We weren't exactly lost....

First , for those who lost a loved one on September 11th, I hope that last night you slept just a little better knowing that Bin Laden is dead. Stand up and salute those who serve. Here's to the land of the free and the Red , White and Blue.


Now, onto yesterday's ride.

I headed out to my usual training ground, a large section of State land, known as Kuhn's. It's about a half hour drive from home but it's actually the closest to me as far as area's to ride. I have ridden this area for 10+ years so I know it pretty well. You can easily ride several 12 -15 mile loops and if your adventurous, you can get more mileage as well. There are plenty of good hills as well as nice long flat areas. It's really a great training area. Yesterday, a friend and I headed there for the first time this season. We planned for an easy 8-9 mile ride.

I had heard the loggers had been in there over the winter, but I didn't worry too much about it since they have been logging small sections in this area for the last several years. The terrain is very heavily wooded and definitely needed some logging, however what we found yesterday was quite surprising.

For the first half of the ride, I mostly knew where I was. Mostly. Atleast well enough to find a few of the trails I was familiar with. The second half of the ride, we somehow managed to get into an area I could not even recognize. It was amazing to me that the logging had changed the look of the landscape to me so much. I kept thinking that something would eventually look familiar but it didn't. So, we just kept riding, figuring eventually it would come out somewhere that we would recognize. It never did. I knew we were quite a ways south of where we needed to be and when we ended up in behind a subdivision I was finally able to recognize, I realized wewere about a mile and a half south of where we needed to be but if we back tracked it was about 3 miles.

Maggie and Zira were starting to get a little tired and so we opted for the shorter route, given it was already after 5:00 p.m. Unfortunately, the shorter route also meant we had to trespass and potentially get shot at or chased by dogs. Sometimes, you have to weigh the odds !!

We cut through a couple of back yards, which was an area known for it's "back woodsy " folks who didn't really like "visitors". Luckily, no one seemed to notice us, or if they did, they didn't bother with us.

We finally made our way out onto the gravel road that I knew would get us back out to the main road. From there, we could then follow that back to where the trailers were parked.

Lesson learned?? There were a couple: First; learn to use GPS I carry for more than just mileage and speed tracking. Second, never sweat getting a little "turned around"..Given the changes to the landscape, it probably won't be the last time I get lost in there this season.

Great Ride Today!

Despite the dark clouds looming, I made plans to meet a friend for an easy condition ride with Maggie this afternoon. After getting what felt like a good start last weekend, and looking at the weather forecast for the coming three days, I was determined to get atleast something in before Sunday. The morning was beautiful but I was stuck working. By the time I was ready to go, I wasn't sure what kind of weather we would end up riding in. I hesitated when I went to hook up the trailer, but ony for a moment. (damn the torpedos....full speed ahead)As I drove south, theweather changed from sun, to wind, to gropple, to rain , to just clouds. Luckily, the clouds held off releasing their heavy burden.

It wasn't a very long ride but we had several little climbs to make our way up. The footing was a bit slippery with mud in places . Maggie only got a little bothered for about a 20 minute period during the entire ride when my friends mare starting her "jigging". Maggie eventually started listening to me and I was able to get her walking flat footed again, which is much better than jigging. Anyone else hate that as much as I do? I see alot of endurance riders who allow their horses to do it. I know for me, it's one of those training issues that drives me crazy. It's terribly uncomfortable and wears both the horse and the rider out.

We finished just in time and then the rain let loose, for about 15 minutes.

That short ride will have to hold for a few days.. there is snow in the forecast... again....

Will it EVER end?

A little Levity- Seven Stages of Aging on Horseback

I am sure some of us might be able to relate?? Atleast on some aspects!


The Seven Stages of Aging on Horseback
>
> Stage 1: Fall off pony. Bounce. Laugh. Climb back on. Repeat.
>
> Stage 2: Fall off horse. Run after horse, cussing. Climb back on by
> shimmying up horse's neck. Ride until sundown.
>
> Stage 3: Fall off horse. Use sleeve of shirt to stanch bleeding. Have
> friend help you get back on horse. Take two Advil and apply ice packs when you
> get home. Ride next day.
>
> State 4: Fall off horse. Refuse advice to call ambulance; drive self to
> urgent care clinic. Entertain nursing staff with tales of previous daredevil
> stunts on horseback. Back to riding before cast comes off.
>
> Stage 5: Fall off horse. Temporarily forget name of horse and name of
> husband. Flirt shamelessly with paramedics when they arrive. Spend week in
> hospital while titanium pins are screwed in place. Start riding again before
> doctor gives official okay.
>
> Stage 6: Fall off horse. Fail to see any humor when hunky paramedic says,
> "You again?" Gain firsthand knowledge of advances in medical technology
> thanks to stint in ICU. Convince self that permanent limp isn't that
> noticeable. Promise husband you'll give up riding. One week later purchase older,
> slower, shorter horse.
>
> Stage 7: Slip off horse. Relieved when artificial joints and implanted
> medical devices seem unaffected. Tell husband that scrapes and bruises are
> due to gardening accident. Pretend you don't see husband roll his eyes and
> mutter as he walks away. Give apple to horse.

> Trust me. Despite a lack of bounce-ability, aging on horseback isn't so
> bad, as long as you know what lies ahead. And as long as you keep your sense
> of humor.

Splendid Days

I just came off two splendid days of riding and I still feeling the euphoria. The weather, for the first time THIS year , was sunny and above 50 degrees. I rode Maggie for 3 hours on Saturday , trying out the new saddle and then 2 more hours on Sunday ( I couldn't help myself!), again in the new saddle. Maggie apparently feels like a rockstar in the saddle. Me? Not so much...I have the beginnings of bruises on the inner thighs but I was willing to sacrifice a little of my own comfort in the name of getting to ride and give Maggie a saddle she could be very comfortable in. The good news is that after riding for 5 hours in the saddle, I think I have the issue figured out. Whether it can be fixed or not remains to be determined. I am working on that with my dealer so more on that in a later post.

***(E.G- if your interested in hearing the details of what I know at this point, I can email you separately since your also having similar issues, just need your email address!)

Today and most of this week, we are back to rain so I am glad I was blessed with two solid days of riding. I have no idea what mileage we covered since I forgot my GPS (too excited to be going out riding I guess!)

MMaggie is feeling very strong and ofcourse , wanting to travel a whole lot faster than I would like her to at this point. We did a lot of walking and a couple of easy hills. I'll admist, I couldn't resist letting her drop into her big Morgan trot for a 1/4 mile. She freally loats in that gait and she loves to travel in it. My guess is as she developes her lungs, muscles and ligaments, this will likely be her most efficeint gait. Last year, she struggled staying in it without breaking into a canter. This year, she seems to have figured it out over the winter all on her own.

Good times ahead ....

The Eurolight has Landed!

It arrived today! I ran right out and got it on Maggie, played with the shims and pads and I think (fingers crossed) I got a halfway decent fit for her. I may need to do a little further tweaking but I have to get her a little more sweated up to see what kind of pattern I am getting.

The fit for me however is a little different story.

It's hitting my inner thighs and quite uncomfortable. I don't know if my ass (oops there I go swearing again) is just too frieken big and I am coming too forward in the seat for their version of a 15" saddle (it's usually the right size for me) or the twist is too wide.

I have an email into the dealer I went through so hopefully it's something we can fix. Otherwise I love it!!But I can't ride in it for any length of time the way it is now.

Where the Hell is Spring????

Cover your ears.. I am going to bitch...and swear... a little..

Snowshowers , hail and thunder storms with snow since last weekend. That is what we have been dealing with. It hasn't accumulated to much more than a couple of inches on the valley floors but several feet are reported in the mountain. It's been one snow squall after another for days.

I get it , really, I live in Northwest Montana, I KNOW we can get snow, even the occasional freak storm in June but THIS??? We haven't even hit 60 yet this spring.. nope not once!! In fact we have only had one or two days in the low 50's We even broke a record since 1917 for not hitting 60 degrees by this time of the year.

GLOBAL WARMING?? my ass ... ( I warned you to cover your ears)

So, when Tamara over at IntheNightFarms posted on FB that she was doing sprints in shorts in the sunshine (while I was looking out at my snow and ice covered horses) I posted that I wanted to cry... she gave me some great advice and I think I'll take her advice..

Excuse me while I go build a snow man and proceed to blow it to smitherenes....

The Eagle has Departed..

FINALY I HAVE A TRACKING NUMBER FOR MY EURO LIGHT!!It should be here next week.

This has been a long process but apparently when I ordered my saddle, there was a back order on the black leather seats. Just my luck.

It was going to delay things a bit. Fine, I could understand that. I was told they should have it by end of week and ship the following week. That was 3 weeks ago. I expected it to arrive last week while I was out of town, but last Friday, nothing. So Monday I called and after alot of confusion about what saddle was mine and why it was delayed , I was told they would ship Tuesday and I would have a tracking number.

When I still didn't have a tracking number yesterday, yep, you guessed it, I called again, exept I think they stopped answering my calls. I left a message just the same..yes, I was losing my patience..

This morning, a tracking message magically appeared. Kowinkidink?? I think not..

So did they just forget or what? I went through a dealer and she had a harder time than me on getting answers from Specialized or even getting return calls.

I think Specialized needs a little help in the customer service arena is all I have to say!