Riding With Madison

It was a hot muggy day today. But, I really wanted to take Madison riding and knew we'd be going slow so it would be ok. Madison went out to the barn with me to help feed. Then, she cleaned the manure out of my horse trailer while I cleaned Marie's stall. I usually clean my trailer as soon as I get home but I'd gotten home so late last night and my interior light's aren't working in the trailer so I left it for today. Madison did a good job and I had her load Marie into the trailer and then I loaded Luke. I took her over to Upper Pond Stables to ride as the trails behind the barn are wide and easy. An easy place to pony Marie as I'm not quite ready to let Madison on her own out on the trail. Luke is so good about ponying Marie. We did a few circuits around the trails and circled the pond. The second time around I walked the horses into the water. Madison and I were excited to spot some fairly large fish in the pond. I don't know what kind they were. When we got back to the barn, I went into the outdoor arena and took the lead line off Marie and had Madison ride on her own following me. She did a great job. It was a fun ride!

Hummm, need to work on that hand position. LOL

Marking Trails for Stetson TROT Ride

Cindy on Luke and Cierra on Tinkerbell 

Another great adventure with Cierra and the super horse, Tinkerbell! There was a TROT (Trail Riders of Today) ride this Saturday in Stetson, ME. Most of the TROT riders are on a Sunday so I am never able to go to them. But this one was on a Saturday and I wanted to go and take Cierra. But my granddaughter Madison was coming to spend the weekend and I wanted to spend Saturday with her too. She is learning to ride but not ready yet for a long group trail ride. My friend Amy was the one sponsoring the ride and she invited me to come up on Friday to ride the trails when she went out to mark them. I jumped on that opportunity and was even happier when I asked Cierra to join me and she was able to go also. 

The plan was to meet at Amy's house at 1:00 pm. This would be good as Cierra and I both had to work at Upper Pond Stable in the morning. Cierra's mom was busy Friday morning so I was able to kidnap Cierra for the entire day. When we were done work, I had to make a quick run to the feed store, then went home, fed Luke and Marie and quickly cleaned the barn. We had time to spare so we went in the house and had lunch. Then I did a few quick house chores and got a little behind on time. So, we went out and quickly loaded up Luke and headed back to Upper Pond to pick up Tinkerbell. I put Tink's boots on while Cierra put her things in my trailer. We loaded Tink in the front stall so Luke could have the larger back stall for the ride to Stetson. I had to make a quick stop for gas and then the Dunkin Donut across the road was calling to me and though I was running a little late, I just HAD to have an ice coffee and picked up a box of Munchkins to share with everyone after the ride. We then hit the road and I had Cierra text Amy to let her know we were running a bit late. Amy sent a message back to meet her in Newport instead of her house as she was going to pick up her friend Michele first since I was running late anyway. This worked out fine and from Newport, I followed Amy to Stetson. We had a nice big field to park in. Judy and Betsy were already there. We quickly groomed, tacked up and were soon ready to ride. The trails were really nice. A mix of dirt road, tote road and corn fields. The pace was slow and relaxed as Amy was busy marking the trail. There were a lot of apple trees along the ride and Luke thought that was the best thing ever. He quickly figured out he could sniff them out on the ground if I didn't pull them off the trees to offer to him quickly enough. Going through the cornfields I did my best to keep him from eating any corn stalks as I'm sure they are sprayed with pesticides. We passed one farm with some very large pigs in a pen near the road. I have never been by pigs with Luke before. He watched them with curiousity but was not too concerned about them. Cierra's horse Tinkerbell really gave them the hairy eyeball. She has seen pigs many times as when she was in NC, they would come into her pasture. Cierra said she would go after them with the intent to kill! We went by a logging operation and none of the horses seemed bothered by that. All the horses were very good the whole ride and got along very well for the most part. There was just one little tiff between Tink and Moxie but it was very minor. The last part of the trail was a dirt road we'd started out on and was already marked. So, Cierra, Amy and I took the opportunity to move out and do some trotting and we got in one nice canter up a gradual hill. Cierra and Tink quickly took the lead but Tink stayed nice a quiet and it was a lovely canter. 

When we got back to the trailer, we offered Luke and Tink water. Luke drank but Tink had taken a good drink out on trail and was not interested. We untacked them and sponged them both off. When everyone was back, I brought out the Munchkins and they quickly disappeared. We fed Luke and Tink their supper's that we'd brought with us knowing it would be a late day. I planned to stop for supper on the way home so Cierra and I both changed into cleaner clothes and made ourselves as presentable as possible. We stopped to eat at the Irving station in Newport. They have a nice restaurant there. Cierra was a bit nervous about leaving Luke and Tink alone in the trailer to go into the restaurant. Luke is used to this and Tink has gotten to be very relaxed in my trailer so I knew they would be fine. We dropped the windows so they could hang their heads out and watch. They love to do this. We had a very nice supper and when we got back out to the trailer, Tink and Luke were happily munching may and watching out their windows. We had an uneventful but pleasant drive home, chatting and singing along with the radio. It was nearly 9:00 pm when I dropped Cierra and Tinkerbell off at Upper Pond. Pam was there to meet us and helped unload Cierra's things. Then I took Luke home and tucked him in for the night with a big hug and thanked him for yet another great ride. It was a fun day! 

Cierra on Tinkerbell, Amy on Moxie, Betsy on Cricket,
Judy on Lilly and Michele on Mette

Cierra on Tinkerbell

I don't know what this is but thought it was pretty

Cierra on Tinkerbell, Judy on Lilly and Michele on Mette

Judy on Lilly and Betsy on Cricket

Amy mounting up on Moxie

Amy on Moxie

Amy on Moxie marking trail

Amy on Moxie marking trail

Just though the flowers were pretty

Michele on Mette

Betsy on Cricket and Judy on Lilly
(notice the matching outfits and even matching saddle pads.)

Michele on Mete, Judy on Lilly, Cierra on Tinkerbelle,
and Amy on Moxie

Luke's ears, Michele on Mette, Betsy on Cricket, Cierra on Tink
Amy on Moxie and Judy on Lilly

Cierra on Tinkerbell and Amy on Moxie

Amy on Moxie 

Cindy on Luke, Cierra on Tinkerbell, Betsy on Cricket and Judy on Lilly

Cindy on Luke coming down the hill

Cindy taking a picture of Amy taking a picture of me

Riding in Topsham with Susie and Cierra

Cierra and I went riding with Susie in Topsham today. I don't know the trails there very well so was glad to have the chance to go with Susie as she knows the trails quite well. I sent a message to Andrea, who owns Louie mule, to see if she could go. She was not able to join us but let us know there is some logging going on along the first part of the road we'd ride in on. We didn't think this would bother any of our equines so we decided to go. I picked up Cierra and Tinkerbell at Upper Pond and met Susie in Topsham right on time. We tacked up and headed out. It was a nice day, though a bit on the humid side. The flies weren't bad though and for that we were grateful. Susie was riding her mare, Dixie. As we thought, the horses and Luke were not at all concerned about the logging operation. When we passed Andrea's house, Luke was happy to see Louie but we didn't stop to let them visit. We had a wonderful ride. We did some nice trotting and had a few places to get in some cantering also. Louie, Dixie and Tink got along very well and were very calm and relaxed. We climbed up one short steep hill with "S" turns that led out onto the power line. I took some pictures there as it was very pretty. On the way back when we passed Andrea's house again, Luke balked a little as he wanted to stop and visit with Louie. He didn't make much fuss though. Back at the the trailer we untacked and then hosed the horse and Luke off at the house across the road from where we park. The woman who owns the house had told us we were welcome to use the hose anytime we came. It was much appreciated! It was a great ride. Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted the picture off my camera before I downloaded them to my computer. RATS!

Mt. Pisgah with Cierra

Cierra on Tinkerbell

Cierra and I were finally able to get out riding together today. We both worked at Upper Pond Stable this morning and made plans to meet back at the stable at noon time when I would pick her and her horse, Tinkerbell up. I had to do some hard thinking on where to take Cierra to ride as I wanted to take her somewhere she hadn't been before. I decided to take her to Mt. Pisgah in Winthrop. I had not ridden there this year so it would be fun for me also. 

I got to Upper Pond right on time. Cierra was almost ready to go. She just needed a little help to get all of Tinkerbell's boots on. I decided to have Cierra load her in the back spot on my trailer. Tinkerbell has been doing so well with loading and trailering that I felt she was ready to self load. She did wonderful. Today I was riding my horse Marie. I have to get the old girl out myself now and again. I parked at the usual spot at the old fire station. We quickly tacked up and were on our way. We rode the short distance up Mt. Pisgah Rd. to the gravel pit, through there and out to the trails that go around Nancy's bog. The first part of the trails were wetter than usual. It was no problem but had me worried as the 2nd half of the ride has some muddy spots even when it's been dry. We trotted where we could along the Soper Rd. trail out to Turkey lane. Turkey Lane is a quiet paved road with a shoulder along most of it and trotted the length of this road to Dorothy Egg Farm where the trail goes back into the woods. I was much relieved that this part of the trail, that is usually wet, was dryer than usual. There were still some muddy spots but none of it was bad. And most of it was very nice. Just after coming through one muddy spot, I turned to see if Tinkerbell had all her boots on. She did but one was all undone and about to come off! I'm sure glad I looked when I did. We tried to fasten it back on but there was so much mud in the velcro that it would not stick. We finally found a mud hole with just enough water in it to rinse out the velcro. Once Cierra had as much of the mud cleaned off as she could, I put the boot back on Tinkerbell and it fastened up just fine and we were good to go. When we came to the turn in the trail that goes to the top of Mt. Pisgah, I got off Marie and led her up the steepest part. After all, she is getting older and I'm no light weight. Once up in the meadow, we stopped so I could catch my breath, then I mounted back up and we rode the rest of the way to the top. When we got out on the tower road, we did a nice canter. When we stopped, Cierra looked back, and with a startled look told me there was something seriously wrong with one of Marie's feet! I jumped off to look and she was fine. But one of her boots had popped off her foot but was still attached to her pastern so the boot was sitting on top of her hoof and it looked very strange indeed. I put her boot back on and we continued to the top of Mt. Pisgah. There is no view to be seen from the top from the ground. But there is a fire tower there and the view from the tower is spectacular. I held the horses while Cierra climbed to the top of the tower with my camera to get some photos. Then she climbed it a second time so I could take a photo of her on the tower. We hung out and relaxed there for a bit letting the horses graze. When we mounted back up, I noticed a new trail going in the direction we wanted to go so I decided to try it and see if it was passable for the horses. It turned out to be a lovely trail but most likely meant for hikers on foot. The footing was very good but some of the trail led between trees that were close together. Good old knee knockers. We both managed to keep our knees intact and undamaged thanks to our two trusty mounts. We had to clamor over a few stone walls but all were pretty easy. At one point I missed the trail and Cierra spotted it and got in front of me. She stayed in the front for a little bit and we came to a creek crossing that was a little ditchy. Tinkerbell stopped to look it over, then looked back at Marie as if to ask if it was safe to cross. Apparently Marie told her it was ok as Tinkerbell faced it again, then gathered up and very neatly jumped it. Of course both of the horses had to poop on this trail so I got off and kicked the poop off the trail as I was not sure we were allowed to be on this trail. The trail eventually came out just above the meadow at the top of the steep part of the climb up the mountain. Tinkerbell handled the steep descent extremely well and our ride back to the trailer was uneventful and pleasant. It was such a lovely day and the flies weren't bad at all. Tinkerbell had taken a drink out on trail but drank again back at the trailer as did Marie. We sponged them off and loaded them up putting Tinkerbell in the back spot again. I was happy to find I had some snack bars in the trailer as we'd been riding for 3 1/2 hrs. and we were both hungry! On the drive home we munched snack bars, gabbed and sang with the radio. It was a good day! 



If you look hard, you can see Cierra in the top of the firetower



Cierra took a picture of me holding Tinkerbell and Marie at the base of the tower

Northeast Challenge 50 mile Endurance Ride

Photos of me on Luke and crossing the finish line by Wanda Clowater

I decided to enter the 50 mile distance at the Northeast Challenge ride. When I got the notice from ECTRA that the Maine Ride in October was being changed from a 2 day 50 mile ride to a 3 day 80 mile ride, I now had a chance to earn the versatility award if I could complete the 50 mile endurance ride. So, the 50 mile ride it was! I had packed for the ride early in the week so there was no last minute rush to get ready. I worked at Upper Pond Stables in the morning then went home, fed and cleaned my barn and went inside to have some lunch and relax while checking to make sure I had the directions to the ride camp. Once I was all set with that, I loaded up Luke and headed out, leaving my directions sitting on the dining room table..... thankfully, it was an easy route to remember and I got to ride camp with no problem.

When I got to the ride camp, it was very neatly organized in a large field with camp sites marked out with numbered stakes and camp perimeters marked with a mowed path around each site. That was nice and the spaces were generously sized. I was parked right next to the vet judges camper who were Art King and Larry Buggia. The first thing I did was unload Luke and put him on my Spring Tie to see how he did on it. He was very good. He tested his space in his quiet, easy Luke like way but seemed quite content. I decided to set up my portable corral anyway as the campsite allowed for plenty of space and I figured he'd be more comfortable in the long run. Or more like, I'd sleep better as I know how he is in the corral overnight, I didn't know how he'd be on the Spring Tie overnight.

Once Luke was settled in, I set up camp. My friend Margaret was coming to crew for me and she was staying in my trailer so I set up a cot for her also. Then I took Luke to be vetted in. That went well and he did a reasonable trot out for which he got lots of praise and treats. I settled him back in his corral with lots of hay which he was eating a LOT of. I prepared some beet pulp for his supper to go along with his regular ration of grain. Karen, the owner of Upper Pond Stable where I work part time, had given me some sweet grain to mix with the beet pulp, or as Luke considers it, beet puke..... to make it more palatable for him. Though he is not fond of beet pulp, he sure loves sweet feed! I also added some regular salt to this mix of beet pulp and sweet feed. Luke likes the taste of the salt and it's good for him. I then set up everything I'd need for the holds in the hold area. All the holds would be in camp so that would make things easier for Margaret. Once I'd taken care of everything I could think of that needed to be done, I sat and visited with Peg Dockham for a while. She was camped right next to me. Poor Luke was a little unhappy that he was not seeing any of his special friends. There were horses all around in sight of him but none of the ones he's come to know. So, he bellowed quite a lot but was not acting nervous or upset. Just feeling a bit sorry for himself. I was hoping he would not do that all night. Margaret arrived and I showed her where everything was and she made sure to get the pit crew instructions for the "fly by" crew stops out on trail. The riders meeting was at 5:00 pm in the hold area of the field. This was followed by a FABULOUS meal. Everything was home made. There was pulled pork, corn muffins, many kinds of baked beans and chili. (yuck....beans are not fit for human consumption) cole slaw, local corn on the cob and the home made deserts, all I can say is WOW! I pigged out. Margaret and I sat with Stephanie and Sarah Buckley and visited with them. And we also talked with Louise Lester for a while. After our supper, I fed Luke. He ate the beet pulp-sweet feed mix but chose to leave his regular ration in favor of eating more hay. Margaret and I strolled around the camp in the evening and chatted with various others then sat and relaxed at my trailer for a while watching the night sky as there have recently been a lot of meteor showers. Clouds rolled in and ended that activity but it was time for bed anyway. I checked Luke one last time to make sure he had plenty of hay and water. 

I slept quite well. I did wake up a few times. There was a stallion in camp and he was bellowing very loudly. I had no need to worry about Luke keeping everyone awake. Even Luke is not as loud as the stallion was. Though he sounded a lot like a mule so I was hoping no one would blame Luke for the noise. Luke was quiet all night as far as I was aware. I was up at 4:30 am. I fed Luke more of the beet pulp-sweet grain mix which he ate most of, once again leaving his regular grain untouched. I went and had a doughnut and banana and coffee for breakfast. Then had 1/2 a bagel a little later. Not quite the breakfast of champions. The 75 mile riders went out at 5:00 am. It was still dark so the first part of the trail had been marked with glow sticks for them to follow. The 50 mile ride would start at 6:00. We had 12 hrs. to complete the ride. This would include the time for the two 45 minute holds. I groomed and saddled up Luke at 5:30. I mounted up at 5:45 to give him time to warm up. I checked in with the timer and then walked Luke around. He was excited but behaving very well. Endurance rides have a mass start. Luke has never done a mass start before as I've been doing CTR's with him that have controlled start. The one endurance ride I did try with him in June, I and the two women I was riding with had stayed away from the start and let everyone go out ahead of us as one of my friends was afraid her horse would get too excited by a mass start. I was not worried about Luke as he's pretty laid back and doesn't feed off the excitement of other horses much. Soon, we heard the shout of, "The trail is open" and we were off. We had just a short, short section of tractor road from the field we were camped in going into another field. When we came into that field, apparently Luke thought it was the Kentucky Derby! He took off like a shot! He completely took me by surprise and I quickly pulled his head around for a one rein stop. This did slow him down but he was dancing across the field now going sideways. As I went by riders I heard comments of, "Wow, isn't he gorgeous!", and "Wow, look at that lateral work." Everyone I had passed was now stopped and just watching me. ACK, I managed to get Luke turned and headed back in the direction of camp which slowed him considerably. I then tucked in behind Steve Rojek's and Kyle's horses who said they didn't mind Luke being there and had some semblance of control of Luke again. I didn't think Luke had it in him to make a move like that. I was kind of impressed myself once I was fairly certain I wasn't going to die. Kelley Bentley was also in our group at the start but she dropped back from Steve and Kyle and I dropped back with her. But, Luke was really fighting wanting to stay up with Steve and Kyle. He wasn't being bad or out of control, I just had to constantly keep checking him back. The first loop was 17 miles long and a lot of it was on dirt roads so I finally just let Luke catch up with Steve and Kyle as they were not setting a pace that was too fast for Luke. Luke was very happy and it was a very pleasant 17 miles.

A lot of this trail was familiar to me as it was a lot of the same trails I've done many times at the Boo CTR. About a mile from the first hold, Steve and Kyle did get ahead of us and Luke was now willing to let them go. He was getting his head together and starting to pace himself. So, we came into the hold alone. Luke immediately started dragging me around trying to find the food. He knows a hold means food and he wanted some NOW! I managed to get him led over to his own food which he scoffed down quickly. When you come into a hold at an endurance ride, your "in" time is recorded. You then have 30 minutes to present your equine to the vet for the pulse and trot out. Once you have your equines pulse taken and it's under 64, THAT is when your hold time starts. The 2 holds on this ride were 45 minutes each. So, the quicker you present to the vet, the sooner your hold time starts. It is up to the vet judges to decided if removing tack is mandatory or not. Usually on a hot day they will make it mandatory. For this ride it was not. I decided I was not going to rush to present to the vet. So, when I got into the hold and got my "in" time. I stripped Luke's tack, let him eat while Margaret sponged him off and then I took him for his pulse and trot out. His pulse was 56 (his CRI was 56/64, not great but not bad) and he did a reasonable trot out. He got all A's on his vet card. YEAH! We passed the first vet check.

Margaret looked after Luke while I went to my trailer to dig out Luke's fly mask as the black flies were being a nuisance. I put that on Luke and he was much happier. We just relaxed and let Luke eat what he wanted, well, not anything he wanted as he always wants to sample everyone else's food. He nibbled on hay, dengie, apples, carrots, grass. And he was drinking extremely well. He was drinking at every chance on the trail and at all the buckets at the water stops. 

Our next loop was 20 miles. Steve and Kyle must have left the hold a little late as they were leaving the hold the same time I was though they had gotten in before me. I followed them a short distance but let them go ahead of me at the first hills. They are from VT and ride hard hills all the time. Luke and I don't get a lot of hill work and I knew if I pushed Luke too hard on the hills, we would never complete the ride. Not too far into the ride, we came to the first really hard climb. It was long and very steep. I got off Luke and led him up this. I'll mention here that I have less hill conditioning than Luke.......... When we were close to the top, Kelley Bently and two other riders passed me. I mounted up, caught up with them and rode with them through the 2nd loop. 

The 2nd loop was quite hard with a lot of technical trail. There were also some nice stretches of dirt road but a lot of it was woods trails. As on the first loop, Kelley and her group got ahead of me just before the 2nd hold and Luke and I came in alone. I did the same routine at the 2nd hold as at the first with stripping Luke's tack and letting him eat and relax a little before presenting him to the vet. His pulse was 60 and his CRI was 60/56. So, actually an improvement from the first hold. He was not willing to trot and I had to have Margaret haze him into it. So, he received a B on his score card for impulsion but all A's otherwise. I put Luke in his corral to relax while I took a moment to sit in the shade and have some water and a sandwich. Unfortunately, this made Luke think he was done. After all, he's never had to go out after a 2nd vet check. When it was time, I saddled him up and I could see he wasn't looking too happy. And then we had to head out of camp alone. Luke was NOT impressed AT ALL.

The 3rd loop was 13 miles and the hardest of all the loops. Luke did go out of camp but was poking along as slow as he could. A big change from the mule that charged out of the start at the beginning of the ride. I finally encouraged him into a trot and he did his best imitation of the slowest western jog EVER! And I could hear him thinking, yep, I'll trot for you but just watch how slow I can do it....... LUKE!!!!! I think I saw a snail pass us! We got to a big puddle and he drank, and drank, and when I asked him to move on, he drank some more, and then he kept drinking. Now, while I'm sure he may have been a little thirsty, it was far more a ploy to get me to let him stand there and not move on. Everytime I put my legs on him, he dropped his head to the water. His head would come up, I'd apply legs, down would drop the head, repeatedly. Finally, with the help of my mule persuader, I got him moving again. This is the time when all sorts of stuff goes though your head. Was I pushing Luke too hard. Is 50 miles too much for him. He is after all, a Percheron and Percherons don't do this sport. And so on it went in my head. We started out on the same trail as we did for the 2nd 20 mile loop. Luke poked along and sulked until we came to a spot where the 3rd loop split off from the way the 2nd loop had gone. Luke perked up a bit then though he still didn't over exerting himself. We were trotting along down a dirt road when I saw a double ribbon signifying a turn in the trail. I looked and watched but did not see any turn. Hummm! The last thing I needed was to get lost and add any extra miles. I went about 1/2 mile and just about the time I was going to turn around and go back I came to the end of the dirt road at an intersection with a tar road. NO trail markers anywhere. So, I HAD missed a turn somewhere. I headed back and just past where I'd seen the double marker, Kelley Jack, Sarah Buckley and another rider were coming down the road. I told them there was a turn we had all missed. After looking around we finally found it. There was a trail marker missing. Thankfully, though I did add close to an extra mile, it was not more than that. Luke knows Sarah's little Welsh pony mare and was happy to see her. He perked up even more at having some company to share in his misery and I had my good old Luke back. This loop was super challenging with many, many steep climbs and descents. When we came to one very steep climb, I got a horrible leg cramp in the back of my left leg. I have never been prone to leg cramps and wow it hurts! Luke must have though I'd gone nuts the way I was twisting and turning and wiggling around in the saddle. Hard to tell what he was thinking though as he completely ignored it all. I tried everything I could to relieve it from the saddle but finally had to get off. Since it was such a steep climb this was good for Luke anyway. Walking did relieve the cramp in the back of my leg but the climbing gave me a horrible cramp in the front of my leg. I was hanging onto Luke and hobbling up the hill. We stopped part way up the hill to give the horses and Luke a break. Or maybe the others were just feeling sorry for me. I had water with me but Kelley had me drink some of her Gatorade to see if that helped with the leg cramp. It did finally ease by the time we got to the top of the hill and I mounted up and we kept on going. We moved along as fast as we could but on this loop, that was not fast with the steep climbs and descents. And much of the flatter sections of the trail were too soft or muddy to go very fast. We simply moved out where we could.  I was behind the others as we came to a turn in the trail going up one of the many steep hills. The others broke into a trot/cantered as soon as they turned the corner so got just out of sight. Just as I turned the corner, Luke suddenly scooted forward then spun around startling the heck out of me. A dog had charged up behind us but it didn't bark so I never heard it coming. Luke faced it down and finally scared it off. GOOD MULE! And all the moves Luke made were so smooth that I never moved in the saddle at all. The last pit crew stop was 4 miles from the finish. I was happy to see Margaret and know I was nearing the end of the ride. Margaret fed Luke some carrots and apples and doused him with cool water and we were off on the  last miles of our ride. We went though some fields on these last miles and we galloped though them. I was pleased with how good Luke felt, he just kept feelign strong and better as we rode this loop. Though I did worry we were traveling too fast to get his pulse down at the end. But, since I was not pushing him I let him pick his pace. And I'm sure it must have been quite a sight seeing one small white Welsh pony leading a large black Percheron mule. Luke was so happy following that pony. As we neared the end, we discussed all finishing in a tie. I decided I'd drop back and finish a minute behind the others in our group and secure the turtle award for Luke and myself. I was so happy when I crosssed the finish line I nearly cried!

At the finish I kept to the same routine of stripping tack and letting Luke eat first. I then presented to the vet and had my fingers crossed his pulse would not be too high. He was hot and Margaret and I had put as much water on him as we could. There was nothing to worry about, Luke pulsed at 56 and his CRI was 56/48. The best yet all day! I was thrilled. He, of course, did not want to trot out, and even ignored hazing from Margaret. I mean this woman had been pampering him all day so surely there was nothing to fear from her! In a last ditch effort I started him out lunging, though I didn't need to do any circles. He suddenly broke into a lovely lofty trot and I pushed him into a straight line towards the vets and half way back to the vets he broke into a canter dragging me along behind him. That was just fine with me, I've never been so happy to be dragged by a mule! And it provided some comic relief for the vets as well as earning him straight A's at the finish on his vet card! Woohooo!! We had completed a very hard 50 mile endurance ride! Luke was now officially an endurance mule! I was so happy I wanted to cry...... again.... It really was a very, very tough ride. It was a great ride. I love technical trail and I was so proud of Luke for finishing. He's such an unlikely breed to do an endurance ride with his mom being a Percheron.

Once Margaret and I took care of Luke and got him settled in his corral we went up and had dinner which was another absolutely delicious meal. After the meal, they did the awards for the 30 mile LD riders. Then the 75 mile riders started to come in for the finish of their ride. So, the 50 mile awards were after the vets judged those horses. I did indeed earn the turtle award with a ride time of 9 hrs. 28 minutes. My good friend Mindy on her wonderful horse Movette, was 5th place and got high vet score with a ride time of 6 hrs. 44 minutes.   Peter Seams won the ride and got the BC award but I don't remember what his ride time was. After awards, Margaret and I packed everything up. When I went to get Luke to tie him to the trailer so we could take down the corral, he locked his feet and didn't want to go with me. He thought I was going to saddle him up and head out again and he was having no part of it! LOL. I assured him we were done for the day. It was a great day and a great accomplishment for one big black Percheron mule to finish such a hard ride.

Beautiful Weekend

Friday was a total wash out with pouring rain all day. But Saturday and Sunday more then made up for Friday in being absolutely beautiful days! It was sunny, in the 70's with a nice breeze both days. So, I made sure to take advantage of them. I had to work both days but managed to fit in rides both mornings. And the bonus was that the deer fly weren't bad either day!! Yahoo!
Saturday I picked up Cierra and Brooke at Upper Pond at 9:00 AM. I trailerd Cierra's horse, Tinkerbell to my house to ride from there. Cierra put Tink's boots on at the stable while we waited for Brooke to finish up taking care of her horses. Tink loaded right in my trailer like a good girl. Once at my house, we got Marie and Luke and tied them all to the trailer to groom and tack up. I decided to take the loop that would go though the very pretty crossing of the East Cathance Stream and we'd go the longer way via the Starbird Corner Rd. We headed out down Dead River Rd. Luke was leading and walking out fast. Marie and Tink were lagging behind a bit. When we got to the 4 corner, a truck and stock trailer came around the corner from the Academy Rd. The trailer had cows in it. Behind it was a school bus. I was watching Cierra and Tink to see how Tink reacted to truck and trailer. She didn't react to it at all. When the school but when by me I was startled to see it was full of cows! We got quite a laugh out of that. We picked up the pace a bit and trotted down the dirt porting of the Starbird Corner Rd. and trotted quite a bit even on the pavement section down to the trail that cuts over to the Lewis Hill Rd. This trail, like so many around my house, is rocky in spots so we trotted where we could and walked where we had to. With all the rain we had on Friday, there was a lot of water on the trail. We went into one big puddle and it was DEEP! We were glad we had not asked them to trot into it like I sometimes do with the water spots I'm very familiar with. We were near the end of the trail when I head some noise behind me, I turn and look just in time to see my horse down on her knees scrambling to get up and Brooke do a fancy emergency dismount. Marie had been doing her usual thing of trying to get eat everything green in sight and was not paying attention to where her feet were and she tripped over a rock. We were just coming up on a little stream so Brooke rinsed Marie's knee off so we could get a good look at it. She scuffed some hair off and had a small cut but nothing serious. She was a bit off though so Brooke Walked her for a bit, then mounted back up but we decided to cut the ride short and head the shortest way back home. This would be to ride back on the Lewis Hill Rd. This is not a very busy road so I felt it would be safe even with Cierra and Tinkerbell. Not that Tink has shown any signs of having any issues with ..... anything! Even though our ride was mostly tar road, it was such a beautiful day that it was nice to be out riding anyway. Once back to my house, we put Marie and Luke in their paddocks and I took the girls and Tink back to Upper Pond.
Sunday, Amy Beem and Carole Norton came to ride with me. I decided to take them over to ride in West Bowdoin as much of the footing over there is very nice. Luke's feet have finally worn down enough that he's being a bit careful over rocks now. I'm having shoes put on him this week for for our ride Sunday, riding where there weren't so many rocks was the best option and we could move along at a good pace.

We parked at the usual place on the gas line. We quickly tacked up and were on our way. We did several loops on the left side of the gas line and did quite a bit of trotting. We then did the loop on the right side of the gas line that goes out near the beaver pond behind the day care. Then we went down the gas line and out through the gravel put to the Witch's House trail. We went right on that trail out to the West Rd. Then we went straight across and took the Wheel Hill Trail out to the Litchfield Rd. We rode the 1/4 mile down the Litchfield Rd. and took the Wagg Rd. and trail back to the West Rd. Carole and I both dismounted and led Luke and Cricket across the metal bridge at the end of the Wagg Rd. trail. Amy rode Washburn across and he was a good boy. It's a good solid bridge. Just kind of high and just narrow enough that I worry if they don't walk straight across, they could put a foot over the edge. We rode for about 3 hrs. and had a wonderful ride. Luke, Cricket and Washburn were very good and got along nicely.

The Fryeburg 25 mile CTR and 15 mile CDR July 2013

Photos by Wanda Clowater, Clowater Art and Photography

I had originally planned to do the Fryeburg 2 day 50 mile ride. But, a little over a month ago, while at work at Upper Pond Stable, I got a bright idea and suggested to my co-workers they should come to the Fryeburg ride and try the 15 mile CDR (conditioning distance ride) Much to my surprise and delight, they wanted to give it a try. Brooke was going to use my horse, Marie and Cierra would ride her own horse, Tinkerbell. Tinkerbell is a 7 yr. old paint mare with limited trail experience. Cierra does 2 phase eventing (dressage and arena jumping) with her. So, Tinkerbell has been getting ridden quite a bit, we just needed to get some trail miles on her to get her ready for the ride. Brooke is a Western Pleasure rider so hasn’t trail ridden in quite a while. Marie also needed some conditioning as she has had an easy winter and spring. Luke was ready to go! 

Brooke, Cierra and I got out as often as we could to get Tinkerbelle and Marie ready for the ride. It was tough as we had a long stretch of hot humid weather before the ride but we managed to get out quite a bit and we felt we were ready for the challenge. I was riding in the 25 mile CTR ride on Saturday. Susie and Mary Ann were also. Susie and I both had to return home on Saturday night as we were both bringing people to the 15 mile CDR on Sunday. Bonnie was coming to the ride with me on Saturday to work the ride. It would be so nice to have Bonnie along, it’s been a long time since she’s gone to a ride with me.We did a lot of planning and plotting trying to figure out the best way to get all the horses and people where they needed to be using the least amount of trailers. Susie has a 3 horse trailer but I can only haul 2. In the end Susie just did her own thing and I used Brooke’s 3 horse trailer on Sunday. 

I went up to Fryeburg with Luke Friday after I got done work at Upper Pond Stable. Bonnie met me at my house and we packed my trailer, loaded up Luke and headed out. The weather forecast had been for a wet rainy day. It turned out to be a pretty good day with just a few passing light showers. Susie and Mary Ann had arrived ahead of Bonnie and I and had stalls picked out in the front barn across from the office. I parked in front of the barn and quickly got Luke settled into his stall. There were no shavings in his stall so Bonnie and I stripped out another stall for shavings for Luke. There was a big 4-H event going on this weekend and they had all the stalls on the back side of the front barn and the front side of the back barn. So, there were a lot of horses on the grounds for the weekend. Susie and Mary Ann went out for a ride once they had camp set up. Bonnie and I went out to lunch as soon as we were sure Luke wasn’t going to get too upset over Bazeyn and Suri leaving him. He wasn’t happy and was bellowing his displeasure at the situation but he wasn’t being stupid about it. Bonnie and I went into town to the Fryeburg house of Pizza. When we got back, I groomed Luke and took him to be vetted in. He was a good boy and did a fairly nice, if not enthusiastic trot out. We all hung out in front of our stalls and watched everyone being vetted in and visited with each other and anyone passing by. Mary Ann had a smorgasbord of snacks but I was too stuffed from lunch to have anything. Bonnie was busy scribing for the ride. We walked the horse and Luke so they could graze on some grass and stretch their legs. Walking around with Luke is like hanging out with a movie star as he gets so much attention. And he really loves it and is so good with everyone around him all the time. 

When Bonnie was done with her scribing job, we all went out to the arena to watch the 4-H kids riding for a while. Nothing too exciting was going on there so we eventually wandered back to camp. Bonnie was given a pizza for working the ride. I ate more of it then she did…… it was good…… About the time the mosquitos were really bothering us, it was time to go to bed. I made sure Luke had plenty of hay and water for the night. He was only picking at his grain but was calm and quiet and eating a lot of hay and drinking well. 

5 am came all too soon. I got up, fed Luke and then went to the office for breakfast as soon as it was ready. The rider’s meeting was at 6:30 am. After, I tacked Luke up and as soon as I saw Marcia was ready, I mounted up and rode around with her waiting for our time to start. Susie and Mary Ann were going out just ahead of us. Susie and Mary Ann had just headed out, Marcia and I were right near the starting line when we heard the sound of a galloping horse. We look towards the sound and see there is a horse, without a rider, galloping across the field towards us. Susie and Mary Ann stopped as the horse was coming straight at them. The horse actually ran into Susie on Bazeyn and kept on going toward Marcia and I. Both Bazeyn and Suri did well and stayed fairly calm. Luke was very tense but holding his ground as was Marcia’s horse Piper. Thankfully the horse went around us, galloped around a bit more then went through the gate into the barn area and someone managed to grab him. The rider was walking back across the field and seemed to be ok. It was now time for us to go but we were now bunched up in a group from waiting for the horse to be caught. So, all of our horses and Luke were very keyed up from all the excitement and suddenly being in a group. This would be interesting. The trail manager had decided the water was too high in the Saco river for us to cross it this year. And there was a bridge out along the first part of the trail that is normally used. So, the trail was diverted coming out into a housing development and then we were right out on Rt. 5 for a mile down to the Bog Pond Rd. It was a bit of a scary ride as Rt. 5 is a busy road and the horses (and mule) were very excited. We made it down to the Bog Pond Rd. which is a dirt road, with no incidents and from there let some of the riders go on ahead of us so we wouldn’t be in a big group. We didn’t go far on the dirt road when the trail went onto the power line. It was a little muddy along here but not bad. This took us back out to Rt. 5. Here we crossed the bridge over the Saco River. It’s a long, high bridge. Again, this is a very busy road this time of year as the Saco River is a VERY popular river to camp, canoe and party on. The road is wide here and there were ride volunteers to help with the crossing the bridge but people are just so incredibly rude theses day. Cars were not slowing down for us, people were flipping the bird at the volunteers, throwing beer cans at them and such. Our group made it over the bridge with no problems and all of our equines were good. Once over the bridge we were back on trail. We rode down through a campground with lots of interesting things for the equines to see. Again, they all took it in stride and we came out to the water stop on the Corn Shop Rd. Luke took a good drink here. We sponged them all down quickly and continued on our way. About ½ mile up Corn Shop Rd we took a right into the agricultural fields and on out to Fish St. This is a tar road that we ride for ½ to ¾ mile but it’s a nice quiet road with little traffic. We then took a left on Federal Road. This road is part dirt and part tar and ends in a trail. We rode through a short section where there was a logging operation going on then it was trail. Some of this trail was very muddy. Nothing too deep but we slogged thorough quite a bit of mud. The trail took us back to Rt. 5 which we crossed and took the Frog Ally trail. This is a lovely section of trail/field/dirt road that goes out to the covered Bridge. 

Susie on Bazeyn, Mary Ann on Suri, Cindy on Luke and Marcia on Piper

The hold was at the covered bridge but we first had to ride though and do another mile of trail through Fern Gully. This is also a pretty spot to ride but there was some nasty mud there this ride. Not far out of the hold area, Susie’s horse Bazeyn was doing a big trot and caught a front shoe with a back foot and pulled it off. I hopped off Luke and picked up the shoe and Susie stowed it away in her pack. The trail here is all soft footing so we just continued on. Tom Hutchinson was on the trail to direct everyone onto the Fern Gully trail. Susie was in the lead with me right behind her and we both sank bad in the first mud hole we came to. Seeing our dilemma, Marcia and Mary Ann stayed to the left of where we went through and fared better. We turned around at the marker and headed back to the hold. We spotted another shoe on the trail and left it with Tom Hutchinson. 

Sponging Luke down at the hold. You can see we'd gotten into some mud....

Vet judge Barbara Perkins checking Lukes gums at the hold

At the hold, Susie started calling out to see if anyone had a spare Easyboot. Steve Rojek said he did but it turned out it was his horses shoe we’d found out on the trail so he needed the boot for himself. Mary Ann had a Cavallo boot with her. It was definitely too big for Bazeyn but Susie put it on him anyway hoping it would get them through the ride. Luke drank like a fish at the hold. And he actually ate the food I brought for him. I sponged him down thoroughly as he inched around scouting out other’s food. He trotted ok for the trot out and passed the vetting as did the rest of our group. We were only a few minutes late out of the hold so were doing well. We were returning on the same trail we came out on. So, back down the nice Frog Ally trail we went and then back through the mud to Federal Rd. We were trotting along where we came out to dirt road when I saw the boot on Bazeyn’s foot fly off into the bushes on the right side of the road. I showed Susie where it went into the bushes and she told us to go on without her. She would look for the boot and continue on the best she could. We hated to leave her but she was adamant so we continued without her. None of the horses fussed at parting. When we crossed the bridge over the Saco River, there was now a police car at one end managing the traffic. The drivers were being much more respectful this time. Marcia on Piper was in the lead when we came to the campground. Piper wasn’t too happy about leading through there so Mary Ann on Suri led the way. This was Mary Ann and Suri’s first 25 mile ride and they were doing great. Luke drank like a fish again when we got to the water stop on the Corn Shop Rd. He drank a full 5 gallon buck and then more from another bucket. We were now getting close to the end of the ride. The mile we had to ride on Rt. 5 was very scary this time as the traffic was very heavy now. No one was slowing down and with so much traffic going in both directions, no one was pulling over to give us room either. Marcia started out in the lead but Piper spooked at something in the ditch and spun out into traffic and came within inches of being hit by a box truck. I went ahead of her on Luke and Mary Ann took the lead and we made it safely down the road back to the short section of trail leading back to the fairground. 

We finished the ride in good time. We tied Luke and Suri to the trailer so they could see each other. We sponged them down like crazy. Luke drank down another bucket of water. He had a heat or pressure bump in the wither area. He looked good otherwise. Susie made it back and finished just in time. We were so happy to see her. She never found the boot but because the footing was good most of the way, moved right along and Bazeyn was fine. We had to go down to the big pine tree at the end of the back barn were they were doing P&R’s. There weren’t enough P&R people to go around and do it at our trailers or stalls. Luke’s P&R was 48/24. While waiting for the others to have their P&R done, Luke got down and rolled. He flipped over once, then twice, then laid there and ate grass for a second, then flipped over a 3rd and 4th time, laid there and ate some more grass, then flipped over a 5th time! After laying there and eating a bit more grass, he finally got up. It was soooooo funny watching him. He’s such a goof! 

We went up to do our trot out and Luke was completely unwilling to trot. After a few aborted attempts, I had Susie lead Bazeyn to the end of the trotting area and Luke then, reluctantly, trotted out. AGH!!!! When we finally managed to get the trot out done, the vet judge remarked, “That’s a good example of how to get your ass in gear.” The vet just really had a field day with ass jokes all weekend. “Get your ass over here”. “Get your ass out of the water”. “Stop scratching your ass in public”, and so on. It was really funny. And, I had no sooner finished with Luke’s version of a trot out when along came the 4-H group to watch and learn about CTR’s. I was SOOOOO glad they came when they did and missed seeing Luke and I trot out as it would not have been a good advertisement for mules! We put Luke and Suri back in their stalls to wait for the hands on. I took the opportunity to change into more comfortable clothes. A little before time for hands on, Mary Ann and I took Luke and Suri out to walk them around to keep any windpuffs down. After the hands on, we settled them back in their stalls with lots of hay and water. Luke was still drinking a lot of water! We packed up all that we could. Susie and I were both supposedto bring riders to the 15 mile CDR the next day that would be new to this sport. For 2 of the horses it would also be their first rides and one young lady I was bringing was just 16 this day. Neither one of us felt comfortable about bringing them if the trail was going to be what it was today. We felt the ride along Rt. 5 was just too dangerous. I didn’t want to disappoint Cierra and Brooke but I was going to be responsible for Cierra as she is a Jr. rider. Susie and I discussed it and decided to talk to Tom Hutchinson, the trail manager at dinner. The dinner provided for us was delicious! Lasagna, salad, cole slaw, mac and cheese and several kinds of cookies. During dinner we did talked to Tom. He said he would like for some of us to go down to the river and cross to see if we thought it was safe. He said the water level was going down fast and it might be ok for tomorrow. He would meet us at the crossing right after dinner. Susie, Mary Ann and I as well as Stephanie Buckley and her daughter Sarah saddle back up and headed to the river. Stephanie and Sarah were riding Welsh ponies that were both under 14 hands so if they could get across, it would be ok for anyone else. When we got to the crossing, Tom was there as was the ride photographer. Tom had already waded out into the river. He told us to go straight out to the middle, then turn left and go down the middle until we saw the trail maker on the other side and to cut straight across to the marker. I didn’t know what Luke would think of water this deep but he really didn’t hesitate and he went right in. And he drank more water after just drinking in a puddle before the river. He kept drinking pretty much all the way across. It was funny. There were a few deep spots and a little soft footing but nothing the horses or Luke had any trouble with. We crossed back over with no trouble and declared it safe for the ride the next day! Yahoo! Now we would not have to ride on Rt. 5 and would not have to cross the bridge! I could bring Cierra and Brooke! We got back from riding to the river just in time for the awards. Luke and I placed 6th with a score of 97. He got 1 point off for his pulse being 48. He got a ½ point off for the heat bump on his withers. And 1 ½ points off for his being unwilling to trot. But a perfect score in the mechanical fatigue category otherwise (length of stride, height of stride, body carriage, muscle soreness etc) His on trail comment was, “Strong, wants to go”. 

Once awards were over, we quickly packed up the rest of our things, stripped our stalls and loaded up. It was so nice to have Bonnie’s company for the ride home. It was so nice to have Bonnie’s company period! Though we accidentally took the scenic route home, we did get home safe and sound if a little later than planned. Luke and Marie were happy to see each other. I fed them both and cleaned out Marie’s very nasty stall. (I don’t know WHY she insists on peeing in her stall! UGH) I parked my trailer, cleaned it out and unhooked. I packed up what I would need for the next day as we were using Brooke’s trailer since hers was a three horse trailer. I took a shower and headed for bed. I had to be up by 3:00 AM. I was hoping to be pulling out of my house by 4:30 AM. 

It seemed I’d just gone to bed when the alarm clock went off. I got up and had a quick bowl of cereal and cup of coffee then went out to the barn to feed Luke and Marie. Marie was all good with that and didn’t seem to think much of the odd feeding time. Luke was wondering but after a few minutes of thinking about it decided to eat. I then headed over to Upper Pond Stable to get Brooke, Cierra and her horse Tinkerbell. I nearly hooked up to the wrong trailer in the dark! It was a good thing Pam caught me before I did. Brooke had moved her trailer over by the barn to put air in the tires. Cierra had already put her things in the trailer the night before so I hooked up and pulled the trailer around to the side of the barn were Tinkerbell was. She loaded in like a good girl and after a quick good bye to Pam, Cierra’s mom, we headed back to my house to pick up my two. I pulled right out back and we loaded Marie and Luke in before doing anything else so Tinkerbell would stay calm. We put Marie in the middle and loaded Luke on the back as that spot has the most room. Brooke’s trailer is a 3 horse stock combo slant load. There is no rear tack compartment like Luke is used to. Just an open space and he didn’t know quite what to do with it. It was so funny watching him try to figure it out. He was willing to go in so stepped his front feet in, then stood and thought about it, then turned his head to the right and was going to step in facing backwards but then hesitated and faced to the left. We had to help him figure it out and he was good. We quickly transferred all the tack and things I needed into Brooke’s trailer and headed out. It was close to 5:00 when we left my house which was later than I’d hoped but it was what it was. We had an uneventful drive to Fryeburg and arrived around 6:30 AM. We unloaded them and tied them to the trailer with hay bags to keep them happy. Tinkerbell was a little bit excited when she first stepped off the trailer but settled down quickly. We quickly groomed them and put on Marie’s boots. We left Tinkerbell barefoot for the trot out as her boots all go over the coronary band and the vet has to look at that. The trot out area was good footing so it wouldn’t be a problem trotting her out barefoot. For the CDR, you only have to trot in a straight line anyway. They were ready for us when we brought them up to be vetted in. Tinkerbell was just a little bit fidgety for the vetting but it was pretty minor. Luke remembered this being the vetting area from the previous day so was automatically reluctant to trot out. Poor Luke, it’s my fault that he has learned to dread the trotting out process and therefore not even want to approach the vetting area, which he has learned to identify quickly. But, he did it without too much fuss. We then got them all tacked up. We put vet wrap on Tinkerbells pasterns as well as Marie’s back pasterns to help keep the sand from the river from getting in their boots and rubbing. Susie loaned Cierra her English saddle pack for the front of her saddle so she could carry water with her. When they were all set, we had a few minutes to relax and grab something to eat from the office. Soon it was time to mount up. We walked them around the barn area to warm up. They were all well behaved. Luke and Marie know the drill. Tinkerbell was curious but calm. Our numbers were called and we were off. We were ahead of Susie and Diana and had talked about crossing the river together. So, we only walked at the start to give them time to catch up. We walked for a while then picked up an easy trot to the river crossing. There is a short steep descent from the trail down to the beach with a knee knocking squeeze between two trees at the bottom. Tinkerbell handled this extremely well going down slow and easy. Luke had to take a drink in a puddle at the bottom of the descent so I told Brooke to go ahead of me and lead into the water. Marie wasn’t thrilled with this idea but she’s done the river crossing many times so I knew she would go. As we were approaching the water, another rider had come up from behind us moving quite fast and she went right in and crossed ahead of us. Tinkerbell was watching this horse and she forged right out in front of Marie and she ended up leading us across! There were stakes in the river to show us the best way to cross. We had to go straight out to the middle, then go left and ride up the river a short distance and then cut across to the bank to get out. There was no beach on the other side, just a hop up onto a bank to the trail. Tom Hutchinson was in the river keeping an eye on everyone to make sure we all crossed safely. We were part way across when we saw Susie and Diana come down onto the beach and enter the river. They looked like they were doing fine so we kept going. The river crossing was so much fun and all our ponies seemed to enjoy it. 

Brooke on Marie, Cierra on Tinkerbell and Cindy on Luke

Crossing the Saco River

From there we went right up into the agricultural fields and followed the field roads for nearly 4 or 5 miles. This is fun to ride as the footing is so perfect and you can really move right along. The crops are beans and corn this year. Riding through the beans you can see for miles and it’s so pretty as the fields are in a valley and there are mountains all around. We kept the horses and Luke to a trot as Cierra said Tinkerbell felt kind of excited. She was being very good though and listening to Cierra. I think Cierra and Brooke were both ready to see something besides corn and beans by the time we left the fields. We came out on Fish St and rode about a mile up this road, which is a quiet back road, to Federal Rd. This is the dead end road that is part dirt and part tar that turns to trail where Susie lost the hoof boot yesterday. We were riding up to where the logging operation started and then we would turn around and ride the same trail back to the fairground. There were water buckets here so we stopped and sponged Luke and the horses. I don’t think any of them drank here. While we were sponging Susie and Diana caught up with us. We waited for them and decided to ride back together. Brooke, Cierra and I left the turn around/ water stop in the lead. I was pointing out to the girls where the boot had flown off Susie’s horse and joking that from my lofty height on Luke I might be able to spot the boot in the bushes as I tippy toed up in my stirrups …….. and right at that moment I DID spot the boot! We were so excited as it’s a new $150 boot! I jumped off and retrieved the boot. I left it with Robert Day who was at the water stop keeping the buckets full. 

From here Susie and Diana took the lead and we headed back. We alternated between trotting and walking on Fish St. Once in the fields, we moved right along at a good trot. All the horses and Luke were doing well together. Cierra was ready to try a little cantering so on one nice long straight stretch, we went ahead of Susie and Diana and we did a nice canter. The agricultural roads are wide and we were going side by side and moving along at a pretty good pace. Luke stretched those legs right out and gave up his Western pleasure lope in favor of a good canter. It was so much fun. We slowed down to a walk to cross Corn Shop Rd. We had just gone around a corner in the fields when Susie and Diana came up behind us. It startled Tinkerbell but all she did was stop suddenly and look behind her. She was being SUCH a good girl! We rode together for a bit then Susie and Diana wanted to do another canter so we let them go on ahead of us. When there was a little distance between us, we decided to canter also. Cierra said she felt confident she could keep Tinkerbell back if we started to catch up to Susie and Diana as we didn’t want to pass them. So, we did another lovely canter and Cierra and Tinkerbell did fantastic. We let them all walk for a short distance after to let them catch their breaths. Then, we were back to the river crossing. 

Cierra had some concerns about entering the river from this direction as there was no beach, just a hop down off a short bank straight into the river. It is a safe entry and I was sure she would do fine. Cierra kept calm and Tinkerbell did not even hesitate and hopped right into the river like a pro! Again we had a great crossing. Part way across, Brooke leaned over Marie and started splashing water up onto Marie’s chest. Marie loved it and it was funny to watch. And all our horses and Luke climbed the steep bank to the trail with no problems and no one lost a knee on the knee knocker trees. We walked a little once up on the trail. Then being worried we were getting close to our time, Cierra, Brooke and I went ahead of Susie and Diana and trotted the last short distance to the finish line. We had completed the ride in the time allowed. I was so proud of my Upper Pond team! Neither Brooke nor Cierra had ever trotted that much all at once. Nor had Tinkerbell but there was no complaining and only smiles at the end to celebrate the accomplishment. We tied the horses and Luke to the trailer, stripped tack and sponged them like crazy. It had been cloudy most of the ride but the sun was out now out and there was no shade at the trailer. They all took big drinks. We had to take them to the same area as we had yesterday for P&R’s. So, a few minutes before our time, we walked them over and let them stand quietly for a few minutes. All three of them had a pulse of 48 and all were fine on respiration. Luke did his rolling routine again, with rolling, laying there and eating grass, rolling more, eating grass. He had everyone cracking up. He’s such a goof ball. We then took them up for the trot out. They did the trot out and hands on at the same time which is unusual but at ride managements discression. We stood in one place for a while as the hands on were being done. Then Brooke went first for the trot out. Marie did not look good. The vet thought it looked like stiffness though and not a “lameness” so had Brooke trot her a second time. Marie looked MUCH better on the second trot so the vet was right, she was just a little stiff from standing around. Cierra went next with Tinkerbell and she looked good. Then it was Mr. I Hate Trot Outs turn. And he was, as usual, reluctant. I had Cierra and Brooke lead Marie and Tinkerbell to the end of the trot out area and that made Luke a little more willing and he actually did a pretty good trot thanks to not having to also do any circles for the CDR. 

We had now officially gotten a completion for the ride! I know I’m repeating myself but I was so proud of my Upper Pond Stable team! We tied the horses and Luke to the trailer, offered them more water and made sure they had plenty of hay. It was only a little after noon time and the meal would not be until 2:00. Around 1:15 we discovered there were sandwich makings in the office and though we knew we should eat so soon before the dinner, we were all starved and made ourselves sandwiches. We hung out at the picnic tables under the pine trees across from the office and chatted with everyone. We kept an eye on the horses and Luke, offering water and filling hay bags as needed. They were quiet and well behaved the whole time. Dinner arrived right on time and was delicious. Chicken Pot Pie as well as two lovely salads followed by several flavors of cookies. Though I’d had a sandwich, I managed to fit in plenty of dinner anyway. The awards followed. There were completion ribbons handed out to the 15 mile CDR riders. Don’t you know that when it didn’t count, Luke scored a 99! I think I he was laughing at me! Tink got a 96 and Marie a 93 (I think) So they had all done well. As soon as the awards were finished, we loaded up the ponies and headed home. Luke had to really think again about how to get into Brooke’s trailer. Silly boy.

Fryeburg 25 18 start - 18 finish J1. Sarah Buckley on Cliffes Copper Penny J2. Amber Clukey on Angel 1. Cindy Seames on Alar Enchanted Safire 2. Peter Seames on Alar Alledinns Storm 3. Steven Daniels on Sunny D 3. Zimmer-Rankkin on Tiffany 5. Stephanie Buckley on Bay Cliffe Flyer 6. Mary-Ann Wilson on Suri(Sunrise Splendor) 7. Cynthia Ross on Luke 8. Timothy Bailey on Bold King 9. Melinda Vienneau on Movette 10. Janis McKittrick on IM Zee Bonanza 11. Sarah Curtis on Exotic Maverick 12. Stacey Stearns on CBMF Secret Crush 13. Susan Reinheimer on Sa Bazeyn 14. Marcia Deleware on Highcountry Piper+/ 15. Wendy Clark on Hallany Ansar 15. Angela Clukey on Joseph Fryeburg 15 CDR 11 start - 11 finish Susan Reinheimer on Sa Bazeyn ? On Drummer's Dixie Dancer Wendy Harvey on Marriadoc Brandywine Christie Lawyer on JJS LTD Timothy Bailey on Bold King Cynthia Ross on Luke Cierra Baxter on Tinkerbell Brooke Clancy on Marie Stacey Stearns on CBMF Secret Crush Yarrow Farnsworth on II Rem-Minisse