Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

It's election day back home, and we will know here in Malaysia what the results are before you....with our 12 hour time difference - everyone here (Malaysians) are talking about the election, and it's either the "72 year old" or the "African American" ....it's very interesting that they are taking so much interest in our politics.Busy day out at the stables and venue - although this is our last "easy" day before everything ramps up prior to the big race.  I didn't ride today - some rode in the early morning, some in the early afternoon - since I've been riding Tee every day I gave him the day off - he got a bath, I walked him an hour, then I re-clipped him - it's amazing how much hair they have grown back in just 2 weeks...Heather, you'll remember that!  I took a little more off his hind quarters and more under his belly, reclipped his neck and flank area and his face.  The clippers were buzzing all morning - Jan redid Leon, Cheryl reclipped Reason and Val and Flavia started to reclip Flame before the clippers gave out...we will have to recharge all the batteries tonight to finish up.Theatric was hand walked 4 times today, so he got out quite a bit.  His bug bites are not disappearing as quickly as I had hoped - in fact he has more in his elbows and neck (we at first thought he was getting bitten by ants in his paddock, because the bites are in the pattern of a roll...but now we think it might be other bugs at night, because every morning he has more, and he's not going out in his pen at all...I have tried 3 different fly sprays on him, but no luck yet in stopping whatever is chewing on him...it might be the shavings, so we used the hay they won't eat (a grass hay) as a top bedding to cover the shavings today...hopefully he won't have any more - he already looks like he has measles.  The bug bites aren't painful or itchy, just welts.  Always something...just what we don't want right now!

After lunch we had a team photo taken in our Legend shirts - and then John went off for a nap, and I had intended to go back to the hotel for the afternoon to rest, but got busy putting my crew bag together so ended up just napping in our tack area...I laid down on two trunks end-to-end and one ice chest...really wasn't too bad, and I actually slept for a full hour.  Tom walked Tee twice and Debbie helped me with the crew bag - we left the stables at 5pm to make it an early day and early bed...decided to stop off at the A&W for supper.  Cheryl and Stewart came with Tom, Deb and me because Jerry and Martha had gone shopping for the team for water bullets and drinks and had taken their Land Rover.  We were half way back to Terengganu and decided to stop off at a bank and hit the ATM - well, that was an experience!  I ended up losing my credit card in the machine, and an armed guard (with a really big rifle) telling me I had to come back "tomorrow" -Stewart was with me inside the bank lobby area of the ATM - and he kept telling the guard we couldn't come back "tomorrow" and I finally just said, "I need my credit card - I will not be here tomorrow" - and a man from the inside of the bank came and talked with the guard, they held up their hand to indicate I was to wait, and out came two armed guards with VERY BIG guns, the bank manager and another bank employee.  They had to open up the ATM machine, move all these levers and drawers around, and finally pulled out my credit card.  Phew.  I was sweating like crazy - literally.

 So off we go in the toaster, I'm still panicked and Cheryl is trying to take pictures of the guards and the guns - We didn't get 1 mile up the road when Cheryl's cell phone rang, and it was Martha and Jerry saying they had had a car accident on the way to meet us at the A&W, and their Land Rover was in a ditch.  Off we went in search of Martha and Jerry, since they really didn't know where they were, but somewhere near the ocean/beach and somewhere near the A&W - it took us a bit to find them, and when we did, there were a bunch of local youths trying to help them out - they evidently had driven the Land Rover out of the sewage/drainage ditch for Martha, and the car was in the middle of the road with the front end up in the air and no left front tire.  The ty rod was bent and there was some damage up under the front end.  So we called Lise and Tasha and they got a taxi to come and help interpret and get a tow truck.  When last we saw them, they were waiting for the tow truck, and we headed off to A&W to eat.  Update on the car wreck:  just saw Stewart and Jerry come by the lobby on their way to get our toaster keys to go get another rental vehicle....

So, that's about it from here...we have a very busy day tomorrow...Vonita and Joe are at the dress rehearsal for opening ceremonies right now....Todd Holbrook has joined our ranks and Skip Lightfoot should be here tomorrow.  We had individual rider meetings with Becky today, and I have Roger Yohe as my point person for the road crews.  He will be handing me my water bottles and carry/be responsible for my road bags (easy boots, extra flashlites, etc) and things are coming together with the crewing and practicing bullet handoffs.  It's 8pm now, and I'm off to bed.  Long day tomorrow and last preparations and ride before we have vet-in on Thursday.  They will be vetting by stable number, and we are stable five, so we will be at the tail end of the vetting. 

Kathy

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Posted By  Kathy  to  USA: Kathy Brunjes  at  11/04/2008 07:59:00 PM