2015: A Rollercoaster Year

On my first day of surgical residency my chief resident told me "The days will drag on forever, but the months will fly by". It was true then and remains true to this day. While 2015 had some amazing ups, it also had some really big downs for Team Gem. Join me as I walk back through the last year.

2015





Isn't it supposed to be "April showers bring May flowers"? So why the heck is January so soggy? I think the Universe is testing my resolve. What I want to do is snuggle deep in my covers and pretend I am made of sugar (and don't own any rain gear), but with our second 50 looming in the near distance, I need to put on my big girl panties, cover myself in plastic and get going. On the 13th, I make my way to the Fell Hunt Camp where I meet up with the riders who helped me through my first 50. Naively, I assume we will be doing a nice conditioning ride. I quickly learn my error as we set a scorching pace along twisting trails snaking between tree trucks. 3 hours and 25 miles later we are back at the trailer and Gem is looking at me like I have finally gone full blown crazy. The next weekend, I manage to squeak in one last long ride  at a much more sedate pace and then put Gem out to pasture to rest up for the big day.

Looking skinny

While I am making plans and getting gear ready, my best friend for over 15 years is fighting for her life. It is a battle she sadly loses in February.  In the words of Forrest Gump: that's all I have to say about that.

With the news weighing heavily on my mind and heart, I drive myself half crazy debating on heading up North to her wake or down South to the 50. Celebrating her life by chasing my dreams seems the most fitting though and I head off to the middle of nowhere GA feeling uncharacteristically zen. I arrive with plenty of time to set up, eat and even take a nap. The next morning I embark on the  Camp Osborne Pow Wow 50 mile endurance ride. This ride is basically the polar opposite of my first 50 and we finish feeling great having ridden our own ride for 80% of it.

Loop 1

Loop 2

Loop 3

By the end of an endurance weekend, Gem and I are both looking for some time apart. She hangs out in her pasture regaling her mates on her exploits and I hang out at home with my lovely little man. Winter slowly starts to lose its grip on the South and signs of spring begin popping out of the barren earth.

It is around the middle of March and I have yet to ride Gemmie again. Ooops. The temperatures finally begin to hit the mid 70s, which is much more livable when you have become a southern wimp like me, and I decide it is high time to get her moving again. I take her out around the barn  and things go pretty well. I have recently read a great article about positive thinking and removing the word "don't" when you ride: instead of "don't spook at that rock!" think "we are going to move steadily forward". I am not sure how much my telepathic attempts at calming her down work or if she is just feeling good, but we have an enjoyable ride.

By the end of the month, I am starting to feel like owning a horse again and I take a long, hard look at her hooves. Maybe stilettos are all the fashion this spring for mares, but they lack a certain biomechanical appeal. A quick call to the farrier and a decision to look into hoof protection and she should be straightened out in no time.

Time continues to march on, the weather continues to warm up and I continue to remain out of the saddle. In early April I trudge out to the barn only to find that Gem has grown boobs in her girth area. 

In the past, something like this would send me staring down the hole of impending horse doom: are these tumors, is this pigeon fever, will she die? Not this time. This time I swallow the lump in my throat, assume they are poorly placed bug bites and cover her in goop. The next day they are gone.

Having punched my ticket for yet another trip around the sun, I find myself another year older. I take a lazy day for my actual birthday this year and stay in my jammies forming a me sized hole in the couch. That weekend Gem and I explore Croft State park together and find some great new trails to condition on that are about 15 minutes closer to home.

She has recovered well from the 50 and looks in a good weight

On April 25th I try out an Easyboot Fit Kit which just proves to me, my readers and the world at large that her trim job really, truly, does in fact suck. A fellow blogger points this out to me and the reality hits home pretty hard: I need to go with shoes or find a farrier who actually knows what a barefoot hoof should look like.

That is what has led me to this point, standing at the barn on May 6th  at 6:30 am waiting for a self proclaimed barefoot expert, the now infamous Lady Farrier. Having shown up a half an hour late, she lets her dog run rampant on a no dogs allowed property and is pretty rough around the edges. Even with all that, she shapes Gem's hooves beautifully and I dream of hoof boots that night.

It has been three months since I last did anything of real excitement with Gem. May 16th remedies that bland existence. Dusty and I partner up for the Clemson 30 mile Equathon and have an absolute blast as I ride 15 miles followed by him getting to run 15 miles.




Beware: the bucket monster!

Spring flowers along the trail



Two things happen that put a mild damper on the day. First, Dusty finishes his 15 mile loop 5 minutes faster than Gem and I had which gives him massive bragging rights until the fall. Darn the crazy psycho who demanded use of my cell phone out on trail! Second, Gem loses patience being tied to the trailer awaiting Dusty's finish and pulls the ring off the trailer. She runs through camp with the hay bag trailing her and skids out on her side in front of me on gravel. Fortunately she only has a few minor scrapes.

Once again, I put Gem out to pasture and barely touch her until the end of the month when I manage to get enough gumption back to head to Brick House. We encounter the worst water crossing ever, but manage not to die. My funk continues to persist though until one day Liz invites me up to Ride Between the Rivers for a blogger meet and greet. I am ecstatic and for the first time in months, I start to get serious about riding again.

Getting more serious about riding and picking a ride that is littered with rocks means I finally have to get serious about hoof protection. The beginning of June brings Lady Farrier back out, but she is horribly late, lets the darn dog out again and treats Pete very roughly. Three strikes and she is out. This means that I will have to suck it up and do this myself.

Summer hits early and it hits hard this year. Temperatures reach the upper 90s with "real feel" in the 100s and it is only the middle of June. Gem hates being hot and my typical low grade worry of hurting my horse ramps up to full blown panic at being able to safely condition for a mountain ride in July.

Gem looking miserable in the heat

On June 17th, I finally get to do something I have been wanting to do for months: I order Renegade hoof boots. My wallet starts having seizures, but I am ecstatic. Towards the end of the month, I hit the year end awards for the local hunter pace series in anticipation of the next season. Unfortunately, a horse dies in the early part of the ride and this is my first encounter with that. This year sure has been a tragic one in a lot of ways and I am beginning to get some bad feelings.

As June comes to a close and my heart is set on meeting new friends, riding new trails and conquering our first endurance ride in hoof boots, the unthinkable happens. Ten short minutes after leaving the barn on a beautiful summer afternoon, the BO calls and tells me that Gem needs stitches. None of us could have known the amount of trauma that happened to her hoof and I won't plaster the graphic photos on here again. They can all be seen here. I rush her up to the Equine hospital where she undergoes general anesthesia, cleaning up and suturing of her massive medial heel bulb laceration.

After several instances of bad communication, what I still feel is poor management and a nagging sense that Gem wasn't being cared for as well as I had hoped, she gets to come home on July 10th. Her front right leg is still in a fiberglass cast and she is on stall rest, but she is home with no infection and no lameness. As if this hadn't put a damper on the summer enough, my Aunt passes away shortly after Gem comes home. I think this year needs to end now.

Not to be deterred from a much needed mental break from life, Dusty, Wyatt, Einstein and I pack up and head off to WV leaving Gemmie behind to continue healing like a good mare. RBTR weekend brings in August and is an absolute blast. The weekend is so full of wonderfulness that I take three entire posts to talk about it all: 1, 2, 3.



A very happy Einstein

Getting to ride Griffin, Gelding Extraordinaire

This picture ends up being featured in EN News :)

With a much needed control-alt-delete having been performed on my life, I make the official goal to attend all 17 hunter paces in the 2015-2016 season to obtain the Supporter Award. The only problem is that Gem isn't rideable yet. Enter Pete. I have not ridden him in many years and yet on the last day of the month I saddle him up and explore the world of paces. The FENCE fall pace goes splendidly and both Pete and I have a great time.

September arrives and Gem is finally able to start back under saddle. I want to start her slowly. There is no reason to rush things and cause harm. The next pace comes up fast and is a lesson in flexibility when Pete won't be caught, the truck keys get locked inside and Gem has to go without boots and her regular pad. We finish way off time, but learn a lot along the way.

Gem in the trailer: a sight for sore eyes

Gem remains sound and with no issues to the front right, but begins a mystery swelling to both hind legs in the area where a typical wind puff would be. I decide to keep a watchful eye on it and start working her a bit more to see if I can strengthen the area again.

My favorite event of the year is upon us again, Run for the Horses endurance ride and ultra marathon. Dusty completes the 50 mile run 3 minutes faster than last year while Wyatt and I get into trouble with mud, water and dump trucks. I also run into some endurance friends and catch up on old times.

Following the accomplishment of Dusty, Gem and I have one of the best ever solo rides to date at Croft State Park which also happens to be the first ride in the Renegades. She is forward, happy and the miles tick away.

We finish the month off with a pace at Biltmore in the soaking rain. It is a faster ride than I had planned going into it, but Gem wanted out of the rain (hmm...maybe I should plan all my endurance rides for rainy weekends) and holding her back is worse than just letting her go.





As the leaves begin to turn and the temperatures begin to drop, fall is upon us. October is probably one of the best months in SC with no bugs, low humidity and the ability to laugh at all my friends who live up north as they start to complain about the cold. October also happens to be my anniversary month and Dusty and I celebrate 11 years together this year. I dig through my old photo stash to post about the wedding and subsequent honeymoon.

Gem continues to do well and I find her new hoof growth to be fascinating. I am monkeying around with the fit of the Renegades which are just not quite right. Early on, I finally give up on the old not-too-great blog name and rename it the Roaming Rider.

The 19th brings about a much anticipated event for me: the Clemson 30 mile Equathon.  The morning starts off horrible, we show up late and then I get my first ever RO when the Renegade boot flips over her hoof and is stuck. Some days are just not meant to be.

A picture I really want to frame some day

The following morning all I want to do is sleep and forget about horses, but I have promised the 14 year old at the barn that I would take her to a pace. Instead of burying my head under the covers, I pack up the horses and head out to the Tryon Hounds pace. Turns out it is the best thing possible to do as Gem gets a mental break from going solo and we move out and have fun. I also get Haley absolutely hooked and secretly start scheming to get her into endurance.

As October turns to November I manage to embarrass my 2 year old son and husband during the family trick or treat outing. I can only look forward to the many years ahead of similar actions.

The weather has turned nasty rainy this fall. I don't remember it being quite so wet last year, but there is nothing to do about it. Gem gets a lot of time off to just chill and adapt to the cooler weather and shorter days. In the meantime, on the 10th, I sign Einstein up for a leash walking class which turns into a medieval torture session including prong collars and very unhappy dogs. Poor guy doesn't deserve that kind of abuse.

The 15th brings another hunter pace and Haley brings Waffles along. We end up taking 5th place at the FENCE ride.

Satin!!

Somewhere in here I lose the rest of my mind and begin taking a Wednesday 5:45 am, yes that's right AM, spinning class. While I curse the instructor under my breath the entire time and pretty much want to die, the results are pretty hard to ignore and I keep dragging my butt out of bed week after week.

Thanksgiving brings about our yearly waterfall hunt and we hit up Cedar Creek Falls in Walhalla, SC. I get the best picture ever of Bones and that alone makes the entire trip worth it.

My Bones

That weekend I head to Windridge farm for a solo pace and ride with a dressage whip to remind Gem that forward does, in fact, actually mean forward. She responds well to it, no blood is shed or abuse occurs, and we end up taking 5th place again. Dusty eats Apple Cider Soup by mistake and I laugh at him for days.

Derpy mare face. Soon to be derpy husband

And that brings us to December - a wet and soggy month. The beginning of the month is pretty mundane until I get a warrant for my arrest tin the mailbox. A very stressful day proceeds in which I find out that the warrant is issued due to unkempt shrubbery at the rental house we own in Ohio. Trust me, I more than wish we could just sell the darn thing and be done with it. We get it all settled and life moves on, but man what a stressful period!!

Gem and I attend the River Valley Hunter Pace along with Haley and Waffles and take place 4th. It is a nice way to end the first half of the pace season and this puts Gem and I un 4th place overall in the season standings.

Overall, the year has been both good and bad with its continued ups and downs. I said goodbye to too many loved ones in 2015 and would love to keep everyone safe and healthy in 2016. I have some big plans for ht upcoming year, but we shall see what life throws my way.

2014: A Year In Review

Another year has just flown by! Looking back is always an interesting experience, but it is one of the best reasons to blog in the first place. It really helps to put things into perspective when you read back and realize where you were a year ago.

So, without further ado:

2014

 

It is a new year and I look forward into the days yet to come. My soul is aching for that 50 mile completion, so I put in writing three goals: get a saddle that fits, get Gem in shape, and claim that 50 mile completion. The first order is getting a saddle that fits and doesn't ride up her neck. I've been trialing an Advantage saddle for a few weeks and on January 6th, with glee in my heart and only a vague concept of how I will eventually pay for it, I place my order for a new one to call my own. I plan on 6-8 weeks for delivery and with a heavy heart place my beloved WISE saddle on numerous websites for sale. I also place my Wintec and a few extra girths online.

 

But on New Year's day itself, I load up Gem and head out to a brand new trail system to brave the wilderness alone. This trail system will quickly become a second home to us, but on this day it is all new and we are both horribly out of shape. Luckily, the day is bright and I manage to follow the trail markings without getting lost. I do run into this display of brilliant human common sense which causes a brief moment of introspection as I figure out what to do:

 

 

Who on earth places a trail marker on a NO TRESSPASSING sign? Sigh.

 

The month continues to move forward and I keep getting the same scam over and over again and I question why people don't just get a real job? Things are looking bleak for a safe and secure sale and to brighten things up Dusty and I hit the trails together on the first date in a long time. We travel the trails at Clemson under a brilliantly blue winter sky.

 

It is now February and I find that I am growing anxious with each passing day that my new saddle will arrive before the old one is gone. The Universe has it's eye on me though and I read a great blog post about how to sell high end saddles safely and effectively. What perfect timing!! I decide to ship it off to the Maryland Tack Exchange and see what they can come up with. Of course, the Universe has a cruel sense of humor and an impeccable sense of irony as well, and, just one short week later, I receive an email from the company that they have heard talk of WISE closing shop. This will, of course, make my saddle less desirable and therefore the already too low price should be dropped even more. 

In non horse related news, I have finally reached my breaking point in my job. While it is a stable and well paying job, it is also highly stressful and no fun whatsoever. Staring down 30 years of this nonsense makes me want to hurl, so I join the numerous members of my past and current family in becoming my own boss and announce to the world that I will be starting my own private practice. I also think that starting the Insanity work out is a great idea, so I drag poor Dusty down with me and at 7 pm each night we are squatting and jumping our way to better bodies.

I quickly realize that I do in fact despise squatting and jumping more than I thought was possible and so early in March, not even half way through the program, I happily quit a routine that was improbable in the first place.While the sun is beginning to stay up later and the weather is becoming more glorious by the day, Gem decides that she needs to unmistakably show the world how bad of a horse owner I really am.

I panic. Are these bite wounds? Fungus? A weird prelude to certain death? It turns out it is none of the above and instead is simple seasonal alopecia. It appears as though Gem is trying to ditch her arctic winter coat for a more subdued Southern belle summer style, but the summer hair is not able to keep up and come in fast enough. I keep the areas lathered with the best horse product around, Belly Balm, and soon enough the small new shiny summer hairs fill in the gaps and hide my neglect.

A most remarkable thing happens mid month:  my WISE saddle sells for full asking price against all odds. I am elated for about 20 minutes until it is brought to my attention that I made an expensive blunder while forming my new business and guess how much the fix is going to cost? Exactly! One WISE saddle. Bummer, but at least I can afford to fix it and now will just have to come up with the funds for the saddle some other way. Speaking of saddles... shouldn't my new one be arriving any day now? It has been 2 months.

I manage to squeak in a short trail ride on Gem solo and after a brief encounter with a speed boat that makes me question my life expectancy, I place a plea online for a riding buddy. S is kind enough to respond and so with March quickly fading into the past, we meet at Clemson and have a wonderful 9 mile ride together thus starting a new friendship. Unfortunately, the ride ends with a two hour battle to get Gem back on the trailer. S is wonderful and offers to trailer her to my barn in her rig which Gem complies with and I embarrassingly accept.

This sets Gem up for a tough start to April. One sunny Saturday afternoon I set the trailer up, grab my lunge line and dressage whip and settle in for a day of trailer loading 101. It takes a while, but soon Gem learns that this is one fight she will not win and eventually decides to give up this battle (I'm certain she still plans to win the war though).

To celebrate my 32nd birthday, S offers to trailer up for the Biltmore Hunter Pace on the 13th. This is amazing since the hubby has tried everything to ruin the day: no gift, forgets to pick up the cake before bakery closes and then writes happy 34th on my 32nd birthday card. The day is simply amazing with a bright blue sky, sparkling green grass on rolling country hills and the pop of pink spring flowers. Gem gets hot and tired, but otherwise holds her own on a hilly 11 mile ride.

May. What a great month you are! Having finally made some riding friends in the area (seriously, it is insanely hard to make friends in a new town as an adult), I am beginning to be exposed to new experiences. T (I met her shortly after meeting S) sends me a text wondering if Dusty would possibly be interested in vetting a Ride and Tie at Clemson. He laughs and says why not and I quickly text S to convince her to be my partner in the 8 mile event. We find a sitter for Wyatt and then find ourselves bright and early at the familiar Clemson trail head getting ready to start.

The Ride and Tie goes off without a hitch and S and I make our way down the trail, swapping off riding and running, on what turns out to be more like a 9 mile trail. We are having fun and keeping up a decent pace until about 1/4 mile from the finish when I make a wrong turn on foot and start the race all over again. Luckily, I have a fully charged cell phone on me and S calls wondering how on earth she beat me to the finish line when I was on foot well ahead of her. Ooops! I figure out my error, with her help, and turn around after making the 8 mile race a 10 mile one. It was still a blast and gets me jazzed to do more.

Completion award

After the excitement of this ride and Gemmie looking fantastic and like she barely did anything at all, S and I head to Sumter for my first experience at the Brick House trail system. We get lost, which is becoming an unfortunate habit, but the trails are nice and the company is even better. We manage about 15 miles before calling it a day back at the trailer and heading home.

I begin to wonder if that new saddle I ordered back in January will ever arrive.

I am a fairly low key horse owner. I don't spend loads on supplements, expensive food or tack. I basically keep it to the bare essentials which is great until you find yourself riding in a pair of disintegrating chaps and driving around a disorganized and slightly dangerously packed trailer. To fix these two things, in early June, I order a pair of black Just Chaps half chaps and a groom organizer. I fall in love with the organizer, but the chaps fall short of their Ovation predecessors. I am beginning to feel more and more like a real endurance rider and less like a complete fraud. Always a good thing.

But June is a terrible month that I won't ever be able to forget or think about without tears. The absolute, hands down best dog to ever walk this planet, Hero, is lost to us and joins his friends of days gone by in the meadows and wooded trails in Heaven. You can read my farewell to him here. I still think of him often and while most times it brings a smile to my face my heart is still broken and I find tears stinging my eyes.



This month is a month for changes and after saying a heart breaking farewell to my best friend for 14.5 years, we pack up our home and move across town to be nearer our jobs. This puts me a crappy hour away from Gem though, so I begin the hunt for a new farm.

The end of the month promises better things to come and I sign up with the most excitement I've felt in weeks for a 25 mile LD at Biltmore in July. I make plans for her last minute conditioning and as usual the Universe laughs in my face and throws curves that I learn to navigate around.

With 4 weeks to go until the event, Gem and I hit the trails for what turns out to be the most miserable, hot and humid conditioning ride to date. Just look at how crabby Gem looks!

We only manage 4 miles before we are both so sick of each other, the weather and being dehydrated that we call it quits and plan to fight another day. The following weekend Dusty runs in his first 24 hour race and puts in a respectable 62 miles before shock brings him down around midnight. I am very proud of him!!! With only 2 weeks to go, I sneak in a 10 mile ride at Clemson and then prepare to let her rest until the big day.

After the sadness and changes that June brought, July has to be better and it doesn't disappoint! The 12th finds us standing at the start line of the Biltmore 25 mile LD ride waiting anxiously to begin the adventure. The trails are beautiful and the weather is perfect. Gem comes off the first loop looking like she hasn't done anything and I get yelled at by the ride vet that I am riding too slow. I am riding with S and her junior and we are all having a great time. Dusty and Wyatt show up at the hold and help where they can and before I know it we are off once again. A short time later we are pulling back into camp for our first 25 mile completion in 3 years!! It is a wonderful weekend and confirms in my own head what others have been telling me all along: Gem can easily do a 50.

Having successfully completed 25 miles with no back soreness or tack issues I start to wonder if I should just buy the demo saddle I have been riding in since December. It has been 6 months since I excitedly placed my order for a brand new saddle from Advantage and no saddle is in sight. What is the enemy of good? Better. With that in mind, I inform them that I will just purchase the demo saddle and call it a day.

The hour long drive to see Gemmiecakes is starting to drag on me by the end of the month and after an extensive and exhaustive search, I settle on New Life Farm. It isn't perfect, but it cuts my drive in half and lets the Dynamic Duo remain together.

Shortly after this Einstein joins our family. He is a 7 week old Boykin Spaniel and I have high hopes that he will some day become a great trail riding partner. He is playful, snuggly and puts up with Wyatt exceptionally well. Welcome to the family!

August is now here and summer is in full swing in the South. While I will ride in temperatures as low as -5 Fahrenheit, I can't seem to force my leg over her back when it is above 90. By default Gem is ending up with a great mini vacation. I make plans to go to Jubilee in VA, but bail at the last minute due to logistics and lack of conditioning. I also finally realize that there is no way I am going to make the September 50 I have had my sights on since the beginning of the year. Bummer :( 

 

Dusty and I manage to squeak in a quick date  and the first Dynamic Duo trail ride since January and head off to Croft State Park.

 

I must admit, come September, I am feeling a little sorry for myself having had to bail on both Jubilee and now the 50 at Biltmore. I finally find a suitable, and doable, replacement in the Barefoot Shine and Wine in TN in October and the fire is relit! Poor gem doesn't know what hit her as I up the ante on our conditioning program once again. Early on I have a heart attack inducing incident with a massive spider late at night. Those things are creepy!

 

By the middle of the month, the 35 minute drive to the barn starts to get old and I am once again on the look out for new digs for the Dynamic Duo. The outlook is bleak having just scoured the area a few months ago for a suitable barn, but hope springs eternal and I look anyway.
 

 

One perfectly harmless Sunday morning I load her up and head off to Sumter to get a 20 mile conditioning ride on the books. It is the worst conditioning ride ever, but we manage a solid 18-20 miles and in retrospect this is the best thing I could have ever done. The ride takes 5 hours to do and while it isn't hot and I am not pushing the pace, it is still a long time without food or water. Afterward Gemmie gulps down her water and eats every morsel she is offered. From this point forward she no longer turns her nose up to any food offered before, during or after a ride. I also learn the importance of carrying water and a granola bar with me as well as eating breakfast before heading out.

 

Towards the end of the month, Dusty heads off to run 50 miles at Biltmore for Run for the Horses and Wyatt and I join up near the end to welcome him across the finish line. He finishes in a great time with a huge smile on his face.

 

At the end of the month I move the Dynamic Duo into what will hopefully be the last boarding barn they ever see. It is a wonderfully laid back barn with a 40 acre gelding pasture and a 35 acre mare pasture filled with grass, an outdoor arena and manicured grassy tracks surrounding the pastures for riding. The weekend following the move, I take Gem on one final 20 mile conditioning ride at Clemson and then let her sit until our big day.

 

One overcast day in October I find my stress addled brain attempting to function as I pack, load and head off to Barefoot Wine and Shine 50 mile ride. Unfortunately I let my stress levels peak and I ruin what could have been a glorious start to a wonderful ride, but I quickly find some new friends and everything turns around 10 miles into the ride. We finish in 8 hours 8 minutes with a great CRI and some concerns over her hydration status. Otherwise, she looks fit, sound and happy at the end and I couldn't be prouder of her.

 

Soon November rolls around and brings delicious fall weather with it. Gem gets a major holiday as I lose my riding focus and motivation. Wyatt learns the joys of riding as we play around the farm and Gem gets regulated to ponying duty for the month. Since daylight savings time has ended and killed off my week day riding ability, I start running again. Just 2 miles around my hilly neighborhood in the evenings a few days a week. It is a good start and hopefully by the time our next 50 rolls around I will be in better shape.

 

As time continues to pass December is upon us and I finalize my ideas for 2015. A spring 50 attempt and a fall question mark depending upon my spring completion. Gem's condition goes back online and we hit two wonderful hunter paces during the month. It begins with the Clemson Pace on my favorite trail system. We push hard and come up in 7th place which is respectable. This is followed a couple weeks later by the River Valley Pace where her brain shuts down and we spend the time re learning how to be a trail horse.

 

  

And that folks is a long version of how 2014 went for team Gem. I can't wait to read everyone else's reports.