Author, Mary Coleman part II
Monday Day 1
Body Piercing Day: After 3 miles of this permanently marked trail I decided
Michigan trail riders all ride
slender, short ponies. Hawks big stride didn't fit in the "ditch" well and my
body took a beating from all the overhead branches. The closer to any camp you
were the more heavily used the ditch (trail) was and the deeper the sand was. If
the trail didn't beat me to death I was on my own dumping water on Hawk and
getting soaked myself which means by tomorrow I will be getting rubbed from
being drenched. This day was hot and the water was a continual worry for me. We
were expecting to finish at 2ish each day but came in closer
to 4ish. Then Rick found out 2-5
gallon buckets of water don’t cut it with a Morgan. It’s my turn to fix supper
and our husbands wouldn’t go for my taste which would have been Honey Nut
Cheerios and M&Ms. So after minimal sleep, constant worry about the heat and
7 hours in the saddle I get to cook! And of course repack the truck for
tomorrow. I’m just loving this pioneer thing.
Tuesday Day 2
Tear Down the Wallpaper Maggie We’re Moving Again: We realize this is not just a
horse race but a trailer race also as rigs are fired up and hauled out before
daybreak to the next camp. Once again the heat is a concern ( I could just kill
the weatherman that promised rain and a cool front). Hawk failed the CRI so much
I was ready to CRY! I kept telling Barney (yes our AERC President) to give him a
break he’s a Morgan. It never worked but give me E for effort. On day 1 I had
successfully ridden 9,000 ECTRA miles and ½ way around day 2 was the
1st time I ever relinquished my helmet on a ride. I felt naked but no
way was my sore, chafed, hot body
going to be able to keep going with the helmet. I was to the point of saying
Uncle- 100 Michigan miles was enough for me. C’mon rain.
Wednesday Hawk
and Stormy’s (Cindy's horse) Fun-meter Shuts Off: The rain cameth! Overnight we
got a good downpour and it rained off and on most of today. Never did I think
I’d be so happy to see a puddle. Now we had other problems to deal with i.e.
girth sores, interference marks, and just plain bad attitude from the horses.
Course ours wasn’t the greatest either; we’d just keep saying shut-up and trot
to each other. This was called the long day and we did not finish till 5. Oh
what fun! Stay tuned for the exciting end of Michigan on a
Morgan
