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A couple of memorable things happened on loop 3.? First, we passed through a
rather run-down farm and we saw the bull.? He had been moved off the road...
he was laying down and tied by a 6' rope to an engine block on the ground!?
Second, we got to a private residence where there was a sign that said
"water for horses".? We were thrilled!? The owner came out to check on us
and chatted for a minute.? Our horses were just finishing their drink from
this lady's trough, and I was just reaching for the clip on my sponge leash
when she said "OH, you won't believe it, this is so disgusting!? I'm upset
with the last people who came through, they didn't get off their horses to
wet their sponges with the hose, they just sat there and dunked them in the
DRINKING WATER!? MY horses wouldn't want to drink that nasty water, and I'm
sure yours don't need all that extra salt, so I emptied out the whole tub
and it's just now done filling up."? None of us were sure what to say, but I
sure as heck took my hand away from my sponge!? We tried to explain that
these horses actually DID need extra salt, and that if they were thirsty
they'd drink out of the nastiest muddiest puddles they could find, but in
the end we just gave up and thanked her for going to all that trouble!
?
This same woman said she thought she'd just seen a riderless horse heading
back where we came from.? We hadn't seen it so she said "oh, it must have
been an apparition."? For some reason, this sparked a discussion over the
next mile or so about whether she said apparition or aberration and what
each of those words meant and how both were accurate.? We were getting
punchy I think.? 
?
As we approached the fairgrounds for the last hold, we were crossing a large
mowed hayfield and everything just felt perfect. It was one of those
on-trail moments that just make everything worthwhile. I did something I?ve
always wanted to do but for some reason hadn?t yet... I dropped the reins on
his neck and spread my arms wide to the side. It felt so good! I convinced
them all to try it, and there we all were, arms spread, cantering along with
the sun on our faces and joy in our hearts.
?
The third and last hold was at the fairgrounds, and since we didn?t want the
horses to think we were finished we stayed up near the vet area instead of
going back to the trailers. Zephyr pulsed down pretty quickly and we vetted
through with all As again, and no rolling, although we did have an audience
waiting to see if he would try! I had time for one more application of
Monkey Powder? I told Heather I was running an experiment to see how much I
could use before it became visible puffing out through the fabric of my
pants. I?m a firm believer in the stuff now, it sure seemed to help!
?
This hold was shorter so before we knew it, it was time to head out again.
Dave had been concerned because his borrowed mare hadn?t passed manure that
any of us could remember noticing, so he had her thoroughly checked by the
vets and was cleared to continue. We decided to wait a few minutes past our
out times so Esther could join us; her horse had pulsed down a few minutes
after ours and we knew that if we didn?t wait she wouldn?t continue alone.
This last loop would be a little over 13 miles and we only had an hour and a
half before the 7pm cutoff time, which meant we had to seriously pick up the
pace.
?
As we left camp we picked up a trot just in time to come to a screeching
halt to cross a small rock-bottomed river. The footing was a little
difficult but we made it through with all our horses? shoes intact. Maybe a
mile later, while we were going up a hill, Dave said he was turning back.
His mare was reluctant to keep pace, which was unusual because she?d done at
least her share of leading the pack all day. She just seemed reluctant to
keep up. It could have been because we had been back at the fairgrounds and
this was her first endurance ride so she?d thought she had been finished, or
it could have been something much worse brewing. Dave made the smart choice
and turned back.
?
That left me and the two rookie horse/rider teams, and since I?m not that
experienced myself, I joked that the responsibility was scary. But in
reality, I know at least one and maybe both of these ladies were experienced
Competitive Trail Riders, so they knew the important things! We worked well
together, taking turns pushing our horses through the toughest 13.5 miles of
the whole ride. There was no breeze, not much time in the shady woods, and
not enough water. (There was actually a fair amount of natural water but
when we really needed it we couldn't find any.)? The horses were puffing
hard but still interested in eating when we asked them to, and whenever they
were trotting they moved willingly enough. It was when we slowed to a walk
that we crawled! None of them wanted to walk at a reasonable pace; we
figured they were making the most of their rest time but it was still
frustrating because the only time we got any breeze was when we were
trotting.

More in a sec?


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