More pics - Overnight + 20 Mile Ride on 7.23/24

Friday evening started off with us maneuvering Sandra's rig into the arena. It was a beautiful semi cool evening.

Here Sandra is setting up her new highline, and showing me how all of the (really great) "dealies" work. The people who designed this equipment certainly knew what they were doing! We only had to tie one knot! It was located on the opposite side of the trailer. On this end, just a couple of wraps on the dealie and it held tight.

Here is the whole set up. You can see how the rope goes up and over the top of the trailer.

We had to tighten the rope several times as it was brand new and still had a lot of stretch in it. The tightener dealie is near Delight's head.

You can see the tightener here a little better. The rope goes between two knobs and then you move the bar horizontally 180* and snap it on to the rope.

The ropes we used to tie the horses to the line were specially designed as well. The lead rope goes through the clip like a pulley and the red bag is filled with sand/rocks so that there isn't a big loop for the horse to get her leg over. This pic was taken before we added the counterweight, so the red bag is at the top rather than pulling the extra rope to the ground.

Delight trying out the feed bags before we were all finished. She probably would stand there all night without being tied if the hay didn't run out.

You can also see the tie rope a little better in this pic.

Tia thought the hay bags were the best part of the whole system too...

... although, she thought she would try to raid the treats first!

After an uneventful night wherein I snored the hours away while Sandra kept a watchful eye on the horses, we left early Sat morn for our ride.

I put Delight's new Renegade hoof boots on for their inaugural ride.

For the most part, I was very happy with them. They were easy to apply and to take off.

Both Delight and Tia will be doing the PF barefoot. They both have great hard feet. The trail is reportedly a nice two track logging road. I bought the Renegades for "just in case."

Heading out on our 20 mile ride.

Going up a draw.









I love Delight, she is my Beauty!

The horses both handled this long ride very well!
 
Sandra, did we ride for 5 or 6 hours?

Anyway, it was my longest ride ever on a horse! It was a little on the difficult side, but I feel pretty confident now that riding 30 miles in 7 hours isn't totally out of the realm of possibility!



 Only TWELVE days left to prepare! I need to get busy on THE List. So many things to remember...

Char

A few more images of us setting up for our overnight in the arena. Tia still trying to help Char with her phone!

Tia examining Char's cell phone/camera, or just looking for a handout.

Char's Morgan mare Delight, sampling hay hanging from her new highline. She already knows what to do, and isn't even hooked up! Good girl Delight!!

We're doing a 20 mile trial run this weekend. I mailed off my registration today, signed up for both days. That would make 55 miles in two days.

Awsome Relaxing Ride Toward Pearl

Geez, where does the time go? It's already Tuesday night, for cryin out loud! Saturday Char and i met at 830 AM in the Emmett hills for another training ride. Discovered a new trail up to the ridgeline, and decided it would be a good one for Pat, Lyn, and other less experienced riders. A very gradual incline all the way up, opening into a lovely meadow/bowl near the crest. Our plan Saturday was to allow our horses to select their own starting pace rather than dictating, and Tia was remarkably quiet and relaxed all the way up the draw, on a completely loose rein and in her Parelli bitless rope bridle. I liked that. I'll start trying to match her energy level from now on instead of making a unilateral decision, my goal being heading out 'together' instead of fussing at each other. I believe she'll settle herself much quicker this way. Besides, I love that she is always so enthusiastic about a new day and adventure and don't want to dampen that!

We did somewhere between nine and ten miles altogether. After reaching the ridge we continued in an easterly direction, generally towards Horseshoe Bend. Decided to explore a second new (to us) trail down the back side, in search of the road to Pearl. I thought I'd seen in on my last map search. We discovered a two-track all the way down, which gave us a chance to ride side by side for a change. Our mares have both demonstrated a willingness to lead or follow, which is a good thing. Ya never know what might happen out on the trail. And it turns out that what startles Delight doesn't phase Tia, and vice versa. I think both mares are growing in confidence as they learn to accept and respect each other's position at any given moment. Speaking about the trail again, we agreed that this one would be good for the greenies too.

Our reward for taking the trail less traveled was a hidden valley surrounded by rolling, still green hills, a few scattered homes, and a gravel road which led us straight away to the Pearl Rd! Once upon a time there was a little town of Pearl in the hills between Emmett and Horseshoe Bend. Although it doesn't really exist any more, the 'road to Pearl' does, and theoretically one could ride all the way to HB. Only seven more miles from where we were, according to a friendly neighbor. As much as I love to explore, and as many times as I've passed the sign pointing to "Pearl, 9 miles", I'd never tried that road. Would make for a pleasant little day trip. To my surprise the 'neighbor' we met turned out to be none other that Sheila Harmon of Destiny Arabians. Char and I had a very pleasant chat with her about what we were up to, our mares, her horses. Turns out between the three of us we had several friends in common! I've known about Sheila and her breeding program for years but had never met her. I'm going to send her our blog address so she can follow our adventure if she'd like. I think she was pleased to see us, because she said we were the first folks she'd encountered on horses since moving to her place there.

We're getting better at finding and measuring our horses' pulse, after some fumbling around with scopes and position. By next month we should have that down. Tia measured 10, 10, and 10 Saturday, which translates into 40, 40, and 40 bpm. So that represents before, immediately after, and 15-30 minutes later. Cardiac recovery index is an important indicator of how a horse is holding up on a distance ride and one measurement used by the vets to help determine whether to allow the horse to continue or not. I believe we need to recover to below 64 bpm within a certain timeframe. If Tia keeps going like she is we won't have any problems there. She's so fit and becoming moreso each week. I hope I can keep up our training pace...Char has been more consistent than me. I plan on some arena work tomorrow morning before the heat sets in. It's been in the 90s and up to 100 lately.

My highline equipment arrived today! Time to plan that overnight in the arena out at the barn teaching our horses to highline. I've been told they catch on pretty quickly, but we can't have any surprises at the PF.

10 Slow(er) Miles

Today Sandra and I had a wonderful 10 mile ride.

We just took it easy and let the girls set the pace. We didn't really have a plan, just to ride.

That plan turned out to be the best!

We followed a two track across country...

....and wound up near the ghost town of Pearl.



A person waved us down and we rode into her driveway. Turns out she was a friend of a friend, and an avid horseback rider!

This is a gate that we dared not pass through! Neither of us felt like pressing our luck...




When we got back to the trailer Sandra was pleased to find that Tia's pulse was the same as when we left that morning!  Three tens for Ti! Delight started at 11 then was 13 as soon as we got back and then was back down to 11 within 30 minutes.

I haven't had this much pure fun in years!

Char

10 Fast Miles

Yesterday I rode Delight for 10 "fast" miles. Compared to a real endurance horse it wasn't fast at all, "only" 6 mph. Big time endurance horses travel anywhere from 8-18mph! It took us about an hour and 45 minutes. We trotted most of the way with a few canters and a few walks in there too. Two times we just stopped to stand underneath the sprinklers in the field. I am glad Delight didn't mind the sprinklers because they were so refreshing!

When we finished Delight's pulse was 72bpm - the highest I have ever recorded it after a ride. Forty minutes later it was 48bpm, still higher than her normal of 40-44 but very close.

For the most part of the ride I let Delight set the pace herself. She really loves to go! She really didn't act like she wanted to slow much until mile 9. In retrospect I wish I would have cut out some of the cantering and finished closer to 2 hours.

I am beginning to think that if we ride a conservative ride at the Flamingo that we will be just fine.

Char

Almost 15 Miles

July 11, 2010

Today Sandra and I got to do another training ride together. It was our longest ride yet, somewhere between 14 and 15 miles. My cell phone died so the last part of our ride wasn't recorded on Endomondo. It took us about 4 hours. For our ride next month we will need to go twice that distance, at a faster speed.

The riders in the 30 mile ride last year who had the longest completion time took 7 hours. Take away one hour for the mandatory hold and it looks like the time limit must be 6 hours. So we will need to travel at about 5mph. Delight can gait at about 4 mph and her trot is about 6-7. Still, that seems so fast!

It feels like this journey is about going farther, faster and outside lots of little boxes in my thinking. I love learning these new things and I love stretching stretching my horsemanship skills.

I worry a little about Delight and I wish sometimes she was taller and younger. She is doing phenomenally - always willing, rarely complaining. Her pulse rates are telling me that she is coming into better condition already.

Char

Eagle Island heart rates 7/14/10

Tia's pulse was 11 at the start of our ride today, and 13 at the end, if I remember correctly. Times that by four.

LSD

OK, for all you innocents who haven't a clue, LSD means 'Long Slow Distance'. No more messing with your minds, I promise...

Random Thoughts, continued

Ordered the high line gear this morning for the PF. It's almost time to schedule a training session for Delight and Tia. Sent a note and heard back from Sally Tarbet regarding aspects of the PF. I wonder if all endurance people are as generous and thoughtful as she is. Wow.

I realized today that I'm already thinking about tomorrow's trip to Eagle Island. Everything we read suggests that horse and rider need lots of LSD to build up strength and endurance. Sally told Char we need to increase the miles on our conditioning schedule. After last week's ride I google-mapped and charted out some distances at the park, so we have an idea where to be tomorrow. I happened to mention to a friend what I'd be doing and she just laughed and said something like riding ten miles at Eagle Island is like trying to swim laps in a kiddie pool! OK, but at least the place has lengthy open meadows to work out on. Reminds me of days back on Fort Buchanan, where we'd head to the 'race track' and run hell bent for election on our horses from one end to the other. Of course back then we never gave thought to the possibility of rocks, holes, bumps, falling off, getting hurt, or anything else practical! Aah, the innocence of youth....Nowadays I'm aware of every little thing that could go wrong. Char and I will be trotting a lot across those hay fields tomorrow...it's LSD (hehe).

All of the above points out the fact that we have much to do and so little time. Can't dwell too long over a previous ride. As far as Sunday is concerned, we got some good walk, trot, canter, and gallop miles under our belts. Another glorious day: blue sky, still green hills, cooling breeze to counter the heat, good friends, and awsome equines. I love the Emmett hills with their pretty little valleys, endless ridgelines, and beckoning draws. So far no snakes, cougars, or other nasties. Just an occasional other soul enjoying life from the back of a horse. How fun is that! And Sunday we had the pleasure of celebrating Char's birthday after our ride--a great feast of slow smoked pork roast and salmon, ribs, watermelon, salads, and three luscious desserts. Costco makes a wicked Red Velvet cake, by the way. Special thanks to our friend Lyn Kinney who generously hosted the gathering. She has a swell place indeed!

Tomorrow I have an early dentist appointment, a trip to Costco, and the ride at Eagle Island, all followed by dinner and fun for the church's junior and senior high youth groups in my back yard at 6:15! What a day!

Random Thoughts

Suddenly, and unexpectedly, I feel overwhelmed by this adventure Char and I have embarked on. So much to learn, so much to remember, so much to do! It's hard to swallow the fact that the older I get the more scatter-brained I become. Frustrating. Or, perhaps because I'm tired tonight I feel stressed. Got to ride more, and longer, according to Sally Tarbet. OK, when to fit it in between work, husband, children, dog, cooking, cleaning, bill paying, yard maintenance, etc., etc. One thing gets done and another doesn't. Where's the respite? Oh yes, it's riding Tia on a beautiful day in Idaho. Circular thinking.

Rode 15 miles yesterday, July 11, with Char and Nancy. Michelle rode with us for the first loop but deferred on the second after Ty worked himself into a lather holding back with Tara on tired little Derby. There's still lots of green in the Emmett hills and we're nearly half-way through July! I suspect it will begin to dry out and turn brown in the next few weeks, considering how hot it's been. Mid to upper 90s. Whew! The earlier we start the better. At least there's a sweet breeze on the ridgelines.

Char and I had planned to do a conditioning ride before the trailride yesterday, but things didn't turn out quite that way. It's just that the larger the group, the more variables come into play. Even with just five horses and riders yesterday became more of a challenge and workout than I expected. My horse is so peculiar. She's fine with just one other horse/rider but goes totally right-brained when more are added. Consequently I work non-stop to manage our ride, and if it's a long one I go home physically and mentally drained. I suspect this actually hinders our preparation. Char and I talked about this yesterday afternoon and acknowledged to ourselves that we must set better boundaries and limits if we're to succeed.

A Terrific Ride

I had a dream one night when I was a teenager (many, many moons ago). When I woke up I decided then that it was the best dream I had ever had.

I have had a few dreams since then, and some pretty wonderful ones too but I have always remembered this one from so long ago.

It looked something like this picture. A beautiful white horse running along a green tree lined meadow. Not a fence in sight. I remember gliding along in the air beside him and then riding him full gallop.

Such a short dream, but the grace and idyllic beauty of it is still with me 30 years later!

Yesterday we rode in a meadow lined with trees all around. The day was bright and beautiful and so were our mares. When we cantered the dream became real. I wasn't riding a big white horse, just my little red Morgan, and I didn't actually fly (that I know of!) but I swear it was so wonderful that it felt like I was dreaming!

Training for this LD has put my riding on a steep learning curve. I have never cantered so long or trotted so far in my adult life. I am learning my seat and my cues by using them - over and over and over!

Sandra shared with me some of the things she used to do with her horses as a kid... most notably swinging up behind a rider flying by and galloping across fields on her horse bareback and in a halter. I remember things too; mostly how I used to just DO it without fear and without thinking twice about it.

The last few years I have struggled some with what I have dubbed AOF - Adult Onset Fear. And it truly has been a struggle. I rarely cantered and then only when the planets were aligned properly.  Training for this ride is teaching me to just get out there and DO it again!

Such freedom I feel, and such gratitude I have for this season in my life!

Char

Char, the article I'm bringing you is from the AERC site. Go to the education section and it's the Rider Handbook. All 37 pages! But I'm going to bring it to you anyway. I like having a hard copy in front of me.

Adding Links

Char, what do I click to add a link? I can't figure that out.

Eagle Island State Park, 7/7/2010

I am still on cloud nine! This has been about the best day I've had in a long time, and the most fun I've had with Tia ever!!! Char and I trailered over to Eagle Island State Park mid day, and rode for a couple of hours or so. It's not too far from the barn, so easily accessed on short notice or if time is limited. I paid for a season pass for my truck...now we can go any time we want and not worry about finding five dollars each time.

The horses were the tiniest bit reluctant to load in my straight-load trailer, but with patience we succeeded, and off we went. Char, I like that you aren't one of those people who are in a big hurry to get a horse into a trailer. I hate forcing Tia in, and would rather give up a ride and practice trailer loading, if that's what it took.

We weren't prepared for the swarms of mosquitos we encountered at the park. There was a lot of standing water on and near our trails which, of course, we wanted our girls to walk through, LOL! So with every step we unleashed a new assault on us and the horses. Little kamikaze dive bombers having at us nonstop. AND, not only did we forget to spray the horses for bugs, but we forgot anything to protect ourselves. Next time we'll be prepared, for sure.

The trail was rocky in parts, but most of it was flat and smooth, either nice two track or grassy meadows. We came off one little trail into a lovely meadow that had recently been mown, baled, and hauled away. It must have been three to five acres, split into two sections by an irrigation ditch. Perfect place to do some serious trotting. And before we knew it our horses were both floating across the grass in a happy canter! I was so pleased with Tia. She took up the canter on her own initiative and maintained a nice steady pace all the way across. We've not done too much cantering together so I was cautious and ready for anything, but except for one little moment of right-brained emoting on Tia's part we just had a glorious romp! I'm convinced Tia loved it as much as I, and as I found my 'canter seat' so to speak and the right amount of contact on the reins, we both became more confident. Tia even transitioned into a canter at my signal at least once! Geez, I'm so pumped up I can hardly find the right words!

Char had her endomondo on and working for us during most of the ride so we collected some good data about time and distance. We think we did 7-8 miles today. Not bad. Without my glasses I'm blind as a bat any more so I wasn't much help at reading the thing, but she's figuring it out pretty well. We also tried for pulse before and after our ride, but I don't think either of us is convinced we have that buttoned down just yet. In addition to being blind, I can't hear worth a damn any more, so it was hard to even find a pulse, let alone stay on it for fifteen seconds. Getting older really stinks! Well, we think Ti had the same pulse, 44bpm, before, immediately after, and upon return to the barn. Delight was at something like 36, 44, 32 if I remember correctly. Yeah Char, my short term memory is gone too. See what you have to look forward to? And let's see, your birthday is when? Ha ha!

So that's my version of our Eagle Island ride this afternoon, and I'm sticking with it! Can hardly wait for our next adventure!

Char also brought along copies of a training article she found, and a calendar to record our information on. Thanks Char.

A New Toy

So, I have a new toy. It is an application on my cell phone that was designed for joggers and bikers and outdoor sportsmen. It is called "Endomonto."

This morning I turned it on before I did chores and this is the readout that I got:

I have it set to automatically upload data to Facebook when I complete a ride. It also has a setting where I can allow people to watch me live. And they can send me text messages too, which are turned into audio by the program so that I can hear them as I travel along.

I have no idea if it will work when I train in an arena, but I am really excited about the data that I will get when I am working out on the trail.

It works off of GPS satellites rather than cell phone reception so even when we are in the hills it should record our progress.You can also use certain heart rate monitors and save that data. I have no idea if there is a horse heart monitor which would be compatible with this program.

I think maybe the best feature of Endomonto is - it is FREE!

Char

First training ride, chapter 2

My last several rides have been a battle of wills between Tia and me. She always wants to go, go, go, as in walk very fast, but on a ride with many people and horses you can really only go as fast as the slowest person/equine team in the group. Also, Ti is very alpha and tends to get ugly if other horses get into her bubble. So, I wondered how she would behave around Char's morgan mare Delight. We've decided to try a limited distance (25-30 mile) ride in August, and want to train together. Our first outing, on Saturday morning, turned out much better than I predicted. Ti and Delight didn't bug each other at all! They walked at about the same pace, which meant that neither Char nor I had to work very hard and we had a blast. The weather was picture perfect. Temperature in the 70's, clear sky, green hills, fresh air, and nothing much but the sound of the Emmett hills just being hills. Quiet and peaceful. I loved it. Char is the best company.

We played around with trying to take our horses' pulse. It's harder that it looks! But we didn't do so badly for a first try. Ti's preride pulse was in the low/mid 50s. It was about the same at the end, and down to about 40 bpm after a thirty minute rest. I'm pleased.

The Pink Flamingo

 This is our first big goal: The Pink Flamingo. We want to do the 30 mile portion.

Wow! Today riding a horse 30 miles in one shot sounds like such a long distance!

The flyer says: "Ride both days-any horse-any distance and win a blanket/sheet for your horse."  The motto for distance riding is "to finish is to win", and I should be happy with a finish, but I am already greedily coveting a blanket for my Delight! Hopefully, I will be able to ride at least the trail ride, if not the 30 miler on the second day and win one!

Maybe it will be hot pink like this one?

The ride will be in beautiful Cascade Idaho, in the mountains where there are trees and green meadows. It's part of Sandra's family's old stomping grounds, she reports that it is a lovely place to be. I am hoping that her family and some of mine come along and camp out with us... ( heh heh, haven't mentioned to any of my family that they may need to be part of the "crew" - that there might be a little work involved for them... shhhh don't tell them!)

Today I rode an arena conditioning ride. I started with 15 min of trotting then alternated 4 minutes of cantering with 4 min of trotting for about 30 minutes or so. I think this is going to be a suitable routine for us. I can use it as easily on the trail as in the arena. Now I just need to find a watch with REALLY big numbers!

First ride out

July 3,2010

Today Sandra and I went on our first ride out together. We rode in the Emmet foothills behind the Little Gem Motorcycle Park. The weather was perfect, we had a nice breeze and the flowers were blooming. It was a glorious first outing

Our horses were models of equine good behavior - well as good behavior as can be expected from a couple of sassy mares! The girls got along well and they both prefer a similar pace heading down the trail.

We spent time learning how to take our horses' pulse. Delight started at 40 bpm then was   bpm immediately after the ride. Thirty minutes later she was back down to 44bpm. I really think she would have been 40 or lower but a truck pulled up with several dogs in the back just was we were listening to her heart. I'm pretty sure they helped her heart beat faster! I am pleased that she already has a good base of fitness to begin this journey.

I feel like I have so much to learn and so many ways to grow in this short month before the ride. Can't wait. Let's ride!

Official Day One of Our LD Adventure

I set my mental alarm clock for six AM this morning. Wanted ample time to get myself and my horse to Emmett for our first training ride with Char. I was up bright and early, mostly because the mental alarm thing usually just prevents me from sleeping well. It didn't take long to shower, eat, pack up, and head out to the barn. Time flies when you're having fun, or even anticipating fun! Got the trailer hooked up. Now that's no easy feat considering where it's parked. Very very tight quarters and a 90* angle . No problem! Trailer loaded with gear, and time to collect the equine. Tia hasn't been in my little straight-load for over a year, so I wondered what she'd do. What she did was argue with me for about 20 minutes before going in, the little brat! And off to Emmett we went. I'll admit I was somewhat nervous, since I hadn't pulled the trailer in a while and because we had to go down FreezeOut Hill. BIIIIIGGGGG long downhill for me in my little old pickup and trailer. And, because I was already thinking about having to drive back UP and over! I think Ti was just nervous about being in that tiny space by herself for the drive. The long and short of it is that we made it in one piece, including a gas stop in Emmett before heading to our meeting spot. Whew! Phase one complete! Check.