Fw: From Canada to Fort Howes

["Sandy Bolinger" <bolinger@bigsky.net>]

  These guys from Canada were GREAT!...Kevin rode the entire 50 mile ride
with just a little piece of rope around his horses neck...and his horse was
very forward, big moving Arab! We were impressed. They arrived in an older
red stock trailer with lettering on the side that said something like...#1
Rodeo Hand of the year...we thought, wasn't it amazing ...here were some
hard core cowboys with ARABS, english saddles with fuzzy saddle covers,
walking around in Lycra tights...Who would have ever thought!!..Turns out
they had bought the trailer with the lettering already on it...We convinced
them to leave the lettering and maybe invest in a couple of cowboy hats
:>)...Maybe even some wrangler jeans....!!


>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Tara and Paul <birtwhistle@home.com>
> To: <ridecamp@endurance.net>
> Sent: Thursday, June 15, 2000 8:55 PM
> Subject: RC: From Canada to Fort Howes
>
>
> >    What an incredible ride, what incredible people.!! We were so well
> > taken care of....we drove all the way to Montana from Winnipeg MB. We
> > were needlessly surpised at the mountains we drove up to as we were told
> > the ride was rolling. I guess coming from the prairies rolling means
> > something else. But the view was spectacular.
> >    Everything started off so nicely with the pre-ride dinner and the
> > traditional rainstorm, however the rain turned to hail and everyone en
> > masse jumped from their tables to calm their horses. We ran to get our
> > horses but upon turning the corner saw our little prairie horses running
> > for the hills. Somehow I grabbed a lead rope and miraculously three
> > pick-ups appeared and went barreling down the field to catch our little
> > houdinis. To make a long story short with the help of many people from
> > the ride we caught them safe and sound within twenty minutes. Thank you
> > to all the wonderful people who helped catch our posse of spooked ARABS.
> >   Once the adrenaline from our little run up the mountain settled, we
> > were asleep ( if you call tossing and turning, looking out the camper
> > windows every two seconds sleeping, then that was what we were )
> >   Three thirty in the am comes pretty fast and my good friend Rusty Toth
> > was up getting ready for his and his Arab's(Wyatt) first 100 miles. We
> > were stoked.
> >   Off he went and shortly after Kevin Myers on Betta and me on River
> > were off. Our first loop kept going higher, the footing was rockier than
> > the sand we train on (tee hee) We thought we would never finish the
> > ride. We did a lot of climbing off the horses. We kept saying Rusty and
> > Wyatt probably won't finish then we realized that we were half way
> > through the ride and we had less than half the time. We won't finish!
> > Well we picked up the speed doing a super trot on the flat areas and
> > getting off the horses to run up hills ( instead of sightseeing, as we
> > were doing before ). Always making sure the horses were fine although
> > River was dragging me up most of the time. Well as they say " to finish
> > is to win..." And so Kevin and I finished on our prairie horses. With
> > only twenty minutes on the clock!! Kevin's horse, Betta, having the
> > lowest heart rate all day finishing with 32/32.
> >   Now we wait for Rusty and Wyatt and we wait and we wait trying to get
> > an update on how he was doing. Well, Wyatt being the little engine that
> > could and Rusty a natural horseman they rolled in at 3 am. Getting in
> > the top ten, making the nationals. Can you believe it from a prairie
> > horse and his first 100!
> >   I just wanted to say that Fort Howes is a brilliant ride. What a
> > wonderful sport this is and a wonderful community of people. I just
> > started riding in October and I am hooked on the sport.
> >   I am proud of us for finishing what all three of us set out to do.
> > Kudos to everyone at the ride.
> >        See on the Trail,
> >         Taramb
> >
> >
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