It is Tuesday as I write this (Thursday as it is posted) and I have a half formulated electrolyte plan.
I fudged my way through electrolyting the last two rides. I had none on the first ride and a very generous and nice person offered up some of her paste at the hold for Gemmie. That was all she got: a full dose at the lunch hold at 13 miles. She did fine. The next ride I went better prepared and had tubes of Finish Line paste with me. By happenstance, they had no bicarb in it so that was great, and she got a full dose the night before and a half dose morning and at the hold. She did fine. So what does she actually need??
To add more confusion - those rides were in October in the arctic north. She was sweaty but not excessively so. Biltmore in July is a while other ball game.
In general, I like the idea of a full dose with dinner the night before. She will have all night with full access to water to drink away and it just may encourage her to tank up a bit before the next morning's ride.
I think a full dose the morning of or at all during is excessive and puts her at risk of an ulcer since she won't have full access to water. She will only get to drink sporadically when it becomes available. This is unlike human runners who take elytes at regular intervals throughout and also have immediate access to water at all time. I think a half dose before and at the hold is more than plenty and may even be too much.
Going into it I do plan on a full dose Friday night and then a half dose Saturday morning and at the hold. If she is doing well and drinking awesome I may forgo lunch. If she seems dehydrated and cranky I may do a 3/4 or full dose at lunch and/or some at the end.
The question now is how? I have two plans: P and A
PLAN P
As in "powder".
Saturday I grabbed the last remaining Finish Line tube and compared it to Gem's regular supplement. And to my surprise the supplement has a crap ton more of everything in it. I wasn't surprised it had more ingredients because the elytes are just potassium, sodium, zinc and magnesium whereas her supplement has every nutrient under the sun in it (and is still legal for competition :) But I was surprised that the quantity was massively higher.
This got me thinking. If I feed her this with her meals, she shouldn't really need anything in addition to it in a paste form. Wouldn't it be overkill to give her even more?
The only thing this lacks is sodium. The supplement has none. But I can remedy that easily by adding a teaspoon of table salt to the mix. I just hope she eats it if it is salty.
This is my primary plan and as long as she eats fine before and during the ride it should be just fine. Lots of people prefer to add the elytes to the food for ease of use.
But historically she hasn't eaten very well during the ride. The night before she is generally good, breakfast is iffy and the hold a no go. So then what?
PLAN A
As in "applesauce".
Gem loves applesauce. Since I waited too long to get any Finish Line ordered in and I can't find it locally (actually I can't find any paste locally - just powder) I need to make my own as a back up.
If Gemmie decides to be pouty and won't eat well at the hold, I will have my back up applesauce. I can mix in the salt and powder with some of that and syringe it into her mouth.
I think the above is a pretty solid plan and should work well. I know she likes the supplement just fine and should eat it up. She generally gets 2 scoops a day and since I only go out once she gets them both. I can easily give her two scoops with dinner Friday then one scoop with breakfast Saturday and another at the hold.
July 11, 2014
July 10, 2014
AHHHH!
I had a lovely (albeit slightly boring) post all about my electrolyte plans for the weekend all typed up and ready to be posted today. But then I woke up this morning with my stomach in a knot and butterflies flying and all sorts of nervousness going on. So...you can read the boring post tomorrow when I am in camp and not writing.
I have so much to do before I leave for the barn tomorrow morning at 0630. This includes:
Packing Clothes
Packing Truck
Packing Gear
Panicking
Purchasing of Food
Making of Pot Luck Item
Purchasing of Last Minute Items I Didn't Even Think Of
Panicking
Charging Phone
Finding Camera and Charger and Charging It
Panicking
I have from 7pm when W goes to bed until 630 tomorrow morning to do all the above. The annoying part is that this little thing called "work" is taking up much of my day today.
I did cancel Gem's massage appointment for this evening. I was looking forward to it, but two things stopped me:
1) I've not used this lady before and while she comes highly recommended, I don't want to risk Gem getting sore from it and then not passing the initial vet inspection tomorrow afternoon. She will get one next week as a recovery massage instead.
2) Time. If I kept the appointment for 6:30 tonight that would take up all my time for the above list leaving me doing it in a rush at midnight. I can guarantee I will forget things, but if I pushed it back that far I would forget just about everything.
With all that in mind my plan is to work super hard to get everything done before bed tonight, get up at 6 tomorrow morning and head out by 6:30am. That will give me enough time to hook up the trailer, grab Gem, load up and hit the road to S's farm and then head to Biltmore.
See you all on Monday!!
I have so much to do before I leave for the barn tomorrow morning at 0630. This includes:
Packing Clothes
Packing Truck
Packing Gear
Purchasing of Food
Making of Pot Luck Item
Purchasing of Last Minute Items I Didn't Even Think Of
Charging Phone
Finding Camera and Charger and Charging It
I have from 7pm when W goes to bed until 630 tomorrow morning to do all the above. The annoying part is that this little thing called "work" is taking up much of my day today.
I did cancel Gem's massage appointment for this evening. I was looking forward to it, but two things stopped me:
1) I've not used this lady before and while she comes highly recommended, I don't want to risk Gem getting sore from it and then not passing the initial vet inspection tomorrow afternoon. She will get one next week as a recovery massage instead.
2) Time. If I kept the appointment for 6:30 tonight that would take up all my time for the above list leaving me doing it in a rush at midnight. I can guarantee I will forget things, but if I pushed it back that far I would forget just about everything.
With all that in mind my plan is to work super hard to get everything done before bed tonight, get up at 6 tomorrow morning and head out by 6:30am. That will give me enough time to hook up the trailer, grab Gem, load up and hit the road to S's farm and then head to Biltmore.
See you all on Monday!!
July 9, 2014
Packing List
My high school had an outdoor cub: hiking, backpacking, cross country skiing, rock climbing, mountain biking, and canoeing were all offered. Canoeing seemed like the best choice out of the group and so I convinced a friend to sign up with me in 9th grade. Little did I know that that was the best choice I could have ever made. Joining the club brought me so many friends, experiences and memories that could never be replaced. It also involved lots and lots and lots of camping. I became a pretty darn good camper knowing what was essential to bring and what could be left behind. Especially since I weighed in at 90 pounds soaking wet and couldn't carry as much as some others.
Because of this I am very bare bones basic when it comes to camping. There was a recent post on the endurance forum about what you need for "primitive" camping and I laughed until I cried when I saw the responses. To me primitive camping means you need food and water for you and your horse, a safe place to contain your horse and somewhere to sleep (sleeping bag, tent, your truck, a hammock). That's it. The responses this poor person got included everything from a generator to a shower to who knows what. I'm not against having amenities (although I am against you calling it camping when you bring a hotel on wheels with you), but that's not primitive and it isn't essential to have.
Anyway....this all brings us to my packing list for the weekend. What all will I be bringing to the ride? Be careful: this is very basic and no frills, but it is only for 1 night and seriously I just don't like all the fuss of bringing my entire house with me.
GEM:
Saddle
Saddle pad x 2
Bridle x 2
Halter and lead rope
Portable corral
Grooming equipment
Grain: her regular 10% feed plus a bag of sweet feed (kept in a cleaned out plastic kitty litter tub so 40 lbs of each)
Hay: 2 bales of her regular coastal
Mineral supplement
Elytes in some form or another (need to solidify this)
2 buckets for water
2 buckets for grain
2 hay bags
Muck bucket
Saddle caddy/rack
Applesauce
Carrots
14 gallons of water (S has 100 gallons in her truck that I will have access to as well)
Fleece cooler
Coggins paperwork
Bug spray and belly balm
I think that is it. Pretty low key stuff. All of that is basically already in my trailer for our day to day rides except the portable corral, grain, hay, applesauce and carrots.
I'm still up in the air on electrolytes. I will write a new post on that to avoid cluttering this.
ME:
Clothes to wear there and back again (probably the same outfit, but will bring a second just in case)
Riding tights and matching shirt
A cooler of beverages (water, pepsi, Gatorade)
A cooler of food
Cell phone
Camera
Camelbak
Nalgene bottle
Garmin watch
Sunglasses
Helmet
Chaps
Sunscreen
Running shoes to ride in
Camp shoes
Hat
Sleeping bag
Chair
S offered up her trailer to sleep in and I will make that a spur of the moment choice. It will be her and her junior and there isn't much room. I may just sleep in the truck or in the back of the trailer which I've done before. I don't feel like setting up the tent for one night.
And that's it. Nothing fancy. I probably really should work on putting together a small horse first aid kit. I think that will be my next project before the ride in August.
Because of this I am very bare bones basic when it comes to camping. There was a recent post on the endurance forum about what you need for "primitive" camping and I laughed until I cried when I saw the responses. To me primitive camping means you need food and water for you and your horse, a safe place to contain your horse and somewhere to sleep (sleeping bag, tent, your truck, a hammock). That's it. The responses this poor person got included everything from a generator to a shower to who knows what. I'm not against having amenities (although I am against you calling it camping when you bring a hotel on wheels with you), but that's not primitive and it isn't essential to have.
Anyway....this all brings us to my packing list for the weekend. What all will I be bringing to the ride? Be careful: this is very basic and no frills, but it is only for 1 night and seriously I just don't like all the fuss of bringing my entire house with me.
GEM:
Saddle
Saddle pad x 2
Bridle x 2
Halter and lead rope
Portable corral
Grooming equipment
Grain: her regular 10% feed plus a bag of sweet feed (kept in a cleaned out plastic kitty litter tub so 40 lbs of each)
Hay: 2 bales of her regular coastal
Mineral supplement
Elytes in some form or another (need to solidify this)
2 buckets for water
2 buckets for grain
2 hay bags
Muck bucket
Saddle caddy/rack
Applesauce
Carrots
14 gallons of water (S has 100 gallons in her truck that I will have access to as well)
Fleece cooler
Coggins paperwork
Bug spray and belly balm
I think that is it. Pretty low key stuff. All of that is basically already in my trailer for our day to day rides except the portable corral, grain, hay, applesauce and carrots.
I'm still up in the air on electrolytes. I will write a new post on that to avoid cluttering this.
ME:
Clothes to wear there and back again (probably the same outfit, but will bring a second just in case)
Riding tights and matching shirt
A cooler of beverages (water, pepsi, Gatorade)
A cooler of food
Cell phone
Camera
Camelbak
Nalgene bottle
Garmin watch
Sunglasses
Helmet
Chaps
Sunscreen
Running shoes to ride in
Camp shoes
Hat
Sleeping bag
Chair
S offered up her trailer to sleep in and I will make that a spur of the moment choice. It will be her and her junior and there isn't much room. I may just sleep in the truck or in the back of the trailer which I've done before. I don't feel like setting up the tent for one night.
And that's it. Nothing fancy. I probably really should work on putting together a small horse first aid kit. I think that will be my next project before the ride in August.
July 8, 2014
Biltmore Gear Preparation
Being a member of ridecamp (email based endurance forum) and the endurance pages on Facebook, I am aware that there are cultural differences in the various regions. Each ride has its own flavor and the amount of excess amenities is dependent on the hard work of the ride manager, but overall each region has its own baseline. In the MW it was fairly basic. Water for horses was available in camp and at some point on the trail. Usually there was a potluck one night for dinner. The rides I went to had the vet in area right smack in the middle of camp. I don't know if it was a real, hard and fast rule or just the culture, but nobody put anything in the vet area. Your camp was just a short walk away and so you would come off the trail, ditch tack and present the horse and then wander to your trailer to stuff your face and allow your horse to binge and nap until it was time to go back out. It worked out super well especially for those without a crew.
I was concerned about how things flowed down here and so I picked S's brain while we rode together last. I am very glad I did!
There is one major differences that I was very happy to know of now and not when I showed up.
Good to know since I have neither a tent nor a saddle stand nor am I prepared for this at all.
S has all those things and so the plan is to dump it al into the back of one of our trucks and head over to get a spot. She will set up her tent and allow me to stash what little gear I have under it. My main concern is my saddle and pad. I can make do with placing my groom gear and such on the ground. I have two hay bags I can stuff full for Gem at the hold and four buckets to use for water and grain. But I don't want to put my saddle and pad on the ground in fear that it may break or get hay on it or something.
I slightly panicked, but then did some research and found a great wooden saddle caddy someone made. I begged the hubby to make me one and he said he would, but I knew it wouldn't be in time. Our garage is still full of boxes so he wouldn't even have a work area to build it in. I went online and found numerous sadly racks and caddys and the such. Most were very expensive or incredibly cheap and I didn't want to spend a fortune or waste my money on a stand that looked like it would break. Eventually I found what I was looking for that would serve the purpose.
And then, because I am an advertisers dream, I noticed that if I spent just a tad bit more money I could get free shipping. Never mind that the thing was already costing me oversized surcharges and that I was only paying $10 for shipping. If I spent just $8 more I could get free shipping. Whoever came up with that whole thing is a genius, by the way. I get caught by it every single time.
I looked around the website for anything I could convince myself and the hubby was essential and found another item to add to the cart. Of course it was way more than $8, so instead of saving $2 I spent a crap ton more. I told you, that person is a genius.
I came home last Thursday to find this on my doorstep :)
I was concerned about how things flowed down here and so I picked S's brain while we rode together last. I am very glad I did!
There is one major differences that I was very happy to know of now and not when I showed up.
- Vet in is a hefty walk from camp and everyone sets up tents and tables and saddle stands and all their gear at a prime spot at the vet in area and only return to the camp at the end.
Good to know since I have neither a tent nor a saddle stand nor am I prepared for this at all.
S has all those things and so the plan is to dump it al into the back of one of our trucks and head over to get a spot. She will set up her tent and allow me to stash what little gear I have under it. My main concern is my saddle and pad. I can make do with placing my groom gear and such on the ground. I have two hay bags I can stuff full for Gem at the hold and four buckets to use for water and grain. But I don't want to put my saddle and pad on the ground in fear that it may break or get hay on it or something.
I slightly panicked, but then did some research and found a great wooden saddle caddy someone made. I begged the hubby to make me one and he said he would, but I knew it wouldn't be in time. Our garage is still full of boxes so he wouldn't even have a work area to build it in. I went online and found numerous sadly racks and caddys and the such. Most were very expensive or incredibly cheap and I didn't want to spend a fortune or waste my money on a stand that looked like it would break. Eventually I found what I was looking for that would serve the purpose.
And then, because I am an advertisers dream, I noticed that if I spent just a tad bit more money I could get free shipping. Never mind that the thing was already costing me oversized surcharges and that I was only paying $10 for shipping. If I spent just $8 more I could get free shipping. Whoever came up with that whole thing is a genius, by the way. I get caught by it every single time.
I looked around the website for anything I could convince myself and the hubby was essential and found another item to add to the cart. Of course it was way more than $8, so instead of saving $2 I spent a crap ton more. I told you, that person is a genius.
I came home last Thursday to find this on my doorstep :)
The top box is my add on item: a trailer jack. T had a flat the first day I rode with her and she used an item similar to this. It allows you to change a flat on your trailer without unhooking it or taking the horses out. All you do is drive the good tire up on it and it lifts the bad tire enough to allow it to be changed. She had a fancier model, but this will work just fine.
 |
| W trying to figure out how he can play with it |
The bottom box had my saddle caddy/rack thing. Its not as nice as the pictures made it out to be, but is anything ever? It will serve its purpose.
 |
| Front view |
 |
| Can I play with this, Mom? |
 |
| Side view |
The wheels turn well enough. The top bar is to hold the saddle and pad. I will shove my grooming supplies and anything else I might need in the basket. The pink color is god awful. If I find the time between now and Friday morning, I may be tempted to paint it red and black instead.
It folds up for storage and is ok to push. It tends to want to collapse on itself for no reason, but maybe that will go away once it is loaded down. I will write a review on it once I get back from using it.
Other than that I think I am pretty close to being good to go. I need to figure out my electrolytes for Gemmie. I have a plan half formulated. She is getting her massage Thursday. Apparently there will be a farrier, horse massage therapist and human massage therapist on site. I was tempted to use the onsite one for Gem, but I don't want her done right before in case she is sore and I know after I've done my half marathons I was too sore to want anyone touching me.
July 7, 2014
Weekend Until Biltmore: 1 (EEK!)
Biltmore is coming on fast!! This past weekend was my last chance with Gemmie. I debated giving her it off, but when we were out with S and Ria last I felt her take a few funny steps around mile 8 and wanted to see if it was just a stone that got her or if she was off.
Sunday was going to be hot and sunny, but the woods are always nice and cool, so I knew we would be fine. I left the house later than normal, it took 2 hours to get to the trailhead (can't wait to move the horses!) and the parking lot was full, but I was determined to get 9-10 miles in for one last ride before Biltmore.
Gem was not in the mood Sunday morning at all. She was slow and pokey from the start and absolutely refused to go over the entrance bridge. She hasn't been like that in ages. She also decided to shuffle her feet instead of actually trot and spook at everything causing her to stumble over every single root and rock possible. I knew I was in for a looooong ride.
By mile 4 I had had enough. I was a little worried that she was hurting somewhere and maybe those off steps the weekend before were not so minor after all. She had the entire week off, so if she was still lame from something it wasn't a good sign. The trail opened up into a double wide track, so I jumped off and decided to hand jog her a bit to see how she was moving. This is what I got:
She refused to move. At all. She threw her head up in the air in a major tantrum. I lost it. She knows how to jog with me. We do it all the time!! Unacceptable behavior. How could I tell if she was hurting if she wouldn't even move?
I clucked, I asked nicely, I tried to circle. She was planted in one spot. Finally I just smacked her butt with the end of the reins although it really was just a tap. That ticked her off enough to make her circle around me. But I still couldn't get the mule to trot out with me.
I looked at her feet and legs and there was no swelling or heat or any notice of pain with I poked and prodded. So I jumped back on and kicked her butt up into an actual trot and made her move down the trail. We did that entire mile at 9 minutes 30 seconds which is fast for us. I even made her canter. Which I never do out alone.
I eventually let her walk at the next mile and from that moment on when I asked her to trot she did. In front of my leg and nicely. She stopped stumbling. She stopped tripping. It was a much nicer 4 miles than the previous.
Afterward I looked her over really well and she was fine. Sweaty and grumpy, but fine. I'm not sure what her problem was. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was the fact that I got her out at nap time. Maybe she missed her friend. Whatever it was, by the time I asked her to get in the trailer, she marched on without batting an eye or hesitating. She knew I was pissed!
When we got back to the barn I gave her a treat of alfalfa cubes, grain and her minerals/vitamins. She scarfed it down. She is looking a bit thin to me. Especially since I haven't been riding all that much. I think it is because the grass is so burnt out right now and they aren't really giving her much hay. Or at least not as much as I would like.
I have made her a massage appointment for Thursday evening to help get the kinks out before the race. I hope everything checks out fine and it makes her feel better.
Sunday was going to be hot and sunny, but the woods are always nice and cool, so I knew we would be fine. I left the house later than normal, it took 2 hours to get to the trailhead (can't wait to move the horses!) and the parking lot was full, but I was determined to get 9-10 miles in for one last ride before Biltmore.
 |
| You can always find shade in the woods |
 |
| Summer is in full swing |
Gem was not in the mood Sunday morning at all. She was slow and pokey from the start and absolutely refused to go over the entrance bridge. She hasn't been like that in ages. She also decided to shuffle her feet instead of actually trot and spook at everything causing her to stumble over every single root and rock possible. I knew I was in for a looooong ride.
By mile 4 I had had enough. I was a little worried that she was hurting somewhere and maybe those off steps the weekend before were not so minor after all. She had the entire week off, so if she was still lame from something it wasn't a good sign. The trail opened up into a double wide track, so I jumped off and decided to hand jog her a bit to see how she was moving. This is what I got:
She refused to move. At all. She threw her head up in the air in a major tantrum. I lost it. She knows how to jog with me. We do it all the time!! Unacceptable behavior. How could I tell if she was hurting if she wouldn't even move?
I clucked, I asked nicely, I tried to circle. She was planted in one spot. Finally I just smacked her butt with the end of the reins although it really was just a tap. That ticked her off enough to make her circle around me. But I still couldn't get the mule to trot out with me.
I looked at her feet and legs and there was no swelling or heat or any notice of pain with I poked and prodded. So I jumped back on and kicked her butt up into an actual trot and made her move down the trail. We did that entire mile at 9 minutes 30 seconds which is fast for us. I even made her canter. Which I never do out alone.
I eventually let her walk at the next mile and from that moment on when I asked her to trot she did. In front of my leg and nicely. She stopped stumbling. She stopped tripping. It was a much nicer 4 miles than the previous.
Afterward I looked her over really well and she was fine. Sweaty and grumpy, but fine. I'm not sure what her problem was. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was the fact that I got her out at nap time. Maybe she missed her friend. Whatever it was, by the time I asked her to get in the trailer, she marched on without batting an eye or hesitating. She knew I was pissed!
When we got back to the barn I gave her a treat of alfalfa cubes, grain and her minerals/vitamins. She scarfed it down. She is looking a bit thin to me. Especially since I haven't been riding all that much. I think it is because the grass is so burnt out right now and they aren't really giving her much hay. Or at least not as much as I would like.
I have made her a massage appointment for Thursday evening to help get the kinks out before the race. I hope everything checks out fine and it makes her feel better.
July 2, 2014
What Should A Newbie Know?
A recent "debate" has sprung up on the AERC FB page which I for some unknown reason and against all rational thought participated in. I know. Not smart. I always get so riled up on these things and it makes no difference in my real life at all. When will I learn?
Anyway...it all started innocently enough. One of the AERC leaders wanted to know if any new people to the sport (no definition of what "new" means) would want to be hooked up with people attending the same ride as they are that are willing to mentor them through a ride.
Great idea! I had this at my first ride by accident and it helped tremendously. I am all for this. And it would seem that pretty much every other person is as well.
But then the wheels fell off as is typical when free help is offered to the population at large.
The leader than asked what should be expected of the newbie upon showing up. I responded and got beat down by the potential mentees and backed up by the potential mentors.
Basically, I think that upon showing up to your very first ride there are numerous things you should already have down pat. These are things you know well in advance are going to be present and for pure safety reasons need to have prepared for. Here was my answer:
Your horse should know how to handle the trail that you will be riding on: water crossings, roads, hills etc... and all should be approached safely.
Your horse should know how to trot out on the line for the vet
Your horse should have the basic conditioning to be able to finish the ride in the allotted time barring any issues such as a misstep, metabolics, hydration issues. No horse is ever guaranteed a finish and lord knows I'm not sure we will finish Biltmore, but you need to have some conditioning done.
You need to have the basic hydration and nutrition that your horse requires at baseline on a daily basis down. You may need to alter this for the ride, but at least know where to begin from.
The potential mentee (is that even a word?) then responded in a way that makes me want to bang my head against the nearest wall until the current world and perception of entitlement makes sense to me...probably close to the point of a concussion.
She basically said that if she had to do all that herself she would never come to a ride. She has a horse that apparently hates cows and yet her first ride is planned to be at a place with known cow encounters. She asked in a rude way if that would mean that she shouldn't go to that ride. She also stated that not everyone can know their horse inside and out and that she wants to go to a ride without any risk of making a mistake and that that is what the mentor is for.
HUH???
Wow. That is so wrong on so many levels :(
First off - yes, if your horse has a known and unsafe aversion to a certain thing and you refuse to work on desensitizing them to it - you should not attend that ride. You definitely should not attend that ride with the thought that this poor sap who agreed to mentor you for free (having already paid their own ride fee as well) will go even farther and train your horse and you during the ride. If I was your mentor and we happened across a cow and you said you knew cows would be there and knew the unsafe reaction your horse would have and yet still came, I would leave you there. But then I guess I am mean.
Second - you need to know your horse's baseline. Period. Even if you board your horse you can ask the BO how much they eat and drink. How do you expect a mentor who just met you at the ride to know any of this if you, who owns the horse, don't? Do you think they have super powers? Rely on them to help if your horse has decided not to eat or drink or needs e-lytes. Not on the baseline.
Third - you want a mistake free journey? You want to show up and have someone else do all the work for you? Go elsewhere. This whole sport is about trial and error. Its about you figuring out how to be a better horseperson. You WILL make mistakes. You WILL have to pull or get pulled and it WILL be because of a bad decision you made. It happens. Then you learn not to do it again and move on. Don't strap some helpful person with the task of carrying your butt the entire way.
Well...then some other experienced people chimed in and agreed. Safety is essential. There are so many things you can't simulate. You can't recreate ridecamp, you can't recreate vetting in entirely, you can't recreate the weather that day or your horse's mood. But you can come to it fit. You can come to it with a well mannered horse who has been on terrain similar to the trail you plan to compete on. If you know there will be water crossings - practice at home. If there is something your horse reacts violently to then expose them at home. Or if you still insist on showing up, don't plan to ruin someone else's ride (and waste their money) by taking the entire ride time to get past the object. Its not fair and its not safe. Practice trotting out at home. A bad trot out can end your ride. Why make your mentor suffer through this at the ride? Make it as easy and enjoyable as possible so that when all those things you didn't even think of pop up you can focus on those and not about getting your horse to cross a creek.
We live in such a culture of entitlement and lack of both personal responsibility and pride in work. It drives me crazy!!! You want to show up and have someone else do it all for you? Ugh.
Anyway...it all started innocently enough. One of the AERC leaders wanted to know if any new people to the sport (no definition of what "new" means) would want to be hooked up with people attending the same ride as they are that are willing to mentor them through a ride.
Great idea! I had this at my first ride by accident and it helped tremendously. I am all for this. And it would seem that pretty much every other person is as well.
But then the wheels fell off as is typical when free help is offered to the population at large.
The leader than asked what should be expected of the newbie upon showing up. I responded and got beat down by the potential mentees and backed up by the potential mentors.
Basically, I think that upon showing up to your very first ride there are numerous things you should already have down pat. These are things you know well in advance are going to be present and for pure safety reasons need to have prepared for. Here was my answer:
Your horse should know how to handle the trail that you will be riding on: water crossings, roads, hills etc... and all should be approached safely.
Your horse should know how to trot out on the line for the vet
Your horse should have the basic conditioning to be able to finish the ride in the allotted time barring any issues such as a misstep, metabolics, hydration issues. No horse is ever guaranteed a finish and lord knows I'm not sure we will finish Biltmore, but you need to have some conditioning done.
You need to have the basic hydration and nutrition that your horse requires at baseline on a daily basis down. You may need to alter this for the ride, but at least know where to begin from.
The potential mentee (is that even a word?) then responded in a way that makes me want to bang my head against the nearest wall until the current world and perception of entitlement makes sense to me...probably close to the point of a concussion.
She basically said that if she had to do all that herself she would never come to a ride. She has a horse that apparently hates cows and yet her first ride is planned to be at a place with known cow encounters. She asked in a rude way if that would mean that she shouldn't go to that ride. She also stated that not everyone can know their horse inside and out and that she wants to go to a ride without any risk of making a mistake and that that is what the mentor is for.
HUH???
Wow. That is so wrong on so many levels :(
First off - yes, if your horse has a known and unsafe aversion to a certain thing and you refuse to work on desensitizing them to it - you should not attend that ride. You definitely should not attend that ride with the thought that this poor sap who agreed to mentor you for free (having already paid their own ride fee as well) will go even farther and train your horse and you during the ride. If I was your mentor and we happened across a cow and you said you knew cows would be there and knew the unsafe reaction your horse would have and yet still came, I would leave you there. But then I guess I am mean.
Second - you need to know your horse's baseline. Period. Even if you board your horse you can ask the BO how much they eat and drink. How do you expect a mentor who just met you at the ride to know any of this if you, who owns the horse, don't? Do you think they have super powers? Rely on them to help if your horse has decided not to eat or drink or needs e-lytes. Not on the baseline.
Third - you want a mistake free journey? You want to show up and have someone else do all the work for you? Go elsewhere. This whole sport is about trial and error. Its about you figuring out how to be a better horseperson. You WILL make mistakes. You WILL have to pull or get pulled and it WILL be because of a bad decision you made. It happens. Then you learn not to do it again and move on. Don't strap some helpful person with the task of carrying your butt the entire way.
Well...then some other experienced people chimed in and agreed. Safety is essential. There are so many things you can't simulate. You can't recreate ridecamp, you can't recreate vetting in entirely, you can't recreate the weather that day or your horse's mood. But you can come to it fit. You can come to it with a well mannered horse who has been on terrain similar to the trail you plan to compete on. If you know there will be water crossings - practice at home. If there is something your horse reacts violently to then expose them at home. Or if you still insist on showing up, don't plan to ruin someone else's ride (and waste their money) by taking the entire ride time to get past the object. Its not fair and its not safe. Practice trotting out at home. A bad trot out can end your ride. Why make your mentor suffer through this at the ride? Make it as easy and enjoyable as possible so that when all those things you didn't even think of pop up you can focus on those and not about getting your horse to cross a creek.
We live in such a culture of entitlement and lack of both personal responsibility and pride in work. It drives me crazy!!! You want to show up and have someone else do it all for you? Ugh.
July 1, 2014
Project...and product review Cashel Organizer
Gem rides around in an Eclipse 2 horse straight load aluminum trailer. Is it absolutely perfect? No. But I actually really like the trailer and it fit all our needs at the time of purchase. I have no plans on selling it ever and after owning it for 3 years it was about time to personalize it a bit.
My only real issue with the trailer is that the tack area is also the walk through/emergency door for loading the horses. It is a decent size, but most things were stored in a large muck bucket on the floor and I tended to trip over or step on items. The last straw was two weeks ago when I tried to open the trailer vents (with the trailer being so ridiculously tall, I have to stand on something to do this) and stepped down and tripped landing on top of my brand new bottle of fly spray squishing the bottle and popping the top off. Fortunately, I was able to attach the nozzle of a different bottle to pry this one back into a straight position and get it working again. But I had had enough.
Enter the Cashel full door groom organizer:
I had ordered it with the new chaps, but had run into a small complication with using it and so it sat in the trailer being useless and taking up yet more essential floor space.
What was the complication? The trailer is aluminum to cut down on both the annoyance of dealing with rust creating steel as well as weight. That's fine. But the door and walls themselves are fiberglass (I think...well they are something other than metal of any sort) and that limited the ability to hang the above contraption since the width from aluminum post to aluminum post was too wide and the length was too long. I really wanted it on the door and low enough that I could reach everything from the ground.
We needed to do something to safely hang the unit and so we stopped at Lowes and picked up some pieces of wood to go from end to end of the door at whatever height I wanted. Then the hardware for the organizer could be hung onto these and voila!
So we got the wood, but it was boring wood. I happened to walk past some decorative wood meant for something I suppose...maybe a railing or something. Anyway...much to the hubby's annoyance I grabbed a piece of that too to make it look prettier. Then...having pretty on the brain...I looked at staining options. Everything I have horse related is red and black. There was one staining option that was red looking and so I grabbed a can and headed to the paint department to get it mixed up.
I chose Antique Red because it was a little darker looking and in 5 minutes they had it ready. The person didn't offer to open the can and I was already taking too long for a quick 10 minute stop (30 minutes later :) so I grabbed it and headed to the check out. You can guess where this is going, right? It was 5 pm Saturday night and I wanted it stained and dry by morning. I got everything ready and opened up my can to see....purple stain. Umm? It wasn't even anywhere close to being red or reddish or pink or any shade/hue close to red on the color wheel. Darnnit!
Back to the store I went worried they wouldn't take it back. But they did without a question and I grabbed another can of base and headed to the paint department. I chose a new color (China Red) in case the other color recipe was messed up and I ended with purple again. The guy (same one as last time) handed it to me and I asked him to open it this time. It was red!!
Back home and I put W to bed and headed out to stain the wood. It really didn't turn out quite "red" more of a terracotta color, but it is red enough for me.
Sunday morning I had the hubby drill holes into the aluminum (ick...I guess the trailer is ours now!!) and he hung the board up across the width of the trailer door at a height reachable for me from the ground. He then tacked on the pretty top boards (the picture we have it crappy but it has a vine and leaf pattern running the length of it) and then the hardware for the organizer.
It works perfect!!! I holds all my fly spray bottles, grooming brushes, belly balm, hoof pick, her ear bonnet, etc... There are two hooks as well and I used these to hang our bits up off the floor. The plastic zipper pouch velcros on/off and I put my AERC card and coggins papers in there. That way I can just grab it and go to the vet in keeping it all organized.
I am sooo happy with it. The trailer looks so much better and everything is super easy to reach. I can't wait to really use it. Next time I make it to the barn I will grab better picks!
My only real issue with the trailer is that the tack area is also the walk through/emergency door for loading the horses. It is a decent size, but most things were stored in a large muck bucket on the floor and I tended to trip over or step on items. The last straw was two weeks ago when I tried to open the trailer vents (with the trailer being so ridiculously tall, I have to stand on something to do this) and stepped down and tripped landing on top of my brand new bottle of fly spray squishing the bottle and popping the top off. Fortunately, I was able to attach the nozzle of a different bottle to pry this one back into a straight position and get it working again. But I had had enough.
Enter the Cashel full door groom organizer:
I had ordered it with the new chaps, but had run into a small complication with using it and so it sat in the trailer being useless and taking up yet more essential floor space.
What was the complication? The trailer is aluminum to cut down on both the annoyance of dealing with rust creating steel as well as weight. That's fine. But the door and walls themselves are fiberglass (I think...well they are something other than metal of any sort) and that limited the ability to hang the above contraption since the width from aluminum post to aluminum post was too wide and the length was too long. I really wanted it on the door and low enough that I could reach everything from the ground.
We needed to do something to safely hang the unit and so we stopped at Lowes and picked up some pieces of wood to go from end to end of the door at whatever height I wanted. Then the hardware for the organizer could be hung onto these and voila!
So we got the wood, but it was boring wood. I happened to walk past some decorative wood meant for something I suppose...maybe a railing or something. Anyway...much to the hubby's annoyance I grabbed a piece of that too to make it look prettier. Then...having pretty on the brain...I looked at staining options. Everything I have horse related is red and black. There was one staining option that was red looking and so I grabbed a can and headed to the paint department to get it mixed up.
I chose Antique Red because it was a little darker looking and in 5 minutes they had it ready. The person didn't offer to open the can and I was already taking too long for a quick 10 minute stop (30 minutes later :) so I grabbed it and headed to the check out. You can guess where this is going, right? It was 5 pm Saturday night and I wanted it stained and dry by morning. I got everything ready and opened up my can to see....purple stain. Umm? It wasn't even anywhere close to being red or reddish or pink or any shade/hue close to red on the color wheel. Darnnit!
Back to the store I went worried they wouldn't take it back. But they did without a question and I grabbed another can of base and headed to the paint department. I chose a new color (China Red) in case the other color recipe was messed up and I ended with purple again. The guy (same one as last time) handed it to me and I asked him to open it this time. It was red!!
Back home and I put W to bed and headed out to stain the wood. It really didn't turn out quite "red" more of a terracotta color, but it is red enough for me.
Sunday morning I had the hubby drill holes into the aluminum (ick...I guess the trailer is ours now!!) and he hung the board up across the width of the trailer door at a height reachable for me from the ground. He then tacked on the pretty top boards (the picture we have it crappy but it has a vine and leaf pattern running the length of it) and then the hardware for the organizer.
It works perfect!!! I holds all my fly spray bottles, grooming brushes, belly balm, hoof pick, her ear bonnet, etc... There are two hooks as well and I used these to hang our bits up off the floor. The plastic zipper pouch velcros on/off and I put my AERC card and coggins papers in there. That way I can just grab it and go to the vet in keeping it all organized.
I am sooo happy with it. The trailer looks so much better and everything is super easy to reach. I can't wait to really use it. Next time I make it to the barn I will grab better picks!
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