Up at 6 am and getting ready. I ate some scrambled eggs with vegetarian sausage. I had my checklist so I brought in my saddle and started loading up my bags. My disposable poncho seems to be missing but it didn't look like rain today so I didn't worry about it. In fact the weather was awesome. A bit chilly, but the wind had died down and it had the makings of a beautiful day! I carry a spare hoof-pick, a knife/pliers, a compass/whistle, my HRM, a GPS, chapstick, toilet paper, my vet card and map of the ride, granola bar, trail mix, dried apricots, 2 water bottles, a camera for trail photos, an emergency 'blanket' which folds up to the size of my hand. I forget what else. What I need to add to my collection is a first aid kit! I also attached my rump rug, which I had been awarded for Rookie Horse in 2008. I was looking forward to using that and my GPS on my first ride out since obtaining them.
We were all ready to go by 10 minutes til start time. Hope and Ruth had both lunged their horses. We rode over to the start at a walk and I dismounted to have Sinwaan trot out for the vet. There was a line already because of the 75 and 50 milers coming in for their first vet check and hold (they started at 6 and 7 am) Our start time for the 25s was 8 am so it was a busy area to be in. I trotted Sinwaan out for Dr Jen and did not notice anything but she said "He is favoring that leg." I asked her "What does that mean?" She said she could definitely see it and I needed to think about it being the first ride of the season, she didn't feel like he would warm up and work through it, she anticipated it being worse after the first 16 mile loop. I don't think she was telling me that I couldn't start, but it was a warning about what it could mean if I did. All this work and preparation and anticipation and now it's over before I even begin.
With a heavy heart I told the timers that #21 was rider-option pulling at the start. They said their apologies, and I waved the other girls onward. "Bye," I told them. "Have a great ride." It was hard not to sit down and just burst into tears at that point. Matt had come along to take photos so he rushed over to ask what was happening. I was crying a bit as I told him what the vet had said. It was a very sad moment.
I led Sinwaan back to the trailer and untacked. Settled him back into his corral and then went in and hung out with my kids for awhile. Since I hadn't gotten any sleep I was pretty tired so I laid down for a bit but with a 10 month old crawling around on you, sleep doesn't come easy. I kept an eye on the time and when I expected the girls would be coming in I headed out with a chair and the camera.
I hiked up a hill and down the other side and not 5 minutes after I got there I looked up and saw three riders coming at me. It was them! I snapped some ride photos for them and then ran back to the vet check. I gave Hope some pointers since this was her first ride, then seeing the line for the vets, ran to the trailer for some hay. I did a small amount of crewing and watched them all trot out. Otto and Quincy were cleared to continue but Dr Mike noticed that Jules was off in the right hind. He got a second opinion from Dr Jen and sure enough when he went over her she flinched and jumped away when he touched the area. So Hope's ride was over for the day at that point. I told Hope "we're 2 for 4, that's no good!" A most unfortunate turn of events for Hope as well. The vets recommended she use electrolytes. Bob Westergard was crewing for his own horse ridden by Joe, so I talked to him a bit about what he uses.
The 45 minute hold for this ride went by in a flash, thanks to the lines at the vet area. I asked Ruth and Heather if they wanted me to get some food ready and they said they didn't have time to sit around and eat, their out-time was only 10 minutes away, so they decided to eat when they were done. I headed out on foot to get ahead of them with the camera. I jogged and walked and jogged some more as the trail followed the road and then crossed over it. Riders would come by and I would take their photo since I was out there anyway. I just kept going and finally got up on a bit of a knoll. Ruth and Heather trotted by and I took their photo. I headed on back to camp but people were just pouring past me, so I took photos of all of them. I was worried about running out of card space! One guy hollered at me "I'll buy it!" so that gave me the idea that perhaps I should sell these and make some money to buy SHIPPING BOOTS for clumsy Sinwaan.
I had just plugged in the camera to the laptop in the Quonset hut when Matt walked in. I had been gone a long time (I really did get a ways from camp). So after downloading the camera we walked back to the camper together. It was nice to hang out with the family and be leisurely. Matt wanted feedback on his driving. I told him he had done a fine job. There was one turn that I noticed the trailer bouncing a bit and that is probably when the injury occurred. But it's a fact that Sinwaan doesn't travel very well. I don't blame Matt, or the trailer for this. I just need to take more preventative action any time I trailer him.
Hope headed over to crew for the final check and a short time after she left, I grabbed the camera and went to get the final photos. They were in line when I got there. The horses were eating well and looked good. Quincy had pulsed down first but during his trot out the vet commented that he looked tired. He is an older horse and he was just done for the day. But he did complete! Otto probably could have gone on and done more miles.
We headed back to the trailers and got lunch going. It was probably about 1 pm. They had made good time on this ride considering they walked the first two miles out. We ate hot dogs, potato salad, pasta salad, fruit and cookies. Sensational!
It was a restful afternoon. Dinner was from 6-8 so the other gals headed over to eat about 6. After the dinner everyone piled into the Quonset hut for the awards meeting. It was packed but we had gotten there early enough that we had our chairs against the far wall. First there was a drink contest between the teams. The pirates had a grog, and there were two other entries (including a pomegranate martini) but the grog was the winner.
Gail started with the 75s and some of them were still out on the trail. Then the 50s. It was a very long awards meeting because there were over 70 entries in both the 25 and 50 mile distances. Ruth and Heather placed in the 30s (mid-pack). There was a very small % of non-completions in all distances. There were a couple of injuries to riders.
Everyone seemed excited about the new ride location. We look forward to coming back next year.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Home On The Range: Friday
We all arrived in ride camp at about 5 pm on Friday afternoon. The wind was blowing pretty hard. Ruth parked and then Mr Williams came over and told her that the trail was right there and she was the last truck in the row allowed to park there. So we all moved to the next row and lined up.
We unloaded the horses and Sinwaan had an obvious bloody spot on his leg. CRAP! All the other horses looked good. We took turns running to the restroom (the closest porta-potty was about 3 or 4 rows over) and then set up camp. I put up Sinwaan's hot tape paddock between Ugly and the camper to try and help block the wind and also to make it more secure. I also like to see him out the camper windows. I was thinking it would probably be a good idea to get him to the vet sooner rather than later due to his leg in case they had any advice or ointment.
We all headed over together. First we had to go into the Quonset hut to get our paperwork and vet cards. We took turns holding horses and going in. I was able to get my lucky (?) number #21 so I was happy about that. There were a lot of handouts and I grabbed all of them for reading later. 
There was not too much of a line so we were able to vet through fairly quickly. Everyone looked great, and I think this was the best score Sinwaan has ever gotten - A's for everything, including gut sounds (usually after trailering over he scores a B). He also had the lowest pulse rate of all four horses. Dr Mike took a look at his leg and told me I should keep it covered to help keep it clean but that it didn't look too deep. He wanted me to come back and trot by in the morning to make sure it wasn't swelling or otherwise getting worse.Back at the trailer I used some vet wrap to cover it and then took him back to have a vet check my work. I have never put on one before and didn't want it to be too tight. Dr Jen checked it for me and said it looked fine. So I led him back to the trailer and settled him in with 2 buckets of water, a pan of grain and his ration of hay. He ate the grain, wasn't interested in the water, and stood at the far end of his paddock where he could watch the horses out on the trail.
After that we quickly made up our dinner of haystacks and ate before the ride meeting. As it turns out we were a bit late for the meeting and the room (in the Quonset hut) was PACKED, it was standing room only at that point. Gail went over the particulars of the ride and introduced us to Mr Beckley, the landowner. He showed us the 10,000 acres that we would be riding on and also pointed out multiple other sections of land on the map that will be available to us for future rides. These land owners are encouraging people to come out and use the land for "recreating;" hunting, mountain biking, horseback riding, anything really. He was pleased to see so many of us show up. Gail described the trail as being easy to follow, barefoot friendly, and a lot of it along the ridge tops. One loop also took riders past a grave, that is Mr Beckley's father. The wildlife was deer and badgers, with warnings to watch out for badger holes. It sounded fantastic and I couldn't wait to ride.
During the meeting there was a cry of "loose horses!" and the response: what color? "Three (or four?) of them, one is a gray Arab." Well just about everyone has one of those. One of the horses was caught and tied to a trailer. "What color trailer?" "White." That was the running joke of the weekend since just about everyone there also had a white trailer. This is the primary reason some people are against using hot tape for portable corrals. There are many varieties of corrals, and I meant to take photos of them as an example. Horses can run through hot tape if spooked, ornery, or if they discover it isn't on (hot). Loose horses can be dangerous and no one appreciates that. I am thankful that my horse has always done well in his and it gives him a little more freedom to move than being tied to the trailer.
There was a group of nine of us who went. Ruth and Hope camped out in Ruth's tent. My mom slept in her Explorer. Her foster girl Faith slept in our truck. Matt, me, and the kids, along with Heather slept in the camp trailer. I also took along one of my dogs, Missy, and she did incredibly well. It was chilly Friday night and we were sure glad to have the heater working faithfully all weekend. The last time my dad visited he helped with fixing up the beds so they were all functional and we could fit more people in. He added a 2x4 railing to the bunk so Levi wouldn't fall out, and also helped to fix the sofa bed below it so that Matt and I would have a little more room. Ellie slept on me, so Friday night I did not get any sleep, the excitement combined with the nerves prevented any hope of that.
At one point I heard coyotes howling and it was really beautiful. The moon was full and bright - so bright I did not need to use a flashlight to find the toilet. Sinwaan was cozy in his blanket. The stage was set, everything was in order... except for that leg. What would tomorrow bring?
Poetry
May Sinwaan toss his head and make a great start,
keep a steady pace and do his part....
take Shana to the finish line Sinwaan!....
Top Ten it KIDS!!!!!!
At the very least be able to say...
WOOOO HOOOO what a RIDE!
--Kim Patton
keep a steady pace and do his part....
take Shana to the finish line Sinwaan!....
Top Ten it KIDS!!!!!!
At the very least be able to say...
WOOOO HOOOO what a RIDE!
--Kim Patton
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Home On The Range : the pre-ride story
March 27, 2010, the Home On The Range endurance ride has a new location just outside Washtucna WA. This ride is the nearest location to my house of all the rides in the PNW this year. Straight north about 85-100 miles. I had been excited about it since last year when I realized I could start riding again. I rode all winter every weekend - no excuses - to prepare. I felt more ready for this ride than I did in 2008 when I last attended this ride.
This year there were four of us that had set our sights on attending. Ruth, my co-worker and ride partner. Heather, who was pregnant and realized she probably could not make any other rides this year, and Heather's sister Hope. There was only one minor problem; Ruth was the only person among us who owned a horse trailer and it was a 2-horse. How to get 4 horses to the ride? It was a predicament. Even if we could find a trailer to borrow, what would pull it? I had the Suburban, but it was badly in need of tires and beyond that the 6" lift caused more wear and tear than average - we've replaced the front end on it twice since we bought it.
As luck would have it, Matt uncovered an ad on craigslist for the truck of my dreams. Yes, it was old and ugly, but it ran and it was a crew cab dually with a 454. Even better, the guy wanted to trade it for a motorcycle! We just so happened to have a motorcycle. So that worked out just a month before the ride. We hurriedly made a list of everything that needed to be fixed in order for the truck to be tow-worthy. A new radiator, tailpipe, additional welds to the hitch and adjusted the clutch, to name a few.
Now how to solve the problem of the horse trailer? I have been wanting my own since I first got a horse and it just never worked out. With the addition of a truck to haul one, I started browsing craigslist myself looking for a trailer in my price range. I should mention my price range is just on the border of what is acceptable for hauling horses! From all my browsing I came up with a list of what I wanted in a trailer. I needed escape doors on both sides, head doors for the horses on both sides, tack door on both sides, and it had to be extra-tall and big enough for a horse that isn't easy to load. I found a couple. Some did not meet my criteria and others were just a bit more than I wanted to spend. When I had lost hope in finding a suitable trailer for this ride I got an email reply from ad ad I had inquired about earlier. The trailer met all my criteria, not only that it was a one-owner trailer that had been maintained. The owner was a PNER member to boot!
Matt had a motorcycle he wanted to look at in Yakima so I sent him and Levi on a mission to pick up my trailer in Washougal afterwards. They left at 10 am. They got to the trailer about 5 or 6 pm. After two hours of driving back towards home Matt called me and said he was having two problems: the trailer was bucking an awful lot and the oil pressure in the truck was dangerously low. So he stopped and rested for an hour to let the truck cool down and then started out again. After 15 minutes of driving he called me again to say the oil pressure was too low. He also felt the axles on the trailer and it seemed to him like one brake must be locking up because it was much hotter on one bearing than any other. At this rate it would take him days to drive the remaining distance (which should have been another 2 hours). So, at approximately 4 am I told him to drop the trailer and come on home. He needed to sleep and we could set out for it the next day.
Monday I took some time off work and we drove back for the trailer. In the meantime Matt had talked to his dad and thought the bucking could be from the brake controller being adjusted wrong, and perhaps fixing that would help the oil pressure in the truck. We held our breath as we approached the rest area where Matt left it. My biggest worry was that it would be stolen, or someone would take the tires. It was there and all in one piece! Relief! We hooked up and Matt made some adjustments. It seemed to be pulling much better, but the oil pressure was still lower than Matt would like it to be. We stopped at Boardman for gas and food (and a diaper, I had forgotten the diaper bag!) and ran into Dale McKain at the eatery there. He was driving the bus for a girl's softball team. Because of all the girls it took us about 40 minutes to get our food, and another 20 minutes to get the rest of our order (Levi's grilled cheese and a chocolate cherry milkshake). So the truck had plenty of time to cool off. We also purchased a quart of 30 weight oil which Matt added.
We ventured out again. It pulled well for about 15 minutes and then again we had to stop. We pulled off at a truck stop, Matt was hoping to buy an oil pan and heavier weight oil and do an oil change right there at the truck stop. He came out of the store empty handed, no pans of any kind for sale and no heavy weight oil either. Unbelievable.
So onward we drove. Matt's blood pressure was visibly high over the state of the oil pressure but somehow we made it to Pendleton, and then Milton-Freewater and finally home. Whew! I went back to work for a couple of hours and when I came home Matt went to bed, so I took the kids and the truck and trailer out to Heather's. Her husband Gary came out to take a look at the floorboards. Ruth was also there and offered some feedback. I left the trailer there and headed back home.
Did I mention this was all happening a week before the ride? The trailer went to Heather's on Monday. Tuesday Gary did his research on replacing trailer flooring, Wednesday he got started and noted that the screws were rusted into the frame pretty badly. He was able to get the center board out and agreed that it was lacking in integrity. Thursday night Gary and Eric and Matt all worked hard to get my floor replaced and they got it done!
Thursday afternoon Matt changed the oil in the truck. We went with SAE60, a racing oil, hoping that would solve our problems. No time to test it out.
Also on Thursday night my father-in-law came over to work on the propane furnace in my camp trailer again. He had spent a couple of hours on it about a month ago but didn't get it working. So this was the last chance he had before the ride. After Matt got home from the horse trailer, he helped his dad on the camp trailer and I went to bed after a very busy evening of packing.
Friday morning dawned upon us and I worked all morning getting everything together and ready. I had hoped to go out and give Sinwaan a bath but it was far too windy and cold for that. I left the house shortly before 11 am - went by the bank for gas money, went by and picked up my horse trailer after admiring the new floor and putting the mats back in, then out to get Sinwaan. I loaded all my stuff and then loaded him and took him back to Heathers. Dropped him off and went home to meet my mom. We both drove down to put gas in the rigs. On the way there my mom noticed that the blinkers on the trailer were crossed. When I put on the left turn signal for the truck, the right turn signal on the trailer would come on. AAGH!
We got back to the house and hooked up my mom's Explorer to the camp trailer. Immediately the trailer brakes came on and I couldn't move it. We did not have time to deal with all of this! Our goal to leave was by 1 pm. It was already 1:45 by now. So we unhooked the lights. It was decided that I would drive the Explorer with the camper in the center of the convoy, Matt would drive the Ugly truck and horse trailer in front, and Ruth would follow up behind in case one of us had a problem.
We loaded up the rest of the horses and tack and misc. stuff for the weekend and we were off!! Heading out we took Highway 12 through Waitsburg and Dayton, and then 261 through Starbuck. Crossing the terrifying bridge before Lyon's Ferry was the worst part of the journey, I don't think it was meant for anything other than compact cars. However there was so much curvey winding up and down roads, it was not my first choice for hauling horses. At one turn I saw the trailer jumping a bit and I knew Sinwaan was scrambling and I hoped he would be ok on arrival. We took 260/261 into Washtucna and then followed 26 over to Beckley Road (promptly missed the turn, despite the ribbons and sign). So we had to turn around. I am not sure where Matt turned around but I found a spot to back into off the highway and made fairly quick work of it. By the time I was set to head back the other direction Matt was coming up the road so I fell in behind him.
Another big climb and we were there, Ride Camp! What a journey!
This year there were four of us that had set our sights on attending. Ruth, my co-worker and ride partner. Heather, who was pregnant and realized she probably could not make any other rides this year, and Heather's sister Hope. There was only one minor problem; Ruth was the only person among us who owned a horse trailer and it was a 2-horse. How to get 4 horses to the ride? It was a predicament. Even if we could find a trailer to borrow, what would pull it? I had the Suburban, but it was badly in need of tires and beyond that the 6" lift caused more wear and tear than average - we've replaced the front end on it twice since we bought it.
As luck would have it, Matt uncovered an ad on craigslist for the truck of my dreams. Yes, it was old and ugly, but it ran and it was a crew cab dually with a 454. Even better, the guy wanted to trade it for a motorcycle! We just so happened to have a motorcycle. So that worked out just a month before the ride. We hurriedly made a list of everything that needed to be fixed in order for the truck to be tow-worthy. A new radiator, tailpipe, additional welds to the hitch and adjusted the clutch, to name a few.
Now how to solve the problem of the horse trailer? I have been wanting my own since I first got a horse and it just never worked out. With the addition of a truck to haul one, I started browsing craigslist myself looking for a trailer in my price range. I should mention my price range is just on the border of what is acceptable for hauling horses! From all my browsing I came up with a list of what I wanted in a trailer. I needed escape doors on both sides, head doors for the horses on both sides, tack door on both sides, and it had to be extra-tall and big enough for a horse that isn't easy to load. I found a couple. Some did not meet my criteria and others were just a bit more than I wanted to spend. When I had lost hope in finding a suitable trailer for this ride I got an email reply from ad ad I had inquired about earlier. The trailer met all my criteria, not only that it was a one-owner trailer that had been maintained. The owner was a PNER member to boot!
Matt had a motorcycle he wanted to look at in Yakima so I sent him and Levi on a mission to pick up my trailer in Washougal afterwards. They left at 10 am. They got to the trailer about 5 or 6 pm. After two hours of driving back towards home Matt called me and said he was having two problems: the trailer was bucking an awful lot and the oil pressure in the truck was dangerously low. So he stopped and rested for an hour to let the truck cool down and then started out again. After 15 minutes of driving he called me again to say the oil pressure was too low. He also felt the axles on the trailer and it seemed to him like one brake must be locking up because it was much hotter on one bearing than any other. At this rate it would take him days to drive the remaining distance (which should have been another 2 hours). So, at approximately 4 am I told him to drop the trailer and come on home. He needed to sleep and we could set out for it the next day.
Monday I took some time off work and we drove back for the trailer. In the meantime Matt had talked to his dad and thought the bucking could be from the brake controller being adjusted wrong, and perhaps fixing that would help the oil pressure in the truck. We held our breath as we approached the rest area where Matt left it. My biggest worry was that it would be stolen, or someone would take the tires. It was there and all in one piece! Relief! We hooked up and Matt made some adjustments. It seemed to be pulling much better, but the oil pressure was still lower than Matt would like it to be. We stopped at Boardman for gas and food (and a diaper, I had forgotten the diaper bag!) and ran into Dale McKain at the eatery there. He was driving the bus for a girl's softball team. Because of all the girls it took us about 40 minutes to get our food, and another 20 minutes to get the rest of our order (Levi's grilled cheese and a chocolate cherry milkshake). So the truck had plenty of time to cool off. We also purchased a quart of 30 weight oil which Matt added.
We ventured out again. It pulled well for about 15 minutes and then again we had to stop. We pulled off at a truck stop, Matt was hoping to buy an oil pan and heavier weight oil and do an oil change right there at the truck stop. He came out of the store empty handed, no pans of any kind for sale and no heavy weight oil either. Unbelievable.
So onward we drove. Matt's blood pressure was visibly high over the state of the oil pressure but somehow we made it to Pendleton, and then Milton-Freewater and finally home. Whew! I went back to work for a couple of hours and when I came home Matt went to bed, so I took the kids and the truck and trailer out to Heather's. Her husband Gary came out to take a look at the floorboards. Ruth was also there and offered some feedback. I left the trailer there and headed back home.
Did I mention this was all happening a week before the ride? The trailer went to Heather's on Monday. Tuesday Gary did his research on replacing trailer flooring, Wednesday he got started and noted that the screws were rusted into the frame pretty badly. He was able to get the center board out and agreed that it was lacking in integrity. Thursday night Gary and Eric and Matt all worked hard to get my floor replaced and they got it done!
Thursday afternoon Matt changed the oil in the truck. We went with SAE60, a racing oil, hoping that would solve our problems. No time to test it out.
Also on Thursday night my father-in-law came over to work on the propane furnace in my camp trailer again. He had spent a couple of hours on it about a month ago but didn't get it working. So this was the last chance he had before the ride. After Matt got home from the horse trailer, he helped his dad on the camp trailer and I went to bed after a very busy evening of packing.
Friday morning dawned upon us and I worked all morning getting everything together and ready. I had hoped to go out and give Sinwaan a bath but it was far too windy and cold for that. I left the house shortly before 11 am - went by the bank for gas money, went by and picked up my horse trailer after admiring the new floor and putting the mats back in, then out to get Sinwaan. I loaded all my stuff and then loaded him and took him back to Heathers. Dropped him off and went home to meet my mom. We both drove down to put gas in the rigs. On the way there my mom noticed that the blinkers on the trailer were crossed. When I put on the left turn signal for the truck, the right turn signal on the trailer would come on. AAGH!
We got back to the house and hooked up my mom's Explorer to the camp trailer. Immediately the trailer brakes came on and I couldn't move it. We did not have time to deal with all of this! Our goal to leave was by 1 pm. It was already 1:45 by now. So we unhooked the lights. It was decided that I would drive the Explorer with the camper in the center of the convoy, Matt would drive the Ugly truck and horse trailer in front, and Ruth would follow up behind in case one of us had a problem.
We loaded up the rest of the horses and tack and misc. stuff for the weekend and we were off!! Heading out we took Highway 12 through Waitsburg and Dayton, and then 261 through Starbuck. Crossing the terrifying bridge before Lyon's Ferry was the worst part of the journey, I don't think it was meant for anything other than compact cars. However there was so much curvey winding up and down roads, it was not my first choice for hauling horses. At one turn I saw the trailer jumping a bit and I knew Sinwaan was scrambling and I hoped he would be ok on arrival. We took 260/261 into Washtucna and then followed 26 over to Beckley Road (promptly missed the turn, despite the ribbons and sign). So we had to turn around. I am not sure where Matt turned around but I found a spot to back into off the highway and made fairly quick work of it. By the time I was set to head back the other direction Matt was coming up the road so I fell in behind him.
Another big climb and we were there, Ride Camp! What a journey!
Washtucna weather
The endurance ride this coming weekend is in Washtucna, WA. Here are the weather predictions. The rain on Sunday worries me just a little. I would rather have no rain in the forecast at all.
I have my list(s) and keep adding to it/them. Hoping not to forget anything important.
I have my list(s) and keep adding to it/them. Hoping not to forget anything important.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
March 20 2010
Today was the last chance I would have to ride Sinwaan before our first LD of the year, next weekend. I decided an easy ride would suffice. We did the short loop which incorporates a lot of hills. Today I did not bother with the HR monitor. Instead I wore my GPS unit that my brother got me for Christmas, year before last. It is the first time I have tried it out. (It's about time! But last year my excuse was a broken leg and then a pregnancy)
It was fun using it now that I am figuring out how to work it. I still need to read the manual to learn all the settings but basically the big number at the top is our total ride time and then the smaller numbers at the bottom are distance and rate per mile. I am going to have to get better at math because looking down and seeing 15 min per mile (walking) or 4 min per mile (gallop) requires me to translate that into MPH and let's face it, I am not great at that!
Sinwaan did fantastic leaving the barn, he seems to be over his herd-bound attitude which is great! He does still want to run for home once we turn down "his" road but he is very manageable and I enjoyed our time together today.
We stopped in for a visit at Jenee's today and I was proud that I got Sinwaan to sidepass over to her gate opener on the second try.
Our ride today was 6.11 mi and we came in at 1 hr 15 min even according to the GPS. Can't wait to use it on the ride! ;)
It was fun using it now that I am figuring out how to work it. I still need to read the manual to learn all the settings but basically the big number at the top is our total ride time and then the smaller numbers at the bottom are distance and rate per mile. I am going to have to get better at math because looking down and seeing 15 min per mile (walking) or 4 min per mile (gallop) requires me to translate that into MPH and let's face it, I am not great at that!
Sinwaan did fantastic leaving the barn, he seems to be over his herd-bound attitude which is great! He does still want to run for home once we turn down "his" road but he is very manageable and I enjoyed our time together today.
We stopped in for a visit at Jenee's today and I was proud that I got Sinwaan to sidepass over to her gate opener on the second try.
Our ride today was 6.11 mi and we came in at 1 hr 15 min even according to the GPS. Can't wait to use it on the ride! ;)
Sunday, March 14, 2010
March 14 2010
Today I got a real treat - Ruth trailered us out to Bennington Lake for a ride.
Our earlier plan was to ride on the road. Three of the ladies - Ruth, Heather and Hope had mapped out a ride from Heather's house out to her mom's which was approx. 13 miles. They had planned to rest the horses and eat lunch there, and then ride back, making the complete ride 26 miles and a good test of if the horses were ready for our endurance ride coming up.
I knew that would be too much time to be away from the family on a weekend so I planned to trailer out and meet them after lunch and ride back into town with them.
Heather got sick - and Hope had homework - so with both of them canceling, Ruth and I decided to do our own thing.
The weather was perfect and we parked at the bottom. We went out and did about two loops around the Lake and an additional trail on the other side of the dam. Otto had a good spook which sent Ruth up on his neck but she stayed on and we had a nice ride together. I could have stayed out there all day!
Our earlier plan was to ride on the road. Three of the ladies - Ruth, Heather and Hope had mapped out a ride from Heather's house out to her mom's which was approx. 13 miles. They had planned to rest the horses and eat lunch there, and then ride back, making the complete ride 26 miles and a good test of if the horses were ready for our endurance ride coming up.
I knew that would be too much time to be away from the family on a weekend so I planned to trailer out and meet them after lunch and ride back into town with them.
Heather got sick - and Hope had homework - so with both of them canceling, Ruth and I decided to do our own thing.
The weather was perfect and we parked at the bottom. We went out and did about two loops around the Lake and an additional trail on the other side of the dam. Otto had a good spook which sent Ruth up on his neck but she stayed on and we had a nice ride together. I could have stayed out there all day!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
It's a beautiful day
It was a high of 57° today - a fantastic day to be outside!
We repeated our short 5.8 mi loop today with a new saddle. Ruth loaned me her spare Wintec endurance saddle to try out. It took me a couple of months to track down a girth that was the right length. (It's a weird 38")
Sinwaan is starting to shed out (but not enough for the weather lately)
The saddle was interesting. As soon as I mounted up I felt like I was riding a much taller horse. It has a soft seat (and I have been drooling over all the d-rings) but something about the flaps are more slippery than I am used to. I felt my stirrups riding forward frequently. On the first hill I had to stop and tighten the girth - I had not added the breast-collar or bothered with the HRM today.
My rhythm was all off and it affected Sinwaan too. We just couldn't get into our groove today. I spent most of the ride concentrating on my form and felt like I was failing miserably. At the canter there was an odd 'whooshing' sound and Sinwaan let me know he was not happy about me bouncing around. I just couldn't sit deep and ride him out the way I normally do.
We finished the ride at 1 hr 10 min and I was happy with that given the elevation changes on that loop. We also had a slow start, a lot of stop and go as we tried to figure it all out.
After the ride I spent about an hour doing some dirty work - removing manure from his enclosure. Sinwaan was so cute, as soon as he saw me coming in with the bucket and the pitchfork he came walking briskly over to see what this was all about. He then proceeded to hang around and watch over my shoulder. He is quite a personable horse. It is nice to have the opportunity to just hang out with him and learn more about his personality.
I am feeling good about the upcoming ride. Only three weeks away now.
We repeated our short 5.8 mi loop today with a new saddle. Ruth loaned me her spare Wintec endurance saddle to try out. It took me a couple of months to track down a girth that was the right length. (It's a weird 38")
Sinwaan is starting to shed out (but not enough for the weather lately)
The saddle was interesting. As soon as I mounted up I felt like I was riding a much taller horse. It has a soft seat (and I have been drooling over all the d-rings) but something about the flaps are more slippery than I am used to. I felt my stirrups riding forward frequently. On the first hill I had to stop and tighten the girth - I had not added the breast-collar or bothered with the HRM today.
My rhythm was all off and it affected Sinwaan too. We just couldn't get into our groove today. I spent most of the ride concentrating on my form and felt like I was failing miserably. At the canter there was an odd 'whooshing' sound and Sinwaan let me know he was not happy about me bouncing around. I just couldn't sit deep and ride him out the way I normally do.
We finished the ride at 1 hr 10 min and I was happy with that given the elevation changes on that loop. We also had a slow start, a lot of stop and go as we tried to figure it all out.
After the ride I spent about an hour doing some dirty work - removing manure from his enclosure. Sinwaan was so cute, as soon as he saw me coming in with the bucket and the pitchfork he came walking briskly over to see what this was all about. He then proceeded to hang around and watch over my shoulder. He is quite a personable horse. It is nice to have the opportunity to just hang out with him and learn more about his personality.
I am feeling good about the upcoming ride. Only three weeks away now.
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