Posse Ride (long, very long!)

[Ajsclassgs@aol.com]

We (Drin Becker, Ellen Snoeyenbos, and Anne Kennedy) went to a really
wonderful ride this past weekend in Northwestern Montana.  It was the Posse
Ride put on by the Missoula Sherriffs Posse.   Each year the Posse takes the
proceeds from this ride and uses it for a program I believe is called Why I
Want a Horse, where they buy a special horse for a handicapped/special needs
child.  

We knew it would be a very well attended ride, so we left with plans of
getting there early enough to get a good spot.  Guess what, by the time we got
there (shortly after lunch) the place was packed.    But the camp site is
really ideal.  It is a church camp called Camp Utmost with a big open flat
area in front of the "chow hall" and bathrooms (with real showers).  The Posse
was there to direct traffic, and as there were three trailers in our group and
of course we all wanted to park together, at that "late hour" it posed a few
problems, but they managed to squeeze us in back behind the kitchen  in the
trees.  It turned out to be really nice spot and very close to the vet checks.

Friday night was spent visiting with friends from all over, eating a fabulous
steak dinner with every kind of imaginable salad and dessert provide by the
Posse as well.  We then spent the rest of the evening getting ready for the
next morning's rides, sharing a cup of hot chocolate and finally hitting the
sack.  Drin had to be up first, as she was riding Bo in the 100 (we let her be
our alarm clock).  We saw her off on the trail riding with Kathy Arnold (from
Wyoming) at 6:00 AM in the dark and then Ellen and I got Dyskrete and Guy
ready for their ride at 7:00.  We headed out on the trail and up a steep rocky
canyon.  My first thought was "Oh boy, I hope it's not all this rocky".  It
wasn't!  The trail wound about in the Ponderosa Pine forest mostly on old
grassed logging roads, and also on some forest trails.  Trail was four loops
that were laid out different directions, but occasionally intersecting long
enough to meet up with other riders doing other distances and say Hi.  Our
first loop was 25 miles and Guy just trucked along great (he never gets
rattled).  Dyskrete was antsy and wanted to zoom, so it kept me very busy
keeping her back where she should be.  She finally setled down just before our
first vet check at 25 miles.  Both Dyskrete and Guy passed with flying colors,
and we had a chance to say Hi to Drin as she headed out on her next loop.
Even with 112 riders and 4 rides (25, 50 75, & 100) , the vet lines were so
well organized that you really didn't have to wait more than a couple minutes
to get through your check.  We had an hour hold at 25 miles, so we took the
horses back to their pens to relax and grab a bite to eat.  Guy ate like crazy
and Dyskrete just relaxed (I think she thought she was done).  Our next loop
was only 14 miles, so that went quite quickly, but Dyskrete's gut sounds had
dropped to a C, so even though this check was a "stop and go", I opted to hold
her at the trailr and get her to eat.  Ellen went on ahead without us.
Dyskrete and I stayed at the trailer for almost an hour, during which she
devoured the lunch she had ignored earlier.  We headed out on the trail to do
our last 11 miles and about the time we hit the lake, Dyskrete knew there was
a horse behind us.  We stopped and waited a minute, and it was Kathy, we
chatted as we trotted Pete and Dyskrete through the trees.  Kathy got a real
kick out of my one squeeky stirrup, as it had the squirrels up and down the
trail going nuts and talking to us. Kathy warned me, as we approached the
river crossings on this loop, that these could be treacherous as the rocks
were very big and slick (Drin was forced to pull Bo after he had bruised a
front leg at these crossings).  We took our time and made it safely across,
then trotted out till just outside of camp, where I got off and walked
Dyskrete the rest of the way in.  What a rewarding feeling to have the vet
tell me she looked like she was ready to do another 25 miles and to know that
our earlier stop had payed off with finishing an A.  Ellen had come in only 10
minutes ahead of us, as she had walked Guy in from the 2nd river crossing
after he had slipped.  We all pampered the hardest working members of the
teams (the horses) visited a bit more, enjoyed the awards ceremonies (Great T-
shirts) watched the 4 100-milers all finish within seconds of each other, and
then hit the hay.   

Sunday morning I awoke to Ellen rattling buckets in the dark (How many buckets
can that girl have I wondered.)  Drin and I rolled out and fed our troops too
and then we started breaking camp.  We pulled out of camp trying to remember
to thank as many people as we could for the great ride and camp.  

We stopped in Deer Lodge for breakfast and to check oil and found that much to
Drin's dismay that while we had camped, a packrat had moved into her engine
compartment and had chewed insulation off of everything and had built an
elaborate nest on top of her oil fill cap.  What a mess!  She has written me
on the e-mail and she did make it home, but her hubby said there was a lot of
damage from the little critter.  Ellen and I also checked our engines, Ellen
found nothing, while I found where he had enjoyed a couple of apples under my
truck's hood, I guess I'm glad my truck was the kitchen and not his bedroom.

And I never tire of the last thrill of these rides.  To unload my horse and
watch her streak out across the pasture with her tail high.  I know she's
tired, but she's strong and healthy and beautiful.

Anne & the Horses in Montana
Dyskrete, Stuffy, Hadia, & Tifla