Ridecamp: [RC] Jeep/Cadillac - Together Again!

The Jeep is back under saddle!!  Hallelujah, praise the Lord, and pass
the ammunition!  Oops ... wrong story.  Got a little carried away with
myself.  Too many stories, too little time.  Anyway, after a near 4 month
layoff, Braveheart began riding the Jeep again.  Yesterday was her third
time under saddle and we went patrolling a portion of the NRR trail (legs
3 and a portion of 4).  Instead of having lots of antics about the
Rubberband, this time you get to hear all about my really stupid, I KNOW
BETTER mistakes.

I got to the barn before the hired help in order to feed Caddie and Jeep
because we wanted them to eat a lot of breakfast.  We were going to be
gone a long time and wanted full tummies when we left.  I was in such a
hurry when I left the house I left my trail snacks on the kitchen sink
(mistake #1).  I wanted to get the horses fed right away, so when I got
to the barn I just grabbed the money out of my ashtray, stuffed it into a
plastic bag and put it in my saddle bag without counting it (mistake #2).
 I threw Caddie her hay and then went to fix Jeep her pellets and grain. 
Since I was right next to Caddie's grain can I tossed a couple handfuls
into a bucket plus 3 handfuls of the grain Jeep gets - just for flavor
(mistake #3).  Caddie dove into her morning treat (she normally gets her
grain in the evenings) and promptly stopped eating her hay.  Even when I
left her alone and was out of the pen she stood there staring at me
refusing to eat her breakfast.  Jeep's head was nowhere to be found it
was buried so deep in her manger.  Caddie just kept watching me.  I
started getting things ready to go, and still she wouldn't eat.

Braveheart arrived with the trailer.  We were going to pull the horses to
Hidden Valley (NRR Ridecamp) and begin our ride from there.  This was
going to be interesting because Caddie hasn't been inside a trailer since
we moved out here 2 years ago.  I figured Caddie would follow Jeep into
the trailer without too much of a fuss.  I voiced my concerns to
Braveheart about Caddie's not eating and we went over to take a closer
look.  Plenty of gut sounds.  Braveheart says it's because I'm never here
this early and Caddie knows something is up and is excited to go.  Umm
.... Caddie ... excited to go?  Something just didn't sound right about
that one.  I opened her gate and let her out.  Maybe she'd go eat some
grass.  Nope.  Straight to the back where the grain is kept (along with
all the alfalfa hay).  Did she go to the alfalfa?  No.  She went straight
to the grain cans and started prying the tops off.  She wanted more of
Jeeps grain!  This is the kind of c--- I have to put up with with this
horse.  I told her absolutely not and get back in your house.  She
grumbled as she went by, but went into her house and started eating her
hay.  Instead of a good 45 minutes to eat, she got about 20 minutes of
food crammed into her.  Hunger started rearing its ugly head pretty
quickly in this ride.

Time to go.  We led the horses to the trailer and Jeep took her usual 3
tries to go in.  Third time is always the charm with Jeep.  She stepped
into the gapeing maw of the trailer and disappeared.  Caddie was in a
state of shock to see her friend disappear like that.  She started to
snort but I said no.  I stepped up to the trailer and had her come with
me.  She stuck her head in, snorted and backed out.  I asked a second
time and she stood a tiny bit longer, backed out and decided it was time
to throw a tantrum.  I nixed that really quick with a hard tug on the
lead rope.  She hemmed and hawed a little and then decided if Jeep could
do it in 3, so could she.  She stepped into the doorway and started
sniffing around.  In a little farther, still sniffing.  I said, "Go on." 
In she went.  We gave her the whole back end of the 3 horse slant instead
of locking her up.  I'm sure she appreciated it.  As soon as she stepped
all the way in Braveheart locked the butt bar and I went around to snap
the tie to her halter.  Braveheart thought it best to remove her leadrope
(I would have just tossed it over her back, but I never argue when it's
someone elses trailer).  Caddie looked a little white-eyed, but she
settled in nicely for the short trip to Hidden Valley.

Braveheart went in and brought the horses out.  Caddie backed out like a
real pro until the very end when she bonked her head on the doorway.  She
had already started to sweat a little from her 10 minute ride, but as
soon as she realized where she was she started calming down.  We tied to
the side of the trailer and started to tack up.  Lordy the gnats were
awful.  Why, oh why, didn't I bring the fly spray with me (mistake #4). 
It was pretty much a struggle to get Caddie saddled she was putting up
such a fuss.  The bugs were everywhere.  Braveheart had an old bottle of
fly spray in the trailer that didn't seem to make any difference, so I
just muddled through.  When we were finally ready to go the NRR
Trailmaster joined us on his trusty steed heretofore known as Trailblazer
(TB).  Caddie had an immediate dislike of TB, and her dislike grew with
each passing hour.

I climbed onto a big pile of railroad ties and did a most ungainly,
ungraceful mount.  Being up a great deal higher than normal I made my
usual swing up and nearly fell off the other side!  Of course Braveheart
and Trailmaster were watching the whole time.  Nice way to start a ride
off with someone you've never ridden with before.  Make an ass of
yourself right from the get go.  

And go we did.  Caddie glaring at TB with distaste as we headed out on
the longest adventure she has been on in 3 years (her retirement date - 3
years ago next week).

As you can see this is going to be a long story, so I'm breaking it up
into chapters.  Part 2 coming up as soon as I sign off here.

Chickenshit 

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