The local weather here (Pacific NW) has been unseasonably warm, eighteen days
with no rain in sight, but of course the day of the ride would be different.
I rarely sleep more than an hour at a time when camping with horses, so I was
up and down all night long. The weather held right up until daylight, when we
were supposed to be getting ready. Then it began a serious drizzle, and
continued right on through the pre-ride preliminaries.
This, as I mentioned earlier, was our very first ride, so neither of us knew
just what was expected of us. As I lugged my fully rigged western stock saddle
and stockman's coat over for the weigh-in I felt guilty for even considering
making my horse pack all that weight and me, too! I really felt odd looking
at how light everyone else was weighing in.
Our horses were fussy during the long wait in line for the condition check,
and consequently cost us points for their "manners". We drew for starting
position and got the very last out time, meaning we would be nervous wrecks by
the time we finally got mounted. (Really wasn't a long wait, though.)
Once we got under way I didn't even notice the rain, and was more concerned
with whether or not my horse would be okay - I had been building up his
condition & stamina for the last two months in anticipation of an upcoming
pack trip in July (9 days of wilderness peace) I truly did not expect him to
finish without serious prodding on my part.
We decided to let the horses pace themselves at the beginning, and we would
closely monitor elapsed time to keep them on track. Our first 5 miles went by
with no problems, and we were 15 minutes ahead of allotted time. The second 5
we had rougher terrain and a bit of traffic to deal with, but still managed to
stay within 5 minutes of allotted time, and we took a ten minute break at the
halfway point. Both horses were moving nicely, still alert and good-natured,
with a desire to push on. My gelding had worked up more of a sweat than the
mare, but with the rain it was hard to tell how much was water and how much
was sweat. The next 5 miles went by slower than we would have liked, but we
made up the time in the final 5 and were able to walk in the last mile and a
half, with our final time for the ride being 5 minutes under allotted time.
After the ride, we were again at a loss as to what was expected next. We were
told to be ready to present our horses for a final condition check in one
hour. I was extremely pleased with my horse, not only did he finish the ride,
I never had to push him or ask for more speed - he was solid all the way
through.
The sun did decide to make an appearance by the end of the day, just in time
for the awards presentation. Imagine my surprise upon receiving second place
for our division! I was happy just to have completed the ride with my horse in
good shape, so the ribbon was a wonderful bonus. I have a long list of things
to work on before our next ride - first and foremost to replace my saddle with
a lighter model!
Rydyr & Cheyenne w "Riding is a complicated joy.
smw@sos.net ~/o- You learn something each time.
~// It is never quite the same, and
~~( O ) you never know it all."
/ \\
|\ / \ - Monica Dickens
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<---- End Included Message ---->
Rydyr & Cheyenne w "Riding is a complicated joy.
smw@sos.net ~/o- You learn something each time.
~// It is never quite the same, and
~~( O ) you never know it all."
/ \\
|\ / \ - Monica Dickens
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @