather -- both times she tied up, it was in cold, wet, rainy weather. I sometimes wonder if it was deliberate...

(Yes, I know horses can't deliberately tie up as a way of getting out of working in weather they hate. But as clever as that pony is, it makes one pause and speculate...)

So on went a hat, waterproof boots, and something heavier and more weatherproof than a sweatshirt, and out I went to brave the elements for a trip to the barn. Not only did I need to drop off Mimi's supplements for the week, it was a good excuse to spoil her a little bit with a warm beet pulp mash. Must encourage drinking in the cold weather. And, yes, I like to spoil my pony. Beet pulp, ground flax, a touch of oat bran, a scoop of e'lytes, a drizzle of agave syrup, and chopped up apple and carrots. Mix together with hot water, and by the time I got down to the barn, it had cooled to a comfortably edible temperature.

She was still licking her lips when I left the barn.

Days like this make me glad for large covered stalls. I think it's also the rare occasion Mimi doesn't mind being in a stall instead of braving the elements. She, too, knows when to pull the "wimpy show pony" card.

Thankful

2011-11-24T19:42:00.000-07:00

It's easy to be thankful when times are good. The true test comes during the rough times. For me, it's learning to see through those rough times and find the good out of some less-than-joyous situations.

(Isn't she diplomatic tonight? Blame it on the post-food coma and a couple glasses of wine.)

- Going through the past year or so has brought my parents and I even closer together. I've always had a good relationship with them, and we've really banded together in mutual support to solider through. I consider them to be some of my best friends.

- The friends that have held me up and held me together. I have whined, bitched, moaned, and cried on shoulders. And I've laughed, schemed, plotted, drank and giggled. Friends are a support system, a network I can count on and include as part of my family.

- Cute little fuzzy white pony ears that perk up when I walk out to the pasture, and the even cuter little fuzzy white pony face they're attached to. We've shared 15 years together. God willing, we'll share many more.

- Good music, good food. The chance to indulge my interest in both. Music's my happy place, the kitchen is my non-horsey sanctuary.

- Hopes and dreams. The ability to dream and think beyond the present gives me hope..."This, too, shall pass."

A Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!!!

Endurance 101 Recommendation

2011-11-18T03:51:00.000-07:00

Curious about endurance? Aarene over at Haiku Farm is doing a series of posts introducing endurance riding and covering the elements of a ride, starting with this post. She writes really entertaining posts that are also very informative.

It's also been a good refresher course for me to go through and read these posts, preparing for the eventual day when life circumstances allow me to bring a new horse into this sport again. When I got started in this sport, it wasn't that I was completely unaware -- I had been doing several years of NATRC at that point -- but neither did I know everything that was expected, or even what constituted a "typical" endurance ride, since the only endurance ride I had been to at that point was Tevis. Not normal.

So I asked a few questions, did some observing, and mostly did what the person in front of me was doing and hoped they were correct. It wasn't a complete train wreck, but that first ride was a real eye-opener, and I'm definitely glad I got the early learning curve out of the way on a seasoned, (mostly) forgiving pony.

There is so much that goes in to training a good endurance horse, and this refresher course has been a good reminder for me (not known for my patience) of why it is so important to take the time to put that base on them -- not just conditioning, but training. Some extra time taken in the beginning saves time in the long run, and hopefully results in less retraining issues later on down the road.

(Someone remind me of this post on that "eventual day" when I'm all overly gung-ho to get whatever new equine is in my life out on trail and get competing again.)

Endurance Up

2011-11-16T11:38:00.002-07:00

"Cowboy up."

In my case, cowgirl up.

It's a common phrase, especially out here in the West, and it's a succinct way of telling someone to shut up, stop whining, grow a pair, et cetera. No crybabies allowed. If you're gonna run with the big dogs...

You get the idea.

I came into endurance already somewhat familiar with this concept. Despite the fact that versatility is the hallmark of the POA, and the best way to describe what we did was "Everything," there was a very strong Western influence to the shows, and the whole POA lifestyle. Wimps and crybabies weren't tolerated. I was a ~~very~~ somewhat ~~nervous~~ ~~fearful~~ cautious rider as I was growing up (Who am I kidding? I still am...) and as such, didn't embrace activities such as jumping and gymkhana with quite the same reckless abandon as some of my fellow riding cohorts.

And yeah, I took the accompanying ridicule with (mostly) good humor. After all, I was training a young horse. I didn't want Mimi to learn "gymkhana race brain" and end up being one of those ponies that had to be backed into the gaming arena because they were so hyped up.

"Tough" doesn't have to equate to "stupid."

Sometimes, being tough means making the hard decisions, the responsible decisions, and being the stronger person. And it's a damn good life skill to have out on the endurance trail.

On the surface, endurance looks like a sport of "only the toughest survive." And that's true. But what's your definition of tough? 50 miles over rugged terrain? 100 miles over any terrain? The rider that rides hard and fast enough to Top Ten? Or the rider that is out for the full 12 hours of allowed time? Surely the natural athlete that eats up the miles effortlessly is one tough horse? But what about the plucky little horse who is all heart that gives their all because they love what they're doing?

(Incidentally, that last one would be Mimi.)

It takes all kinds of tough.

Some riders can mile after mile, day after day, never appearing to show any kind of discomfort. For others, they are aided by pharmaceutical means and support wraps. But they are out there.

No doubt, endurance cultivates "tough." It takes not only physical strength, but mental fortitude to make it through an endurance ride. There aren't too many people out there that don't hit a wall at some point during the ride, and you gotta suck it up and forge ahead. It's easy to get discouraged when the boring part of the trail seems to go on forever. There may be a scary section of trail, but you gotta gather your courage, trust your horse, and just do it, because it's the only way to go.

We (and Alaskan fishermen) keep the foul-weather gear companies in business. Weather is seen as a poor excuse to sit out the day. (After all the wet rides I've done, I beg to differ on this one. Cold, wet rides just suck, says the desert rat.)

Like I said, endurance riders are tough. But there's another side to that as well...

"Tough" all depends on the given circumstances of any situation. Listening to the campfire horror stories, one might get the impression that endurance is really a competition of "Who can be the most insane?" when riders start pulling out stories of various injuries they've ridden with/through. Broken ribs, broken arms, concussions, kicked, stomped, battered, bruised.

I hear that and I think, "I'm a wimp."

My first 50 I ever tried, I pulled halfway through because the saddle I was riding had tweaked and pulled my ankle into such an unnatural position that it ended up spraining it. I couldn't put any weight on it in the stirrup, and couldn't go stirrup-less on the side because the loose stirrup flopping on the horse's side kept spooking him.

I clung to the guilt of that ride for a long time. I felt like a failure as an endurance rider...I should have been tougher. I should have tried to finish. All the other "real" endurance riders are going to look down on me because I wimped out over a sprained ankle. If "x" can get through a ride with whatever-body-part-broken, I should have been able to disregard a measly ankle sprain.

That's where "tough" can turn around and bite you. What did I say earlier about "tough" doesn't have to mean "stupid"?

Okay, I get it...we're all out to prove how tough we are based on a collective lack of IQ?

Because if you sit back and really look at the big picture, who is that kind of tough actually helping?

Your ego, yes.

More campfire stories.

The local orthopedic surgeon knowing you on a first-name basis.

After that ride, I too got caught up in the "tough" competition. The following weekend, I took Mimi to a NATRC ride, still sporting the sprained ankle. Hey, it's my own pony, I can ride her without stirrups if I need to.

You're going to ride two days on a still-sprained ankle? A NATRC ride, where you're judged on horsemanship, including evenness? What were you thinking?

Outside forces intervened, and Mimi had a weather-related tie-up only a few miles into the first day.

Did I learn my lesson? Clearly not...

A month later, Mimi and I had an "incident" that involved a javalina, a sand wash, and a tree. Lesson learned? The pony fits under a low-hanging palo verde tree. I don't. End result? A mild concussion and sprained/bruised hand/wrist.

A week later, we were out in California at another NATRC ride. I had a wrapped wrist and was pretty much limited to riding/mounting one-handed. That worked well. Mimi checked out of that ride back sore, a first for a saddle set-up that had otherwise been working for her for the past two years.

Lesson still didn't stick, because when I sprained my other ankle stepping/falling out of the back of my horse trailer, my first thought was, "Ah, redemption! I can make up for the other ankle incident."

You may all collectively sigh and shake your heads.

Needless to say, that didn't go well. It's one thing to try to work through an injury if it happens while out on trail, but to deliberately start a ride that way is just asking for trouble. And trouble I got. That weekend wasn't one of my finer, since I was uncomfortable, and it made me short-tempered and susceptible to several emotional breakdowns. We pulled at the first vet check.

Did I finally learn my lesson? I'd have to say, "Yes."

This past New Years, I was given a chance to join some friends at the Resolution Ride up in Scottsdale (ride story to eventually come). It was a three-day ride, and the plan was to try to ride a couple of 25s, since the horse I was riding was young, and I hadn't done a 50 in over a year.

The day before the ride, I started getting the suspicious sore throat that heralds one of the lovely 24-bug-that-morphs-into-a-cold things I tend to get. I gobbled cough drops, tea, Airborne...anything to try to stave off the inevitable.

It didn't work.

By that afternoon, I was sicker than a dog, and miserable. None of this was made better by the fact a torrential storm had moved in and was dumping gallons of water from the sky. Since I'm not exactly well-versed in the art of throwing up off the back of a horse, and would be riding a youngster that I'd never even sat on before, I made the decision to sit out the first day. (Hey, she's learning!)

I took it easy that first day, and woke up feeling pretty much normal by day two. The bug had morphed into a head cold, but the worst of that was just a stuffy nose, only slightly worse than the year-round allergies I already live with.

Saddle up, I'm riding!

I had a great ride on a really fun horse that day, and was presented with the opportunity to go out on day three and do the 50. And I passed.

Why? Because I know myself. I wasn't in shape to do a 50, especially on the heels of already having ridden a day. I could have done a 50 by itself and had I been sans flu/cold. I knew my limits, and as much fun as it would have been...the girl finally learned her lesson. It wouldn't have been fair to the horse to tote my out-of-shape carcass (which is what I would have been after about 20 miles) around, it wouldn't have been fair to my riding partner to make her slow down to accommodate me, and it wouldn't have been fair to myself.

Which brings me to my point: How does that kind of "tough" impact your horse? If you're injured, your body is naturally compensating to protect the injured area. In the case of a sprained ankle, more weight is going to be put on the uninjured side. Ditto the case with an arm or ribs. Head injury? At the very least, your mind is fuzzy, your balance is impaired, and you may not be making the best decisions. (Kinda like drinking, only not as much fun.)

We've all proven how "tough" we are just by doing this crazy sport. How does a little bit of self-preservation mitigate that? I'm all for being "tough" (Who's seen Annie Get Your Gun? "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better" comes to mind...) but it shouldn't be at the cost to your horse. That said...

Endurance UP!

Reader Feedback: I shared some of my dumber moments...so tell me I'm not alone! Have you had your "tough" moments that you later regretted?

Wild One

2011-11-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

Someone really needs to remind my pony that: 1) She's 18 years old and 2) Despite the fact that she lives surrounded by them, she is not actually an Arabian.

Friday's day-long dust storm ushered in an overnight rain storm, and with it, and significant drop in temperatures. Last week it was still in the high 80s. Saturday, it was in the 50s. Overall, I'm a fair-weather desert rat...but this weather change feels SO good. Storm clouds lingered on the higher peaks of the Mazatzal Mountains and Four Peaks, which lie to the northeast of the Valley, and once they cleared off, a light dusting of white powder could be seen from miles away. (Yes, we do get snow in the desert.)

Today was slightly warmer -- in the 60s. Absolutely perfect fall weather. Mimi felt really good with the cooler temperatures. She's a funny little thing in that she really doesn't like the cold, especially if it's also wet. But this kind of weather, particularly in the middle of a sunny day, makes her very happy.

She was super-energetic for our ride today, and I know I'm going to have to bum a ride from someone in fairly short order and get her out again...she needs ten miles or so to wear her out! She had some issues with the idea of "walk" today, even offering a jig several times. A jig! In the arena!

What happened to my show-trained arena pony???

She is fun to ride when she's that energetic, though. Very forward and surprisingly easy to ride. And it warms my heart to see her have that much energy and forwardness even for something like arena work.

(Today was a picture fail day...I actually needed two hands on the reins. But I'll leave you with an amusing mental image of my "confused cowgirl" look I'm currently rocking: western-style shirt, blue jeans, cowboy boots...English-style endurance saddle, helmet, and western leather headstall and rope reins for today's schooling session. Is it any wonder endurance is a good fit for me?)

Play Day

2011-10-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

Last week, the barn owner asked me if I would be able to help out on irrigation day (I was going to be in the neighborhood anyway) by opening up the last irrigation ditch port and keeping an eye on the last 20 or so minutes of irrigation.

So just for kicks, Mimi and I "monitored" the irrigation as it came in...by riding in it. Picture an approximately 4 acre pasture, covered in up to a foot of water in some places. Because it was so newly irrigated and there's a mature (if sparse) covering of grass in the pasture, it hadn't yet gotten muddy. The ground was firm, Mimi's bare hooves gave her plenty of grip...so we went out and played.

She waded pretty cautiously at first, testing the footing to see if it was solid. When we ventured into the deeper section, she sniffed at the water, then started pawing at it. A couple times, she felt like she was going to offer to roll, and that earned her a swift boot in the ribs. Funny, because she's never once tried to roll in any other water crossings we've done. Y'know, 'cause water crossing opportunities are so prolific in the desert... ;)

Flooded-out pasture. Cell phone with its not-ideal camera
was the only camera I had on me.

It was a good chance just to play. No pressure, no work, and a chance to remind Mimi that the saddle doesn't always mean doing boring circles.

A Video Post

2011-10-21T18:20:00.000-07:00

I had my camera down at the barn today, so decided to do a blog post via video today, composed as I rode Mimi around the arena.

Warning: Those that experience motion sickness may find the movement in the video to be somewhat distressing. If you've seen my previous videos from endurance rides...this one is actually a bit smoother.

Go Bells

2011-10-20T16:40:00.000-07:00

I could tell you the full story here...or I could just direct you to the new Go Bells and Go Bells Inventory pages on the link bar at the top of the page.

Curious?

Check them out! They're a colorful, pretty answer to letting those around you on the trail know you're there.

Memory Exercise: A Ride Story, One Year Later

2011-10-19T17:20:00.002-07:00

I should win an award. "Longest Time Waiting For Ride Story" or something. It's been a year since I did the LD at McDowell Mountain Park with Beamer, and I'm just now sitting down to write about it. Timely reporting fail. It wasn't that the ride was bad, either. I just lacked the motivation at the time to sit down and write. Then we sold the horse, and I really didn't want to write. I think I'm finally getting to the point where I feel like writing again. Not okay with the horse being gone...will probably never be fully okay with that, because that means being okay with where my life is at right now, and that's not happening.

So we're going to put my memory to the test, and see how much of the ride I can remember. Fortunately, I've got a lot of pictures. So even if the story doesn't turn out to be very entertaining...enjoy the photogenic horse.

History

Going to the ride was something of a last-minute whim. Well, last minute as in "a month ahead of time." A month to get Beamer, who had never really been out on his own, and who had had most of the summer off, back in shape. Mimi was down for the count with an abscess, Dad was down for the count with being crazy-busy with work...I was without a horse, Beamer was without a rider. Do the math, and between the four of us, we had one functioning riding team.

He did really well in the month leading up to the ride out on his own. Dad and I took turns taking him out by himself at the San Tans, and he really impressed me, enough to where I felt comfortable with the notion of taking him to a ride, where we'd at least have other horses around us, if not riding with us. Also bolstering this confidence was the discovery that my saddle fit him. My designed-for-flat-wide-backed-horses-with-no-withers Duett actually fit him. The Skito Dryback pad provided sufficient padding to keep the saddle off his withers, and after switching between Dad's saddle and mine, there was no determinable difference in his movement. All the sweeter for me, since I really love my saddle. (As an aside...to date, that saddle's been on four different horses for rides, and fit all four of them. Four varying conformations. Color me impressed.)

Friday

Fast forward to the Friday of the ride. He loaded into the trailer with nary a peep (this horse has awesome trailer manners) and dug into his hay bag. Mimi, stuck in the barn, was furious, and sulked in the corner of her stall as we left. I tried to bribe her with food, but that only went so far...

McDowell is about an hour away from the barn, and an easy drive. We got there early afternoon, and as soon as I opened up the trailer, Beamer looked around, gave the horsey equivalent of a shoulder shrug, and hopped out of the trailer. I'm sure it really helped that he'd done two previous rides there -- another reason I felt this would be a good ride for us. This may have bitten us in the butt at some point...but more on that later.

We wandered around camp for a few minutes, him on a loose lead, taking in the sights. Then it was back to the trailer, and he got installed on Mimi's side of the trailer -- and her HiTie. He'd been on the HiTie approximately once before, and that was only after he had gone 25 miles. Didn't phase him at all, although he didn't entirely catch on to the "I can turn myself around in a circle" concept. He did like the "more moving space" concept.

If I didn't know for a fact this was Beamer (and the blue
bucket to prove it), I would swear it was The Pony.

He's a really good camper, and we ended up with horses next to us and horses behind us, so he was surrounded by a safe, horsey companion bubble.

Vet-In. Dr. Rick knows me...and he knows Beamer. Just not
together. Had a couple moments of amused confusion.

We went over and vetted in, pausing along the way to explain to several people that "No, my pony didn't grow; No, I didn't technically get a new horse; Yes, that horse is familiar because it's actually my father's horse." Vetting went off without a hitch, and I have to pause for a moment to admire Beamer's trot. Even his lazy trot (which he did for that vet-in) is nicer than Mimi's best trot. Arab versus non-Arab, I guess. (And younger and sound versus older and fused hocks.) He also vetted in barefoot, which was awesome. Beautiful decomposed granite that makes up the parking lot means great footing for trot-outs.

My biggest challenge was going to be pre-riding on Friday. It's a necessity with Beamer. He needs that time to blow off some steam, even if it's just a couple of miles. He's usually higher than a kite, and feels like riding a powder-keg, per my father. If we could get through this --alone -- than we'd probably stand a chance of managing the ride just fine. We just had to survive Friday afternoon.

I'll admit -- I had more than a few nerves going on at this point. Beamer is a lot bigger than I'm used to (five inches, to be exact) and a very powerful horse. He'd tossed me off on a couple of occasions very shortly after we got him, and I've been a bit wary of him ever since. So we started off hand-walking down the service road the 25s would the starting on the next morning. The other necessity for me with Beamer is a mounting block of sorts. I don't flat-mount 15hh horses. About a hundred yards or so down the trail, I spotted some nice sturdy rocks just off the trail and used them to slither on.

Beamer was definitely up, and we tiptoed our way down the trail. He gave me a couple head shakes on one of the downhills, suggesting how very much he would like to trot...and subsequently buck. I declined. We walked. We probably went out another mile or so, then turned around. Heading home, I allowed him some very brief controlled trotting moments. He reminds me of a pressure cooker: You have to bleed the steam off slowly, in a controlled manner. If you let it all out at once, your lid is going to explode and hit the ceiling.

Once we got back to camp, we stood around talking to a few people around the check-in/vet-in area, and he was great. Standing there all relaxed and curious about what was happening. He drank some at the trough, then we meandered back to the trailer. He got dinner, and I got a ride briefing.

He was a great camper overnight...I never even heard him out there. I did have to remember to talk to him when I'd open up the door, otherwise the sudden opening of the dressing room door would tend to startle him.

The Ride

Specifics escape me, but I want to say we had a fairly early start...6:30, maybe? I was up super-early to allow myself plenty of time to eat, put Beamer's Renegades on, mess with saddlepacks, and the whole "new and different horse" thing. Fortunately, the vet check between Loop One (15 miles) and Loop Two (10 miles) was back in camp, so I didn't have to pack the crew box or worry about getting food together.

Got my coffee and gave Beamer his breakfast, then set to work nibbling on something for myself. I have to eat on ride mornings -- years of show training instilled an almost instinctive ability to eat, despite nerves and busy-ness -- but I can't eat quickly. In between bites of hard-boiled egg and peanut butter toast, I slipped Beamer's boots on. This horse was made for Renegades. They go on so easy and fit his feet perfectly. They were the one thing I wasn't worried about at all, since I've been with Dad and Beamer for every one of their miles and seen their track record with these boots.

(He's had two boots come off in a period of five years. Earlier on, we had trouble with Beamer wearing out the Velcro straps very quickly, especially in the highs. He'd drag his toes and roll the Velcro. Shortening his toes ended that problem.)

Dad came up to crew for us, since home was only about half an hour away. His help was appreciated, and most important, his moral support. He knows the horse much better than I do, too, so he'd be able to give me feedback at the vetcheck of how Beamer looked. (One of Beamer's nicknames, given in one of my not-so-charitable moments, is "Sandbagger." He can be the biggest lazy-a** of a horse sometimes, and doesn't necessarily love haaaaaard work.) Dad knows the difference between "Sandbag Beamer" and "Tired Beamer."

Dad was also responsible for getting a ton of pictures of us, since I wasn't brave enough to bring my camera along. I was planning on two hands on the reins at all times, never mind taking pictures.

Last-minute tack adjustments. Yes, we are disgustingly
color-coordinated. Did I mention it was a Halloween ride?
I wasn't even going for the Halloween effect -- it was the
Renegade Sport Orange subliminal color advertising at work.
If the color didn't work, my Renegade t-shirt did.

Beamer is almost disgustingly calm on the ground. Really, he has fabulous ground manners. Please note the "no hands on the lead" display. One of these days, I'm going to run across a horse that actually requires me to pay attention on the ground...

I did my last-minute tack fidgets, gave Beamer his accustomed couple circles of lunging, took a deep breath, and scrambled on. It was still plenty early, and I had timed things just right to give me my accustomed 15 minutes of warm-up. We walked up to the start and walked circles. Most amusingly, the only behavioral indiscretion on Beamer's part came when we'd turn and start walking away from the start. He threatened to hop up and down a couple times, and then settled as soon as we faced the starting area again.

Up, but keeping it together. The tail is only at half-mast,
which is a good sign. The grin isn't faked, either.

Okay, this is good. He wants to go.

We started off pretty much in the middle of the pack, which is how Beamer prefers it. The warm-up time allowed us to go right along at a trot. He really held it together, despite the horse with the grass hula skirt that was right on his tail. I could tell it was concerning him, so I let them pass, and he relaxed.

We hit a sand wash almost immediately, and I was able to let him move out at a nice trot. I got a few head-shakes out of him when I'd check him, but again...keeping it together.

Alerting on the hula skirt behind us.

The wash was only a short stretch, and then we connected up to the Scenic Trail that runs along a ridgeline with a fabulous view of the Verde River in the distance. Halfway up the hill, I experienced one of Beamer's acrobatic feats. Tired of me checking him, wondering why the horses ahead of him all disappeared around the corner, and concerned about the horses in the wash below us, he let out an impressive buck. While trotting. On a rocky singletrack. Uphill.

This horse is an athletic freak.

I checked him, let out some colorful language, and we kept moving forward. Made some pretty good time along the ridgeline, and he didn't spook at the bench that Mimi always spooks at. It's really a pretty trail, and I love the 360* views. When I've done the ride in the past, the 50s didn't do this section of trail until the afternoon, and by then it was hot, and not nearly as much fun.

Down on the other side of the mountain, there was a water stop at the road, and the ride photographer stationed nearby.

Photographer Dean Stanton got a great series of pics. B
was alert, a little wary, but the end result was beautiful!

He wasn't much interested in water, but given that it was only five or so miles into the ride, I wasn't surprised.

Stopped for the road crossing. He didn't want to stop.

There were sufficient horses around us that he was plenty motivated to keep going, and wanted to do more than trot. Given we had only gone about five miles, and given that he had already displayed some vertical hind-end enthusiasm, I elected for a trot. He's got a big trot when he's motivated.

This section of the park is probably my least favorite, especially as you approach the northwestern-most corner. The trail has a lot of blind curves and is quite brushy in some places. B has never been fond of it either, but we made it through unscathed, with only one bike popping up behind us and startling B.

There was another water stop at the far end of this loop. I actually hopped off here to adjust my pad (general endurance cut, no billet straps, so it tends to wiggle about under my saddle) and sloshed a bit of water on B's neck. He did not appreciate the gesture, even though he was fuzzy (I had clipped his neck earlier in the week, and braided his mane that morning) and getting sweaty. He also didn't drink. Again, we'd only come 10 miles or so, but he usually drinks by this point. Internalized nerves were probably interfering to some degree.

The benefit of riding a horse you enough is younger, tougher, and has more natural athleticism than your own horse? You only lose a couple of minutes worrying about them before taking the tough love, "they'll learn not to ignore water when it's offered" tactic. Me being me, though...I still worried a bit. But I didn't waste time trying to bribe him. Found a suitable dirt pile and scrambled back on. (13.3hh is sounding better all the time.)

A little ways past the water stop, one of my rear boot bags started flopping around, and I did my best to jerry-rig it in place without getting off the horse. Also, with only using one hand, since I didn't trust him enough to let go of both reins. It sorta stayed in place...until we started trotting again. Yanked it off and clipped it to the front of my saddle, where I could hold it in place.

Shortly beyond this point, we got off the nice single-track and into a wash. A rather deep wash that's really shrubby on both sides. Beamer got very up and this point, so I hopped off to walk him, lest someone come up behind us and send him launching. This was my major tactical mistake of the ride. I got off to walk...and couldn't get back on. There wasn't a good, safe place to mount, and whenever I'd go to get on, Beamer would sidle away. So we walked.

Did I mention this wash was about two miles long? I hand-walked all. of. it. Unfortunately, this really cost us some serious time. Finally got out of the wash and to the water stop. Beamer drank, I sponged him, and tied my boot bag back in place. And re-adjusted my saddle pad. Again.

I was hot, sweaty, and a little bit peeved at this point, and a bit annoyed that there wasn't a suitable place to get on. (Ya think you should learn to flat-mount a tall horse, O' Out-of-Shape One?)

So I ended up hand-walking out of the water stop. Note to self: When someone offers to give you a hand, take them up on it. Tried getting on a couple more times past the stop, and B wasn't having it. He was liking this whole "rider walks" gig.

Low point...leading out because I can't figure out how to get
back on my horse.

I finally found a large pile of rocks that were used to surround one of the trail signs. As Beamer sidled away one more time, the end of my reins might have connected with his shoulder, and I might have called him some very colorful names...but it made my point. I was done with his games.

Funny enough, he stepped right up to the rocks after that. Epic mounting fail on my part was what followed next. I knew it was a bad spot to get on, but there was literally nothing else to use. So as I hopped up and swung my leg, my foot hit the metal sign.

Kudos to Beamer...he really held it together. That would have been enough to incite a bucking fit, but all he did was surge forward, with his butt tucked in concern and head up. Fortunately I had my reins. Only one stirrup, though. So he redeemed himself, although I considered spooking him my revenge for the endless walking.

Now it was a mission to make up time. We got trotting, and then cantering. He's got a great canter. The textbook, rocking-horse kind of canter. It's not super-speedy, but we clip along, and it's really surefooted. Best part was the trail was a gentle downhill grade, and he felt perfectly balanced and comfortable. (Can't safely canter downhill on an already-downhill-built pony.)

Time was of the essence now...which is of course why he decided the water trough at the next road crossing looked delicious. Guess he figured out that "use it or lose it" thing...

The way back into camp was The Wash that McDowell is infamous for -- two miles of fairly deep sand. Having done this ride twice, Beamer knows this wash. He was a trooper heading down it, though -- probably helped that we were heading for "home."

Sorta dragging in at the end of Loop One. Grin is for the
camera, since I was more grim at this point.

We trotted most of the back in, and I hopped off just outside of camp. Dad was waiting for us, a bit concerned because we were pretty near the tail-end of the pack.

By the time we walked in, I loosened my girth, let him drink, and removed his S-hack, B was down. Wow, that horse pulses in fast. (It was probably less than two minutes.)

He vetted in great...I want to say all As.

He doesn't even look tired. I, OTOH, look wilted.

We had an hour hold, during which time I managed to sit down for probably ten whole minutes. (Tevis practice.) I stripped tack for whatever reason, which is the first time I can recall ever doing so. I suspect it had something to do with the heat, and the fact we were back at the trailer, so could dump it on a saddle tack. I think I wanted to pull the saddle pad out and reset the whole thing in an effort to keep the pad from wiggling so much.

In that hour, I managed to: untack, feed the horse, eat, pull off the annoying boot bags, check the GPS (alarmingly, the "15" mile loop was clocking in at 18), take a potty break, shed my long-sleeve t-shirt, re-tack, and be in the saddle again five minutes before my out-time.

A little effort, B? Both of my feet are off the ground.

I was racing the clock now, and had determined that the next loop was probably somewhere between 8-10 miles. I had an hour and half to finish. I wasn't sure I could make it...but I was going to try.

B got another drink at the trough, and then we walked around as we waited for the "go" from the out-timer.

I was racing the clock now, and had determined that the next loop was probably somewhere between 8-10 miles. I had an hour and half to finish. I wasn't sure I could make it...but I was going to try.

Waiting to head out on Loop Two.

B got another drink at the trough, and then we walked around as we waited for the "go" from the out-timer. I wanted to make sure he was plenty warmed-up so we could hit the ground running...okay, trotting. I was determined to make every second of the second loop count.

The impressive trot lasted until we hit the sand wash again (all of about ten seconds...) and then it was back to peddle-peddle-peddle for the next two miles. I'd get a bit of a peddle-trot out of him, then we'd slouch to a walk again. Peddle-trot-slouch-walk. There were two riders behind me, and we leapfrogged up the wash this way. None of our horses were particularly motivated or wanted to lead, so the old "go ahead, follow the one in front of you" standby wasn't working so well. Once we hit the single-track again, he picked up. (Why does this surprise me...it happened this way the other two times.)

Of course we had to stop at the water trough at the road crossing again. After that, we did got a good clip going. Until we hit the next wash. B slowed down, but I wheedled, peddled, coaxed, cajoled, and encouraged him up the wash at a respectable trot. Motivation was trying to stay ahead of the two ladies behind us. He did really good, and got a lot of "atta boy" praises along the way.

Once we hit single-track, he picked it up again, and we really upped the speed with some nice stretches of cantering. There was enough up and down on the trail that it really broke things up...good for the rest, but harder to keep up a good average pace.

The trail eventually looped back around to the same water stop from earlier in the day...and this time, I stayed mounted. (She eventually catches on, that one...) He drank, then we boogied.

I love this picture. :) Heading home for the final stretch.

We were both familiar with this stretch right after the water, and we flew. I was so impressed with B...he was cantering along on a loose rein, cheerfully watching the trail. At one point, we had an impressive skid moment...he hit a slick batch of decomposed granite and both hind feet skidded forward...and he never missed a beat. Still kept right on cantering. See above re: Athletic Freak.

We were clipping right along...came to the road crossing again, he drank (again), and then we hit the wash. And B hit the wall. Didn't matter how much I begged, pleaded, peddled, cajoled, prodded, whatnot...he wasn't gonna go. Nope, not down that wash again. He'd cheerfully walk out, but he wasn't going to trot again. Well, we had about a mile and half to go...and five minutes to make it. Well, that wasn't going to happen.

I was bummed, but resigned. He'd done his best, and really, done more than I expected: 25 miles, all by himself. I'm guessing he was just mentally done at this point and tired of being on his own. We ended up coming in about 20 minutes overtime. *sigh* I'd called Dad from down in the wash to let him know.

Just as a courtesy, we pulsed down (B was something in the low 40's, so he wasn't physically tired, just mentally a bit done-in for the day. He still looked really perky and was starving back at the trailer.) and did an exit check and turned in my vet card.

We took B back to the trailer and cleaned him up and let him rest while we packed up the trailer. (Ooo, forgot how nice finishing while it's still early afternoon can be.)

So I was really tickled with B, even if we didn't officially complete. But wait...there's an epilogue to this story...

Aftermath

Remember when I said I GPS'd the first loop at 18 miles? Well, when I pulled my boot bags off at lunch, I forgot to pull out my GPS to record the second loop. A couple days post-ride, I get an e-mail from the trail master of the ride, wondering if I had a GPS track of the LD. No, not the whole thing...but I have the first loop. Okay, she says. We believe there were some mileage discrepancies, and I'm going to go out to the park today and ride the LD trail myself.

A couple days later, I hear from her and the ride manager: the 25 actually GPS'd closer to 29 miles, therefore the mileage was being increased to a 30...and the completion time extended by an hour and fifteen minutes. Which means we actually got our finish. Yeah!!!

We ended up coming in 33rd out of 38, with a ride time of 5:32.

October 2011

I can't believe how much of that I remembered. It was clearly a good ride for me to recall so much. I really had fun, and was pleased as punch with how Beamer did.

"Pony" is a four-letter word

2011-10-16T14:37:00.000-07:00

Today was a "pony" day, said with much disgust and shaking of the head. We were due for it...she's been an angel for the past couple of months, but the "pony" part of her personality is never far below the surface. Today, it was standing up and doing the hula.

*blinks* Now there's a mental image for ya. (All of the costume classes I did, I never gave Mimi the indignity of a hula skirt. Missed opportunity...)

We cranked out about half an hour of arena work, heavy focus on the trot and canter (and some rider torture in the form of riding without stirrups). Brought my GPS out , just for kicks, and discovered that we covered about 2 miles with our laps around the arena. Cool. Better than nothing, and it is a sand arena.

She wasn't all bad. I dusted off the jumping hackamore and got it adjusted properly, and she was working beautifully in it. Seems to be a great choice for arena work, and she was even softer in it than the S-hack. She had a fabulous whoa today, too...but that might have had something to do with the fact that she "didn't wanna work." I don't think it'll translate over to the trail quite as well, since Ms. Curb-Your-Enthusiasm needs a little bit of a reminder that blasting off at Mach 3 is not on the recommended itinerary.

But I like keeping arena and trail gear separate. It's something I've done for years, ever since show days: western bit for western classes, kimberwick for english flat classes, snaffle for jumping classes, and hackamore for gymkhana. So it's a principle she's well-versed in: "X means fun, Y means work."

Worked on her hooves...they're looking really good right now. Picture taking fail today, since I was pretty much done in by the time I got around to working on her feet and out of patience for messing with the camera. Her hooves are slowing down in their growth as her system readjusts to the ever-decreasing amount of daylight and redirects its energies towards growing a fine, fuzzy winter coat. In 95*. Proof right there that horse hair growth is controlled by daylight hours, not temperature. At least I don't have to worry about clipping her this winter, and the subsequent "to blanket or not to blanket" question.

It was also warm enough for her to get a shower (Horrors...I removed her protective layer of dirt coating!) after we were done, which made for east-trim hooves. She was thoroughly hacked off that I had the nerve to get her face wet, and proceeded to whip me with her (soaking wet) tail during the rest of the process. Thanks, pony.

All was well at the end, since she did her spiffy little bowing trick for a carrot. Never mind that she almost fell over, she was so excited to see a rare, elusive carrot appear before her. Carrots cure all ills, at least in her mind.

Here We Go Again...The Great LD vs. Endurance Debate

2011-10-14T12:30:00.000-07:00

*ding*

That's the bell going off for round whatever-illion of the never-ending "Endurance Versus Limited Distance" debate on Ridecamp and other email lists and forums. Around the country, many people are starting to experience weather that encourages indoor hibernation, which in turn leads to sitting in front of computers and snarking, for lack of anything better to do.

This time, from my understanding, it started with a restructuring of points for 100s, which turned to talk of combined mileage recognition (lifetime accumulated miles of both LDs and 50s for a horse), which in turn has degenerated to the good old favorite topic of debate that crops up every winter...LD vs. Endurance. Half the talk makes my eyes glaze over, mostly because it's points and mileage and stuff I've never concerned myself with because I've never ridden that competitively, and the other half makes me cringe because it's starting to get nasty. I've been an AERC member for six years now, and I've seen this debate...hmmm....annually, with a few minor rounds cropping up here and there during the year, just to keep people in fighting-trim.

Sometimes, I suspect it'll never truly end.

As someone who has done both 50s and LDs, I can understand both sides of the argument. Neither side is all wrong or all right. I'm sure I'm going to manage to inflame some people along the way, but to me, it's a pretty simple concept: Calling yourself an endurance rider is a privilege, not a right, and it is something earned through an extraordinary amount of work and time. This is not to say that conditioning for an LD isn't work. For some people, it may be their own personal equivalent of training for a 50, and this isn't meant to diminish a personal accomplishment. But the bottom line is, 50s are more work and therefore earn the title of "endurance."

Endurance

In the AERC bylaws, endurance is defined as "events 50 miles and above." This gives us a baseline and standard of performance. 50 miles is not easy. Maybe to those riders whose miles are hitting quadruple digits and above, 50 miles starts to become commonplace. But for someone who doesn't even have an endurance mileage patch yet, the idea that a 50 mile ride may someday seem "easy" is a thought to be marveled. Per Webster:

endure: to last; suffer patiently; tolerate

By its very name, "endurance" is to be celebrated as something that has been worked for and earned. Let's face it: It takes a lot of work to get a horse 50-mile ready, and then keep them there. It takes time, dedication, and then a bit of luck tossed in there for good measure.

And the fact is, not all horses can do 50 miles. I did some teeth-gnashing during Tevis weekend, wondering how these horses can be 17+ and still able to even think about competing at the Tevis level -- and some of them finishing -- when my 18-year-old pony is retired from even LD competition. She was a 50-mile horse at one point, and I'm so proud of every one of her 200 miles that she earned, because it was a lot of work, and she was a very unlikely endurance horse.

But the blood, sweat, and tears that we poured into training and conditioning gave us the right to call ourselves an endurance team for the three years we competed. "Endurance" is a title that is earned through a lot of hard work and time...being able to call yourself an "endurance rider" is not something to be given out lightly...it's a recognition of the effort that has gone into getting to that point.

At the moment, I'm not an endurance rider. I'm a competition horse-less rider who will call myself whatever kind of rider I am on any given day I can snag a horse from somebody. Right now, I'm a mostly-arena rider who "trail rides" on the streets around the barn. When I've been fortunate enough to have somebody loan me a horse, then I'm a distance rider again. But until I am riding 50s again, I am not an endurance rider. I've done endurance in the past, but I'm not now...and to call myself an endurance rider is doing a disservice to anyone who is actively riding 50s and putting in the time and effort.

Limited Distance

I started AERC by doing LDs. I did three years of LDs before my first 50, and have continued to do them since. I still enjoy LDs, and quite like the fact I can comfortably walk in the days to follow. Three of my LD rides have been on new or unfamiliar horses, and it was reassuring to know that if things went all pear-shaped, I only had to deal with it for 25 miles.

I've heard the adage that, "Any horse can do a 25." Respectfully, I disagree. I know plenty of horses that are unsuited for any kind of outside trail work, let alone 25 miles, maintaining an average speed of 5mph. That's something I won't even ask Mimi for anymore.

As I stated earlier, for some people that are physically unable to ride for 50 miles, or have a horse unsuited for 50 miles, or lack the time to train, whatever the reason may be, to them, an LD could be a huge personal accomplishment. And I'm not trying to devalue that or take that away from anybody.

But it comes down to this: Individual situations aside, 25s are not as much work as 50s. Period. End of story. Therefore, LDs should not be elevated to the same level as endurance. You cannot have the same amount of recognition for half the amount of work.

Let me say again: I do not have a problem with LDs. I want to see them continue. We need LDs to bring new people into the sport. Most people are intimidated by the idea of riding for 50 miles right off the bat. That's one of the reasons it's so important for more experienced riders to take an interest in LD riders. Make them feel welcome. Offer assistance or be a mentor.

It makes me sad when I hear LD riders say they feel "unwelcome" or "ostracized" because of the distance they're riding. If that's the case, then shame on you, endurance riders. I personally had a wonderful introduction to the sport. My very first LD, I was fortunate enough to be camped next to a very, very experienced endurance rider. Patty took me under her wing, answered questions that I didn't even know I had, and made me feel welcome the entire weekend.

At another ride, an experienced endurance rider corrected my self-deprecating attitude of "only doing the 25." Their response? "It's still an accomplishment. That's 25 more miles than most people ride." (And after the last ride I did, I was glad it was "only" 25 miles! I was out of shape and not sure I could have made it 50.)

I admit I don't go out of my way to mentor...heck, I feel like I still need a mentor some days. But I do try to be welcoming at rides. I might not have my electrolyte protocol down to a shareable science...but I can probably tell someone where the registration and check-in table is located. The only way AERC is going to continue to grow as an organization is if we make people feel welcome and bring them into the fold...and that often happens through LDs as the first stepping stone. And once people get hooked on LDs, it often opens up the possibilities of doing 50s.

Bottom Line

I probably opened a giant can of worms with this topic, but it's one that isn't going away any time soon. Not that it needs to go away...a little healthy debate is what keeps thing interesting and innovative, but it also can't be allowed to tear apart our organization.

That said...

I feel that keeping LD and endurance separate when it comes to recognition is for the best. It's not fair for endurance riders who have put the time and energy into conditioning to have an LD horse and rider be elevated to the same level. And LD riders that want to be called "endurance" riders should have to put forth the same amount of effort and energy to earn that title.

To call one's self an endurance rider is a title that is earned, not given. You have to work for it...and I look forward to working towards the next time I can call myself an endurance rider again.

Finally Fall

2011-10-07T14:23:00.000-07:00

I saw my breath this morning when I stepped out my front door at 7:00. Yesterday, I got misted on when walking. Wednesday saw me in a long-sleeved tee (with shorts and sandals, but that's beside the point). Is it finally fall? One can only hope. I trying desperately to ignore the weather report for next week, the one that says we're going to be back up in the 90s again.

*plugs ears and hums loudly*

But for now, I'm going to enjoy every single reprieve I get. This is my favorite time of year, when I can drive down the freeway with my windows down, music blasting, wind whipping my hair into disarray.

View from my front yard. I live in suburbia
and board half an hour away in quasi-suburbia-
with-large-pastures.

There seems to be another potential storm brewing (maybe the dregs of the one that dumped 2' of snow in the Sierras and put this year's Tevis into disarray decided to come south?) today, so I scuttled out of the house around mid-morning and headed down to the barn.

My timing was pretty good...Mimi had finished breakfast, and was just about to be turned out into the pasture. It's so much easier to work with her when I can get to her before her pasture time...otherwise, she's rather put out about just getting settled into the serious business of grazing, only to be interrupted for that silly little thing called work.

The last half a dozen times I've ridden her in the arena, I've worked her pretty extensively in a bit. I may have mentioned this before, but she hates bits. Something about tiny pony mouths, and just a general distaste for hunks of metal crammed between her lips.

Last week, I inadvertently discovered that if I am going to use a bit, she much prefers it to be very snug in her mouth..definitely the "two wrinkles on the corner of the mouth" rule of thumb, and bordering on a third. Adjusted that way, she didn't fuss, make too many weird faces, or try to gnaw it in half. She was also very light in the face and extremely responsive.

Lesson out of all of this? Don't be afraid to go against convention and experiment. Just because something is "always" done a certain way doesn't mean it's necessarily correct for a given circumstance.

This week, I decided to use the S-Hack on her. This is my headgear of choice for when we're out on trail, and I've always had great control with it. But sometimes, I wish she was a little more sensitive to doing some of the finer nuances of arena work with this set-up. So that was today's goal...make her do some actual arena work in the hack. And she did really well. She's pretty stiff and resistant to giving to the left, so we spent a lot of time working on that.

The cooler weather also has her feeling good, and in very good spirits, and she's a ton of fun to ride when she's that way. I don't have to think when I'm riding her...we've been partners for so long, I can just ride her. And y'know, I really, really like riding that little mare.

The Path So Far...Looking Back on Six Years of Endurance (Updated with Pictures!)

2011-10-01T06:00:00.007-07:00

Today marks the sixth anniversary of my foray into endurance. October 1, 2005, I did my first 25-mile LD ride at the Man Against Horse Race in Prescott, AZ. It's a ride I've attended every year since, and high on my list of favorite rides.

It's been an incredible six years. Even with my current hiatus status, I have every intention of returning to the sport as soon as I'm able, and still keep abreast of current happenings and goings-on. After doing seemingly a little bit of everything within the horse world, I've finally found my niche in endurance.

So you'll pardon my somewhat stream-of-consciousness style of putting this post together (not to mention a long-a** post), but I'm writing things as they come to me...in flashes of inspiration, often the same way the realization of an event as a learning moment struck.

Enjoy the view...it might have taken a while to get there.
Saguaro Lake, January 2011

Patience, grasshopper. Endurance has taught me nothing if not patience. Patience with my horse, myself, my riding companions, the other competitors. I can only control so much of what happens...the rest requires a (sometimes large) dose of patience.

The journey is now. I admit this one comes and goes. I am guilty of extreme forward-thinking, even having a potential ride schedule mapped out two to three years in advance of a specific goal. *cough*Tevis*cough* The consequence of this means being disappointed on a regular basis...best laid plans and all. It's been a task to rein myself in and to learn to live in the moment...make each mile count, to find the special in every ride, to appreciate the quiet whuffling (okay, pig-like snorting) of your horse as the two of you share an apple. Don't get so caught up in the big picture and reaching an ultimate destination that you forget to enjoy the journey along the way, because there's no guarantee you'll even reach that final goal.

Ex.: As anyone that's read this blog for more than a page knows, Tevis was always my ultimate goal with Mimi. Obviously, that didn't happen. In the back of my mind, I think I realistically knew it would take a miracle to get us to the start line. The optimist in me never stopped dreaming. But in our last year of competition together, that little voice in my head made me very aware of the good times. Our last ride -- and pull -- not withstanding, the two rides prior to that were the best rides I could ever hope for from Mimi. Man Against Horse 50 and Valley of the Sun Turkey Trot 50, both in 2009, were textbook rides that I will always treasure. There are some fantastic memories etched into my mind from those rides:

Man Against Horse

- Starting in the thick of the pack, Mimi's ears flattened, weaving through horses and runners.

- Trotting along the road that leads to the climb up the back side of Mingus Mountain. Through the worst of the hard-pack and rock portion of the road and onto where it turns into smooth double-track. Mimi was leading, trotting along the road on a loose rein, playfully ducking at the metal culverts on the side of the road, and I was cheerfully singing at the top of my lungs.

- Picking through the rocks near the top of Mingus Mtn.

- Leading through the woods on the way down to the third vet check, on a loose rein, blitzing through the single-track trail, in perfect sync. Smooth, perfectly in control, checking herself on downhills, balanced around turns.

- Crossing the finish line. We were walking in...no sense in tripping on a gopher hole in the last 100 yards, but she still had to out-walk Beamer and cross the finish line ahead of him. (She won, in her mind.) I cried when I leaned over to hug her as she marched under that finish banner, I was so proud of her. This ride was our Tevis.

VotS Turkey Trot

- Smashed in the middle of a whole bunch of horses invading her personal space at the controlled start, and doing nothing more than the Pony Sneer.

- Trying to dump me by spooking at the bench at the top of the ridgeline trail. At 30-something miles into the ride.

- Leading down a single-track trail that made its way towards basecamp, at dusk. Her lightly stepping over every single inlaid anti-erosion log on the trail, at a trot, and not tripping once.

- Doing a show-perfect sliding stop in the middle of said trail to stare at a barrel cactus.

- Riding the last three miles back to camp in the dark, no glowstick or lights of any kind. Trotting along in the big sand wash, with her politely ignoring me when I tried to steer us down a dead-end trail. She was absolute perfection and I had total trust in her. She never missed a step.

Flexibility. See above, with best-laid plans. Endurance riders have to, by necessity and survival, learn to be flexible and adapt. Expect the unexpected, and not to be too fatalistic, plan for the worst...or, at least, have a back-up plan. Horses are unpredictable creatures, and endurance adds in that many more factors to amplify that tendency.

"Nobody likes a sissy." Words to live by, spoken (well, Facebooked) by friend and fellow endurance rider Renee Robinson. It's become somewhat of a catch-phrase now, and it is so true. With limited time, budgetary constraints, and availability of rides within reasonable traveling distance, I couldn't afford to be a fair-weather rider. As a result, I've gotten wet at half of the rides I've done. This desert rat is closer to a drowned desert rat. But that's a lot of rides I would have missed out on due to potentially-inclement weather. Mimi, however, has no such qualms about her sissy status, and will proudly admit it from her warm, dry stall. She doesn't do cold, wet rides, and has told me so in so many words. And when I don't get the message, she grants me a tie-up as thanks.

Have Gore-Tex, will travel
Las Cienegas ride, December 2006

Gore-Tex, or go home. If you're gonna stick it out in the wet, you gotta have the goods. And by that, I mean Gore-Tex. Two failed "waterproof" coats later, Gore-Tex is the only way to go. The one I have is from Cabela's. It's a nice light, layer-able shell. This is the updated version: Cabela's PacLite Rainy River Parka. They periodically go on sale, which is when I got mine, along with a set of matching rain pants. Ideally, my next coat will have snaps in addition to the zipper.

We'll never have all the answers. Why do they tie up? How much electrolytes should I give? Why aren't they drinking better? Why did the vet check move? Where'd the ribbons go? Boot check? Where's my crew ~~bag~~ box? A few tongue-in-cheek questions mixed in there among the serious, but it makes the same point: There will always be questions. Sometimes, we'll be fortunate enough to know the answers. Some questions, we'll never know the answers. (Like that maddening tie-up one.) But part of the endurance adventure is the ability to try to find those answers...and ask the questions.

Crew boxes rock. With two people and two horses and a whole ton of stuff, a box is a lot easier to pack than multiple bags. And everything ends up being easier to find, since Murphy's Law comes in and rearranges my crew bag after I've packed it, shuffling exactly what I'll need to the bottom of the bag, so everything has to be unpacked to get to it. Which brings me to the crew bag/box rule: It never fits in the same way again. Despite emptying it of food, water, and horse food at every check, there's less room for everything to fit back in again.

Endurance people are some of the nicest, most helpful people out there. I'm constantly amazed at the selflessness, generosity, and helpful spirits I encounter along the trail. People have loaned me horses, opened up their homes for me to visit, mentored me, shown me new trails, taken me to rides, and have never failed to be there when needed. I'm so, so grateful and thankful to every single one of you.

post-ride to Christopher Creek in Payson, Sept 2010

Hug your horse. At the end of the day, they're your partner. I've been lucky enough to have shared the trail with my equine soul mate and forever heart horse who has given me her all. So remember to thank them for that...every ride is special.

Rider management matters. Don't get so caught up in caring for your horse you forget to take care of yourself. Eat, sleep, exercise. I'm not advocating crazy diet plans or being marathon-fit...just be sensible. The better you are, the better it is for your horse.

Desert Forest NATRC, March 2007, Wickenburg, AZ.
Going up "mini Cougar Rock"

"You don't know how far you can go until you've gone too far." (Julie Suhr) There's a fine line between pushing out of the comfort zone and going over the edge. But you don't know until you try. That risk is part of endurance. And sometimes, you'll be surprised at what you accomplish.

At the end of the day, SMILE! You're riding your horse in beautiful country, some of which can only be seen from horseback. And remember, it's called ENDURANCE for a reason!

view from the Highline Trail, just below the Mogollon Rim
Payson, September 2010

snow-covered Superstitions
view from the San Tan Mtn Park
January 2010

Picketpost Mtn
February 2011

spiders and "spring" cleaning

2011-09-30T10:54:00.000-07:00

The past week or so, I've been bitten by the cleaning and organization bug. This bug usually hits about twice a year, and it makes me go into a cleaning and organizing frenzy. Most of the year, I'm a semi-organized person. I have a method to my madness, and can always find what I need, even though it may not look the neatest or cleanest. (Except for my closet. That's my designated black hole that gets a thorough gutting out about once a year, when I get sick of the mess and fear I'm risking my life just by trying to enter it.)

This time, the bug was directed at two locations: the corner of the garage that serves as a "tack room" of sorts, and my corner of the tack room down at the barn. For years, I used my horse trailer as a rolling storage closet. It was easier, kept everything close at hand, and I usually worked out of the trailer more than I did the barn. With the departure of the trailer this spring, I had to pull everything out and find a home for it. Needless to say, there was a complete lack of enthusiasm for this task, so everything got shoved willy-nilly wherever it fit.

Last weekend, I tackled the garage. Pulled everything out, sorted it into piles, rewrapped leg wraps (how many sets of leg wraps does one person need???), threw tons of stuff out (Anyone wanna know what 4+ year-old EasyFoam looks like? Not pretty...and I had four or five packs of the stuff floating around. Don't miss those messy days.), and rediscovered stuff I thought had vanished into the ether, including a pair of Equipedic splint boots, which Mimi and I are in the process of thoroughly testing. But I digress. I'll talk about the splint boots later.

It was an all-day project (18 years of being in horses means I have a ton of stuff), but at the end of the day, I had an organized garage, with stuff stored in crates and stacked neatly on shelves.

Yesterday, I tackled the barn tack room. Again, stuff had gotten shoved haphazardly into the corner and dutifully ignored for the past four months. And something I forgot to mention: The tack room is the preferred location for overly-enthusiastic, fast-reproducing black widows (and other toxic AZ spiders of note). For those of the spider-leery inclination, I very intentionally did not take pictures. Six years of being at this barn has me mostly immune to the sight of the black widows anymore.

Still...yesterday was an exercise in caution, gingerly picking buckets up, using a long sweat scraper to get rid of the worst of the webs, and stomping on spiders as they scuttled back to sanctuary. They really like to lurk under the edges of buckets and containers, which was the impetus for this cleaning binge...I had chased a few spiders (black widows and non-toxic) out of the crevices of my HoofJack and from the recesses of the box where I store my trimming equipment. Sooner or later, one was going to discover the inside of my rasping gloves...

So the goal was to make enough room inside the cabinet (complete with bug-deterring closing doors) to store my trimming stuff. And get rid of a few dozen bottles of old meds, shampoos, and the like. I did it. Everything I have down at the barn now fits inside a four-shelf cabinet and my tack trunk. And I don't have to pick sticky-clingy spider webs off my stuff anymore.

And that was on the heels of managing a whole hour and half of very active riding yesterday. 45 minutes of intense arena work, half of which I made myself do without stirrups (my thighs and I are not on speaking terms today), then another 45 minutes of meandering out around the neighborhood. Well...as much as Mimi ever meanders. She had to be peddled out to start, but once we got halfway around, she was much more willing to move out. The faster we go, the happier she is...everything is going to eat her when we're quietly walking along, but once we're trotting, we rule the world. *eye roll* I love that goofy pony.

And on a totally different note...it's Man Against Horse weekend, and for the first time in six years, I'm not up there. Definitely bummed about missing it...I love being up there, even if I'm not riding, but my vehicle had the final say in matters, what with developing a slow but persistent oil-and-other-fluids leak. 195,000 miles...I guess I can cut her a break. But a road trip didn't seem like the best of ideas, either.

Pony Feet

2011-09-12T09:23:00.001-07:00

This month marks seven years that Mimi has been barefoot. Yep, we were part of the barefoot thing before the barefoot craze really hit. Long story short, she had really crappy feet, with a history of lameness and a near-miss with laminitis. I figured I didn't have much to lose, besides my sanity. And even that was already questionable.

Despite the expansion of my vocabulary (hoof boots...they bring out the colorful in all of us), it's a move I have not regretted. My only regret is not doing a better job of tracking the changes in her hooves over the years. I look back at early ride pictures, and before that, to our show ring days, and cringe at the bean cans that appear to be strapped to my pony's legs. It's hard to believe they're the same hooves.

I noticed the biggest changes when I took over doing our trimming just over two years ago. I had a lot of help and guidance along the way, but I'm largely a learn-by-watching-and-then-doing educated "trimmer." I couch that in quotes only because I'm not doing this professionally, and I won't trim other people's horses. I'm competent at trimming my pony because I know her feet and I know what works for her. So don't take what I'm doing as gospel. I trim largely based on how I was taught, and then go off of what "feels" right. I can't explain it better than that, only that I just know what feels right, and I have to say, it seems to be working. Only one occasion of soreness, thanks to a very aggressive heel trim. (Note: Do not take off four weeks' worth of heel growth in one trim. Just don't.)

So yesterday, I actually managed to get pictures. I've spent a lot of time working on my trimming skills, and less on my photo skills. It's really hard to juggle a camera, a hoof, and a fidgety pony, all in crappy barn lighting. So the photos aren't the best quality. But at least I finally have photos, and it's my goal to take pictures of her feet, starting now, on a monthly basis.

Despite not riding much this summer, I've been diligent about trimming her feet. She gets trimmed about every 2-3 weeks. She's in turnout about 12 hours a day in a three-acre pasture (by "pasture" I mean mostly dirt lot with the barest whiff of grass growing...11 horses in one space does a number on growing things) with an attached sand arena. Those 11 horses keep each other moving all day/night long. So she still gets a lot of walking exercise, which contributes to continued hoof growth.

However, the ground isn't abrasive enough where she's at to really do much for self-trimming. It keeps her walls under control, but there's not much loose sandy stuff to get in and scrub out her soles/bars, or keep her toes/heels in check. Which is where I come in. In typical pony fashion, she grows a lot of heel. I'm constantly having to nip off 1/4" or so of heel with every trim. She grows a moderate amount of toe, but nothing that can't be taken care of with a pass of the nippers.

So now, I give you photos, with attached commentary along the way. Again...this is just what I do and what seems to be working for me. I'm not an expert, and always have something to learn, so gratefully accept any input someone might have. It's an ever-changing field with endless possibilities for knowledge expansion. Which is part of the fun.

Front hooves. Should have taken the "after" photos from the side side. Her RF is pretty good. Her LF is her "bad" hoof. When I trim, I start at the RF and move around her in a circle, finishing with the LF. Consequently, I'm tired by the time I get to that last hoof, and it doesn't get as much attention paid to it. Compounding matters is the fact I am right-handed, and have a hard time rasping the inside of the RF. As a result, her heels have become imbalanced on that hoof.

So this time, I started with that RF hoof and put my energy into fixing it. Result: harder to tell from the angle I took the "after" shot, but it looks much better. Another trim should have those heels balanced again. It was bad enough I wasn't comfortable taking off that much heel in one go to rebalance it then and there.

I finally got all the flare from her front hooves under control...the toes are finally short enough and she's not growing out any funky growth/stress rings at the moment.

Hings. Toes are pretty good. Heels are a little high. The scooped-out quarter on her LH is through no deliberate act of mine...she blew out that chunk of wall several weeks ago, and I've just done my best to smooth that section.

Right Front. Has some excess wall around the toe. Heels are high. After: White line is actually tighter in person than it looks here. It'll never be 100%, due to the stall environment she lives in...she can't help but trod through urine on a regular basis. The joys of boarding...it's something I have no control over at this point. There are always sacrifices and trade-offs to be made...I put up with a lot because of the fabulous turnout. Space and that amount of turnout time are at a premium and hard to find.

I hate her bars. It's pretty much a non-stop challenge for me to keep her bars under control. They grow fast and prolific, so it's a constant battle to keep them from laying over and getting "stuff" under them. Also, her feet are small enough that everything is sort of crammed in there...not much space to work around in there, so differentiating between bar and sole gets a bit interesting at times.

Right Hind. Took off the excess wall and the heels. Her hind feet always look pretty good. I'm thrilled with her frogs...I can't believe how much they've spread out.

Right Hind. More of the same. Had some weird bar growth on the right side that I scraped away. Rasped that blow-out quarter so it was smooth.

Right Front. The "bad" foot. You can see how much higher the inner heel is. This was also the hoof she had an abscess in last year...exactly a year ago. It's still growing out a little strange from where it blew out right at her coronet band on the outside heel. (Why can't my horse be normal and blow out her abscess through her sole?) I don't like how deep her frog clefts are on her front hooves, especially this one. I suspect there might be a bit of thrush at work, although she's not sore/tender at all. Nevertheless, I squirted some pure tea tree oil down in there. Had to do some scraping away at the bars, especially on the right side. I managed to get the heels a little more even, but there's still work to be done.

I should have taken shots from the front as well to check for side flare...next time.

crunch, crunch

2011-08-29T11:08:00.000-07:00

A year ago, I wouldn't have batted an eyelash at jumping in the saddle and riding 50 miles. Sure, my legs might be a little crunchy, but nothing I couldn't walk off within a couple of days.

30 minutes in the saddle this morning, and my legs are grumbling at me.

Hmmmm.

Someone's a bit out of shape, methinks.

Yes, I admit it: I've spent most of the summer hibernating indoors, venturing over to the barn enough to maintain Mimi's feet and make sure she has plenty of her flax/beet pulp mix she gets. But riding? Eh, not so much. One four-mile trail ride a couple months ago. A couple rides around the neighborhood, maybe a miles' worth of distance. A handful of arena sessions.

All of this adds up to one out-of-shape rider. Not that I'm completely out of shape. I've spent a good portion of the summer helping my father with some of the larger carpet cleaning jobs...not exactly a low-impact activity. Add to that the frequent petsitting jobs and the walking of said pets, and my cardio isn't doing too bad. It's just the riding muscles that are suffering.

I'd like to say that fall is just around the corner, and nicer weather will be more incentive to ride, but we're nowhere close to being out of the woods yet. In fact, I think my rearview mirror thermometer in my truck just might have gotten busted today, since it refused to actually register a temperature for outside on the drive home. Its poor, overwhelmed little brain was giving me an Ice warning. Hah!

I'm now hugging the a/c back home and downing an iced coffee. When I left Pony, she was employing the do-it-yourself swamp cooler method: standing herself, still wet from the shower I gave her, in front of her stall-mounted fan. And nibbling on a cool, salty, bran-and-beet pulp sloppy I gave her. Not a bad life.

But it's this time of year that fish pond in the backyard starts looking real attractive. That, or I contemplate why my parents though a fish pond over a swimming pool was a good idea.

As a final random aside: I know my last number of posts have been completely picture destitute, and as a result, probably kind of boring. I'm working on changing that. I have pictures, i just need to get them uploaded/sorted/edited. But as a preview, Happy!Pony:

That was from our ride out at Estrella Mtn Park in March...still a lil' fuzzy from winter, but looking so chipper and happy.

The Absentee Blogger

2011-08-19T11:02:00.001-07:00

Not promising anything regular by way of posting, but just a quick note...yes, I'm still around. I've become a very good 'net lurker these days, and a pretty bad blogger overall. Several reasons:

- I haven't had much to blog about that is interesting and positive. I went through some major upheaval and changes in my life when we sold Beamer and the trailer several months ago. Long story short:

Dear Economy,
You suck,
No Love,
Ash

Beamer went to what we feel is a great home where he will be able to continue his endurance career in a way we currently aren't able to do. Horse and trailer actually went to the same place, so Beamer gets a little bit of home and familiarity with him.

- Consequently, I've been in a sulking funk most of the summer, and have ridden Mimi maybe half a dozen times, and only one of those times on a proper trail ride. I hate not having a trailer, and I really hate bumming rides off people, because then I feel obligated to ride with them in a style that is very much not my own. I'm a control freak with a healthy dose of Slavic guilt complex. Means I'm sort of a pain to deal with in these kind of situations. So I feel somewhat like a neglectful pony mom...but I'm still going down to the barn and keeping up on her feet (ironically, they look the best they've ever looked now...I have all of the flare completely gone), she still gets her regular supplements, and she's turned out with the herd in the 3+ acre big pasture for close to 14 hours a day.

- I don't like whining too much on my blog. I tend to approach much of my "public" life with a "If you can't say something nice, don't say it" mentality. I figure that most people have enough of their own problems, concerns, and drama to deal with. They don't necessarily need to be hearing all of mine heaped on them as well. Couple that with the fact I try to be an optimist (boy, is that getting put to the test this summer), and I just haven't felt a whole lot like blogging this summer. Each post would have essentially looked the same: "Went to the barn. Trimmed feet. *insert photos here* Rode around the arena. Wilted in the heat. Gave pony a bath. Went home and hugged air conditioning." Lather, rinse, repeat.

And just a quick life update:

- I took the summer off of school. I needed the break, mentally. And I noticed that I suffered fewer nervous breakdowns and stress headaches over the last few months. And I still have plenty to be stressed about. That lead me to the conclusion that, when the fall semester starts up this coming Monday, I don't believe I will be sitting in that classroom. At this point in my life, I don't know if court reporting is for me. Yes, I put a lot of time and effort into it...yes, it seems a shame to quit now. But I don't feel like incurring further student loans debts while I figure out whether I want to continue this or not. Maybe I'll come back to it. Maybe I'll figure out something to do within the field that isn't the level of a certified reporter. There are options, so the past four years isn't a total waste. But right now, mentally, I don't have it in me to throw more of myself into that program. If it hasn't happened by now, I don't know if it ever really will. And I don't want to give up more of my life trying to figure that out.

- I did find a new hobby/time-occupier over the summer: I'm learning to play the guitar. At the moment, I'm self taught, since lessons take money. But there are a lot of videos on youtube that are fabulous resources, and I'm slowly learning. Turns out I do have an ear for music, after years of wondering if I was tone-deaf. Not tone-deaf...just untrained. I still don't know what I'm doing, but I know when something sounds right or not. And I'm definitely leaning towards a more countryish flavor with some of the tunes I'm managing to pick out. Not like that's a surprise with a guitar, but whatever. I've sort of come full circle with music...growing up around barns and horses, I was always a country girl. Expanded my music listening repertoire in high school and especially college, but have recently re-embraced the country thing, especially some of the newer, up-and-coming artists that are more than just traditional country. (My new favorite artist of pretty much any music genre is Christian Kane -- he does a great blend of rock and country with a ton of energy, great vocals, and he writes most of his own material.)

- It's summer in Arizona. It's hot. That mitigates some of my lack-of-riding guilt factor. And makes it really easy to, while giving Pony a bath, turn the hose around on myself. Long hair holds water for the next couple of hours and keeps your head cool.

So, anyway...if you stuck with me for this long, my hat's off to you. I can't promise regular updates, but I will say this: At least I have an interest in blogging again, and reading other's blogs. For a couple of months, I was completely incommunicado and not even looking at blogs. So this is a step in the right direction.

So This Is Retirement

2010-10-29T06:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was spent getting Beamer ready for the McDowell Halloween Ride this weekend. I have a routine I follow when getting ready for a ride, and after a couple times, the ponies very quickly figure out what's happening.

Mimi figured it out yesterday, and I got quite afew miffed looks from her, especially after Beamer got his bath, and I had yet to come retrieve the pony for her turn.

"Mom, you forget about me," she seemed to say.

A nice pile of bermuda hay with a small handful of Beamer's beet pulp sloppy seemed to smooth things over.

She's actually been taking her time off very well. She's still off on that abscess foot. She's about 98% sound at a walk, but as soon as she trots, she's still gimpy. But I'm not surprised. I can see a large chunk of purple burising on the side of her hoof from the path the abscess took. I've brusied enough major support structures of my own body to know this might take a while to grow out.

But it's also amazing how unphased I am about the whole thing. Knowing that she's retired and not going to do any more competitions really takes the pressure off. Of course, I want her to heal fast -- I miss riding my little Go Pony (Beamer feels so different), but it's a lot easier to sit back and say, "She just needs time and she'll heal on her own" when there's not a looming competition season and pressure to be ready.

Everything in its time and all that, I suppose.

Beamer's New Blog

2010-10-13T19:19:00.001-07:00

Well, I said I would do it, and I did.

The Trail Goes Ever On

My new blog. I'll still keep this one going for Mimi antics, but start looking to the new one for more frequent posts concerning Beamer, hoof boots, and all things barefoot. I anticipate I'll make more of a transition to that one as my main blog in the long run.

Secretariat

2010-10-08T21:13:00.000-07:00

Just got back home from seeing Secretariat. I'm calling it a "must-see" movie, and it just moved up to the top of my list of best horse movies.

I'm not usually a fan of horse movies...in fact, I don't own a single one. (Must remedy this, since there are a few good ones.) The Black Stallion is good, and National Velvet heartwarming. Black Beauty makes me cringe, in all of its incarnations. Hidalgo requires suspension of disbelief, and helped put a dent in the idea of endurance riding. (Nice eye candy, though.) The Horse Whisperer traumatized me for life at age ten.

So, I like movies with horses in them...I just don't necessarily love horse movies.

I loved Secretariat.

If you already had plans to go see it...go see it sooner. If you were holding off...trust me, it's worth it. I rarely go to the movies anymore, and this one was definitely worth the trip. It's a heart-warming, feel-good, celebration of greatness. And some great comedic moments along the way.

The Times, They Are A'Changing

2010-09-29T08:47:00.000-07:00

It's certainly not what I wanted, and was never part of my "Five-Year Plan." But I know it's the right thing to do. Barring a sudden miracle age-reversal process, it's time for Mimi to retire from competition.

I had already made the decision to retire her from 50s earlier this year. In a way, that was the toughest decision to make. Giving up 50s meant giving up on even bigger dreams...Tevis, 1000 mile medallion, multi-day rides.

But for her sake, I think that retirement, even from 25s, is the right decision. I've always said, albeit jokingly, that I have to be the sensible one of the two of us. She will just goGoGO until she drops, and doesn't quite have the good sense to know when she should slow down and take it easy. So the voice of reason has to step in a say, "No, you're done." That voice of reason would be me.

She is still a phenomenal trail horse and riding companion. I'd like to keep her that way. I know my rides are numbered...I'm getting down to the last stretch for school, and once that is over with and all my certifications are passed, Real Life is going to take over for quite a while as I start working, and hopefully relocate. (105* at the end of September? Relocation can't come fast enough.) I know there's not going to be a lot of time to condition an endurance horse, let alone go to rides, while I'm doing all of that.

But I'll need the escape therapy that riding provides. Rule Number One for court reporters: Have an outlet. We get to hear about the dregs of society, and it'll turn a person bitter and cynical very fast, unless there is some kind of a mental release/escapism available. For me, that's riding. Even if it means just jumping on the pony and riding out for a few miles.

And that's what I want her to still be around for. She's a safe, trustworthy trail horse that can sit around for a few weeks (provided she gets turnout), and not do anything stupid when I climb on her back again. Saving her now means I will hopefully have a lot more casual trail miles left in her for years to come.

Easing the sting of all this is my father's very generous offer to start riding his horse Beamer with greater frequency, and taking him to rides. It works well, really. A lot of Dad's time is being taken up with work, and Beamer has been sitting around, not getting used all that often. He's a working performance horse, and needs a job to do. So he's without a rider half the time, and I'm now without a competition horse. Seems to be a good match...

So we're going to start instituting a "horse-sharing" plan. I'll still ride Mimi, primarily, but on the days Dad isn't available, I'll take Beamer out. And we'll share Beamer for rides. This works particularly well for multi-day 50s, when we can each ride him for at least one day. One-day 50s...well, we might have to flip a coin. ;)

Beamer and I are going to do our first ride together at the end of October, at the AHAA Halloween Ride at McDowell Mountain Park. We're going to do the 25, for several reasons: 1) Beamer has had most of the summer off. Granted, he's an Arab and keeps his conditioning, but there's no sense in pushing it. 2) Need to make sure my saddle really does fit him for distance. It appears to work, at least in the arena, as long as I have the proper saddle pad set-up. But the distance is what will be really telling. 3) Need to make sure Beamer and I get along for at least 25 miles.

Despite the fact we've owned Beamer for almost six years now (!), I've spent very little time on his back. I put about 60 days total on him when we first got him, then handed him off to Dad. I've spent a lot of time working with him on the ground, and more recently, with his hoof care and tending his various injuries acquired over the summer. But I haven't ridden him all that much.

All I can say is, this should be Interesting.

I've got a lot of catch up on, blogging-wise. Friend Kaity came out for a week, and we had a grand time visiting and riding. A lot of pictures from our ride, including a day trip to Payson, and my first ride on Beamer on trail in about four years. Look for those to go up, as well as grand tales for the telling. (Blogging off my laptop at school at the moment, so don't have access to all my pictures.)

Also to come is a new blog. I can't very well talk about Beamer antics on Mimi's blog, so I will have a secondary blog that covers Beamer, and some more general aspects of my life. I'll still keep this one going for reporting Pony antics. This, too, should prove Interesting, as we all know the trouble I sometimes have with just maintaining the one blog.

Once I have that up and going, I will post a link to it here.

My "Other" Life

2010-08-10T16:10:00.001-07:00

It's been clear to me during this past week that I've been on break from school that I'm one of those people that, when functioning at normal capacity, always has one thing too many to do. Court reporting school and working part-time for my parents and horses and non-horsey interests and things that normal humans require to function, such as regular food and sleep.

Right now, I'm going into week two of a three-week break. Based on the fact I've not yet managed to register for fall classes, you can see how thrilled I am to be starting yet another semester. I'm over this school thing already, and ready to be done and be a working court reporter. And once I'm working, that will merge two activities -- school and work -- into one. See, timesaver.

(Of course, this is me naively ignoring all of the aspects of Real Life that will come with having a Proper Job and Entering the Real World.)

I've actually been able to ride Mimi more in this past week than I have since the summer began. That in itself is a sad commentary on my state of riding affairs of late.

That said, I'm going out riding tomorrow with a couple friends. Yes, back on trail again! Naturally, it would be at this time that she chooses to rub the outside of her tail, right where the crupper sits. Tail was perfect all summer...and the week I need to start using the crupper again, she opportunistically rubs. Ponies.

Off to hunt down all the extra fleecy, fluffy covers that might work on the crupper and give further protection, in addition to the layers of desitin liberally gobbed on the area.

Centered Riding

2010-08-08T20:52:00.001-07:00

I've spent a quiet afternoon browsing through Sally Swift's Centered Riding. I would love to be able to take CR lessons. I had the opportunity four years ago to semi-audit and sit in on one of Becky Hart's clinics, and some of the things I picked up from that experience are still with me today. She's a CR-certified instructor and uses those principles to apply specifically to endurance riders.

I'd love to further expand on the few bits I gleaned from that clinic.

Unfortunately, the nearest CR instructor in AZ is in Cave Creek. That's an hour and a half from the barn, minimum. Not. Going. To. Happen. Not even once a month, for as much good as a once a month lesson would do.

The only way this could possibly happen is if I find a place to keep the horses that's close to home. Because then, the drive would more likely be 40-45 minutes. My ideal would probably be a lesson every two weeks.

But for now, best I can do is read the CR book, absorb what I can, and work through the principles on my own. Maybe I can get my father to pitch in with some photography and videoing so that I can then go back and review. it's not an ideal world, but I will do my best to work with what I've got.

More Arena Schooling

2010-08-08T12:33:00.002-07:00

Today, we took a step back and worked on slow, quiet arena work. With a bit. "Horrors!" says Mimi. I found one of my Myler bits that does fit her properly -- a Western Dee Ring snaffle with Triple Mullen Barrel mouthpiece. Of all the bits I own, she's the least fussy in this one, so that's what we'll use.

Today, I spent the entire session with her at a walk and slow trot, and we put the emphasis on her carrying herself naturally collected and not leaning on the bit. Today went much better than Friday. I do know what I'm doing, at least to some degree. All of the books and magazine articles have sunk it somewhat. And it's amazing what happens when you slow down and just work through one thing at a time.

Well, mostly one thing. I'm a firm believer in the principle of "what the rider is doing has a direct correlation on what the horse does." So you can work all you want on one particular aspect of the horse, but if what they're doing is as a result of something you're doing, you might not get very far.

For example: Like I mentioned, today's task was to get Mimi to stop leaning on the bit and work on her self-carriage. That's going going to happen unless I make sure that my hands are light, and I'm not leaning forward and clamping down on her. I tend to be a very forward rider, so I consciously focused on using my core, keeping my shoulder back, and not clamping with my legs or grabbing at the reins, especialyl when she tried to speed up.

Equus had a great article this month on the use of snaffle bits, and it reiterated a few things I always manage to forget. Use gentle pressure to hold the reins until the horse gives. You're not going to get a horse that's soft in the face by pulling them into position -- which was how I was always taught to "collect" a horse. So now, I'm going back and attempting to re-teach Mimi the principle that it's up to her to hold the bit and carry it, or she's going to be less comfortable.

She is getting it. Baby steps, but she's getting there. Today, there were times were I got half a loop around the arena where she was carrying herself well, wasn't leaning on the bit, and had some semblance of self-collection going. We'll take it. :)

I'm still going to stick with bit in the arena/s-hack on trail. In the arena, she can soften and be light in the face because she's focused on me and what needs doing. Out on trail, she just wants to "get on with it" so much that she tunes out the light bit cues, and I have to get much stronger with it than I prefer. Much more responsive to a hackamore out on trail. My hope is I can get her in the habit of going along in a more self-collected manner in arena work, and once she figures out how much easier that is, it'll be easier to get that from her consistently out on trail.

What I do like about arena schooling in the bit is that she is very light, and it forces me to concentrate of keeping soft hands and not pulling her around. Soft, steady hands...tighten from the fingers to pick up the slack, then loosen when she relaxes. Big change from "take up on the reins and hold her head in place...wrestle her nose to her chest if you have to."

But...it was all I knew at the time.

I'm just thankful that horses are creatures of immense forgiveness, and that I have a chance to do it right this time. Horses are the truest example of second chances, and it not being too late to try to make something right.

A few other random notes from the weekend:

- Lining the Grffin's short boots with moleskin on the seam area made a huge difference -- no rubbing or ruffled hairs at all. Easy fix, and moleskin tends to stay on for a few weeks at a time.

- Knee socks or half chaps. Don't do both. I figured this one out last fall after Man Against Horse...too many layers of fabric and too-short of stirrups caused a major pressure point on my shin. Dropping the stirrups helped. So did switching to ankle-high socks under half chaps. But for this time of year, and for arena schooling, tall knee socks work very well in lieu of half chaps. Cotton breathes. Suede doesn't.

- A cheap fix to inject new life into a pair of six- or seven-year-old Terrains: Insoles! My beloved Terrains were making a slow migration to the trash can, but I wasn't quite ready to resign myself to throwing away one of my favorite pairs of shoes. A trip to Walgreens, and $9 later, I have my shoes back again. :) Tried them while riding this morning, and they felt great! They're still the most comfortable shoes I own for riding, even if they're not the absolute best for hiking. Tread's a little worn.

- Still fiddling with my saddle bag setup and finding the balance between "carrying everything I need" and the "streamlined, not-a-pack-pony" look. At the moment, I'm favoring using the Snugpax cantle bag all the time. Of the two rear bags, it bounces the least. I love the clean lines of not having anything up front, especially for arena schooling, but I know from past experience that never works come ride-time. If I have to reach around to the cantle bag for anything -- water, snacks, electrolytes, chapstick -- it won't happen. But the pommel pack is also very easy to take off/put back on, so I suspect that's what I'll end up doing for longer training rides/competitions. (Plus side, using both packs meants I don't have to carry my Camelbak.)

Saturday Morning Cartoons

2010-08-07T09:14:00.000-07:00

Eleanor at Live Laugh Ride drew a hilarious cartoon based on txtrigger's comment on my splint boot post about a snake latching on to the boot.

Thank you, Eleanor!

"Good" Riding

2010-08-06T16:35:00.001-07:00

What makes a "good" rider?

Is it the ability to stay on the horse, no matter what? Is it the ability to sit quietly with perfect form and look pretty? Is it the ability to get your horse to do what you want?

Everyone probably has their own idea of what makes a "good" rider.

I had one of those defining moments today, in which I realized I don't know if I would fit into my own definition of a "good" rider.

I'd like to put forth the idea that I've never truly learned to ride well on a consistent basis.

I'm a competent rider, most certainly. Pony antics have taught me to always be prepared for the unexpected. Beamer has taught me how to (mostly) ride out a buck. Others have taught me how to stay on through spooks, spins, and general naughtiness.

I have the ability to be a "pretty" equitation rider. Seven years in the show ring raught me how to pose in the saddle. Certainly not functional, and I ditched this style of riding pretty fast once I figured out how fast it would land me in the dirt out of the safe confines of the arena.

I'm a functional rider. I've figured out what works and what doesn't to get me through a 50-mile ride. Is it proper? Probably not. Could it be better? Most definitely. My riding style right now can best be describes as, "I know how to get my horse to do what I want, even if it's not technically correct."

But my consistent formal riding instruction took place, most recently, about 10 years ago. A lot has changed in the world of instruction and riding since that time. There is more of an emphasis on functional partnership of both horse and rider, instead of posed mannequins on merry-go-round ponies. (Keep in mind I've been out of the show ring for eight years now...my perspective is skewed.)

I trained Mimi by myself, with the input of my trainer/instructor. She came to me as a green three year old with 30 days on her. I had never ridden a green horse. We grew up together, and figured each other out along the way. But today was one of those days that made me realize how much I didn't know at the time, and how many subsequent holes we both have in terms of "proper" training. She was being a true pony today -- it was warm and humid, and she really didn't want to work in the arena -- and showing me how much of a snot she can be if she tries.

The plus side of all of her shenanigans? The Skito pad I bought from Mel got a very thorough test, and I'm thrilled with how it performed. Didn't budge from under the saddle, and seemed to be even more stable than my Skito Dryback. And she's obviously comfortable -- she wouldn't have been offering up flying lead changes if it bothered her. :)

But today was a good example of how our show-ring specific training is now come back to bite us. Mimi is smart. Very smart. And she picks up on patterns really fast. The end result of this? She anticipates. Big time. From all of our years of showing flat classes, she assumes that the routine must go "walk-trot-canter-reverse-walk-trot-canter-stop." And thanks to reining patterns, cutting across the arena at the midway point means do a flying lead change in the center.

She also has a "headset," but doesn't truly know what it means to be naturally collected and move with impulsion. Emphasis was on artificial means of creating a "perfect" show horse and rider -- a horse that moved along the rail with its head down, reins loose, and the rider posed perfectly on top. Ultimately, we never reached that point -- Mimi never saw the use for traveling along the rail in perfect pleasure pony style, and I was always fighting with her to "get her head down." I fared better in my equitation classes because emphasis was on me, not her. She's much happier moving out down the trail. That said, she still has room for improvement on moving most efficiently from the rear and not hollowing out.

Today, show-ring training and functional riding directly clashed, and that was when I came to the conclusion that I'm not really a "good" rider. When the pony shenanigans came out, my (self-taught) attempts at pseudo-dressage and centered riding went right out the window, and I reverted to my rather haphazard old-school upbringing. It ain't pretty or really proper. It probably wouldn't work on a lot of horses. But it's how Mimi and I are both trained.

Which brings me to my point ("Finally!" the crowd cheers): I need to learn to ride by the time I get another horse. I would eventually like to find a centered riding instructor, or a dressage instructor who understands cross-training, not just showing (I don't want to show, I just want to learn the principles for teaching a hrose to move functionally and optimally). I can tell you all of my problems as a rider: I tend to lean forward (the downside of riding hunseat from age seven), I'm crooked and wriggly, and mostly, I can't get everything to function together properly at the same time. I'll get my legs right, but I know my upper body is a wreck. Or the arms and shoulder will be great, and the legs are wriggling all over the place. So I know what's wrong, I just don't know how to fix it.

If I'm not going to be doing a ton of competing at the moment, maybe now is the time to look into some lessons again. Because while I know how to ride, I don't feel that I necessarily know how to ride well. And I think it's time to learn.

HRTV Tevis Cup Promo

2010-08-06T15:33:00.000-07:00

HRTV has a 30-second promo clip of their "Inside Information" Tevis coverage up on their YouTube channel.

Or, check it out below!

The Quest for the Perfect Boot

2010-08-05T11:20:00.002-07:00

Splint boot, that is.

It's too early in the morning to get into the hoof boot debate. (Besides, we already know my answer to that one.) Edit: I started this post at 7:00 this morning. It's been a rough morning for my computer.

Hello, my name is Ashley, and I have a slight obsession with splint boots.

I've been questing after the "perfect" (if there's such a thing) splint boot since I started in endurance. Mimi doesn't interfere in her normal, everyday movement, so I don't need something that is heavy-duty enough to withstand artillery fire-style abuse.

So why even use boots, then?

Well, I'm paranoid about having some kind of leg protection. It's a holdover from my show days and an instructor who was superstitious about running horses in the gymkhana games without some kind of protection. The time you don't use them is the time something will happen. I know, I know...I did NATRC for five years and didn't have any problems. But I was also going at a slower pace and fewer miles.

It's just my personal opinion, but I'm going for the extra insurance provided by a well-fitting boot. It only takes one misplaced hoof or an ill-timed rock kicking up to potentially end your ride for the day. If I have a chance at preventing that, I'm going to take it.

Granted, if I had a horse that rubbed easily, and boots were more of a hassle than they were a benefit, I might rethink my stance.

Another one of those contested issues with boots is whether they help or harm when it comes to collecting desert debris. There are a lot of sharp, prickly, pokey things out in the desert, and I have to say, I prefer those pieces of cactus getting stuck in the outer layer of the boot fabric versus in my horse's leg. Would they have picked up the cactus piece if they brushed against it without boots on? Maybe, maybe not. But it takes a pretty hard hit to get a cactus spine through even a quarter inch of neoprene. So even if it clings to the surface of the boot, chances are that it hasn't broken through the entire boot to poke into the horse.

There are a couple of rides around Arizona that I have been very glad for leg protection. Man Against Horse in Prescott is one such ride. Every year, without fail, I have came back from that ridfe with a new rip in either the splint boots or the hind ankle boots. Sometimes both. There is a lot of manzanita at that ride, and a lot of it is trimmed right at the edge of the trail. One errant step, and that manzanita is poking at their leg. And that stuff is like ramming into rebar lined with steel leaves. A couple of years ago, a stick of manzanita ripped the entire way through the neoprene of the hind ankle boots, down to the very inside fabric covering. I cringe at what that might have potentially done to her leg if it gouged her in the right area. The rock-pile scramble up the backside of Mingus Mountain in the 50 at that ride also warrants the use of boots all around.

The extra protection is also nice for those trail-exploration rides that inevitably result in at least some bushwacking and rock scrambling.

Also, this is farfetched...but we have rattlesnakes. If one happens to strike at us, maybe they'll glance off the boot instead of biting the horse's leg? I know...unlikely. The skin is so tight around their legs that a snake would probably have a hard time biting it. But humor me?

Another issue is the collection of sand and debris. I really haven't experienced this problem. I don't really have any particular resoning or explaination for why that is, but at the moment, I'm not going to question it.

My requirements: Easy to put on/take off; doesn't trap too much heat; doesn't accumulate too much dirt and sand; well-placed seams that don't rub; won't slide down the leg; doesn't need to be overtight to prevent slipping; does not wrap around to the back of the fetlock (short cannons means that too bulky of a boot will crowd up agaist her Renegades and bump the captivator strap); isn't too long (see previous explaination about shortcannons); and I prefer a single later velcro that does not double back on itself. Double-lock would be an acceptable secondary option. Oh, and preferably a material that won't drag half of the prickly desert back with us.

Let's examine my history of boots, shall we?

Toklat Splint

These were my first pair of splint boots -- ever. I got them from my trainer the Christmas after I got Mimi. They're almost 14 years old now, and showing thier age. They still wash up nicely, but they're definitely tattered. Overall, they're my favorite boots yet.

What I Like:
- Easy maintenance. Dunk, wipe, and they're clean.
- Lots of pretty colors available.
- Have not had rubbing or slipping problems.
- Easy to remove at checks.
- Durable.
- Don't attract a ton of stickers and brush

What I Don't Like:
- The Velcro that doubles back on itself. It's too easy to overtighten them if you're not paying attention. For that reason alone, I'd be paranoid about letting someone else who is not familiar with the exact tightness I prefer put them on.
- More time-consuming to put back on because of having to feed the Velcro back through the loop.
- The new style. Notice behind the old boots, the rolled up pair with tags still attached. Those are the new pair I got to replace these. I don't like them as well. They have to be tightened more than I like to keep them from slipping. I used them at Wickenburg in February, and I had to adjust them several times just during the first loop beforeI finally finally left them behind at camp during the lunch hold. I don't know if they need more break-in time, but I wasn't as impressed with this pair. (As a note, the old ones now reside in my crew box as a back-up pair.)

Griffin's Short Splint/Brush Boots

I haven't used these on a regular basis until recently. I would use them for competitions, and enough training rides to know they wouldn't rub, but Mimi does little to no interfering on her hind legs. Just recently, I've noticed some scuffed hair on the inside front of her fetlocks, and have started using them more regularly as a precaution. I don't know if her fused hocks have changed her movement enough to where she's brushing against herself at times, or if she's just scuffing her hair when she's getting up from either rolling of laying down.

What I Like:
- Good protection. These boots have taken the brunt of the abuse from rides, and have several chunks/gouges/rips in them.
- Flat leather covering. Not a fan of heavily padded boots, or ones that have really rigid wear patches on the inside "strike zone."
- Easy clean.
- Colors!
- Single wrap-around Velcro.
- Really easy to take off. Putting on just takes a moment to make sure placement is correct to minimize rubbing,
- Don't attract a ton of stickers and brush.

What I Don't Like:
- I've had off-and-on rubbing problems with these. Originally, they would rub on the top edge. That's gone away, but the inside seam where it fathers at the fetlock has been known to start rubbing on her fetlocks. Desitin has held it off from being a serious problem at rides, but that's just one more step to fuss with that I'd like to avoid if possible. It could be that it's time for new ones...I think these are close to six years old, so the seams might just be getting rough and worn.

(Edit: Going to try lining the seam area with a small piece of moleskin to cover the stitching.)

Equipedic OxyFlow Splint Boots

What I Liked:
- Single wrap-around Velcro. Really easy on/off.
- Low-profile strike zone.
- Tough Cordura covering really repels brush and stickers. Also difficult for cactus to pierce compared to softer neoprenes with thin fabric coverings.
- Really did seem to be more breathable and stay cooler.

What I Didn't Like:
- Very tall. Either interfered with her knees, or had a lot of material hanging below the fetlock.
- Detail seaming was very rough and sloppy.
- Stiff fabric that didn't conform to her leg very nicely. Potential for rubbing from stiff-seamed edges. They didn't ever rub, but I also never got to the point of using them for rides.
- Wish they came in one size smaller. That might take care of the extra height, and make them conform to her leg better.

(Note: I ended up selling these a couple years ago. That alone should tell me what I need to know, if I didn't even feel justified in keeping them around as "just incase" extras.)

Pro Equine Simple Splint Boots

Used these for the vast majority of my distance training. They're probably about six or seven years old.

What I Liked:
- Double-lock Velcro. Not as convenient as single wrap, but better than the wrap back on itself kind.
- Low profile strike zone.
- Pretty easy on/off. The double-lock Velcro made it harder to just whip them off on-the-go.

What I Didn't Like:
- Outer Velcro layer wore out fast, and would never lay totally flat. Would tend to get caught on loose brush and completely undo the top Velcro layer.
- Debris tended to stick inside of them and you had to really scrub to get them clean.

Woof Wear Club Brushing Boots

What I Liked:
- Single wrap-around Velcro.
- Very easy on/off.

What I Didn't Like:
- Stiff PVC strike zone. Strike plate was not contoured enough, and very flat. Gave the boots an odd shape.
- Weird overlap on the edges, which caused the start of a weird rub.
- Gaped weird at the top -- same problem as the Griffin's Short Boots. Neither boot had as much front leg contouring and relied too much on Velcro and overlapping material to achieve a good fit.

Professional's Choice Competitor Splint Boots

What I Like:
- Single wrap-sround Velcro.
- Super-easy on/off. Probably the easiest of the boots I own.
- Overlap is even, and I've not had rubbing problems from it.
- Wash-n-go.
- Stay in place very well, due to waffle-neoprene against the horse.
- Impossible to overtighten.
- Neoprene has a lot of give.
- Can trim excess edges without fabric unraveling.
- Lightweight.
- Nicely contoured around the leg -- probably the most flexible boot I've ever used.

What I Don't Like:
- Potentially hold a lot of heat due to neoprene.
- Outer covering is essentially fuzzy Velcro. The same thing that makes them easy to put on without having to perfectly line up Velcro strips also means it attracts every little stray leaf and prickly piece of brush.
- Waffle neoprene needs to be scrubbed when washing, otherwise dirt gets trapped in the waffle pattern and doesn't eadily come out with just a quick dunk in water. That said, they actually seem to accumulate the least amount of dirt on the inside. I think the lack of fabric keeps dirt from clinging as much.
- Strike zone has more padding than most of my boots. This can be both a good and bad thing. Not a problem for a horse that doesn't interfere, but a horse that is on the verge of interfering might catch it. On the other hand, if they do interfere, there's some good protection there. Yet, it does have more give than the shell-like strike plates on some of the boots.

Professional's Choice Easy-Fit Splint Boots

They started out life as mine, but Dad inherited them for his Foxtrotter mare, Kelly, who interfered a lot. Same boot as above, only with more coverage around the fetlock. See my easlier remarks about too much fetlock coverage for little-legs Pony. And with these...even more neoprene to trap heat. Plus, they're pretty large, bulky boots. Worked well for a 15.1hh mare with tree trunk legs, but I think they'd be overkill on Mimi. Kelly definitely put them to the test, though...they're really scuffed at the bottom, right where they curve around the fetlock. Despite all of that, the worst she did was rub the sude covering to a smoother finish. Didn't even rip the strike zone.

Toklat Splint Boot with Elastic

Again, Dad's boots, not mine. He has the kind that are lined with felt, because Beamer hates neoprene. It makes him sweaty, which then makes him itchy, so he has to stop and attempt to yank the boots off in his annoyance. Not fun to be trotting along and have him slam to a stop, duck his head, and start teething on his leg wraps. So he has the felt-lined ones, which are kind of a pain to clean, and tend to build up grime...but they're the only thing he's comfortable in. And he has just enough of a tendency to interfere when he's not paying attention, or being clumsy, that it's not worth not using them. The double-lock Velcro is better than the loop-back offering of mine, and they're probably the second-easiest to put on/take off, after the Pro's Choice Competitors. However, not a fan of the extensive coverage of them -- they're another one that has more fetlock coverage.

After examining what I've written, I've decided that of all the boots I currently own, the Pro's Choice Competitor meets my needs the best at the moment. It has the best balance of what I like versus what I dislike. I may have ti pick little bits of desert prickles out of them during the dry weed season, but at least it's not any money out of pocket at the immediate moment.

But the elusive quest continues on for future purchase considerations, which means...

Readers...it's your turn! Tell me what splint boots you prefer, and your experiences with using them!

And, some specific questions for everyone:

Does anyone use the HAF Splint Boots?
I'm curious about them...I like the idea of air flow. However, I'm not convinced on what looks like a fairly hard shell as a strike plate. I'd like to see them in person. Feedback, anyone?

I'm also curious about the Thinline Splint Boots.
But the $100 price tag is enough to make me shy away. They'd have to be perfect for me to pay that much.

Finally, has anyone tried the Griffin's Tall Brush Boots for front boots?
I tried the short ones on her fronts, but wasn't pleased. I couldn't get them to line up well without gaping at the top, or creating an uneven overlap. Mimi wasn't impressed when I rode her in them, and stopped several times to try to yank them off. Looking at the picture of the Tall boots, I see they wrap around the fetlock some, which is enough to make me wonder if it'll be a case of too much "stuff" around her fetlock area and if the leg boot and Renegade captivator will start interfering with each other.

On Ponies

2010-08-02T12:10:00.000-07:00

This post was inspired by Mel's comment about having an obsession with cute ponies.

Ponies.

Ponies can be summed by by the statement of one simple fact: "Pony" is a four-letter word. Their behavior can be passed off with a disgusted shake of the head and a an under-the-breath mutter of "Pony." Or it can result in a bemused grin and a delighted exclaimation of "Ah, ponies."

I've been around ponies in some capacity for my entire equine life. The last 13 years, I've been owned by one. I wouldn't change any of it.

Ponies are an education unto themselves. They can be alternately sweet, mischievous, bratty, irksome, playful, grumpy, and winsome...all within the space of a day.

Fortunately, my time around ponies has been spent with what I consider a very special breed -- the POA.

The Pony of the Americas is a rather unique pony breed. They're much more similar to a small horses, both in confirmation and attitude, than a typical pony. Say the word "pony" and most people think of Shetlands...short, fuzzy, and ornery little things that delight in unmounting their riders. Not that all of them are that way...but a breed reputation does have to develop from somewhere.

The POA was originally developed in the mid-1950s, and the foundation registered stallion named "Black Hand" was the result of an Arabian-Appaloosa mare crossed with a Shetland pony. Breed standard calls for the confirmation of a small horse instead of that of a pony. They are to have the spotted coat and distinguishing features -- white sclera around the eye, striped hooves, skin mottling --of an Appaloosa, an athletic, well-muscled body, and a more elegant head and neck. Breed standard calls for a height of 46"-56" (11.2-14hh).

Above all, the POA is a children's breed and organization. The only classes adult can show in are the in-hand Halter classes. All other classes are for those 18 and under, and divided into four age categories. Its main purpose is in showing, but one of the hallmarks of the POA is its versatility. The shows themselves encourage ponies and riders to try a little bit of everything, and then further incentive programs are offered for outside sports such as distance riding.

During my years of showing with Mimi, my typical show day would look something start at 6am, and go until at least 6-7pm. During that time, we would do in-hand Halter and Showmanship classes, then move to the under saddle classes, both Western and English. Western -- Bareback Equitation, Stockseat Equitation, Western Pleasure (two classes, one for the pony's age group and one for the rider's), Trail, Reining, Western Riding. English - English Pleasure (again, two classes), English Equitation, Hunter Hack (combined flat/jumping class), Hunter Over Fences, Equitation Over Fences, and Open Jumping. After that, it was Gymkhana. 6-8 different gymkhana games, depending on the show. A typical offering would be Pole Bending, Barrels, Texas Rollback, Single Pole, Handy Horse, and Flags.

So, we've established that POAs are versatile and have endurance. Is it any wonder Mimi came into distance riding with a good base on her? POAs have also shown their mettle in just about any other equine sport that's offered, including distance riding!

But what's so amazing about the POAs is their attitude. They are not your average snotty-brat of a pony. The sweetest and most willing equine I've ever had the priviledge of knowing and riding was a POA...CSA's Snapdragon -- "Snappy" -- was the first POA I rode and showed. He was an absolute gem, and in all of my years around him, I never knew anyone that fell off of him. He was the one that taught me how to love horses and riding again, and gave this very scared little girl back her courage and showed me how to have fun on horseback.

And 98% of the POAs I've known have shown at least some degree of that sweetness and willingness. If it says anything, I would consider another POA as my next endurance horse if I found one with the right confirmation. That's the trickiest part -- current trends have been producing big, muscular, Quarter Horse-inpsired type of POAs...not suitable for endurance. But POA registry is open book, meaning POAs can be crossed with other breeds, and as long as they have the marking characteristics and meet the height requirements, they qualify for registration. Which is how Mimi is actually half Quarter Horse, and still registered POA. Every so often, a half-Arab POA shows up...that might be a good endurance cross!

Sorry for the complete lack of pictures...all of my show pictures are old school, menaing film camera. Meaning I still have to scan them into my computer in order to do anything with them. And seven years of showing is a lot of pictures.

Pony Pedicures

2010-08-01T15:45:00.000-07:00

I have to say, I'm completely tickled about doing my own hoof trimming. It's been a little over a year now since we started doing our own trimming entirely, and I love the sense of accomplishment that comes from having horses that aren't at all sensitive, and have even been able to start doing some training rides entirely barefoot.

With not riding much this summer, their hooves haven't needed as much regular work. About six weeks ago, we took the plunge into getting our first set of proper hoof nippers to make the times we were trimming much, much easier. (Try trimming hooves in the summer in the desert...you'll understand.) That, combined with a brand-new SaveEdge rasp, have made my trimming life so. much. easier.

It's been about three weeks since their last trim, and they had some hoof that needed to come off today. Especially Mimi. Her high pony heels were getting a bit ridiculous. It's an ongoing battle, one I can never really let up on, to keep her heels where they should be.

Beamer's feet look awesome right now. He's been needing to shed some sole out for the last month, but like a good girl, I've left it alone until it was ready to come out on its own. The past week of rain and humidity did the trick, and when I picked out his hooves today, large amounts of dead sole flaked out without any extra encouragement. Beautiful, fresh sole underneath...perfect! Toe callus still intact and not going anywhere...also perfect! He needed some sidewall taken down, and his toes trimmed back.

One of these days, I will remember to bring a camera down to the barn again and get some updated pictures of their hooves. I'm beyond thrilled with how they look, even if we're not riding that much at the moment. *sigh* Still battling Beamer's face wound, although his shoulder is looking really good...almost healed...maybe another week and that will be good to go. Really, really hoping to get out and ride next weekend.

I'm on break from school for the next three weeks, and will be using that time to at least do some hated arena work with Mimi. Although I just discovered today that her little pea-head is even tinier than I imagined, and that I actually need to get her a new bit if I want to do any proper schooling...all the bits I own are about 1/2" too big. Only took me 13 years to figure that one out...*eye roll* Unfortunately, 4-1/2" Myler bits aren't all that easy to come by...I'll be on the eBay prowl for one of those now.

Nine weeks until Man Against Horse in October...at this point, I'm making no hard-and-fast plans of going. That way, if I do happen to get to go, it'll be a pleasant surprise, instead of crushing disappointment. Can't have plans go awry if you don't make them.

That said, I really only have seven weeks to get ready, since I'll be on vacation for one weekend, and crewing at Sonoita for another. If I take some time to do arena riding during the week, plus riding on the weekends, I think Mimi would be ready...just in case I do get to go. *fingers crossed, but not holding my breath*

Tevis Congrats

2010-07-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to all the riders who finished Tevis this year!

Extra congratulations go out to Mel Faubel and Farley and Karen Chaton and Bo for completing the ride in Renegade Glue-Ons! This is two years in a row now that Renegade boots have finished Tevis.

Barefoot is a movement that is here to stay, as evidenced by the number of booted horses that I understood were at Tevis this year. I'm thrilled about how many riders are taking that step and booted -- and not just in endurance. The park I do most of my riding at hosts a lot of casual trail riders, and it's exciting to see how many of them are in boots as well. I've had quite a few people stop me out on the trail or in the parking lot to ask me about boots, and it's been a delight to see how many of them end up showing up in boots.

Many hikers we come across on trail are also intrigued when they look at our horses' feet, and I've found the explaination that the boots are "like hiking boots for horses" tends to be both easily understood and entertaining.

Tevis webcast

2010-07-24T06:06:00.001-07:00

I'll be following the Tevis via the webcast today:

http://www.teviscup.org/webcast/main.php

Funnily enough, last year when I was at Tevis, iwas texting back and forth with my dad, who was at home following the webcast. He often knew more than I did about how was where and who was pulled, ironically, and we keeping me in the loop.

I've got quite a few people I know riding this year that I'll be cheering for. Keep your fingers crossed and send your best wishes to:

#49 Karen Chaton & Bo
#64 Melinda Faubel & Farley
#98 Jonni Jewell & Hank
#114 Julia Lynn-Elias & Trinity
#138 Stephanie Palmer-DuRoss & Hadji
#177 Rusty Toth & Stoner
#179 Lory Walls & Alex

Good luck to everyone riding Tevis this year, and have a fun and safe ride!

Everything I Need to Know About Life, I Learned From Endurance

2010-07-23T12:09:00.001-07:00

Ask anyone that has done yoga: Flexibility is a learned skill. Some people are naturally more flexible than others (this would be everyone else other than me), but everyone has to do some degree of work to keep improving their flexibility.

And it's not just physical. Mental flexibility is also an acquired skill. And I've found that nothing in my life has taught me that more than endurance.

I'm sitting here this morning under a low-lying level of thick, gray clouds -- literally and figuratively. Monsoon season is upon us in Arizona, and we're being taunted by those clouds and their accompanying thick, oppressive humidity into thinking rain might be on the horizon if we're lucky. However, even if it were the brightest, sunniest day ever, I have to admit, I'd still be sitting under a pile of gray storm clouds hovering over my head.

Why?

Because according to my Life Plan, this weekend was supposed to be very different than what is actually happening. Life Plan dictated that, at this moment, I should have been standing around with my cup of coffee, inhaling silty red dust, braiding manes, packing crew boxes, and trying to remember how to breathe at 7200' elevation.

Tevis.

This was going to be it. My year. My one and only shot at that silver buckle with Mimi. Our chance to defy those odds stacked against us; to pit ourselves against the wilderness and the clock; to experience all the tension, nerves, excitement, and worry as participants, not just as crew members on the sidelines.

That obviously didn't happen.

Circumstances (school, work) even conspired against me this year to keep me from going up and crewing and enjoying the chaos in that fashion. I'll be following things vicariously this year, via the webcast. The good: I'll be making money instead of spending it. There's my silver lining.

But I will admit: I'm sulking. This has been something I've wanted so bad, for so long...it's been very tough to let go of this particular dream. I know that I'll find my Tevis horse...someday. And get to the Ride...eventually. But my heart knows it'll never be the same. Even when my mind knows that putting it on the shelf is the right decision, my heart has yet to be fully convinced. Such is the way of optimists and dreamers, I suppose.

I haven't even ridden in six weeks: A bad combination of icky weather and pony antics. Both ponies are currently mooching their position on the Equine Disability List for all its worth. It started about a month and half ago, when Beamer got kicked in the shoulder, and flies invaded the tiny little gash on his shoulder. Within a few short days, it had grown to an irritation the size of my palm. Naturally ,this spot is right on the point of his shoulder -- an area of constant motion, and an area that's impossible to keep bandaged and covered.

After several unsuccessful weeks, I started brainstorming. I raided the garage, and the dresser that holds all of my extra tack, for my old show supplies, and one sacrificed Lycra mane tamer later...

His bandage is now staying put for 24 hours, and things are finally starting heal. Just in time for him to whack his face on something and get some kind of nice puncture wound. Naturally, this would be right at the spot where his s-hack and halter sits. More mane tamer bits to the rescue, and my task this afternoon is to see if my latest in Beverly Hillbillies horsewear will work to counter this newest challenge.

Meanwhile, the pony was jealous of all the attention Beamer was getting, and decided that she wanted in on the action...

I have yet to figure out what she stuck her leg into to manage that kind of scrape. She's somewhat sensitive on it...that's a bony area, and she probably bruised herself in the process of flailing and whatever manuevers it took to manage such end results. I last trotted her out in hand on Tuesday, and she was slightly off on circles and uphill.

I don't even have to be signed up for Tevis for the gremlins to attack.

And hence, my continued absence from regular blogging. It's difficult to muster up the kind of cheer and enthusiasm needed to write an entertaining blog when the most exciting thing that happens is finally obtaining a good pair of nippers. (Hoof trimming just got so much easier.) And, I'll also admit to having quite a few feelings of teeth-gnashing and envy for those whose circumstances are much more fortunate than mine...that is, anyone that still has the good luck to be attending rides with sound and capable horses.

Yes, I'm whining. Yes, I'm frustrated. The fatalistic part of me knows it could be so much worse. It was so much easier when I was a child, and could stomp my foot and pout about the unfairness of life. Now, being an adult means learning to take such situations with grace and dignity.

That said...I want to ride my pony.

I'm playing with some new design elements for the blog. I used to be pretty good at page design and HTML, but it's been a long time and I've gotten pretty rusty. Bear with me as fiddle around until I find the colors and styles I like. It may take a while. I think I might have settled on one that honors Mimi's and my purple color scheme. But I do need to do something about that top picture. Eventually. :)

Peaks and Valleys

2010-05-20T12:18:00.000-07:00

First off, I would like to offer an apology for my long absence from blogging, and correspondence in general.

Like the toughest endurance ride, 2010 has been a year of ups and downs for me -- and it's only May. My absence from blogging is both a long and short explanation. The short version is that I lost a lot of my enthusiasm and momentum after a disheartening start to the ride season, and before I could regain my footing, my personal life came along and knocked me for another loop.

In trying to deal with life and the turmoil, I'm afraid I've very much retreated from one of the things in life that was always my refuge -- the horses. When your refuge is one of those things causing so much discontent and unrest, it becomes difficult to find your balance again.

After many weeks of soul-searching, I feel like I'm finally starting to gain some peace in my life again, and I'm ready to offer an explaination for what has been going on for the past four months.

The best place to start is probably chronologically, which would be at the start of the ride season -- the Land of the Sun ride in Wickenburg. After being postponed and rescheduled due to foul weather and flooding in January, the ride was held in the beginning of February.

The ride started out very nice, but ended for me at 35 miles when I pulled Mimi after she started to tie up. Rather than typing out the whole explaination again, this is the email I sent to one of the endurance e-mail lists I'm on.

So, I'm sure as most of you saw on Facebook, I pulled from Wickenburg yesterday when Mimi went weird on me at about 35 miles. She had been doing fabulous all day, pulling my arms out in her cheer and enthusiasm during the whole first loop. About 10 miles into the second loop, she really slowed down, to the point where I was having to peddle and cajole her -- definitely not normal for her, as she normally is very free-moving, and all it takes is a loosening of the reins to get her to move out at a ride.
Then she stopped to pee, and she peed very dark urine. :((( Never a good sign. We were very close to a water stop at the point, so we proceeded very slowly up to the water. I tried to get her to drink, but she wasn't interested, so we sat at the water trough with me syringing water into her mouth, making her drink one sip at a time. She also had no interest in food -- VERY unusual. Her respiration was super-high, and she her flanks were really tucked-up and doing this weird fluttering thing with her rapid breathing.
Her pulse dropped down to 36 within about five minutes, but then spiked to 44 a couple minutes later. And she just looked very unhappy. She's not a subtle horse by any stretch of the imagination, and can be a drama queen, so it's very easy to read her expressions and emotions. And she looked very sad and worried. Her mouth was tight, and her eyes very worried.

With all of those factors combined, I wasn't going to continue, so I pulled her there. Fortunately, we were at a place where it was very easy to get a trailer in and out, so we loaded up and got the quick shuttle back to camp. When we got back, I had one of the ride vets look at her, and all of her metabolics checked out with all As -- good gut sounds, normal hydration, loose muscles.

She never got really tight in the back end, but she did look stiff when we stopped. Both Dad and I walked her out and trotted her in hand after we had been at the water stop for about 15 minutes just to see if she would "snap out of it." She wasn't moving as well as she could, especially since her earlier trot-outs at the VCs had been beautiful, so I didn't think 15 more miles -- and the toughest part was still to come for that loop -- would do her any favors.

It's a maddening situation, as I don't really know what to call it or what she did. I don't think it was a true tie-up. I think it could have gotten to that if I pushed her. So what do I call that? Pre-tie-up? I've been researching my brains out this morning, and I'm no closer to pinning down any one cause.

There's potentially several factors at play:

-The weather turning cold, windy and rainy as we were heading out for the second loop. She did the same pre-tie-up thing at a Wickenburg NATRC ride about four years ago, but that was within 5 miles of the start, and due to insufficient warmup. However, she's also done a couple cold, rainy rides since then without a problem.

-Dehydration? She could have drank better overnight (she's drink better if she didn't poop in her bushel bucket...grrr...I'm going to start putting out multiple buckets for her at night). She ignored the two water troughs out on the first loop, and didn't drink until VC1 at 13 miles. Kind of normal, kind of not. She typically drinks within 10 miles. She drank really well at the VC, then again on the way back to camp. At VC2, she drank well as soon as we got in, but didn't drink at all back at the trailer during the hour hold.

-E'lyte imbalance? I e'lyted her with small doses in the morning before starting, at VC1, and at VC2. It was a breezy, cool day, but they were sweating a lot, especially in the beginning.

-Unaccustomed climbing? There were a lot of ups and downs and hills, but we train in terrain that's very similar to Wickenburg.

-Fighting me too much? She was feeling really, really good, and just wanted to GO in the first loop, so we spent a lot of time having "discussions" about not pulling my arms out and not running over the steep, rocky ups and downs. Don't know if she got herself too worked up doing that? She was feeling very competitive and forward. Our last two rides, we've had a space bubble since early in the ride, and she was happy to tootle along on a loose rein. This time, we were riding a bit faster, and there was always another horse within visual range. Both she and Beamer were being very competitive, but the trail was such that we had to make time where we could, because of the slow, rocky sections.

-Food at VC? I actually had a crew this time, but I'm wondering if her intentions were too good...in trying to get our ponies to eat, she was plying them with a lot of alfalfa and the ride-offered bran mashes, plus some oat hay. Mimi, being a protein-and-insulin-sensitive pony, is on a limited alfalfa diet, and a no grain diet. My fault for not communicating to our crewperson. I don't know if something like that could be a contributing factor? Too much protein?

Or maybe it's something I'm totally missing, or a combination of a lot of factors. I'm going to call my vet and see if he can come out tomorrow and if a blood panel will still be good at that point.

And after the visit from our vet the Monday after the ride:

Well, I got Mimi's blood panel back from the vet today. Her AST and CK levels are elevated -- 3016 for the AST and 8030 for the CK. Everything else falls within the normal range. Per my vet, she did have a tie up episode, but probably a minor one, as her muscles never got tight and crampy.

Best I can figure, after all the theories have been banded about, is that she wasn't drinking enough and we need to work more on actually drinking at rides.

The vet had several recommendations, but no real answers. After cogitating on this for the past several months, I think there were a few other factors at play: the six weeks or so leading up to the ride had been very wet and rainy, and they didn't get out as much as they should have. Quite frankly, I think it comes down to she was ill-conditioned for the ride and what I was asking of her.

She's 17 this year (in less than a week, actually!), she's not an Arab, despite how much she tries to act like one, and because of that, she's not going to hold her conditioning the way an Arab in their prime (like Beamer) would. I feel bad, coming to that conclusion, because it puts the blame squarely on my shoulders where it belongs.

It is also leading me to the conclusion that maybe it's time to retire her from 50s, but that's another topic for another post, as this one is getting long-winded enough.

The following is the other side of the story -- my personal life, something I tend to leave out of this blog for various reasons, mostly because I figure that people come here to read about my adventures with my pony, not listen to me whine. But I'm going to temporarily lift that moratorium, because that is a major part of what is going on right now. To anyone that might feel uncomfortable with the subjects, death, dying, and personal religion are going to come up. Several things have been happening, all kind of at once:

- As everyone knows, the economy sucks right now, and like a lot of people, we're feeling it, financially. As such, going to rides isn't really a feasible thing right now, which is more than a little bit depressing and tends to cut down on one's motivation to go out and train. I don't like admitting to this -- never an easy position to be in -- but it's one of the reasons I've not been showing my face around the local rides. Let's face it -- even though endurance is one of the cheaper equine sports out there, it still costs money. And ride entry fees aren't going down. And with very few truly local rides, travel expenses quickly add up, even to show up and volunteer.

- Right about the time Mimi should have been getting out again, I came down with pneumonia and spent a couple weeks down for the count, and probably about five weeks away from riding. Naturally, this would happen at the prettiest time of the year. It's been about two and a half months since that happened, and I'm only now starting to feel like I'm recovering. (Not helped by the worst seasonal allergies I've ever had.)

- Finally, I've experienced a lot of pain and turmoil in the last couple months that has put me on a path of a lot of questioning and bewilderment, and as a Christian, I'm not proud to admit this, but I've spent a lot of time being very angry at God and wondering why all of this is happening.

First, I lost a dear friend to cancer in March. She was only 26. I still can't understand why someone that young, vibrant, and full of life could be taken so soon. She fought to the end, and I will forever admire her grace, determination, and positive attitude. I don't know if I could have done the same. She's my newest guardian angel watching over me, and I'll always cherish the memory of our friendship and her encouragement. Miss you, Siobhan, but I know you're using your performance talent and sense of humor to entertain all the other angels in Heaven right now.

On the heels of this, I just returned from a very difficult trip back to Pennsylvania for one last visit with my grandfather. He has been fighting a very long, difficult battle with prostate cancer that then moved into bone cancer for the past two years, and about a week ago, his hospice nurse told the family she was giving him maybe two weeks to live.

Despite it being a painful, emotional trip, I'm glad I went. There's so much about the situation I'm still confused and angry about, and not even going to begin to try to delve into here. I've got questions that could probably even make theological scholars scratch their heads, but I know they'll likely always remain unanswered. The biggest question, of course, that everyone asks is, "Why?" I haven't figured that out, and maybe I never will.

This is also the first grandparent I'm losing, so I feel particularly raw and vulnerable, having been relatively sheltered from the whole notion of death and dying up until now. I know that the inevitable end is very near now, but I feel a lot more at peace after this trip than I was before I went.

It's been a lot to take in over the past four months, and I feel like I've spent a lot of time wallowing in the valleys, managing to scale a little peak, only to quickly slip down the other side. Now, I feel like I'm gradually starting to come back again, thay maybe the next slide isn't going to be all the way to the valley floor again. There's that saying, something about "darkest before dawn" that I think is very applicable at the moment. Things will get better, it just might take a bit more mountain-climbing to get there.

Despite all of this, I have been maintaining Mimi's bare hooves myself still. Her feet are looking fabulous, and I'm mroe and more happy with them with each passing month. I bought a loop hoof knife, which makes trimming her bars a lot easier. For the first time ever, I was able to take her on several rides entirely barefoot. Granted, it was only about 6 or 7 miles, with very little trotting, but she was totally sound and comfortable. Also more on this subject to come, since it's enough to make a whole seperate post.

Thank you, all of my readers, for hanging in there and listening to my very rollercoaster life. I can't promise an immediate turnaround in my blogging habits, but I will say that I aim to try for slightly more regular postings...in other words, no more abandoning you for four months. :)

Welcome to the Future

2010-02-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

This will mark my 100th blog post. A huge THANK YOU to all of my readers...you are the reason I keep blogging! I started blogging due to the fact that I enjoy writing, and this would be a good outlet for that, as well as wanting a place to catalog my accounts of rides and pony antics.

I started blogging in April of 2007, so it's taken my this long to reach that milestone. I can be an erratic blogger at times, mostly due to the fact that when life gets crazy, writing/blogging is the first thing that gets temporarily shelved. I've been getting better at being more consistent, and one of my goals for the upcoming year is to blog every several days at least.

That being said...READERS...I'd like your input for some of what you'd like to see appear in the future. I'm going to be starting a new blog focusing on the use of hoof boots and barefoot trimming, so those that are less interested in those subjects won't be innundated on a regular basis on this blog.

Thoughts for upcoming subjects: I can start doing tack/product reviews. As it is, most of my blog consists of stories, anecdotes, and antics. There are ways I can make it more of an educational blog, although I still consider myself to be a "baby" endurance rider, still largely figuring this thing out myself.

I can dig into my past and start relating some of my show experiences with Mimi. I have tons of pictures (that need to be scanned) and quite a plethora of experiences from which to relate.

Another aspect I can delve further into is breed education. Both my father and I ride breeds that are fairly unique, both to the endurance world and the equine world in general. There is a lot of history to be passed along for both breeds, Shagya Arabian and POA. While this blog is called Go Pony, and is largely supposed to relate to Mimi, Beamer is a part of our riding lives, and he deserves his chance to headline my blog every so often.

I keep a lot of my personal life out of this blog, because I have a personal blog for that, and don't feel the need to impose some of the more stressful aspects of my life on my readers. However...if there are questions about me you're dying to ask, you can always comment, and I'll more than likely answer. Quite a bit has changed in my own personal life since I started this blog, so look for a "me update" post showing up in the near future, just to give people a glimpse of the girl outside the tights and riding helmet.

Please pass along your thoughts, opinions, and comments! If you want to see something here, let me know. I know I've been slacking on pictures of late...chalk it up to the fact that after my laptop crashed, I lost a lot of my pictures (most can be found on my Facebook profile, if you're Facebook friends with me) and haven't had a chance to restore them to my hard drive. And Mimi has been a bit of a handful lately, so I haven't been bringing the camera out on rides. Hopefully that changes after 50 miles at Wickenburg this weekend...that should get some of her pony antics out of her system.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2010-01-24T01:00:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Today is my father's XXth birthday...he can enlighten anyone who asks what numbers are supposed to fill in those x's. :)))

I couldn't ask for a better riding partner to spend the hours and miles with along the trail. Thank you for following me into this crazy horse obsession, and for making me a better horseperson along the way. Your open-mindedness and curiosity has broadened my horizons and taken me far outside of my original comfort zone...and for that, I'm eternally grateful.

And thank you:

for enabling my love of horses in the first place, when you first pointed out that little white mare being ridden in the arena as we were passing by...
for tolerating the pointed-toe kicks in the kidneys from an impatient little girl who didn't understand that you actually were bidding on that pony...
for being there through all the subsequent ups and downs of show life with a young rider and green pony
for doing all that being a Show Dad entailed...hauling the trailer, lifting saddles, giving me a leg up, making sure my number was straight, and taking literally hundred of thousands of horse show pictures
for taking me up on my "suggestion" to take riding lessons
for taking up the reins on your own horse and venturing into the world of trail riding
for convincing me that NATRC sounded like fun
for following me into endurance
for crewing for me at rides before you had an endurance horse
for being such a great ride partner

And, finally, to wrap things up, because I could never fully list everything I'm grateful to you for,

Thank you for being such a wonderful influence and role model in my life. I'm a better person because of how you and Mom have raised me. You've taught me to meet -- and exceed -- expectations, live up to my responsibilites, follow through on commitments, and live a Christian life that glorifies God. Thank you for that, and so much more.

Here's to many more happy birthdays and trail miles apent together!

2009: A Year in Review

2010-01-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

While it's very tempting to blow off 2009 as a horrifically crappy, overwhelming year, that just wouldn't be entirely true. Yes, many aspects of my life were very overwhelming, and still continue to be so, hence my lack of posting in the latter months of the year.

While I might not have gotten to near the number of rides I would have liked, I did have a successful ride year. 4 rides, 4 completions, 175 miles. 3 50s, 1 25. 2 near-turtle finishes, 1 mid-pack, and 1 top ten (that weould be the 25). 3 rides for Mimi...all 50s, one ride on a friend's horse. That includes finishing the notoriously difficult Man Against Horse, with ponies that were still bright-eyed and pulling at the finish.

These horses, and endurance rides, are my refuge, sanctuary, and therapy. I would truly be lost without them, and all of my endurance friends. I'm so grateful for the connections I've made...enduring friendships that I hope will last a lifetime.

So, then, to recap:

January: Mimi spent the latter part of 2008 cogitating on whether or not she really wanted to be an endurance horse, and therefore wasn't fit for Wickenburg. We did pull ribbons after the Valley of the Sun 3 ride, but that was one of our few outings for the month. I took friend Cindy Brown up on her offer to ride her horse Harley in the 25 at Wickenburg. We had a fabulous ride, and even Top Tenned, coming in 9th. I got along really well with Harley and enjoyed riding him. School resumed again for me, after enjoying a five week break.

February: Mimi got her head (and hocks) aligned, and we got several really good training rides in, enough to feel comfortable going for the 50 at the Valley of the Sun 4 ride. We finished, although she could have looked better when we got home...she was dehydrated from the unexpected heat, and a little bit crampy. She recovered within an hour of getting home, and was bright-eyed the next day.

March: Lots of training rides, filled with spring-fever energy.

April: brought warm temperatures, snake sightings, and the opportunity to go crew at Tevis.

May: meant more warm weather, and a good excuse to take the ponies down to the river and ride around the water. Mimi turned 16, and we celebrated with a great training ride. School recessed for a three-week period, then resumed after Memorial Day.

June: was hot, as is expected in the AZ summer, but we still did a lot of riding. I took Mimi barefoot in the back for the first time of what would soon become an almost-every-ride occurence. We took a weekend camping trip to Little Elden Springs with a few other endurance friends. (I went to look for the link to this story, only to realize I never finished it.)

July: Tevis!!! Spent lots of time talking to rider Lucy Trumbull about crew odds 'n' ends, and hoof boots, then hopped on a plane for a week of Tevis fun. I never did do the full write-up (my computer ate it), but I do have the cliffnotes, and will someday produce a full write-up of my adventures. The next-best things are the photo albums on Facebook: riding Foresthill to El Dorado Creek and back; Tevis; and the rest of the week.

August: was quiet, and hot. I had a few weeks off school again, and spent the time hibernating. T'was also my birthday this month, and I got new tights from Evelyn at Just for Horsin-Round. I have two pairs, and they're fabulous...I'll be ordering more soon.

September: Didn't exist (according to my blog, at least...nothing worth reporting got blogged about.)

October: In a last-minute flurry of avtivity, we decided to go to Man Against Horse and try the 50 again. We finished, and in fine form this time. Both ponies looked fabulous at the end, and never lost that sparkle in their eyes.

November: Let's go gangbusters and do a ride two months in a row! Valley of the Sun Turkey Trot 50 was a good ride, with another sparkly-eyed finish. Two great rides like that in a row was a good confidence booster for me. Thanksgiving, and the start of the holidays.

Decemeber: Mom and I took a trip back to New York while the ponies got a break. School again let out for another 5-week break. Christmas shopping was once again easy, as there were horse things Dad needed. Let the new ride season begin.

Rain Check!

2010-01-22T13:53:00.000-07:00

I think I really understand and appreciate the term "rain check" now. Having grown up and lived here in the desert all my life, I've never fully appreciated the full extent of a true, multiday storm system. Sure, I know all about flash floods, and not driving your vehicle through more than a couple inches of running water. That's pretty par for the course in Arizona monsoon season, although someone always has to test it. ("No, no, my insert vehicle of choice here can handle it, it'll be fine.")

At the San Tans, the trails drain so quickly that, unless it's pouring rain at the very moment, it's nearly impossible to get "rained out" from riding. And even on the few occasions we do, it's due to the aforementioned flash flooding of the washes, and not the actual trail conditions.

So to have Wickenburg cancelled for this weekend due to weather wasn't something I was really expecting. Granted, it would be cold and wet, especially Friday, but the trails shouldn't have been a problem. And they weren't. It was the roads.

Arizona infrastructure is coping very badly with the current weather conditions, so much that major highways have actually been temporarily shut down. I didn't really grasp that notion until I pulled down AZCentral's Road Closures page and realized that there's almost no way to get into Wickenburg. Good reason to cancel, if a) half your riders can't get out of their house and b) the other half can't get to the ride.

The ride has been rescheduled for February 6th. Here's hoping for lots of sunshine, for us and our surrounding states.

I think I've gotten off lightly from this storm -- the worst we've had at my house was that Dad had to pump some excess water out of the fishpond to keep it from overflowing. That, and there's a corner of the roof over the dressing room on the trailer that's been leaky, and it dribbled in one corner of the trailer. Fortunately, I anticpated this, and there wasn't much actually in the corner to get wet.

More rain is predicted for this afternoon, but right now, it's blue skies above. The wind is picking up again, so those grey clouds on the horizon could move in...eventually. It's a good day to curl up with a good book or movie, a steaming cup of your hot beverage of choice, and a cookie. Sounds like a good idea to me...

Double Standard

2010-01-20T17:21:00.001-07:00

A Cautionary Warning: There is much generalization and use of the term "people" in the following post. I'm not trying to say "everyone" does this, but rather, a broad spectrum of generalized behavior that I have noticed over the past several years. This is not intended to be critical of anybody, but rather, my personal view and opinion on behaviors and attitudes. Consider it, or take it worth a grain of salt.

Recently, there's been a flurry of discussion activity on Ridecamp about hoof boots. Every winter, it seems, the topic of "shoes versus boots" gets dragged out. Thus far this winter, people are confining themselves to boot...comparisons.

While I could probably write a dissertation based on my opinions of the topic, that wasn't really what stuck my fancy today. What I wanted to touch on is the seeming "double standard" that exists for hoof boots.

Everyone seems to be concerned with finding the "perfect boot." Their standards for that boot seem to be: easy to fit, doesn't rub, easy to put on, and never comes off.

All I have to say on that is, "When was the last time a horseshoe never came off?" Please, someone, share with me that they've never, in their entire career of horse ownership, had a horse that has lost a shoe. Pretty much impossible, right? So why are people so critical of a hoof boot coming off?

It seems to be an unfair expectation...as soon as people hear a story of a boot coming off, they write it off as being "no good." And yet, shod horses that pull shoes get pass after pass, get the shoe nailed back on, and nothing more is said.

As a hoof boot user, I've had my fair share of them come off, some of them in places never to be seen again. I've calculated that I've got probably about $200 worth of hoof boots and hoof boot parts scattered across Arizona and southern California. But did that mean boots were worthless?

No, it just meant that something wasn't working. It took some experimentation, time, and willingness to think outside the box and my comfort zone, but I eventually found what works for Mimi. One of the nice things about the popularity of the barefoot/hoofbooted movement taking off is the availability of different hoof boots on the market. There's virtually something for almost anyone and any horse.

(Note the virtually and almost: I do believe that it's entirely possible that boots might not work for every single horse out there. Dad's first horse, a Foxtrotter mare, had an extremely exaggerated sliding action in her hind feet. Boots gave her too much grip, and made her movement too abrupt and jarring on her joints and muscles. It's possible, given time, and knowing what I know now about hoof trimming, that we could have worked more with and gradually adapted her to using boots.)

And incidently? Mimi has lost at least one of every footwear I put on her. Regular shoes, padded shoes, aluminum shoes, regular Easyboots, glued-on Easyboots, Epics, Bares, and Renegades. No one thing out there is perfect.

I'm sure this is a topic that will never go away as long as there are metal shoes to be nailed on, and hoof boots to be fitted, and horse hooves that need protection. And that means the double standard will likely live on, too.

Wickenburg Prep

2010-01-18T19:21:00.000-07:00

I'm watching the weather forecast for the coming week like a hawk. The major Pacific storm system that is supposed to sweep California before venturing over here has me concerned. as rain is predicted all week. (However, just talking to a friend in San Diego...he says he's not gotten a drop of rain all day, so we'll just have to see.)

I'm not content to just "let things be," and am moving ahead with ride prep as though we are going to get buckets of water dumped on us. The hope in being prepared this way is, of course, that over-preparedness will result in not needing any of it. *crosses fingers* Fortunately, the worst of the rain is predicted for Tuesday-Thursday, and down to a 20% chance on Saturday.

I'm currently sitting at my desk, sniping and tying fringe on a piece of fleece to make myself another in-trailer blanket. My blankets keep getting sacrificed to Mimi, so I finally ordered her a second Trail-Rite Cooling Blanket. Now I have a whole pile of horsehair-covered fleece blankets to pull out of the trailer and launder, then I can use them for myself once again. Hopefully her blanket arrives before Friday. (Just got an email, it'll be here Thursday.)

I also ordered a new GPS from Amazon. After much indecision and waffling, I finally ended up getting the Garmin eTrex Venture HC. I like the fact that it has color, and the high-sensitivity receiver. As much as I really liked the more expansive, expensive models, this has everything I need it for...basic mapping, and I'm really after mileage and speed calculations.

This'll be my third Garmin eTrex, and I really like them. My first one was one of the first generation eTrex (Venture, I think...it was the one with the teal-colored casing) and it worked really well...until I slammed it in the Suburban door. Word to the wise: don't ever balance your GPS in between the vehicle frame and the open door, then leave it there to acquire satellites, only to forget about it and close the door.

My second one was the eTrex Legend (blue casing...still an early generation, before the color or high-sensitivity receivers were an option). I really liked it, until it inexplicably stopped working. I can turn it on, it'll work for about five minutes, the nthe screen goes blank save for a vertical line of pixels running down the middle or off to the side.

I've been without a GPS now for the past year and a half, and I'm eager to ride with one again, especially at rides. It's made me get very good at pacing and timing, to have to rely on watching the clock and knowing trail distance, and it helps to know Mimi's average speed for any given gait, but I'll be happy to have my technology back. I rode with a friend's GPS at McDowell in November, as she wanted a map of the trails, and that made me realize how much I missed having one. It should be here Wednesday.

New splint boots are ordered, and should be here today. I'm waffling on using them...they're the same model as the ones I've been using, but my old ones are 13 years old. Will the quality still be the same on the new ones, or might there be potential for rubs from an ill-placed seam? The rain for the week, combined with Dad's work and my heading back to school, is curtailing the amount of riding I'll be able to do to test them, so I'm down to pre-riding Friday. I'll try them then, and if all goes fine, use them for the ride, but toss the old boots in the crew box.

My new helmet also got here last week, a Tipperary Sportage Plus I bought from a friend who bought it, wore it once, didn't like the fit, and has kept it around since, so it's still brand new. I love it, and even though I haven't had a chance to ride in it, I sat around on my computer with it on my head for an hour, and it felt great.

I've got my Goretex rain gear, as well as the two non-Goretex "waterproof" rain jackets. Both ponies have two rump rugs...a fleece, and a canvas-topped fleece each. Each pony has four (!) wicking-type sheets...Beamer has two fleeces, and two wool coolers, and Mimi has two fleeces (plus an extra if absolutely necessary) and a wool cooler. They both have waterproof sheets (his moreso than hers) and Goretex blankets.

My right foot is still sore from yesterday's race, so I'm taking a very aggressive icing/Motrin treatment to try to get it in check before Friday. I can see some bruising in the sore area, but no heat or swelling, so I'm guessing it's probably some kind of concussion-related pressure bruising.

I'm kind of wishing I had ice boots for Mimi that I could steal and use, as I only have one good icepack, and two marginal ones, for myself. Ice boots were on my "to buy" list, and I even thought about getting them for Wickenburg, but the chilly forecast and wet weather means I probably won't need to do much leg icing. I thought about getting them for the 75, but I know we'll be finishing after dark, which, in February, is still pretty chilly, and I don't know if that'll chill them too much or not.

I took a quick trip down to the barn this afternoon, between rain showers, and did a bit of work on the trailer. Ponies got to go out in the big pasture and run while I did that, which made them very happy. Overfed and underridden...that's them. They're definitely ready for 50 miles.

PF Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon

2010-01-18T10:27:00.001-07:00

Taking to the Streets
Or, An Endurance Rider’s Cross-Training

I have a new respect for my pony and her fitness level. I participated in – and completed – my first half marathon on Sunday, January 17th, the PF Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon here in Phoenix.

The decision to participate was all part of my bid to improve my fitness level this year, and I figured it would only benefit both me and Mimi in the long term. After all, she appreciates in when I get off during rides and walk/jog alongside her, so the more of that I can do, the better.

“Running” is a relative term for me. I’ve not been gifted with a natural runner’s physique, but I make do with what I have, and my idea of running consists of a lot of power-walking interspersed with shorter amounts of jogging.

The PF Chang’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon is a 13.1-mile course that starts in downtown Phoenix and ends up in Tempe, right in the middle of one of the Arizona State University parking lots.

The half marathon started at 8:30 in the morning, with a wave start. The over 21,000 participants were broken down into 26 starting corrals, each released one at a time. I was in corral 23, and finally crossed the start line at about 9:00. I had 4 hours from that point in which to finish the 13.1 miles.

Within the first mile, my body began to question my sanity, but that was nothing new. It’s the same feeling I get within the first five miles of an endurance ride – when my lower back starts whining, and my feet go numb, and I wonder, “How can I stand 45 more miles of this?” It’s shortly after that point my brain and body tune each other out, and I can continue on without much thought to discomfort. The same thing happened here.

My pace was about 14 minutes for the first mile, and I was able to sustain that for pretty much the entire time. Right around the halfway mark, the course became very familiar, as it was part of the route I drive to/from school every day. This was good in that I knew where I was, and kind of what to expect. However, the feedback you get from driving a route is vastly different from running the same route.

For instance, academically, I knew there were a couple of slight grades between miles 9 and 11. Very slight, the kind you don’t even think about while driving. Well, from the perspective of being on foot, that “slight grade” on Van Buren Street between 44th Street and Loop 202 seemed like a major hill.

After passing mile 11, it was mostly downhill from there…past the Phoenix Zoo, across the Mill Avenue Bridge, onto Rio Salado Parkway (another uphill…ugh) and into ASU’s Lot 59…blessedly downhill. I was able to make up for dropping off the pace on the uphill parts (about an 18-minute mile) with being able to really stretch out on the downhill (about a 12-minute mile), and I had saved up enough energy to pick it up on the last ¼ mile in to the finish. The adrenaline-buzz from cheering spectators lining the finish line area helped, too. :)

I finished with a time of 3:28:50, coming in 19,451 out of 21,460 participants. Out of 13,486 female participants, I came in 11,839. My brain short-circuits at the idea of that many participants, and all that matters to me is that I finished.

My goal time, when asked on the registration form for start corral seeding purposes, was 3:30:00. I have a pretty good sense of my own personal pacing and physical abilities, but I was really happy to get that close to my goal time. It averaged out to a 3.999999 (okay, 4) mph pace, and about a 15-minute mile.

The last four miles, I had to really slog it out. The uphill climbs, for one, and then the last two miles, I could feel the effects of 11 miles of concussion on pavement starting to catch up. My hips were letting their displeasure be known, and the outside of the right foot was starting to whine. Interestingly enough, I felt the most sore while maintaining a walk, but when I’d pick up a jog, a lot of the aches would disappear.
Unfortunately, my lungs wouldn’t let me sustain a jog the rest of the way in, so I alternated jogging with walking, and for the last mile, the “finish is within my grasp” adrenaline kicked in and pulled me through.

Physically speaking, that was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done. I think my first 50 with Mimi was actually easier, mostly because of the partner-bond with the pony…when things got tough, we could pull each other through. Out on the street, it was all on me, and I had to pull myself though it. I got really, really good at personal pep talks, as well as giving myself a good ***-kicking when necessary.

One thing that really helped was all the amazing energy at the race. It’s hard to have that many people together and not have energy. The spectator turnout was also amazing. So many complete strangers lining the streets of Phoenix, out there cheering for people that they don’t even know, encouraging us to keep going, telling us how great we look (lies… I think I looked like roadkill by about mile five), and how we’re going to make it.

The volunteers were also amazing. There were water/sports drink stops about every mile and a half, and the volunteers would be lined up on both sides of the street with cups of water and Cytomax, passing them off to runners as we’d come by, always with a smile and encouragement.

So, what does it take to get me through a half marathon, intake-wise? About 90 ounces of water, 40 ounces of Cytomax sports drink, 3 packs of GU, one pack of energy beans, 6 electrolyte caplets, and a whole hell of a lot of encouragement and personal drive. Thank goodness for porta-potties along the way, because I definitely stayed hydrated.

Would I do it again? Sitting here the day after, musing about my still-sore, visibly bruised right foot, and some sore lower back muscles, I’d still have to say, yes. Finishing the race was an incredible personal accomplishment for me, and I’m still enjoying the post-run satisfaction high the day after.

Interestingly enough, I’m actually less muscle-sore than after an endurance ride, and I think the riding really helped keep my muscles in shape for that kind of physical effort. It’s just the concussion aspect of running that the rest of my body is slightly less impressed with, but chalk that up to needing more long-distance conditioning.

The running process might be a bit arduous for me, and I definitely prefer trail running to street running, but I get a lot of satisfaction out of it, as well as a lot of personal “think time” where it’s just me and my thoughts. Call it therapy of a different sort, parallel to riding.

So there you have it. Cross-training in action…but this time around, it’s for the rider. Rock on.

Cross-Training

2010-01-15T16:07:00.000-07:00

Typically, when the term "cross-training" comes up, it's in the context of the horse. Well, not this time. This weekend, I'm embarking on some cross-training of my own. I'm signed up to participate in the PF Chang's Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon here in Phoenix on Sunday.

My finish goal is the same as my endurance goals: just finish, even if I'm the turtle. I'm not a runner by any stretch of the imagination, and even though I enjoy it, my DNA didn't get the message to gift me with the runner's physique, so my style of running is more of a "run 1/4 mile, walk 1/4 mile" type of thing. Slow and steady, and hopefully that'll get me across the finish line within 4 hours.

Valley of the Sun Turkey Trot 50

2010-01-13T18:45:00.001-07:00

A day late and a dollar short, or so the saying goes. Well, this is more like six weeks late, and it's definitely not short...but here it is, as promised, my VotS Turkey Trot 50 ride story. Enjoy, and as always, I love hearing your feedback.

***
Valley of the Sun Turkey Trot 50
November 21, 2009

In many parts of the country, November can mean snow flurries, cold rain, and generally unpleasant riding conditions. In the Southwest Region, and particularly in Arizona, November typically means bright sunshine, cold nights, and pleasantly warm days – perfect ride conditions.

A brief moment of background for those just coming in:

The players mentioned herein are myself, Ashley, and my father, Vern. Our mounts are, respectively, Skip Me Gold (“Mimi”) a 14hh, 16-year-old POA (Pony of the Americas) endurance pony mare, and Brahma PFF (“Beamer”) a 10-year-old Shagya Arabian gelding. Mimi and I are former show ring princesses…the pony who couldn’t cross a cavalletti without clunking, and the rider who was afraid to venture outside the enclosed arena. What a team…of what, I’m not quite sure. We spent seven years in the show ring, and the last seven embarking on various distance riding exploits.

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

The VotS Turkey Trot offered two days of rides – a 50- or 75-miler on Saturday, and a 50-miler on Sunday. We chose to wrap up the season by doing the Saturday 50. One of the nice things about the VotS rides is that they’re held at McDowell Mountain Park, which is only about an hour’s drive from the barn. That means I have time in the morning to pack the coolers, finish packing the truck/trailer, and drive down to fetch ponies, all without having to get up at oh-dark-thirty in the morning. Very civilized.

Despite being so close to ridecamp, we still like to get there early. We left the barn around 10:00, late enough to avoid the worst of the traffic. We ended up detouring back to home to pick up a couple things inadvertently left off the packing list, and eventually pulled into ridecamp around 11:30…still one of the first dozen people to arrive.

Camp setup gets easier and easier as I continue to tweak the layout and arrangement of how I pack the truck and trailer, and we were set up within an hour. After that, we took the ponies for a walk, and grabbed our rider packets along the way. The vets had stepped out for a moment (apparently they have to eat lunch just like everyone else), so we used that time to stand the ponies in front of the water trough and convince them that pre-hydrating was a good idea.

The vets for the ride, Gene Nance and Rick Poteste, are both experienced, knowledgeable vets with the kind of miles and hours in the saddle I can only hope to some day achieve, and I was very happy to have them vetting the ride. They were both back in very short order, and we quickly vetted through, all As for both ponies.

We went back to the trailer, quickly tacked up, and headed out for a short stretch, stopping to socialize with several people along the way. Between this being the last ride of the season, as well as offering a 75-miler, a lot of people had shown up, and there were a lot of familiar faces milling about ridecamp. We eventually got out of camp and took a short ride up what has by now become the “infamous” sand wash of McDowell – a 2-mile-long stretch of deep sand that is the only way in and out of ridecamp, and that gets traversed four times over the course of a 50-mile ride (six times for the 75).

I suspected I might be in for an interested ride when I nearly got dumped on the way back after Mimi spooked, scooted, and tried to bolt at someone riding up behind us. *sigh* This, after falling off for the first time in several years the previous Sunday when she spooked at…a piece of cardboard next to the trail. Yeah, she’s fit, and definitely needed 50 miles to take the edge off. That’s the part nobody warns you about: there is a distinct correlation between their fitness level and their excitability level. My 16-year-old, formerly docile show pony was showing previous unheard of stores of energy, and seems to be regressing in age the more miles we get.

We did make it back to camp in one piece, and had plenty of time to untack the ponies and start throwing large amounts of food in front of their faces before the ride briefing and accompanying pizza dinner started. I used this time to further socialize, and to spend time touching base with Kirt and Gina Lander of Renegade Hoof Boots. We’ve been using the Renegades now for about four years, and in the past year, with Kirt’s guidance, have ventured into doing our own hoof trimming and maintenance.

As someone that is relatively new and self-admittedly inexperienced with trimming, it’s always nice to be able to get Kirt’s feedback on how we’re doing, something we’d be able to do later that evening.

Ride briefing did what it says on the tin, and was finished before the pizza even started to cool off. Then we headed back to the trailers to start packing things for the next day. There would be one check at the halfway point back in camp, which meant that I didn’t have to have the behemoth crew box packed, as everything would be there at the trailer. However, spending 25 miles out on a trail with very little by way of natural grazing (this is the desert in November, after all) meant that we needed to be carrying some pony sustenance in our saddle bags.

I had made up a batch of flax cookies, and divided up the pieces into Ziploc baggies…one bag for each of us for each loop. There were also the requisite carrot chunks, and Mimi’s pre-filled electrolyte syringes. Rider sustenance was also helpful, so I prepped the piles of energy bars, GU, and other little snacks that would suffice for out on trail.

In the meantime, I was also heating spaghetti for a second dinner with Kirt and Gina…more time to sit and catch up before doing some final hood work on the ponies. By the time everything was said and done for the evening, it was about 10:00 by the time I finally got to bed…a bit later than I prefer for a 4:30 wake-up.

The promised wake-up did indeed come at 4:30, and it was chilly enough inside the dressing room to encourage very quick dressing in several layers. Ponies got their breakfast while Dad and I got our breakfast coffee, and I engaged in my typical pre-ride ritual of seeing how long I can make one piece of toast last. The answer: ad infinitum, as I always end up throwing away at least the last ¼ of the piece when it’s time to go tack up.

Tacking up is the fastest part of our morning routine…boots on, splint boots on, saddle on, accoutrements (breastcollar, crupper), anything extra that needs to hang from the saddle, bridle, good to go. Last minute rider prep (no, don’t lock your keys in the dressing room, you’re going to need those to get back in…), and we were both in the saddle by 6:40, with plenty of time for a decent warm-up before the 7:00 ride start.

Ride start was a very long controlled start this time…the entire way up the 2-mile sand wash. It was very slow-going at times, but the enforced slow warm-up was nice, and I was supremely proud of how Mimi handled it. She can be fussy about being crowded , especially from behind, and has a tendency to lose her focus on the trail and worry about how close other horses might be. We were fortunate this time to be surrounded by experienced, courteous riders who gave us plenty of space and made navigating the most crowded part of the start much easier on all involved.

The trail was identical to February’s ride, and as I already when into extensive detail during that write-up, I’ll try to stick to the highlights this time around.

We made good time into the first water stop at around 10 miles. Took about 7 minutes there to let the ponies drink, for both of us to use the facilities (“hello, dense creosote bush…you’re just what I’ve been looking for”), e’lyte Mimi, and break out a couple flax cookies and some carrots. They munched gratefully – the flax cookies were a huge success.

Within a couple miles of the water trough, we got our space bubble for the ride, and would continue to maintain it for the rest of the time. From hereon in, we took turns leapfrogging who would lead and who would follow. There was another water stop at ~20 miles, and from there, it was another 5 miles back to camp, including the two miles back down the sand wash.

We met several 75-milers, as well as some of the Top Ten 50-milers, coming up the wash as we were heading in, but aside from having to watch for “oncoming traffic,” we were able to make good time heading back into camp. Back at camp, both ponies drank and pulsed down almost immediately. They both vetted through without a hitch, although I think I remember (six weeks later as I write this) a couple of Bs for each…most likely gut sounds for both, and gait and/or impulsion for the eggbeater pony.

The hold was for an hour, and both ponies set about to trying to rub the paint off the trailer from all their itching while I got lunch ready. The menu for the day: honey-barbeque roasted chicken lunchmeat slices, sliced fontina cheese, grapes, and bowls of the Never-ending Salad.

The one problem with back-at-camp checks: my comfortable chair is at the trailer, readily available for me to use, and I’m always reluctant to get up once I’m so comfortable. However, there were still things to do, so after indulging in 20 minutes of sitting and enjoying my lunch, I finished off the rest of the hold tasks: e’lyting both ponies, topping off water bottles and my Camelbak waist pack, restocking on pony and rider snacks, and reattaching the saddle accoutrements (removed for ease of pony “head to the ground to eat” maneuvers) – a compromise to full untacking, which is not my favorite thing unless absolutely necessary.

We were about five minutes late out of lunch, as the vet wanted to see Mimi trot under saddle before letting us go back out (Eggbeaters ‘R Us). Out of camp, and back into the sand wash, and the ponies’ lowest point of the day. Mimi decided this would be a good time to go potty…and procrastinate the inevitable of having to go up that *^#! wash again. Five minutes later, after dragging her feet and being peddled one step at a time, she finally found the perfect sandy spot and peed. Then the real fun began.

Both ponies had to be peddled, coaxed, encouraged, and nudged up the wash. Needless to say, this does not inspire rider confidence. Beamer hadn’t ate that well during lunch and he hadn’t had much to drink, either, causing some consternation on Dad’s part. We finally made it through the wash (we had given up on peddling partway through and were resigned to trudging) and onto solid trail, and lo and behold…lively ponies! They both shot out of that wash and offered up a springy, cheerful trot…*&#^ sandbaggers.

Almost immediately after getting on the trail, it crossed through a staging area with a large water trough. Mimi hustled over and drank, then Beamer made up for lost time. Thus fortified, we set off again, heading for the one significant hill climb of the whole ride. On the backside of the hill, we lost the breeze that had been keeping us cool, and thus lost much of our forward enthusiasm. Back to trudging.

We trudged up the hill, and finally reached the top of the ridgeline, where we were able to employ the “trot ten feet” strategy. It does work, and makes faster time than just straight walking. Mimi was still sandbagging, as she spooked at a bench on top of the ridge, nearly repeating the same move that had me on the ground the previous weekend.

Some of my sympathy vanished at this point, and for the next mile, insisted that we trot whenever it was feasible. Beamer, behind us at this point, had gone into “conserve mode,” obviously resigned to the fact that we actually were going to do the same trail from February, and he was in no hurry to get to those upcoming miles.

It was at this point I was feeling pretty swamped with overwhelming tiredness. I hadn’t slept well the previous night, waking up just about every hour, unable to get warm, and now it was catching up to me. I rummaged around for a caffeinated GU, which helped a bit, and at the water stop at the bottom of the hill, I hopped off and walked for a bit.

After the walking break, Dad and Beamer took the lead and set a smart pace, which helped wake all of us up, and once we got to the wider service road part of the trail, we broke things up by mixing in some stretches of cantering.

We saw a couple of the wild/semi-wild/loose ranch horses again…we’re 3/3 now for horse sightings while riding at McDowell.

The trail eventually looped back around to the second water stop from the first loop, where both ponies drank, then had to be peddled back out – a longer, more roundabout way around, versus the direct-to-camp way of loop one. Both ponies knew what was coming, and neither were thrilled, but they went.

It was seven miles back to camp at this point, and we could pretty much walk the whole way if needed. The ponies still had plenty left in the tanks, however, so we still stuck with the “trot when you can” tactic, breaking it up with stops every five minutes or so to let the ponies grab a clump of dry grass just off the trail. This grazing method really helped keep them perky on the way home, and probably contributed to keeping their gut sounds going. The flax cookies had been doled out earlier, and were gone by the last water stop, so it was nice to have something for them to munch, even if it was sparse.

It was nearing dusk by the time we left the last water stop, and we ended up riding the last five miles in the dark, which was actually great fun! I’ve ridden Mimi twice in the dark before, and Dad’s never had Beamer out in the dark. There was an almost-full moon, which helped, but no glowsticks. Fortunately, the five miles back in was all familiar trail, traversed earlier in the day.

The lack of light didn’t slow the ponies down one bit. One of my favorite parts of the ride was trotting through the final two miles of sand wash in the pitch black. Everything seems to be quieter and more muffled in the dark, and there’s this sense of isolation and peace, being out there almost entirely by yourself in the dark. I had one of those “moments” with Mimi at this point…the kind where I felt totally in sync with her, I knew I wasn’t interfering with her in any way, I couldn’t see but a foot in front of me, and I totally trusted her to find the trail and know the way home.

There were a couple of times where I attempted to direct her to what I thought was the trail, only to have her blow me off and keep going her own way. Curious…until I looked at where I had wanted to go and they were just dead-end little spurs off the main wash, or an odd gap in the bushes. Ah, so that’s why people say “just give them their head” when it comes to finding the trail in the dark. That served to further increase my confidence and trust in her as a smart trail pony.

We finished at about 6:15, and immediately vetted through. Beamer was back to all As, and Mimi had a couple of Bs – gut sounds and impulsion, if I remember correctly. Then we whisked them back to the trailer and tossed fleeces on them immediately, then untacked and unbooted them.

Another great ride in Renegades! I put them on in the morning, and only touched one of them at lunch to loop a tailpiece of Velcro back under its o-ring keeper. Her feet looked great – no rubs, and no twisting problems in the deep sand. While the vast majority of the trail is pretty smooth, there were some rocky sections I was glad to have the hoof protection, and I was super-glad to have the additional protection and shock absorption from the concussion of trotting on some pretty hard-packed trails. Beamer’s boots were great as well – on in the morning, off at the end, and I didn’t see Dad put one finger on them in between.

That wrapped up the ride season for us…150 miles for me and Mimi, 175 miles for Dad and Beamer…and all in Renegades.

We stayed overnight, despite home being so close, as both ponies are such good campers, and seeing it takes us a couple of hours to pack up, it would be close to 1:00 in the morning before we’d get home, so it was better all around to stay until the next day.

We eventually left camp Sunday…afternoon. Sunday morning was spent slowly packing up the trailer, and spending a good deal of time catching up with friends, comparing notes, and talking horses.

Good ride, friends, good ponies…a perfect way to wrap up the 2009 ride season. Onward to 2010!

Electrolyting and Syringing

2010-01-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

A common complaint from people is that their endurance horses don't like being syringed. Mimi herself has always been a basket case when it comes to being force-syringed after a staph infection early on in our time together meant that she had to be syringed nasty-tasting antibiotics several times a day.

So any kind of syringing has always been...interesting. What usually happened when something like this: Halter pony. Stand in the middle of the stall. Hold leaprope in right hand. Hold syringe in left hand. Pony would catch sight of syringe and start wildly flipping her head up and down. Grab halter for greater control. Head still flips up and down. Wrench head around and attempt to jam syringe between clamped lips. Miss. Repeat previous three steps. Maybe get syringe between lips, if lucky. Otherwise, get on tongue, then squirt half thfe contents out in overeager anticipation. Pony spits out anything on her tongue. Refill syringe. Repeat steps, this time jamming in the back of the throat, wondering the entire while if you're going to choke the pony or send the stuff into her lungs. Get the residue of whatever didn't get all the way in the back of her mouth spit all over you in distain. Unhalter furious pony, who then retreats to the back of her stall, or even better, the pasture, and then refuses to speak to me for the rest of the day.

Needless to say, this wasn't exactly an ideal situation for trying to do any kind of e'lyte syringing. I'd tried all the tricks...syringe filled with applesauce, then syringe with nasty stuff, followed by a yummy applesauce...nope. She got to the poiunt where she could smell the plain applesauce, and she'd happily take that, but as soon as I'd give her a different one, she's spazz again. Syringe dipped in molasses? No go. Molasses and e'lytes mixed? A little better.

What about just mixing it in her food? Well...Dad is fortunate in that Beamer seems to do quite well with minimal e’lyting, and he happily munches them down mixed into any of his sloppy goodie mixes. I’m not so lucky. Mimi’s a fussy princess when it comes to salty things, and flat-out refuses her food if there’s a hint of electrolytes in it.

Until recently.

I made a new discovery for an electrolyte buffer. I’ve been using a sugar substitute, blue agave syrup, in my coffee and tea, and recently discovered that it is low-glycemic, horse-safe, and actually used in a couple different kinds of horse treats. Mimi, being a pony, is already predisposed to being more sensitive to sugar, and is on a pretty strict, low-sugar diet (no cereal grains, no molasses, limited carrots), so I’ve always been somewhat leery of having to use a high-sugar base such as molasses to mix electrolytes for her. She never seemed particularly fond of it, either…hence the both of us ending up sticky, between her head-flipping syringe avoidance tactics, and then spitting out half of whatever did end up in her mouth.
Enter blue agave syrup. She loves it. She actually reaches for the syringe now. She had gotten to the point that she didn't want to eat any of her sloppy goodie mixes because she was suspicious they might contain e'lytes. So she wasn't getting e'lytes and she wasn't getting her moist food, post-training rides. Something has to be done.

It's now been a month, and I've been mixing her electrolytes in a syringe with blue agave syrup and water. After we get back from our rides, while I'm untacking, she stands in front of her hay bag and eats. By the time I'm done, she's had about 15 minutes to munch and drink, thus providing a good base of food in her stomach. I then give her the e'lyte mix via syringe...which she happily reaches for, and then she gets her pan of electrolyte-free goodies -- beet pulp, flax, and probiotic.

Something else that I've discovered works -- I've switched sides. I now stand on her right side. She seems more comfortable with that, as I think standing on the left side sends her brain back into vapor-lock and unpleasant flashbacks of forced syringing. Unconventional, but at this point, I'll do whatever it takes to get her to take her e'lytes and eat her goodies. I've always said she's a princess, and I don't mind catering to her whims.

For those curious: I use Perfect Balance electrolyte powder, one scoop in a 2 oz. syringe, about half an ounce agave syrup, and the rest with water, just over an ounce. Mix it up, store it in the syringe. You can mix it in a larger batch, like for multiple e'lyting along the trail at a ride (at which point, I use half the e'lytes and half the agave), but if you do that, mix the e'lytes and water in a sealable water and shake very well to dissolve. The e'lytes take a while to dissolve. Then add the agave to that mix, and shake to dissolve. If you have a way to slightly warm the water, that works even better to dissolve everything.

For every endurance rider you ask, you're likely to get a different answer for e'lyting protocol, and favorite brands, and favorite buffer. This is jsut the bare bones of something I've found that works for me and the pony, and only the tip of what I would consider to be my full e'lyting protocol, and it's likely I'll do a post in the future about that very subject.

A Pony Most Helpful

2010-01-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

Mimi has a new trick. She's decided that she enjoys "helping" me during the whole process involved with riding. In the last couple of weeks, she has displayed two new methods of helping.

Two weeks ago, she "helped" me put away her Renegades. Normally when I remove her boots, I toss them in the general direction of the dressing room door where I hang them after cleaning them up a bit. On this particular day, I was feeling a bit lazy, and instead of tossing the boot to the door, I just dropped it in front of Mimi. The top velcro captivator strap was still undone, so she grabbed the loose end, picked it up, and proceeded to toss it over to the door...exactly the way she had watched me do the same.

She looked very pleased with herself, even glancing over at me to see my reaction (jaw dropped, wondering where she came up with that). She's always been a very oral pony...destructive when she was younger, but entertaining now.

This past weekend, she put her oral fixation to good use. I had put her halter on, and was standing at her stall gate, waiting for Dad and Beamer to be ready. Mimi was kind of impatient, poking at me, then poking at her gate, wanting to go. Finally, she got fed up and took the leadrope from where it was draped over my arm, picked it up with her lips, and walked over to her gate. I suspect if I had opened the gate, she would have gone over and jumped in the trailer on her own volition.

Now I'm kind of curious as to what the following weeks will bring. Mimi, will you carry the crew box for me at rides?

Wickenburg: one and a half weeks and counting. The already done list:

Entries sent in
ponies hooves are diligently rasped and should only need light tough-ups between then and now
trailer is scrubbed out and waiting for fresh shavings
AERC membership renewed
new splint boots ordered
new helmet acquired
Woolback pad vigorously brushed, fluffed, and field tested to determine suitability as a secondary pad. Verdict: Success! Three rides in a row, 40 cumulative miles, great contact marks and sweat patterns. I love when something I already have around the house ends up working.
new Yankz! laces on both pairs of riding shoes

I love the first ride of the season, and the feeling of anticipation leading up to a new year and fresh season. Y'know, the time when you say, "This is the year I'll do x." And whether or not x happens, the potential for it is part of the excitement of starting a new season.

Ringing in 2010

2010-01-08T09:39:00.000-07:00

First off, I'd like to apologize to my faithful readers for being such an inconsistent blogger during the last couple months of 2009. It's not for a lack of material to blog about, but rather a life set on "overwhelm" mode, coupled with multitudes of computer issues.

I have all sorts of good intentions to blog about a 2009 recap, and maybe get my VotS Turkey Trot story done while I'm still on winter break from school.

Short version of the 2009 recap: While it was an up-an-down year in many ways, I had a very good ride season. I might not have gotten to near the number of rides I would have liked, but I was grateful to be able to attend the four rides I did, rack up 175 miles for the season, and have the opportunity to ride a differnt horse at one ride.

Every New Year's Day, my father and I have a tradition. There is a saying, that whatever you do on New Year's Day, you will do for the rest of the year. Five or six years ago, we applied this to the horses, and determined that if we spent New Year's on horseback, hopefully that would correlate to spending lots of time in the saddle during the course of the year. It mostly works, in that I do spend a lot of time riding, but the correlation hasn't crossed over to spending a ton of time at endurance rides. For it to be really effective, I guess I need to be attending a ride on new Year's Day, but I work with what I can get.

So, back to the tradition. We ride at the San Tans in the morning, the ncome back to the trailhead for a potluck with other horsey friends. Every year, we manage to add another person or two to the group. I believe we had about a dozen people show up this year. Friend Sheryl was the one who organized the start of this tradition five or six years ago, and still continues to be the driving force behind it.

This year, we had a substantial potluck, as both Sheryl and I properly cooked. She made meatballs and wings, and I made chili. Other people brought salad, chips, and brownies. Just to brag a bit...I make good chili. The fact that the large stockpot was reduced to only being a wuarter of the way full is testament to that, I think. :)

I've been off of school since December 12, a five-week reprieve from what my life normally revolves around, and I've been using this time to get some extra conditioning on the ponies. We've been able to go out three times a week, and do the big loops of 12-15 miles, averaging about 35 miles a week. Most rides, we're getting an average speed of 5-6mph.

The plan is to be able to up the speed at Wickenburg. That ride was our first 50 ever, two years ago, and we completed with a ride time of 8:10. I'd like to try to take an hour off that time. We finished just after 5:00pm the last time, and I'd like to finish by 4:00 this year. The reason for the increase in speed? Preparation for 75 miles at Scottsdale's Dynamite Dash at the end of February. More about that as we get closer to the ride.

In my mind, I've got all kinds of plans for 2010, but I'm being deliberately vague and noncommital at this point in an attempt to ward off the endurance gremlins and fly under their radar. Specific plans will be unveiled as the months progress, but blanket goals for 2010 are pretty much getting to as many rides as I can afford (I'll be happy with a ride every couple months), and happy, sound horses.

And as a casual aside, 2010 Tevis Cup Ride applications are now available online.

Cliffnotes on McDowell

2009-12-01T18:14:00.000-07:00

I'm way behind on all things blog-related, mostly due to 1) my laptop crashing again and 2) life is insane. The cliffnotes version of the last 2 weeks is: I fell off Mimi for the first time in a couple years, the Sunday before going to McDowell. Not how to go into a ride. However, we went to McDowell. Dad and Beamer also went, as Beamer's sore shoulder cleared up a week and half or so before the ride. We all finished, and in fine form. Tough ride, and despite being the same trail as February, it seemed harder this time, but the ponies looked better at the end.

Details will follow in a later post, as I was writing the ride story when the computer crashed. Photos will be up later, as mine were on my computer, but not backed up when it crashed. Granted, I only took about 10 pictures throughout the day. The photographer got some beautiful pictures of us, and as soon as the digital copies go up online, I'll post those.

Going Solo

2009-11-12T18:54:00.000-07:00

Circumstances are such that it looks as though I will be going to the upcoming McDowell Mountain Turkey Trot by myself. Beamer has been marginally off in the right shoulder for the past three weeks, and it's only this week that he's no longer showing signs of discomfort when the area is being massaged, and Dad isn't entirely comfortable with taking him to a ride that involves a lot of hardpack trail and gradual downhill trotting so soon after having the last three weeks off.

I totally respect and admire his decision. It's not easy saying 'no' to a ride, especially one in our own backyard. And I'll definitely miss my trail partner out there, and I'm pretty sure Mimi will miss her "brother." Maybe.

But seeing as Beamer was on hiatus, and Mimi needed exercise, our last two rides have been hitting the trails by ourselves...something we haven't done for quite some time. Dad came along and hiked while I rode, and we met up at one point along the trail, where he was able to snap a few shots of us.

She did fabulous by herself, zooming through 13 miles in two hours on Sunday. It was definitely a good cardio workout, which she will need for McDowell.

I was so proud of how brave she was. She starts out slow, offering up her little 5-6mph trot, and then gradually warms up into her 7-8mph trot that is her mainstay. I'm actually pleased to see this, as it gives her a chance to properly warm up before blasting off at full tilt.

She's also showing quite a bit of maturity and responsibility out there by herself. She's much more aware of her surroundings, but actually less spooky. On several occasions, she would slow down from a trot to a walk, and moments later, there would be hikers or a biker coming in the opposite direction.

She also showed some amazingly good judgement when it came to negotiating around some blind turns. We'd trot nearly to the turn, then she would slow to a walk, wait for me to look around the corner, and once I told her it was okay, she would start trotting again. She also would stop and walk down steeper inclines on her own, and while she was very forward and eager to go, anytime I would ask she her to come back down, she willingly would.

I'm looking forward to seeing how she does on her own for 50 miles. Chances are we'll have a riding buddy, but it won't be a horse she's familiar with, so essentially, it'll be her and me out there.

Man Against Horse Official Results

2009-11-05T20:29:00.001-07:00

20 L 10:27 Wingert, Ashley on Skip Me Gold 55/50
21 M 10:27 Wingert, G. Vern on Brahma PFF 125/50

Afterthoughts: Man Against Horse 2009

2009-11-01T16:56:00.000-07:00

So, I've only been cogitating on this for a month, post-ride. before finally deciding there wasn't much to add to it, and that I should just post it already.

A Combination of What Didn’t Work/ What I’d Do Different/What Worked:

- The worst part of the ride was the fact I had an agonizing pressure point on my right shin from the stirrup leather. I don’t know if it was caused from all the downhill trotting, or it I have too much padding (ski sock, tights, half chaps), or if my stirrup leathers are too short. My stirrups have been making a slow, downward migration in the two and a half years since I’ve had this saddle, and it might be time for another change. I had to stop trotting a few times and walk for a few moments, just to let the pain ease before continuing. (A Month Later: I dropped my stirrups about half an inch, and it's really comfortable. The true test will be the next 50, of course, but they feel better already, and I feel like it's easier to relax with them a touch longer.)

I also had some pressure on the inside of my thighs from the top buckles, but just about any stirrup leathers I try will do that – one of the compromises I have to make in riding Mimi in an English saddle. In order for stirrup bars not to put pressure on her flat back, they can’t be recessed at all, hence the buckles will out pressure on my legs instead. I’ve tried the Wintec Webbers, but they’re so thin, they feel flimsy, like I don’t have as much leg support.
- Still working on the saddle packs arrangement. I like the larger front packs, with very little on the back end of the saddle. However, I still think I’m going to make a separate little bag, long and narrow, to carry electrolyte syringes in that will tuck behind my leg or something. (A Month Later: Am contemplating seeing if I can get a custom Snugpax front pommel bags, with the larger camera bag added to the top of the same style packs as I already have, which are the packs, with the water bottle holders. Haven't gotten anywhere with designing and making an e'lyte-holding bag.)

- This is one of the first times she’s come up with a slightly sore back at the end of the ride, and I don’t know if it’s just because it’s such a difficult ride, or what. I know at VC2, I had to adjust my pad where it had slipped back under the saddle too far, and instead of properly loosening everything, lifting the saddle and pad, and sliding everything back into place, I just loosened the girth, yanked the front edges of the pad forward, and re-girthed her. It’s possible this rubbed against the grain of the hair and could have set up a sore spot, I suppose. I’d really like to get another pad, one that’s shaped to the saddle and has either front ties or billet straps. (A Month Later: I'm also starting to poke around the treeless saddle department, so all new purchases are temporarily on hold until I decide what I want to do and what I can afford.)

- I maybe could have done better in the food department. I ate decently, and felt really good all day, so maybe I didn’t do as bad as I thought. I just didn’t think I ate very much out on trail. Looking back, maybe it was pretty good. Food count (that I can remember):

Friday dinner: chicken/cheese ravioli w/ marinara sauce, Caesar salad
Breakfast: hard-boiled egg, slice of peanut butter toast, orange juice, coffee
Between camp and VC1: two slices dried fruit leather
VC1: peanut butter sandwich
Between VC1 and VC2: half a Luna bar, grapes
VC2: chicken lunchmeat slices, half a banana, half a PB sandwich
Between VC2 and camp: energy gel
Dinner: (YUM!) ribs, brisket, coleslaw, beans, peach cobbler, white wine
- What helped is that I drank well – I drained my 44 oz. Camelbak twice during the ride, and a bottle and half of the Succeed Amino sports drink throughout the ride. I took one OverDrive, three Motrin, and several electrolytes.
- This was definitely Mimi’s and my best ride yet. We didn’t have a single moment of disagreement or argument the entire ride, and neither one of us hit a mental wall. We both did a great job of staying chipper and perky the entire ride, and during the long section of road around the mountain, we maintained our cheer through song. (All: “She sings?” Yes, I do. Badly.)

- My rump rug irritated the hell out of me during the ride, because it kept blowing off Mimi's butt and would dangle uselessly at her flank as we'd trot along, and I had to nearly dislocate ribs several time trying to turn around, straighten it out, hold it in place, and keep trotting. (A Month Later: New rump rug made last night, my own custom design. We'll see how it works...it was too hot today to try it without melting the pony. 80* is not rump rug-appropriate weather.)

Back in the Saddle

2009-10-17T15:58:00.002-07:00

Two weeks post-Man Against Horse, and the ponies are feeling fabulous! We took them out for an easy stretch today, all walking, about 6-7 miles. One nice hill to climb to stretch out those muscles that really got used at the ride.

They were both very forward and happy to be out. Both also went barefoot in the back and scampered over the rocks like there was nothing there. Mimi's come such an amazingly long way from the pony with foundered hooves, paper-thin walls, and such tender soles that just stepping on gravel barefoot would render her lame. Now, she trots and canters barefoot over gravel without a misstep.

Man Against Horse 2009

2009-10-10T15:25:00.005-07:00

The 26th Annual Man Against Horse Race in Prescott, Arizona, marks the 5th anniversary of my foray into the world of AERC and endurance riding. This was the first AERC 25-mile LD ride I competed – and completed. As such, this is a ride that has always held a lot of sentiment to me, and it’s a ride I’ve been able to go to every year since.
The previous year, 2008, my father and I had tried the 50-miler for the first time, but were pulled at 38 miles for being overtime. We were somewhat dismayed and disheartened that year, both from the OT pull and the shock factor: we had known the ride was going to be difficult, but we were still in for a surprise, made all the more difficult by the addition of some horrendous rain and wind that made for downright treacherous trails in a couple spots. Afterwards, I believe I said something to the effect of, “I will never ask Mimi to do that ride again.”

This year, circumstances were conspiring in such a way that it looked like we would end up missing this special ride. Part of me was feeling all right about this after last year’s attempt, as I wasn’t sure I wanted to face that mountain again. The other part of me wanted a grudge match and to redeem myself, despite my insistence that I wouldn’t.

At the last minute, life pointed us in a different direction and said, “You’re going.” It was very last minute – we made the decision to go the Thursday before the ride, about noontime. The rest of the afternoon was spent trying to fit all of our ride prep into one afternoon: clean out the horse trailer that hasn’t been used for an overnight trip since June, repack the trailer, bathe ponies, load hay/water, fetch the trail home to finish packing, and pack people stuff. I’m happy to report we managed to get everything done in about eight hours, and I was still able to fall into bed at a respectable time.

The nice thing about fairly local rides (just under a 3-hour drive from the barn) means that I don’t have to be up at oh-dark-thirty a.m., and can mess with fetching ice and packing up the food cooler in the morning. Dad and I are early-birds when it comes to getting to rides, even those fairly close by in our own state, and we pulled out of our driveway at 7:15, were at the barn by 8:00, and on the road again, ponies in tow, by 8:20.

The trip up was the best kind – uneventful, with nothing to report. We pulled in to ride camp just after 11:00, and practically had our pick of camping spots. Camp is a large cow pasture on Fain Ranch, and part of the fun of this ride is watching the cows meander along the outskirts of where all the rigs are parked and down by the vetting area.

Some history of the ride:

The first Man Against Horse race took place in 1983 and was conceived by Prescott, AZ residents Gheral Brownlow and Steve Rafters. Gheral was a runner and owned a store in town. Steve was a cowboy who worked for the Prescott Police Department and enjoyed riding horses. Rumor has it that they decided to put on the race while at one of the taverns on Whiskey Row in Prescott.

Ron Barrett, a local runner and endurance rider, became ride manager in 1988 and moved the ride from its original location at Whitehorse Lake to its current location at the base of Mingus Mountain in Prescott Valley, AZ. All proceeds and donations from the event go to support food banks in the area. Over the years, more than $100,000 has been given to feed the hungry.

Thanks to Kevin Myers for the summary of the ride’s history.

Man Against Horse is a very unique ride in that riders and runners compete alongside each other over the same courses. As far as I know, it’s the only event like it in the southwest. The horses really seem to enjoy sharing the trail with the runners, and quickly catch on to the idea of “chasing” after the runners. And it’s great desensitization and training for those who end up doing a lot of riding on multi-use trails.

Once in ride camp, we fell into our setup routine, which went like clockwork, despite not having done a ride since February. Guess we’ve got the hang of getting our “cowboy condo” (thanks, Dad!) set up by now. We took the ponies for a walk around ride camp, and I was super-pleased to see how well they handled the rocky ground with their bare hooves. Camp set-up was interspersed with some socialization time, and getting caught up with many people I hadn’t seen in quite a few months. One of the things I really miss when I’m not doing rides is the people – I’ve made so many wonderful friends in the five years I’ve been involved in this sport.

We’ve been experimenting with doing our own trimming for the past three months now, and from my completely unbiased perspective, I think their feet look really good. Every year I’ve done this ride I’ve been in boots of some sort, and every year up until now, I’ve had to have Mimi booted to even walk around camp. It was very gratifying to see her marching over the rocks without a single flinch or misstep.

After camp was set up, we had enough time to go take our pre-ride, and registration and vetting hadn’t yet started, so we saddled up and headed out for an easy, couple mile stretch out from the finish line and back. This section of the trail is open cow pasture, and by taking a peek at it the previous day, I get a heads up as to any new gopher holes that might have cropped up and would be disastrous to ride over.

Both ponies were really good, although Mimi wanted to keep wandering off the trail and go exploring in some of the side washes where the cows like to hang out. (Cow Pony R’ Us) After determining all their legs were still properly attached, and their brains appeared to be settled between their ears, we headed back to the trailer, socialized a bit along the way, then untacked the ponies. While they were munching, I scurried over and got us registered, and after quickly brushing the brown Prescott dust from their legs (an exercise in futility), we headed over to the vet line.

We vetted through without incident, although her trot-out set what would be the continuing trend for the weekend. Mimi is called the “eggbeater” for a reason when she trots. She is 16, and has fused hocks. Her trot always looks a little bit stiff, because it is. She lacks a lot of the flexion in her hocks that would produce a smooth, floating trot, and that makes the vets look twice at her. Both in the past as well as this weekend, I’ve been very fortunate to have vets that were willing to hear out my explanation for why she moved that way, instead of arbitrarily pulling me for “funky” movement, and for that, I thank them.

After vetting, it was time to go over to Kirt and Gina Lander’s trailer and pick up our new pairs of Renegade Hoof Boots. This ride also marks the fourth year of us using Renegades, and of meeting Kirt and Gina along the trail at the first water stop, and realizing they were the ones responsible for those cool new boots our vet had directed us to.

At this point, I would like to pause and thank Kirt and Gina – their boots were one of the key factors in getting us through this ride. The Renegades offered fabulous protection from the rocky trails, and we were able to trot over parts of the trail we would have otherwise been forced to walk. They offered fantastic grip during the grueling climb up Mingus Mountain, including the parts that involved scrambling over large boulders in the trail.

We put the boots on Saturday morning, and never once had to touch them for the rest of the ride until Saturday night after vetting out. Their feet looked fantastic – no rubs or bruising anywhere! The boots stayed in place perfectly and didn’t move or spin at all.

Thank you to Kirt for taking the time to look at their hooves and give them a rasping touchup before fitting the boots. Mimi’s custom-fitted, Equithane-molded hind boots did fantastic, allowing a tiny, almost 000-sized hoof to fit securely into a 00 boot. Her feet have grown since we switched to Renegades…where she had been a 000 on her front feet as well, she is now a 00. Dad’s horse Beamer also moved up in boot size on his front hooves at this ride, from a 1 to a 2.

After getting our boots, it was time for ride briefing, which was fast and informative, and we were able to get back to the trailer in good time and make a fast dinner of ravioli and Caesar salad. While dinner was cooking, I was multi-tasking, mixing electrolytes for the next day and gathering up the last of the essentials to go in the crew box. This was another new experiment: the crew box.

Up to this point, we had been using first one, then two, crew bags, and I wanted to find a way to consolidate, and make things easier to carry, as invariably, one crew bag would end up being streamlined but heavy, and the other would be filled with the lighter but bulky items. In short, the box was fabulous! I could fit everything I needed in it, save for the hay, which went in a bag that got strapped on top of the box. Unfortunately, the bungee cords went on walkabout some time during transport, but not too many people tie their hay bags together with lime green shoelaces, so I was able to easily identify it. Next time, I’ll look for more of a buckle-type strap to go around the whole box.

After dinner, a final stroll to the large water tanks around ride camp with the ponies, and topping off their hay bags, it was time for bed: yet another night of getting to bed at a respectable time. Not that it made much of a difference – I had a very restless night, waking up at least once every hour, drifting off only to wake up again, tossing and turning. Needless to say, I was very glad when the alarm went off at 3:15 Saturday morning.

Yes, I’m an insanely early riser on ride mornings, mostly because there’s a lot of stuff I can’t do until the morning. I typically pack the crew box cooler Saturday morning, as I have a hard time thinking of what I’ll want to eat during the ride until that day. There are also the ride-only things that end up going on my saddle: extra Renegades, small pack for carrots, camera, e’lyte syringes, rain jacket, and rump rug. All of that ends up being easier to put on after Mimi is saddled, since it’s less weight to heave up over her back.

Ride start was at 6:30, with a 6:15 check-in. Both Dad and I were mounted by 6:10, checked-in, and then had the rest of the time to use as a warm-up before the start. The start is situated on a double-track dirt road that dips through a small wash, climbs a slight incline, then drops down to the wash that makes up the first five miles of trail.

Come 6:30, the trail opened, and we found ourselves being whisked along in the middle of the pack – right where we wanted to be. We’ve found that Beamer especially does best when allowed to start along with all the horses, versus being held back. Starting with the pack give him something to focus on – namely, the other horses – and he thinks move about moving forward than moving upward. It was one of our smoothest ride starts, despite Mimi tossing in an uncharacteristic leap of protest at being held back as we crossed through the wash at the start.

The first five miles of trail are mostly in a sand wash that is great for trotting. There were a couple of sections of rocky areas to walk through, but it seems like the wash gets shallower and more trottable every year. This part seemed to zoom by this year, despite having a few moments of “how am I supposed to go 50 miles” when, at around mile 3 or 4, my lower back started whining, my feet went numb, and my legs started wondering how long they could keep up posting. The feeling passed pretty quickly though, and my body settled back into ride mode in short order.

This ride has a lot of checkpoints, courtesy of the county Sheriff’s Jeep Posse. They man the runner’s aid station and take numbers as you pass. They also generously share runner goodies with the riders, a very welcome treat. The first of these many checkpoints is at the 5-mile mark, where we stopped very briefly, split a bottle of water (that was really nice, being able to get a lot of water along the way without having to carry a ton of it on either my person or saddle), and continued on. From here, the trail climbs out of the wash and onto double-track dirt road that winds across rolling meadows at the foothills of the mountains.

Next checkpoint was 7 miles in, and the first horse water available. Neither pony wanted to drink, although Beamer tried to sample the algae growing in the trough. Euw. That was just fine, as there was another trough at the next checkpoint, 2 miles up the trail.

At mile 9, both ponies drank, both riders got off for a quick stretch, and then it was back on trail – the start of what is called the “Grapevine,” a single-track trail that winds up through a canyon and eventually deposits you onto logging roads that take you into the first vet check. This section is one of my favorites. It’s a lot of technical single-track that tunnels through huge stands of scrub oak and Manzanita bushes. Definitely a good section to be wearing half chaps.

Up to this point, Beamer had done the majority of leading, but now it was Mimi’s turn. She’s aces when it comes to hills, especially the kind that involve a lot of twisting, turning, and smart footwork. Her small size and compact build really come in handy on a trail like this.

It’s a 7-mile climb up to VC1, but most of it is slow and gradual, so we were able to trot most of the way to the vet check. We hopped off right at the VC, walked them over to the trough and let them drink, and by the time Beamer was finished drinking, his pulse was down, and Mimi followed suit a minute later (parameters were 64 all day, I think Beamer was at 48, Mimi 60). We were probably in the check a total of three minutes by the time they pulsed down.

It was here I gave up on my heart rate monitor. I haven’t been riding with it of late – my belt for it broke, I’ve yet to get another one put together. and didn’t have time before the ride to remedy that – so I carried the transmitter with me and wore the watch, thinking I could just hold it on her side at the VCs and see when she was down. I attempted this idea at VC1, and gave up when I got a reading of 90 to the pulse-taker’s 60.

VC1 was a hold time of 30 minutes. After pulsing in, we immediately went over to vet in. Both vetted through great, and we found a nice, half-sunny spot to settle in for our remaining…15 minutes. Where does the time go? Dad held the ponies while I grabbed the crew box, draped fleece blankets over their rumps, and laid out pans of sloppy goodie mix, carrots, and hay. I shouldn’t have bothered with their exotic goodie mix concoctions (beet pulp, flax, probiotics) at this ride, as they only wanted hay and carrots. I also used this time for a potty break – ooo, Porta-Potty, very civilized – then traded off pony-holding duties.

Dad and I each ate a peanut butter sandwich, and I amused those around me by multitasking, sandwich still stuffed in my mouth. I believe in eating on the go. The rest of the time was spent refilling water bottles, carrots in the saddle pack, and on-the-trail munchies, then all too soon, it was time to pack up the box, tighten the girths, find a mounting block, and head out…right on the dot at 9:42.

The section after the VC is an old logging-type road that climbs up and down, and up and down, and up and down, drops down onto a gorgeous section of single-track that runs next to a dry streambed, then reaches the next big checkpoint at mile 20. There’s water here for the horses, and they drank again. Shortly after the VC, we met up with Bobbie Jo Lieberman and her Morgan mare, Excalibur Annakate, and they would remain our riding partners for the rest of the day. All three horses paced well together, and got along with each other. There were a couple of dirty looks passed between the two mares a few times, but I consider that par for the course with mares, especially mine.

The next nine miles after the checkpoint at mile 20 is a wide, forest service/logging-type road that winds around Mingus Mountain. It is a mix of being rocky, hard-packed, and pleasant. The first several miles (an approximate guess, since I don’t have a GPS) are rocky, but trottable, especially if you’re wearing hoof boots. The middle three miles are the most unpleasant – large swaths of loose rock, slabs of rock, or a combination of both. It is also out in full sun, making it the warmest part of the ride. However, with highs in the low 70s, even this wasn’t unpleasant.

The view from the road is incredible, though, and in a way, it’s kind of nice to have to walk part of the way, as it allows you to take in the view. At one point, it’s possible to see all the way out to the Sedona red rock canyons, and the whole of the Verde Valley is laid out before you. The camera can’t even begin to capture the panoramic magnificence of the view.

The last three miles or so of the road are really nice. The rocks seem to disappear, comparatively, and you can really fly through this last section. There are sporadically placed culvert alongside the road, though, which makes for some interesting duck-and-weave maneuvers as you go trotting past. Metal culverts = Mimi’s mortal enemy.

At the end of the road awaits what most consider the toughest part of the ride: a three-mile climb up Mingus Mountain, with an elevation gain of about 1800’. (Did the little voices just start chanting, “Tevis training, Tevis training, Tevis training?”) At this point, the trail turns from road into single track, and starts moving upward.

This was our lowest point last year, when, partway through the climb, Mimi slipped on a very tricky, technical section of the trail and we nearly wiped out. All of that was not helped by the fact it was really wet, muddy, and slick last year. This year, the weather was on our side, and the trail seemed to be in great shape. However, remembering last year, I hopped off Mimi in advance of the tough area, which involves a steep climb, sharp switchback, and immediate step up/jump (depending on your horse’s height and leg length) over a rocky ledge.

She clearly remembered last year’s episode, and kindly stopped before the jump up the ledge to let me scramble ahead, then gamely jumped up after me. Good girl. We took a five minute break here in order for me to relearn how to breathe (I don’t do well at elevations) and when Mimi started pulling me down the trail again, I hopped back on to ride her the rest of the way.

Partway up the mountain, we happened upon an unexpected trail occupant: a Green Mojave rattlesnake. Bobbie had been leading the way, with us about a hundred feet behind her. She called back to say she heard something that sounded like rattling behind her, and just about that time, the trail in front of us exploded in a hissing and rattling storm. Beamer slammed to a stop and backed up several yards until he ran into the immovable barrier that was the pony, and we watched as a large snake slithered across the trail and draped itself over a rock about five feet off the trail. After standing there for a couple minutes, trying to determine if the snake was going to keep going, or if he was settled in for the duration, we quickly scurried past him. As if climbing the hill wasn’t enough to get the heart rate going.

The rest of the climb up the mountain is fairly slow-going in most places. There are a few places where you can pick up a trot and make some time, only to slow down within a couple hundred yards to pick through more rocks. It’s the climb that keeps on going – when they say you’re going to the top of the mountain, they mean the very top. Near the top, there’s one final section that involves some deft maneuvering over and through some boulders in the middle of the trail, but Mimi-the-mountain-goat scampered right through it without a hitch. Her little feet come in handy sometimes – she can use tiny crevices and spaces in between rocks as footholds, and pick her way through a tricky section, versus having to leap over a large boulder in one go.

After reaching the top, it’s another mile of blissfully flat forest service road into the vet check at 33 miles . We walked this road as a chance to let the ponies cool off and stretch out after the hard climb. I was ultra-conservative and ultra-paranoid at this ride, as Mimi has had some problems in the past with muscle cramping, so I rode with a rump rug, and religiously whipped it out every time we stopped for more than thirty seconds. That, combined with a more aggressive electrolyting protocol, must have helped, because there weren’t any signs of some of the problems we’ve had in the past.

The vetting portion of VC2 was a repeat of our check-in that involved the vets looking at her cross-eyed as we trotted out, and my heart just sank when I heard the dreaded words, “Trot her out again.” Oh, no. No, no, no. Don’t tell me we just climbed all the way up that %#*^ mountain only to get pulled.

So we trotted again. My legs weren’t being the most cooperative, and the trot-out area was in a small mountain meadow covered in grass that hid a lot of dips and ruts – hard terrain to move out in, which meant we were trotting pretty slow, and the slower she trots, the funkier Mimi looks.

She didn’t look any worse the second time, and even after a very thorough check up and down her legs, she wasn’t showing any signs of pain or soreness, and her heart rate was all of about 48 at this point, the vets ultimately left the decision up to me as to whether I wanted to continue.

There was no doubt in my mind at this point: Absolutely! I know my pony, I know how she moves. She was moving totally normal for her, she was bright-eyed, and her metabolics were great. When she’s uncomfortable, her pulse is sky-high, or it hangs in the mid-range, and she won’t eat. Well, her pulse was down, and she was starving. I often think I over-pack the amount of feed for VCs, but this time, I barely brought enough. They decimated a flake of alfalfa between the two of them at VC1, and at VC2, they each polished off half a flake of alfalfa, half a flake of Bermuda, a couple carrots, and a few scraps of someone’s oat/grain mix leftovers.

Oddly enough, neither of them touched their carefully prepared goodie mixes. And I even left the electrolytes out. VC2 was a longer hold – 45 minutes – and I used the time to feed myself and Dad, refill water bottles and my Camelbak, restock on carrots, and stuff more snacks in the saddles.

All too soon, it was time to go…where does the time go at these vet checks? I don’t know how people manage to sit down and take a break at them – my only break seems to be when I pause to go take a bathroom break. Maybe it gets easier and more streamlined as you go along. Or maybe I need to start trying to wrangle people into coming to crew for me.

We headed out, right on time (yeah!), and moseyed down the trail until they were warmed up, then set off again at a nice trot. At this point, the trail starts heading down the mountain, and was a mix of forest roads and single-track. And rocks. A lot of rocks in this section, and I was so glad for the Renegades. All three of us were riding with Renegades, so were able to move out over the terrain.

Five miles after the vet check, we were back at the same checkpoint as mile 20. Last year, this was where we got pulled. This year, we paused to let the ponies drink, then continued up the road at a brisk trot. This section was fun – a couple miles of forest service dirt road, and we really moved out, even letting the ponies “race” at a canter for a few minutes.

At mile 40, we turned off the road onto what is my new favorite section of the ride: a 3-mile stretch of single-track trail that slowly winds down the mountain, trottable 95% of the way. Mimi led through this section, and we a had a blast! These are her favorite kind of trails, and she just zooms her way through the trees and up and down the hills. This was the section of the ride we missed last year, so I was really excited to be able to make it this year, and Mimi picked up on my excitement, since she practically bounded through here, and before we knew it, we were at VC3 – a gate-and-go style check at mile 43. At this point, the trail meets up with where the 25-milers came through after their hold at VC1, and leads home. All of our ponies had done the 25 before at this ride (Mimi three times) so they knew the way home.

We vetted through quickly, then were off again. At this point, it’s seven miles to the finish. The first two miles are somewhat narrow single-track that switchbacks down the mountain. Mimi wanted to really zip through this section, but begrudgingly acquiesced to my more delicate sensibilities (“No, don’t go racing through here, there’s no catch vegetation!”) most of the way down. It is entirely trottable if you have nerves of steel and need to make up time, but we were still doing okay, time-wise, so we walked part of it and trotted part of it. (Tevis training, right? Actually, truth be told, after riding part of the Tevis canyons over the summer, I found this to be a bit scarier – it’s more open than the canyons, despite a lot of Manzanita catch-vegetation.)

At the bottom of the mountain, it’s a mile of mostly-smooth, double-track dirt road, and we made up a lot of time here, although I had to stop a couple times to accommodate and give my right shin a break, since the pressure from the stirrup leather was reaching the knife-burning sensation level. Another mile on the “power line road,” a wide, hard-packed road that leads back to residential areas, and then camp was in sight.

Two miles across a wide-open field, following a cow path, and we were DONE! We slow-trotted the last mile or so, then walked the last 100 yards to the finish line. Mimi had her “pony march” going, and was out-walking the “big horses” to cross the line first in our group. In her mind, she won.

I know it’s not official until the vet-out, but I knew we had done it. We finished what I would consider to be one of the toughest 50s in the Southwest Region. People were still waiting at the finish line for us to come in, and as soon as I heard their applause, I couldn’t hold back the tears – of joy, of amazement, of absolute pride and wonder for my little Go Pony. She was still bright-eyed and marching, 11 hours and 45 minutes after our start, and after I dismounted, she dragged me over to the water trough to drink.

I whipped the rump rug out, pulled off her leg wraps one final time, and took her over to vet out right then and there. She vetted through great, and the adrenaline from the success of finishing the trail and crossing that line was enough to motivate me to run as fast as I could for the trot-out. That trot-out score was her best of the entire ride.

They were sufficiently cooled-out enough to be able to take them back to the trailer, untack them, blanket them, and leave them to large amounts of grass hay to munch. Last year, we came in so late, we didn’t get dinner. This year, we were still in time to get more than enough of the fabulous barbeque dinner: ribs, melt-in-your-mouth brisket, coleslaw, beans, and peach cobbler. And wine. A finish like this deserves celebration.

The awards for the 50 milers include the coveted silver buckle for finishers…the start of my ride buckle collection! We also got hats, and the t-shirts that all participants get. After dinner, we took the ponies for a walk around camp, let them drink from the troughs, and then left them to sleep, stockpiled with a large amount of food to munch overnight.

A phone call and a few text messages later to spread the word, a “sponge bath” with baby wipes, and it was time for bed. During the night, a storm front started moving in, and despite being exhausted, I kept waking up every couple hours to howling wind outside. At 3 a.m., I finally woke up, in need of Motrin…which was in the truck. I pathetically crawled out of bed and out of the dressing room, but I was glad I went outside when I did. Both ponies had eaten nearly all of their hay, so I gave them a refill, grabbed my Motrin, and went back to bed again, this time until about 6:30.

When I woke up the second time, it was light enough for me to see the formation of storm clouds in the mountains, which was enough to get me out of bed and moving – I had no desire to pack up camp in the rain. Dad woke up shortly thereafter, and in between packing, we took the ponies for another stroll around camp. Mimi was moving much better than I was, which is to say, she was striding out energetically, eyes still sparkling, moving from water trough to trough, and sampling leftover hay left behind vacated camps, while I pathetically lurched alongside. (Don’t I get any credit for sparkling eyes, too? My muscles might have been screeching obscenities at me, but that didn’t diminish the joy I felt over our finish.)

By 8:00, we were packed up and pulling out of camp, just as a few rain splatters started coming down. Good timing! The drive home was just as uneventful as the trip up, and we unloaded two very happy ponies back at the barn. We turned them out in their pasture to roll and drink before bringing them back in for a quick bath. Fortunately, the weather was still warm enough down in the Valley to be able to hose off the sweat and dirt from the weekend. Then they got to roll again. Life is good. :)

Superpony Rides Again

2009-10-04T17:22:00.002-07:00

Mimi earned a new nickname courtesy of Kirt Lander of Renegade Hoof Boots this weekend: Superpony. And Superpony and I completed the 50 at Man Against Horse on Saturday!

Longer ride story up in the next couple of days, but the short version is both Dad and I finished, with 15 minutes to spare, with sound, happy ponies that still looked like they were ready for more. I, on the other hand, would like the next week to recover.

It was definitely the rockiest, toughest ride I have ever done, so I'm so incredibly proud of my pony. She is all heart, and one tough little mare.

Ride-Bound

2009-10-01T13:35:00.004-07:00

Yikes, where've I been? Almost a month since my last post? Shameful. Life's been busy, what with school, and there hasn't been much new to report on the horse front. However...

We're bound for Man Against Horse this weekend! And it was a last-minute decision, made around noon today, which means a flurry of activity to get everything ready.

Quiet Happenings

2009-09-02T15:34:00.003-07:00

So the blog has been quiet of late because not much has been happening. Weather has cut into our riding time...it's been so hot and humid of late that we've not been very motivated to get the ponies out, and as such, have lost a lot of conditioning time. When it's 110*, plus 40-50% humidity, there's no sane time to ride. Even at night, temps have stayed in the high 80s/low 90s.

That, combined with rather tight finances (no thanks to school raising tuition...) means we're skipping Man Against Horse this year. I'm sad about it, but it's such a difficult ride that I'd feel guilty putting Mimi into it with the amount of riding we've been doing over the summer, especially since we haven't done a ride since February. If she was 50-mile-over-the-summer fit, then having the last month of spotty conditioning probably wouldn't be so bad, but that's my paranoid ride making itself known.

Still working on my Tevis crewing story...

I did get a couple new pairs of tights in from Evelyn at Just For Horsin-Around. I've been a good girl and basically worn my current tights to pieces, so it was time for new ones. (I was down to one pair of publically acceptable tights for rides, and one semi-acceptable...the other are in various stages of disrepair and sheerness.) I got on pair of nice, sedate, plain purple cotton/lycra, which should be good for hot summers. The other pair, I just told Evelyn I wanted a nylon/lycra pattern with lots of purple and black in it.

I LOVE them!!!

I'll be hard to miss at rides now...as if the rather memorable little white pony wasn't enough, I'll be sporting these wild numbers come ride day. I don't think I'll have to worry about running into myself out on trail. I just might have to worry about spooking my pony...

And I just got new insoles or my Terrains again, so we'll see if I can make them work. They're my favorite shoes, overall. My hiking sneakers are great for hiking, and good for riding, but can be narrow in the toes for riding and make my feet go numb after too long a period of time, especially downhill trotting. My Ariat Endurance (meshy, lighter-weight version of the Terrains, kind of) are great for riding, but my little toes jam into the sides in a weird fashion if I hike for more than half a mile in them. Overall, I've found the Terrains to be the best for riding and hiking, even if I think they could sometimes use a little more traction...observe as I slither rapidly down the loose granite hills and try not to fall on my bum...

Of course, looking at the underside of the Terrains, I cam to the realization that they are about seven years old...no wonder they're a bit worn.

Coping Methods

2009-08-11T21:15:00.002-07:00

Just reading through Merri Melde's account of her Tevis ride -- and finish! -- I had to smile as she mentioned singing as a way of getting through the seemingly endless California Loop...apparently her music of choice is from "The Sound of Music."

I smiled because singing has always been my coping method of choice for those endless stretches of trail, or when I get uptight on squeak-inducing sections of trail (areas of Man Against Horse in Prescott). My current selection comes from "Phantom of the Opera" and particularly the new movie version of it...they have a couple of songs that are exclusive to the movie (end credits) and for some reason, "Child of the Wilderness" stuck in my head and it's easy to sing softly, even if I keep forgetting the exact order of the verses.

Mimi seems to like my singing, even though I'm pretty much tone-deaf. It cheers her up, and I've learned that as you're singing, you have to breathe, so it's pretty much impossible to stay tense and uptight in the saddle.

Anybody have any other music suggestions? I'm very eclectic in my music tastes, but not all of it translates over well to being sung going down the endurance trail. Something cheerful or melodic is good, or happy, bouncy, and a little bit silly. I've also been known to spout Disney music while trotting down the trail (is this scaring anybody off from wanting to ride with me?) from my favorite Disney offerings: "The Lion King," "Beauty and the Beast," and "Robin Hood." "Anastasia" and "The Swan Princess" have given me a few good ideas, too. Sensing a trend here that I like animated movies? :)

(Just a hint: Chanting, "I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date" ["Alice in Wonderland"] while trying to make time can or cannot be taken as humorous by one's riding partner, depending on the circumstances.)

Just plain musicals are good, too..."Phantom" as aforementioned, and "Wicked" are the two that I know really well. Mind you, I seem to have issues remembering the entire song, so I tend to string together a couple verses here and there from various songs. I'm a one-woman variety show. :)

I will learn all the lyrics to "Modern Major General" from "Pirates of Penzance." It has a certain bouncy rhythm that would go well with the eggbeater's trot, although that same quality can sometimes make it grate on other's nerves. I try to sing quietly, and only when it's my father and I, but I fear even he can only take so much. "It's A Small World" is strictly forbidden.

What "coping methods" do others have out there?