My riding buddy
and I loaded up our ponies on Friday around 2pm, and got to the
campsite around 4. Unloaded all our gear, got their stalls ready,
and settled them in.
Vetted
them in; both judges really liked our horses... on the score sheet
they said Zephyr's trot was "steady/rhythmic, and eager."
I think Nettie's said "big and machine-like" or something.
LOL
Stood
in line for burgers and dogs, sat around the "florescent campfire"
to sing cowboy songs and drink our favorite wine.
DAY
ONE - 30 MILES:
Got
up at 4am, and couldn't find the lightswitch in the barn. Good thing
the barn had such open outer-walls... and good thing the sun started
to come up soon.
Ready to
head out (sorry, could NOT get him to look at me!):
The first 15 miles
were fabulous - everyone was having a great time. Zephyr was feeling
good, and giving me his "747 trot" whenever I asked. Man
I love that feeling! We alternated between trot and canter, with some
walking if they needed a breather. Both horses waited a long time
to drink, which was worrisome, and Zephyr didn't pee in the first
few miles like he usually does. But when the judges observed us trotting
on the trail, they said Zephyr was "nice and bright, eager/strong,"
and had "no loss of energy." It was sunny and probably mid-60's
to low-70's, but I don't think it was that humid. NO BUGS! How nice!
On the trail:
At the 15-mile vet check, the pulse parameter was 60 - Zephyr was
at 52. His respiration was a little higher than it had been at our
last ride, but still good. Trot-out went great. Both horses chowed
down on the apples and carrots, and lipped at their beet pulp slurry.
The
second half of the trail was VERY confusing. Since we were riding
at Acadia National Park on the carriage trails, all trail markings
had to be very unobtrusive. Even so, several of the markers on the
second half of the trail had been sabotaged by hikers. About half
of the 30 competitors took a wrong turn and went 4 miles out of the
way, then had to go back those same 4 miles to continue on the correct
trail.
Optimum
ride time (no time penalties) was 5 to 5.5 hours. Normally, if you
come in more than 30 minutes late, you're disqualified. None of us
knew for sure whether ride management would decide to waive that because
of the sabotaged markings... so we really kicked ass to get back within
6 hours. That was tough... that means 38 miles at an average speed
of 6.33 mph... including all water stops. It doesn't sound that fast,
but believe me, it FEELS fast. Ya cain't slow down for NOTHING. So
after we got lost, we did most of it at an extended trot or canter.
Even downhill! (Traci and I both had shin splints from all the downhill
trotting.) There was this one really cool section that went downhill
on tight switchbacks over a creek. The bridges were cement, so the
horses with shoes were skidding as they hit them. Zephyr (barefoot
behind, booted in front) was the only one who was fine. Six of us
raced down those switchbacks side-by-side in pairs at a huge trot.
Traci
and I got out in front of the other 4 horses somehow. We were only
a mile or so from camp when Zephyr and Nettie dropped to a walk on
their own. We let them walk for a few minutes, then a pair of horses
came up behind us at a trot and both of ours got energized again.
We crossed the finish line at a full-out canter, still trying to beat
the 6 hours. We were a few minutes over, but it wasn't our horses'
fault. They had done EVERYTHING we asked them to do, ably and cheerfully.
As
soon as we crossed the line, I got off and sat down on the ground.
The shin splint I'd developed in my left leg was KILLING me. Zephyr
was a good boy... just stood there perfectly still and looked at me,
as if wondering what I was doing down there.
It
was then, that the ride manager came over and told us not to worry...
no one would be disqualified, because half the riders went off trail...
and it was because of sabotage. Well shoot, if we'd known, we wouldn't
have raced home! Lesson learned... sort of. You can never count on
a different ride manager making the same decision in a similar situation.
At
the end of Day One, the pulse parameter was 44. Normally, we'd walk
in, so the horses can get a head-start on pulsing down. But since
we'd cantered in, Zephyr got a 48. Nettie was also over, but I don't
remember how much. My trot-out went great, though... they said Zephyr
still had lots of energy and looked great. In fact, as I ran the straight
part of the trot-out pattern, he actually broke into a canter right
next to me! How wierd! Traci's horse, unfortunately, came up lame
at the trot-out. She'd been fine on the trail, but something had set
in during the 20-30 minutes we'd been waiting to see the vet. He said
it looked like the suspensory ligament, and that if she was still
tender there in the morning, he would pull her out of the ride.
Took
care of the horses' needs, ate our dinner (lobster for Traci, chicken
for me), massaged each others lower legs and feet, and fell asleep
before we hit the sleeping bags.
DAY
TWO - 20 MILES:
Ride
meeting was held, to explain the trail for Day Two. I wanted to get
Zephyr out to stretch his legs, so I brought him to the meeting. (MISTAKE
# ONE!) He wanted to eat grass, and wouldn't stand still... so while
I was hearing everything, and writing down my arrows correctly, I
wasn't giving it my FULL attention.
Nettie
was still sore, so Traci pulled herself from the ride. Helped me get
Zephyr ready. I almost forgot his Easy Boots, so I had to go back
and put them on in a hurry. (MISTAKE # TWO!) It started raining.
I
walked him around for a few minutes before our start time. They start
people in pairs, every 2 minutes. Since Traci wasn't riding, I was
starting alone. But I was #18 out of 28 horses, so I was confident
that I'd be able to join up with folks who started after me. Unfortunately,
when they called my number and asked me to trot across the starting
line, Zephyr was clearly "off." From the sound of his footfalls,
I knew one of the boots was on wrong. Thinking about it later, I realized
I could have just ridden without them... it was only a 2:45-3 hour
ride, and he would have been fine for that long. (MISTAKE # THREE!)
It took me several minutes to remove and reset the boot, and remount.
By that time, everyone else had left. So then, I was leaving camp
on the second day of riding, which Zephyr has never been asked to
do, and I was leaving last, and I was leaving alone, AND it was raining
(which Zephyr can't STAND). With no other horses around to motivate
him, I'm lucky he even agreed to go.
We
walked the first bit, just in case he was still stiff from yesterday.
Which made it impossible to catch up with anyone, of course. Headed
up the Bubble Pond trail (3 miles), which was a repeat trail from
the day before, at a steady working trot. Got to the end of that section,
saw the vet, and made a joke about how tough it was to leave last.
He had a confused/concerned look on his face... gently broke the news
that I was off-trail again. Apparently, at the first turn... you guessed
it... I went the wrong way. Skipped an entire 5-mile loop around Day
Mountain, and added an extra 6 miles to my day's ride because I was
going to have to turn around, go back 3 miles to the Day Mountain
loop, then come BACK up the Bubble Pond trail again. I turned around
and headed back at that same steady trot. Passed all the other riders/drivers
who were going the other (correct) way. I could hardly see them through
my tears - I'd really let my horse down. They felt so bad for me,
they told me later...
Zephyr
did as I asked... we went up and around Day Mountain. Would not canter...
that steady working trot was all he could give. And when I turned
him up that Bubble Pond trail again, he was less than thrilled. We
were probably halfway back to where the vet had been, when he told
me in no uncertain terms that this was NOT what he'd signed up for.
He'd done 38 miles the day before, and the last half had been at a
crazy pace. The fact that he'd had to leave camp today AT ALL had
been bad enough... but he'd left camp LAST, ALONE, and IN THE RAIN.
(Did I mention he can't STAND getting rained on??) And now, I was
asking him to do the SAME TRAIL four times in two days!?!?!?! ALONE???
"No thanks, Mom, I'm going to stand RIGHT HERE until you come
to your senses and decide we've done enough!"
After
some hysterics on my part, which I am not proud of, and a lot of wailing
and sobbing, I convinced him to walk on. But a walk was all I acheived.
Nothing in the world would make him trot. At that point, knowing that
I had 2 hours before I was disqualified, and that I'd technically
only done 6-7 miles of the 20, there was NO way we'd get home in time.
I apologized to him, turned around, and let him walk home as slowly
as he wanted. I felt so stupid for missing that turn... and I was
so terribly upset that we would not get our "completion."
I
rode into a quiet, deserted camp. As I dismounted, the ride manager
and several volunteers drove in. They must have heard that I'd never
made it back to the top of the Bubble Pond trail, so they knew what
had happened. The manager just came over and hugged me. I don't know
what she said, anymore... I'm sure it was something wonderfully comforting.
I cried in her arms.
I
led Zephyr down to our barn, where I found Traci. Obviously, she knew
something was really wrong. I told her, through tears. She hugged
me, and I cried some more, while swearing loudly about my stupidity
in missing that turn.
I
was cold, wet, tired, angry at myself, and SO disappointed that my
STUPID mistake had ruined everything we'd worked so hard for. I don't
really remember removing Zephyr's tack and putting his cooler on,
but I must have done so. Then I just curled up against the side of
the stall and put my head in my arms, shaking with cold and disappointment.
Traci comforted me as best she could... she told me later she had
no idea what to say. I don't blame her.
People
started to come back into camp very soon. Yes, I'd been out THAT long,
and only done 7 miles of the official trail. They were only about
30 minutes behind me coming into camp. Not wanting to seem unsportsmanlike,
I wiped away the tears. But the very first person who came up to tell
me they were sorry about what had happened, I burst out in tears again.
How wussy of me. I got lots of hugs and comforting words, but I still
didn't feel any better.
Traci
and I went up to the camp site so I could change into dry clothes.
To be honest, I also wanted to get away, so I wouldn't have to talk
to anyone.
Later,
we packed up our gear, loaded the horses, and headed out before the
awards ceremony. I really hope no one thought we were poor sports
for doing so... I just couldn't have sat through it. And I wouldn't
have wanted my depression to spoil anyone else's moment.
At
some point later, Traci and I were talking about it. We were already
VERY PROUD of our horses for doing 38 miles the first day; they'd
given us their best effort SO willingly - and came in strong afterwards.
When you added in the 13 miles I did on the second day, Zephyr and
I actually DID do 50 miles in 2 days. They may have been the WRONG
50 miles, but it was 50 miles nonetheless. That, and a night's sleep,
has made me feel better. I may not have the completion on my record,
but my horse and I rode 50 miles in two days. We rode hard the first
day, and faced challenges on the second day that would have made a
lesser horse "fold" much sooner. I am very proud of Zephyr,
and grateful that he is mine.
Thank
you for reading this... it's been very theraputic to write.
. 
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