Endurance Season 2012 Begins!!

Rode the Kenlyn today with my great friend, Melissa!  The weather was perfect and the ride was even more perfect.  My horse is not in top condition, so I wanted to take it slow.  I got a very late start leaving the house and was hustling to get registered and ready to ride.  We left about 5 minutes after the group and ended up going the wrong way for about 2 miles (1 mile out, 1 back).  We lost 30 -45 minutes but we were both planning to have a low stress ride and didn't let it bother us.

The first loop on this 25 mile race is about 17.5 miles.  This was a lot for Zarah and felt guilty for not having prepared her better.  However, she got almost all A's on her vet card (B for gut sounds) at the midway vet check and she seemed ok.  I got her a good mash and water and hay and she ate for about 45 minutes before it was time to go again.  

She did NOT want to go again!  She was very resistant and we had to have quite a discussion before we got going.  Kholo was the same for Melissa, unfortunately.  Once we got going she was ok, though.  Of course, she hauled butt coming back in on the 2nd loop and we did lots of cantering so we could make it in time to get a completion.  For the first time in my life, I got the TURTLE AWARD!  I was the very last finisher as Kholo pulsed down a few seconds before Z.  

I would do it all again.  I had a blast with Melissa, I love being with my horse, the weather was amazing and the challenge was awesome.  I'm looking forward to a great 2012 of 50's starting in July.  Z and I have some training to do!  

I love my life.  

50 Miles with Z

50 mile endurance ride at Turkey Creek in Colorado Springs.

Barefoot the whole ride!!!

25 and 25, only 1 vet hold. All A's though and good heart rate recovery.

stopped at mile 19 to fill her gut. Just felt like I needed to.

she didn't want to keep leaving camp, that was tough. Good to know for future rides.

the 2nd half, rode with a small group. I really like riding alone. I think I prefer it.

Used my Barefoot with the new wool seat. It worked great!

Z was so strong and really happy to go. She is such an awesome endurance horse. I look forward to campaigning her next season. Starting early and racing often.

1st Place in Middleweight Division 30 miler at Rushcreek

Wow, what a day. My Z-mare is amazing. We've done a few 15 mile events over the years and I've always wanted to do more. However, between Parelli, riding with less endurance-minded friends, and life in general have gotten in the way. I decided to drive to the Rushmore Reunion ride with no horse friends - only my family... and my dog Deuce. We arrived late, around 9:30pm and I know Z was stressed from the drive and the strange environment. The ride start was 6:15am with vet checking at 5:30. Yikes, that's early.

I got her settled and Steve and the kids left for their hotel. After a rough and short night's sleep, we checked in, tacked up and got ready to leave. At 6:15-ish, we were off. I decided to hang back with a nervous rider and enjoy a slow start. I figured I'd save Z and make sure we had enough to get us through the 30 miles. After the first mile or so, things were settled and I decided to let her open up and move out. Boy, she really moved out!! We passed people 1 after another and by around mile 8, we were with the lead group. I couldn't believe her. She had no interest in hanging with the horses we passed, she just wanted to move those legs in that amazing extended trot of hers. She was amazing and that ride was a thrill!!

We came in at the vet hold in the front of the pack. We did our short hold (only 40 minutes!) and we headed out again. She had the same power stride and desire to cover ground. She'd eaten well at the hold, so I felt pretty good about letting her go. We led the whole 2nd loop and came in to the finish first. I wish my family had been there to get a picture of us coming in. It was an amazing feeling to finish before everyone else!!

She didn't pulse down quickly enough and the 3 other riders that finished close behind us timed in before us. I wasn't sorry a bit, though. She wanted to be the first in. She really wanted it. She's not as conditioned as I'd like her to be, but she's got what it takes to excel in endurance. We ended up with 1st place

in our division (MW), 4th place overall and a top ten award. We were done at 9:51, which makes our 30 mile ride time 3:36 minutes which includes the 40 minute hold. I just can't believe how fast we were going. I couldn't believe how easily she passed every other rider. What's even cooler is that she was barefoot!

What a great ride! What a great horse I have! And so thankful my family came to support my horse and me.

Conditioning!!

A fantastic ride on Z at Highline Canal for 14 miles with Melissa and Kholo! Rode in my Barefoot and I dare say I'm starting to like it. Z felt great - she's ready for the Happy Jack. Kholo has great endurance - we're going to have a blast.

Came home and hopped on Starlet briefly and helped Chrissy get through a short riding session with her horse Cowboy. She hasn't ridden him in months, so I was glad she hopped on. She didn't seem very scared at first but she had a hard time getting him to go along with her ideas at first. Starlet felt nice and we trotted a little until it started to rain.

It's really time to get Starlet going!

Kendalls first endurance ride!

Awesome! Just a 15-miler, not an official endurance ride (25 is the minimum for AERC recognition). But nonetheless, it's a dedicated trail ride with a start, a finish, vet checks, a route to follow, fellow racers, and competition in the air. My daughter was an amazing trooper and I'm so very proud of her!


We had some interesting adventures and some challenging moments for sure. The weather started out beautiful, but by 10am the wind machine was on and we were riding in 25mph winds. It was tough because we could barely hear each other talk right next to each other. It's also a very urban ride, so we had soccer games with flags blowing everywhere, a golf course with golfers whacking balls next to us, and a shooting range with non-stop gunfire. Whoo! Rain is fairly unflappable with that stuff, but Z had some trouble spots and I had to get her brain working again a few times.

We crossed very deep water repeatedly (16 crossings) with several so high I had to lift my legs to keep my boots dry! Kendall loves water crossings, so that was fun for her. At one point, we were trotting along and in the high grass didn't see a big ditch in the ground that had colorful pipes in it. Z spooked hard and I went off to the side. I believe Rain spooked a bit when Z did and Kendall jumped off of her! We were fine, Kendall laughed about jumping off her big horse and we got back on and kept going.

Kendall also had a moment where when bolted for about 50 ft - that scared her but she was a champ, dodging branches and staying in the saddle anyway. She had another moment where Rain decided she really wanted to roll in the soft sand. Ha! We had a good laugh over that and Kendall jumped off in time.

The big thing for me was realizing that I'm not as good for Z when I ride with Kendall. I'm so watchful of Kendall that sometimes Z is getting more and more afraid and I'm not dealing with it well. I learned that it is so much better to deal with her anxiety as soon as it appears rather than riding her afraid even for 10 strides. I also want to teach Kendall to ask Rain to sidle up to her on a mounting block or obstacle so she can mount herself. I always help her up, but she needs to know how to get on the big horse herself. It was an emotionally challenging day for me, but I'd do it again in a minute. I loved it!

Endurance Racing and Controlled Catastrophe!

Wow, I had the kind of horse day I dream about. It was just a phenomenal day. Started out with an early rise for the endurance race my friend and I decided to enter. Awake at 6am, watching the clouds and checking weather.com. Endurance in the rain? Bring it on, Mother Nature!

It was about 45 degrees, perfect for energetic horses and long-riding! I decided to use Rain a couple weeks earlier since Z and I are about to tape our L3 Freestyle. Nothing messes up bridleless riding like a fast ride with adrenalin in the air. We'll get there, just not yet. Rain and I had done a few conditioning rides but not enough for a 25 mile race. Tammy, my riding bud, felt the same. We didn't want to ask our girls for 25 miles w/o prior and proper preparation, so the 15 mile was our only option. Perfect distance for the first race of the season!

Tammy's mare is a large Thoroughbred and she can be pretty right-brained. She was nervous and it was obvious. We got through registration and vet check and went back to tack up to go. I didn't have my english girth (CRAP!) so I rode in my western saddle. No big deal - it's heavier but Rain is a strong horse and the western displaces weight very nicely. I, of course, rode her in the rope hack - like always.

About 9:03, we headed off for our first loop. We would ride a loop, vet check, rest for an hour, then go back out for a 2nd loop. The first loop was great fun, but Tammy's horse was pretty excited. She was worried and up and jigging and using a lot of energy. Rain was calm and did a great job, as I expected. She had a good amount of energy and was willing to move out quite nicely, often cantering for good stretches.

Rain pulsed out at 52 at the 1/2 way and 52 again at the finish. That's pretty good considering I haven't ridden her very much at all and she's only somewhat conditioned. I found myself many times wishing I was riding Z with all her go and spunk! I love Rain, but I appreciate a more energetic horse.

It took longer than I expected to finish the race, but I was so glad we did it. It was a great day!

When I got home, I took a lesson with Kime. I had it set up that I'd lesson with Kime on Z right after the race. The weather was falling apart and by the end of the 3 hour lesson, it was raining on us. However, I had a fantastic lesson! I learned a ton of new things and it was all about Freestyle. We worked on squeezing over a jump, she helped me tweak my bridleless riding and my seat (open the inside leg in the turn instead of closing the outside leg), worked a ton on moving back w/o reins.

Kime said a lot of what she was doing was just tweaking and that felt great to hear! I've obviously had good sessions with Z where we've made positive changes and I'm so proud of what we've accomplished. We are ready to film!

Other noteworth things with Kime:

- butterfly reins for jumping, focus out and up
- controlloed catastrophe - someone on the ground doing scary things and then riding what your horse offers while using butterfly reins to keep the horse facing the catastrophe
- disengaging the hindquarters and taking backwards steps after each squeeze
- disengagement and then moving the fore and walking off with fluidity
- freestyle disengagement - picking up the reins, straight arm, then running your hand down to get your disengaging rein
- lots of jumping with fluidity - butt staying in the saddle

Endurance Conditioning!

Did a great 8 mile fast ride with Tammy on Rain and we are going to do the Kenlyn Endurance ride on Saturday morning. I'm excited! I've done that one every year for 3 years, this will be my 4th. It's close by, flat and sandy, easy and fast. And I get a t-shirt! Whoo-hooo! :-)

I was going to use Z, but I decided I didn't want to mess up our Freestyle riding with a fast and potentially bracey endurance ride.

Looking forward to Saturday!

Z's first endurance ride!!

We did the Kenlyn Urban Challenge today. Stoney and I on Cowboy and Zarah. We won it!! Since it's an unofficial ride, there are no prizes except for bragging rights. I'm cool with that! It was a great ride and the horses were not at all tired at the end. There was plenty of horse left after the 15. The vet even told us we'd done a great job conditioning our horses! Quite a complement. I've got the fever big time now. I'm checking the endurance calendar and starting to run more to get myself in better shape to help cover the longer rides. Zarah was full of life and there were a couple times where she didn't want to transition down. We'll keep working on that. I love my life.

Took Cowboy home and brought Rain back to our ranch. She'd been at Jen's and I missed her terribly. Jen and Kirk were happy to see Cowboy looking so fit, but it made them realize he's probably not the horse they want for their 2nd. He'll probably be on the market soon. He's an amazing horse and worth some serious money - easily $5k to $6k. I think he's great and if I had room in my life for another, I'd keep him. I can't have 4.

The pad system I used didn't work so great - I used the Equipedic with shims and she had dry spots just behind the withers. Arrrgghhh! I'll keep figuring that out.

A great day!