Tales from the Trail

This girl...

2012-01-22T17:09:00.000-07:00

I miss her.

A lot.

A lot, a lot.

Hope she's getting fat down at fat pasture.

That is all.

Worst Trail Ride Ever Give-away

2011-12-19T16:28:00.001-07:00

I've had a lot of worst trail rides. Mostly, though, they're amazing, but any time you put horses and humans together in the wilderness things are going to happen. Just ask the Bionic Cowgirl - her last worst trail ride involved a plate and nine screws in her right arm.

I have a whole list of worst ride stories. I could tell you about the time my Barn Boss' horse went to noon on me, or about the time that I did a Hollywood-style dismount, or about the time we had to AirLife a guest out of the forest. I don't know anyone who has been around horses who doesn't have a worst ride story.

With that in mind, I thought we'd do a little contest for Julie Goodnight's new book, GOODNIGHT'S GUIDE TO GREAT TRAIL RIDING.

Read about how Estes darn nearly broke my leg in half with a gate.

All you have to do to enter is to write a blog post (or two) about your worst trail ride and link up. The contest will run from now until Friday, December 23 at 11:59 pm MST. The winner will receive an autographed copy of Julie's new book (Julie's autograph, not mine).

Note: Bionic Cowgirl, you are NOT eligible for this give-away. Neither are you, Beel.

Those Old Westerns

2011-12-15T14:38:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine from the Writers' Police Academy sent me this; I thought you'd appreciate it.

Enjoy...

Those Old Westerns

Awww...

2011-12-08T20:57:00.000-07:00

Talked to Mom today, who talked to Ida, Estes' "other mother".

My baby girl is doing okay out on fat pasture, which makes me very happy, because we got her moved down just before the weather went to crap. However, she spent the first two days she was with her old herd, hollering and looking for Mom's herd. It's the first time since I bought her that we've broken up Mom's herd for the winter and it was distressing for her. That makes me very sad.

She's settled in to her old herd again and has stopped calling for Ranger, Jesse, and Washoe. But it still makes me sad, in a my-kid's-gone-to-kindergarten kind of way.

~~~~~~~~~~

In happier news, remember this:

It's been released! Heidi got her copies the other day. I can't wait to read it. Anyone who is interested in buying it can go here to order it. And, if you order it by a certain date (I honestly don't remember what the date is), Julie will inscribe and autograph it for you.

I'm a little nervous to read my contribution, because Heidi just asked us for some trail riding horror stories. So I shared the story of when Estes about broke my leg in a gate. Since I just jotted it down, I have no recollection of what I said, other than Estes about broke my leg. I hope she or Julie polished it up pretty-like and I don't sound like a total idiot. :)

Heidi asked for trail riding horror stories too early - if she had waited a few months, Mom would have had a doozy to contribute. Nothing like getting kicked, shattering your elbow and having to ride out as a contribution to a trail riding book.

Sooooooo Glad...

2011-12-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

...that Queen Estes is at fat pasture. We took her down on the last nice day we had, after a beautiful ride. I have lots of pictures that I want to post, but my computer died and I'm using a work "loaner" that sucks big ole hairy donkey balls. Sometimes the 'e' key works. But I spend a lot of time going back and adding in the effing 'e's.

Anyway, I have about 18 inches worth of reasons why I'm glad Little Miss Estes is down in the lowlands. It's single digits up the hill and the snow is falling, falling, falling. She doesn't have nearly enough fat on her bones to handle the kind of weather Mom and Bill are having.

As soon as I get my new computer, I'll get pictures up.

Murphy Kicked Me Square In The Arse!

2011-11-27T12:27:00.000-07:00

Cold. Nasty. Not even Queen Estes wanted to be out.

The last few Sundays it's been really cold and nasty and I've had no desire to ride in it, so when I called Mom last night and asked her what the weather forecast was going to be like, I wasn't surprised when she said, "it's supposed to be sunny and fifty". Why wasn't I surprised? Because that's what they always say. We agreed we'd play it by ear today.

Only, when RCC got ready to go to work this morning, I figured the weatherman had lied again and told him to take my car. He's spending close to $300/mo on diesel for the truck, I thought the weather would be horrible up the hill (based on, oh, every Sunday since October 1st), so he might as well take my car and get 30 mpg instead of the 18-20 he gets in the truck.

I call Mom to let her know that I wouldn't be coming up to ride and she tells me, " it's 48 and there's no wind. The sun is out."

Are you kidding me? The weatherman was actually right?

So, here I sit, playing on the computer when I could be up riding in beautiful weather, just because I didn't believe what the weatherman said.

Thanks a lot Murphy.

You're a dick.

Aunt GunDiva and Her Horse

2011-11-22T22:52:00.000-07:00

The things Queen Estes and I do for our nieces, I tell you. I had planned to ride today when I went up to the lodge to help Nebalee make tamales, but after I talked to Mom this morning, I changed that plan. It was COLD and WINDY (you know, like living in Wyoming), so I put on sweats instead of jeans to go work at the lodge.

RCC and I walked into the lodge and Asset came running out of the Owl Cove yelling (that's pretty much her only volume, BTW), "Aunt GunDiva, Aunt GunDiva! We're going for a ride!"

Um. Crap. I had no intention of riding. Did I mention it was cold? And that it was windy? Before I could tell her no, she ran off and announced to everyone that we were going for a ride. By the time I'd put my stuff down, she had her helmet on and was ready to go. Well, Asset ready. Which means a helmet, but no shoes or coat.

I came up with a quick plan to just take her over to the pen, grab Estes, plop Asset up on Estes' back and walk her over to the lodge. Hey, that counts as a ride for a three year old, right?

I grab Estee's halter, take Asset across the street with me and turn around to find Auto Bot standing at the fence with her helmet on. Double crap.

Change of plans. Again.

Fine, we'll go for a ride. A short ride. Around the block.

C-c-c-o-l-d

Really cold. And windy.

Asset's getting too big to ride up front comfortably, so we had to switch.

Did I mention it was cold? And windy?

Ok, in all honesty, Estes put out plenty of heat, so I was pretty comfortable except for the exposed skin of my face.

But really, the things we do to keep our horse-crazed nieces happy.

Blah

2011-11-20T18:41:00.000-07:00

I haven't had any horse time and it's showing.

Now Mom and I are talking about moving Queen Estes down to fat pasture, if Ida has room for her. She's holding her own - weight-wise - but not gaining any and the cold hasn't even truly hit. She would benefit greatly from being on fat pasture with her old herd and she'd be closer too!

I'm feeling the pinch, though. If we do take Estes to fat pasture, we'll have to move her this upcoming weekend, which means I have very limited days to ride. Tuesday and possibly Friday. Not much time at all.

The bonus of taking Her Highness to fat pasture, besides the obvious, is that I'll get to see the babies. Who aren't really babies any more - they're almost three-year olds.

Digger and Dakota at a year (two springs ago)

Dakota last spring -isn't she beautiful?

I do want those fillies something fierce. They are smart and agile, though a bit bigger than Estes and I've placed them both on my PowerBall list - you know, the list you keep for when you win the PowerBall? Yep, they're at the top of my list, right under "buy lots of property".

My plan for the winter is to get caught up on all the blog posts I didn't get done this summer. I've got lots of pictures and took a lot of really good rides, but never sat down long enough to spit them out.

In other semi-fantastic news: Heidi Nyland Melocco, released the cover of Julie Goodnight's next book...

I'm feeling a give-away coming on. I'm not sure when the book will be released, but Heidi will notify those of us whose less-than-perfect trail rides ended up in the book when there's a release date. Let's just say that Estes was not always the perfect-for-me horse. But, damn, I love that mare.

It's Been A While

2011-11-10T20:11:00.000-07:00

Not just for posting, but for seeing my mare. In fact, it's been long enough that when I went out to see her the other day, this is what I saw...

She didn't even twitch an ear when I called her name. Normally, her ears perk up and she looks for me when I step out of the Lodge and give her a holler.

So I climbed into the pen to get my hands on her.

I don't see you

The hay wasn't that interesting. Trust me - I was out there WELL after feeding time - she should have at least acknowledged my presence, right? Well, this is Queen Estes we're talking about. She went about ignoring me until I backed her out of the feeder and made her interact with me on some level.

When I let her back into the feeder, she had a slightly better attitude...

There! You happy? I unpinned my ears and will listen now. Sheesh!

Guess I'd better make an effort to get her out of the pen this weekend. At least the weather will be nice enough to go for a ride without the risk of frostbite.

Woo Hoo!

2011-10-18T14:38:00.000-06:00

I opened my Facebook today and had a message waiting:

You're named --with your trail stories that you sent me in the spring-- in the Julie Goodnight/Heidi Nyland Melocco trail riding book published by AIM Media.

That was a nice surprise. I had almost forgotten that I'd shared a story with Heidi back in the spring. I have no idea what the book is titled or when it will be released, but it's still a cool bit of news today :)

I might have to do a give-away once it's released.

Make Like A Boy Scout

2011-10-12T08:06:00.000-06:00

...and be prepared!

Mom's accident yesterday drove home the point that you must be prepared for an emergency at any time. Being prepared doesn't mean just packing a cell phone and first aid kit.

Being prepared means knowing exactly what to do in an emergency. And that does not necessarily always include calling 9-1-1. It takes time for emergency responders to get to where you are - IF you have cell service and can direct them to your location.

*RANT* Cell phones have made us more dependent on other people, therefore less independent. If we get a flat tire, we no longer change it ourselves, we call AAA or someone to come fix it. If we break down on the side of the road, we don't even bother to see what the problem is, we just call a tow truck. That kind of thinking - that we can just call for help - has made us helpless.

*stepping off soapbox*

1. In an emergency, Do. Not. Panic.

2. Take stock of the situation, make a plan. It doesn't have to be elaborate, it can be as simple as, "let's take a look at that injury." The plan being to look at the injury and treat it. The next step would be to figure out how to get out of the back country. Do you send someone for help and wait for SAR to come find you? Do you load everyone back up on their horses and ride out? Have a plan in place, even if it's a half-assed thrown together one. Having a plan helps keep panic at bay.

3. Know how to use your first aid kit. Too many times, people buy one off the shelves, throw it in their saddlebags and never think of it again. You need to know what is in the kit and how to use everything in it. Take a first aid course. Keep current on it. Most first aid techniques and equipment can be applied to both humans and horses. If you're human fist aid certified, you will certainly know that if your horse is bleeding, direct pressure will stop the bleeding.

Most professionals will advise you to file a plan with somebody, letting them know exactly where you're going, how long you'll be gone, etc. It's a great idea. However, the way we ride - exploring - makes it hard to tell people exactly where we're going. We do let people know when to expect us back. If we're not back by that time, send someone a looking.

Thank God Bill was with Mom yesterday. They had a first aid kit. He knows what's in it and how to use it. He's up-to-date on his first aid skills. They were in a rugged area - no helicopter could have flown in, they had no cell phones with them (why would they, when there's no service), and it would have taken longer to send someone to the trail head, call for help and lead the responders back. Riding out was the most expedient option.

Had he (or the person they were riding with) panicked, it would have been a whole different ball game.

Question

2011-09-23T22:59:00.000-06:00

It's been almost a month since Estes colicked ... she's still pretty weak and not putting on any weight. She's still pooping sand and uncomfortable off and on during the day.

She's been on beet pulp all summer, Mom has added senior feed to the aminos that she was already feeding and the horses are now on free-feed hay. I'm taking Estes out for short rides only once a week (when I'm up there). The vet told us it could take a month for all of the sand to clear, but I think it's going to take a little longer. The psyllium seems to make her more comfortable, but she doesn't pass much sand with it. The sand moves better when she's not on the psyllium, but she's more uncomfortable.

So...I know she was on death's door, but does anyone have any idea how long it will take her to start feeling more like herself? Any suggestions?

Three Ride Day

2011-09-18T22:29:00.001-06:00

Ride 1
Queen Estes still isn't feeling the best, but after a couple of weeks of lounging around the pen, she had to get out. She was not at all up to doing the ride we had planned, but I had to take her out for a short ride. I decided I'd just take her around the Ski Road loop, about two miles, at a walk to just stretch her legs out. Maybe walk off some of the soreness from standing around eating for two weeks.

I threw a bareback pad on and headed out at a walk. She did great for the first block or so and then she must have decided the soreness was gone and started really stepping it up. By the time we actually got to Ski Road, I had to work to keep her to a walk. We turned the corner and I let her move into a trot. Three, four strides at most and she broke into a canter. I gave it about two second's worth of thought and let her go. Sometimes you just gotta run. We were halfway up the hill before I realized that we were cantering. Bareback. And I wasn't even freaking out about it. I was actually having a good time.

It wasn't very long, maybe only a quarter of mile, and she was really building a good head of steam before I started to bring her back down to a walk. After being stagnant for so long, the last thing I wanted to do was lame her up.

The ride was fabulous, even if it only lasted fifteen minutes.

Ride 2
I invited ~~The Little Bastard~~ El Poquito Diablo and his girlfriend up for a ride. I figure it's only fair that I get to torture him, after months of him kicking my ass in the gym. I was determined to make him hurt, I'll admit it. I stuck him up on a big ole horse, Gem, and planned to take him on a couple of tough trails. The Bionic Cowgirl actually expressed concern that I might be leading El Poquito Diablo and his girlfriend through some trails that weren't appropriate for beginner riders. She was so right. I counted on the fact that if El Poquito Diablo could compete as a National Gymnast for most of his life, he could stay on top of a horse for two hours.

Coming across the Willow Tree Trail

Gem hasn't lost him yet.

Top of the trail

Looking back over the beaver ponds/dams

Peek-a-boo...I see Gem

Duck, El Poquito Diablo!

It was nice of Mom to worry, but he managed to follow the first rule of horseback riding: Keep the horse between you and the ground. Bill, however, failed that rule not once, but twice. Yep, fell clean off of his scary, fire breathing mustang.

Ride 3

As we rode back into the yard, we could see Mom grooming her two grays. I'd told her that I'd go out with her after I got back from the big ride. We hung out and chatted a bit while I waited for my ibuprofen to kick in, bid El Poquito Diablo and his girlfriend goodbye and then headed out for our ride.

My knees were on fire, so we settled on a short ride. One just long enough to get them limbered up and out of the pen for a while. Washoe behaved himself beautifully - mostly because I kept him moving along quickly enough that he didn't have time to even think about eating or being a gooberhead.

By the time Mom and I went out, I was pretty much camera'd out, so I only managed to snag one good one of her.

We got back just as it started spitting rain. Talk about perfect timing!

Three rides in one day, on three different horses, yeah, my knees are telling me about it. But my heart is happy.

Labor Day Ride

2011-09-05T22:19:00.000-06:00

For Estes' first ride post-colic, we just went for a short jaunt up the hill with the Bionic Cowgirl, Autobot and Kyzzer. While I was looking forward to a ride, it was probably best that we went for a meander. Autobot rode the fire-breathing mustang, who didn't look nearly as embarrassed to haul her around as he is hauling Beel around.

Next week it'll be back to riding as usual. No more meandering. Next week, we ride!

One Week Ago

2011-09-04T19:59:00.000-06:00

This time last week, I was calling my boss to let her know I wasn't going to be in to work, because Her Highness had colicked.

One week ago, I was getting set to get up with Estes every two hours to check on her. Despite being tubed and the banamine she'd been given, she wasn't showing much improvement. No pee. No poop. No drinking. Things were looking bad.

One week ago, I was steeling myself to make the decision that no animal owner wants to make.

Tomorrow will be one week since she was given a reprieve. The short-acting opiates the vet gave her controlled her pain enough for the muscles to relax and for things to start moving again.

Tomorrow, we celebrate by going for a ride.

Yep, I think that's the perfect celebration.

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

2011-08-30T10:52:00.000-06:00

By Royal Decree:

From this point forward, Her Highness, Queen Estes

Peasant! You dare take my picture?!

Will now be fed her full meal

That's right, Peasant Woman, bow down before me.

And not rationed like a commoner!

(Or so she demands. Not happening, but I am more than thrilled to see that she's got her attitude back.)

The Governor Called...

2011-08-29T12:04:00.000-06:00

...and ordered a stay of execution for Queen Estes.

She was much, much worse this morning despite the four a.m. pooping episode. I called the vet, told him it was time to put her down. Took just over an hour for him to get up here and she looked even worse by the time he got here. He tranquilized her, gave her more banamine and we discussed treatment options, none of which were feasible. Mom and I agreed it wouldn't kill her (pardon the pun) for her to have a "last meal" since the plan was to put her down, we just had to iron out the logistics, so Mom threw her a handful of hay.

At the lodge, we got the numbers for local disposal services, decided to tube her one. last. time.

We bundled up, because it was raining cats and dogs, and headed back over to the pen. And there stood my horse: eyes bright, ears forward, looking for more food.

She's still not moving much poop and what she is moving is laden with sand, but it looks like she's stepped off of the banana peels she had three of her hooves on.

We loaded her in the trailer and took her for a twenty minute ride hoping to shake some of the poop loose. She didn't poop in the trailer, but she sure was excited to get back to the lodge and trotted her way back to the pen, announcing *loudly* her return home.

If I didn't know that she'd literally been at death's door two hours ago, I would have never guessed.

I'm more than just cautiously optimistic at this point, I'm full-on optimistic that she'll pull through.

Thank you, everyone, for your thoughts and prayers.

We Have Poop

2011-08-29T04:13:00.000-06:00

Hardly enough to write home about, but about fifteen minutes ago Queen Estes managed to poop a very small quantity. Looks much more normal than the kitty litter yesterday.

Her belly's still grossly distended, but I can hear gut sounds just standing next to her. The vet said she had large colon distension, which indicates a blockage. I'm worried that we're moving stuff through her, only to add to the blockage in her large colon.

She'd been down and rolled during my three hour nap; I hope she stretched out and slept a little too.

Her second dose of banamine is wearing off and I didn't have the forethought to ask Compass for the vial so I could give her another dose if she needed it. Instead, I managed to get half a dose of Bute down her - who knows if it will help her discomfort or not, but it made me feel better to do some sort of pain management.

I'm terribly worried about dehydration - she hasn't had anything to drink since I came up yesterday at 1:00 pm. I offer it and she looks at me with the most pathetic eyes. I'd love to give her IV fluids with some electrolytes, but at 4:00 am, none of the vet places are open. Not that I know how to set an IV in a horse, but I bet that it's awfully similar to doing so in a human, which I can do.

Off to bed for another couple of hours before my next trip to the pen.

The Call

2011-08-28T20:18:00.000-06:00

Today, I call the dreaded call..."GunDiva, Estes is colicking, better get up here."

We don't panic about much up here. Not much at all; not even a little bout of colic. For Bill to make that call, Estes had to be in a bad way. She was and she is. This is what her poop looked like, right before she stopped pooping.

Wet kitty litter. That's what it looks like.

Vet came, tubed her, gave her a ton of metamucil and some drugs. Compass had already given her banamine. The vibe I got from the vet was that he didn't think she'd make it through the night (not that he said that). I don't know. I was cautiously optimistic earlier today, but as the sun goes down and she's refusing water and not pooping, my spirits are flagging a bit.

Mom's posted about it over on her blog.

I'll post more, when I have more news. Until then, I'm off to stand vigil over the equine love of my life.

Around the Block with Asset

2011-08-22T21:22:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I went up the hill for a quick ride. I wasn't able to ride last week, so Queen Estes was getting antsy about not working.

Asset, until a year or so ago, was afeered of horses. I managed to get her to just sit on Estes on Mother's Day last year - since then she's decided that Estes is a pretty good horse. I'm kinda partial to her as well.

Asset was so excited about going to see the horses that she "helped" me with my boots. By picking them up and dropping them repeatedly in my lap while I was talking to Nebalee. I'm sure poor Asset thought I was taking for-ev-ah getting my boots on, but she managed to keep herself in check long enough for me to finish up with Nebalee.

I took Asset over to the pen with me and told her she had to stay outside while I went in and caught Estes. Jesse hasn't been out in a while either and is getting stir-crazy. I didn't want to try to keep an eye on a three year-old with two squirrely mares. For once, Asset stood patiently outside the pen while I took Estes out of the pen. Asset was so excited, that I just plopped her up on Estes' back and told her to hold onto the mane.

That mare of mine was so wonderful. She walked slowly and carefully beside me back to the Lodge. Asset grinned the whole way.

Asset then helped me groom Estes. Let me tell you...Estes' front legs have never gotten so much attention before.

I threw on a pad and a bareback pad, as Estes has dropped a bunch of weight recently and her top line looks like crap. It makes for very uncomfortable riding without padding. (Don't worry, we're addressing it. Her weight loss happens every year.)

I had promised Asset I'd let her ride around the block with me, so I sent her into the Lodge to get a helmet on and mounted up on Estes. Estee got so excited that we were going to go out - and I'm sure she thought she was done having to behave with the chillin - that she almost spun out from under me when I mounted. I got her back under control and told Nebalee to lift Asset up to me. Estee was dancing in place, obviously wanting to GO, but when she saw Nebalee pick up Asset, she let out a sigh, squared up and contained herself.

You can tell she's not super excited about the prospect of hauling a kid around, but she's getting soft in her old age.

I love my mare.

When we were done playing nice aunt and her horsie, Estee and I went out on the mountain for a quick ride with Bill and Ranger. And by quick, I mean at one point I heard Bill behind me holler, "I don't really enjoy loping!" And that would be because Ranger lopes like a porpoise, up and down with very little forward movement.

Last time Estee and I went out, I couldn't move her into a canter, she just kept stretching out that long, beautiful Morgan gait while Bill and Ranger galloped to catch up. Yesterday, we went from a stand-still to a canter in about a stride and a half. Guess she really, really wanted to get out of the pen.

Just in case you missed it earlier: I love my mare.

Horse Master 2011

2011-08-08T17:48:00.000-06:00

Julie Goodnight, Heidi (Producer/Director), Cheryl (Wardrobe Wrangler), Petra (Cast Member, adopted Crew Member), Sharon (Key Grip), me (Grip), Lucy (Assistant Instructor) and Steve (Videographer)

Last week before High Country Rendezvous, I had the privilege of working with the Horse Master with Julie Goodnight crew again. It was like a family reunioun to see everyone again. Last year, Heidi tried to kill us by shooting eight episodes in four days. Since she failed in her mission to kill us last year, she upped the ante to ten episodes and a DVD in four days this year.

We were completely blessed last year - pretty much everything went perfectly and we finished up early every day. This year. Not so much. We actually cheered when we had a "short" day - only 11.5 hours. However, we got some great episodes.

This is Christy and Jessie - their episode is about trail obstacles, specifically gate opening/closing, but the biting flies were so bad that they took a dip in the pond to chase off the flies.

Francine and Hero with Julie and Dale Myler - a bitting episode to help Francine with her reining horse.

Heidi, besides being the Director/Producer for Horse Master is also an accomplished equine photographer and owns The Whole Picture.

Joli and her horse Katrina - Katrina had a bit of an issue with canter departure.

Julie and Dually taking a dip in the pond to hide from the flies. All I could think was, "Ugh, I hate the feeling of wet jeans". Good thing it was Julie, not me.

Petra and her horse Maximus - the coolest thing about them is that Petra has trained Maximus by herself, using all of Julie's methods. Maximus was a delight and so wonderfully trained - Petra's done an amazing job with him.

This is Chaco - he and I had a little equine love affair. ~~Beel~~ Bill called me an equi-slut for cheating on Estes while I was away at Horse Master. Whatever. Even Estes would fall in love with this seven year-old BLM mustang. Thursday was a rough day; we were all exhausted and I had reached the breaking point. Chaco gave me all sorts of horsey hugs and greatly improved my mood.

Rachel and Rooster - one of the two bitting episodes with Dale Myler. Rooster's a young 'un, four years old, and Rachel's hoping to run barrels on him in the future. He just needed some help to relax.

Our daily rain delay. This did not help shorten our days at all. We did get pretty good at tearing down and setting up between rain storms.

Tony and Chaco - this episode was supposed to be about a spooky horse, but Chaco was anything but spooky. So much for a fire-breathing scary mustang. He did have some basic skills to learn that a dead-broke horse like he is should have. Being a mustang, he picked it up quickly.

We also taped four episodes of colt-starting, but I was far too enthralled with the process to think to take any pictures. The colt-starting episodes will be turned into part of Julie's "From the Ground" DVD series (a lot more goes into the DVD than what will be seen on the TV show). Sadly, I had to leave for RomCon before I got to ~~see~~ help with the final episode - teaching cues.

Goat Trail

2011-08-01T10:29:00.000-06:00

I was going to wait to post about the Goat Trail, but Beel managed to get the video uploaded, so I thought I'd share the scariest part of the ride. Pics will follow when I return.

Getting Dressed

2011-07-31T21:39:00.000-06:00

Okay, Estee, we're gonna try a saddle today...

Let's get the bird poop off...

Let's see...yeah, first the saddle pad...

Oof...this saddle business is so foreign...

On three...one...two...

...three...

Wait...these straps...I know I'm supposed to do something with them...

Oh, that's right, we have to tie the saddle on...

Good thing my hands know what to do...thank God for muscle memory...

Whew! All saddled up!

And I even managed to get in the saddle.

I've got some great pictures from our ride up the Goat Trail today, but those are going to have to wait until I get back from HorseMaster. It's that time again, time for me to load up and head down to southern Colorado to work as a crew member for Julie Goodnight's TV show. It's a blast, but I'll be super busy and wireless is spotty down there. As soon as I return from HorseMaster, I head up the hill to the Lodge for the High Country Rendezvous.

Ride safe and hug your horses; I'll see y'all after HCR.

Willow Tree Trail

2011-07-26T06:00:00.001-06:00

On Saturday, ~~Beel~~ Bill and I went for a ride on one of my favorite trails. We don't ride it often, which makes it a huge treat. It's what I would consider an "extreme" trail in that there are parts of it that you can't see and you absolutely must trust your horse to pick its footing properly. This is not a competition trail, with one obstacle then another that you're scored on. At several points, your horse is picking its way over downed branches and water while you're pushing tree limbs out of the way (or, if you're me, using the Flip camera to protect your face).

This is the same trail that many years ago Estes' daughter Meeker refused to take. That was the last time I ever attempted to take a dude string along that trail - I had nightmares of what could have happened if the critter hadn't made noise until we were halfway in the willows. I don't know if Compass' new wranglers even know the trail exists. We talked about taking it for HCR last year because we knew that everyone could ride; in the end, because Baggins was being such a jerk for Rachel, we bypassed it. (<--- That didn't come out the way I meant it to. Baggis was being a jerk; I wasn't sure how he'd handle the close quarters. Has nothing to do with Rachel's riding ability. She doesn't give herself enough credit in her ability.)

I had my sights set on doing the Willow Tree trail this year and spent the last week working up my courage to do it bareback. I knew ~~Beel~~ Bill would be up for it - heck, he wants me to do the Goat trail bareback - so off we went.

Queen Estes Says

2011-07-25T20:17:00.000-06:00

I'm busy putting together a video of the ride we took on Saturday, so Queen Estes agreed to help me out while I'm working on the video.

Mom - GunDiva - came up for a ride on Saturday, but the Bionic Cowgirl had borrowed my pretty purple halter for Jesse. Oh, you should have heard Mom holler about that! I thought we'd just get a spa day instead of a ride, but Mom came up with something else to catch me with...

"Really Mom?! Ashinator's barrel rein? I look like a dog on a leash. Really?!"

"Psst. You there, Asset. Yeah, you. Come cut me loose."

Ugh. I'm so embarrassed.

Mom did say that she would only do this with a well-mannered horse that she could trust to stand still. I think she was trying to flatter me so I'd forget that she tied me up like a dog. And Beel was standing next to the rail with the little silver flashing box (really, I don't know why Ranger freaks out about it).

Estee and Kiddos

2011-07-23T11:49:00.000-06:00

Estes is truly the equine version of me. A crusty old bitch on the outside, but a total marshmallow on the inside (don't tell anyone!). Usually she does a pretty good job of hiding her soft, gooey insides, but she totally blew it a couple of weeks ago. A friend of mine from way back (we're talking 19 years - yes, I just cried a little bit, I'm not old enough to have known anyone for 19 years!) came to visit her family and brought her kids up for a "ride". With kids, normally we just throw them on bareback and lead them around the block. Gives the kids the feeling that they got to ride without the trauma of taking them up on the mountain. Trust me, going up on the mountain the first time you've ever climbed up on a horse can be very traumatic.

Jen's daughter, E, happily climbed up on Washoe and waited for D to get settled on Estes. Only, he was having no part of it. We managed to get him up on her, but that was as far as we could go. His poor little nerves were shot just at the thought of being on her - and she's a short little mare. Despite being absolutely terrified, he managed to find a smile for the camera...

Mom headed out, leading Washoe with E on board and I followed up riding Estes.

We made it around the block intact and stopped just long enough for Jen to snap a picture.

I was able to convince D to give Estes a treat for letting him sit up on her. I just love how soft her eyes are and how gentle she's being taking the treat from his hand.

Queen Estes Says...

2011-07-10T20:59:00.001-06:00

"Stand still?"

"You want I should stand still? Fine!"

"This is what I think of this Standing Still Lesson!"

"Are we perfectly clear now?" (look closely)

"Standing still again? I won't have it!"

"I won't!"

Dang, I love my opinionated mare!

This and That - 4th of July related

2011-07-08T21:26:00.000-06:00

On my way up to the Lodge last week, I was astounded by the St. Vrain River. It's higher than I ever remember it being. Part of it is the fact that Winter forgot to leave, Spring never showed, and Summer cranked up the thermostat. We were well above normal for snow pack, so once Summer showed up, the run-off has been astounding. Also, Summer brought a friend, Monsoon, who has been determined to cause flash floods. Winter, Summer and Monsoon have worked together to bring record highs for our river levels.

This is just crazy...

You shouldn't be able to see the river that close to the level of the road.

I had a harebrained idea to paint the horses' hooves red, white and blue for the parade. Since I had no idea where to find hoof paint in those colors, I settled for non-toxic poster paint. It worked out pretty well...

Except for the dirt that the horses managed to kick all over their pedicures. *shrugs* It was worth a try and it was fun.

The morning of the Fourth, Nebalee got in on the action and put the sparkle polish over the paint. I don't know how I managed to not get a picture of that. I decided the week before that I was going to ride bareback in the parade - if Estes hasn't killed me on the mountian, she probably wasn't going to kill me on the same road that we ride when we don't have time to go up the mountain. The problem of riding without a saddle meant that we couldn't do a whole lot of decorating. Instead of wearing the "skirt" she usually does for the parade, she got a big pretty bow in her tail...

...and the 3 Heathens "brand" in blue sparkles. None of the kids were at the parade, so they get a nod with the brand.

Poor Washoe had to wear a pretty bow too...but what a cool picture...

Strutting our stuff...

Even Ripley got in on the action (as a spectator)...

Equine Bloggers! It's Almost Time!

2011-07-06T15:50:00.000-06:00

Can you believe there's less than a month until this year's HCR? Where did the time go?

With Mom's hip surgeries, recovery and the beginning of their season, it took us a while to come up with a schedule for HCR, but we've got a tentative one hammered out.

Thursday

3:00 - Check in at the Lodge

6:00 - Welcome dinner

Friday

8:00 - Breakfast

Saddle fit seminar by Dr. Dave (time TBA)

Horse games (time TBA)

12:00ish - Lunch

Free time for shopping/touring RMNP/Estes Park (time TBA)

6:00 - BBQ at Livery

Saturday

9:00 - Breakfast

11:00 - Ride to Calypso Cascades, sack lunch furnished. Cost $65/horse

3:00 - 6:00 free time

6:00 - Dinner at Lodge

Sunday

9:00 - Breakfast

11:00 - Check-out

By extending HCR a day, we've increased the amount of free/blogging time. After all, we are a group of equine bloggers, right?

If anyone has any other ideas for activities or has an area of expertise that they'd like to share, let me know. I am considering doing a short presentation on the Bosu ball and exercises that helped improve my balance; I'll bring the Bosu up so everyone can give it a try if they'd like.

If you haven't yet registered for HCR, click here for information. The Lodge is filling fast, and HCR is just next month, so if you've been on the fence about joining us, just do it! You won't regret it, I promise.

Winner!

2011-06-28T21:29:00.000-06:00

Congratulations Shirley! You won $25.00 to reward yourself for sucking it up.

Shoot me an email with your email address and I'll hook you up with Rebecca from Horse and Wildlife Gifts.

Contest entries

2011-06-26T23:02:00.002-06:00

I'm super behind on everything. I'll have the winner drawn and posted late Tuesday night. So sorry about the delay, there's just not enough time in the day anymore.

Sucking it up and a give-away

2011-06-12T22:23:00.000-06:00

Last year, I had Mrs Mom and Mr Mrs Mom come up to Colorado to teach me how to take care of Estee's feetsies. Since they came up late in the season, I didn't have to do a whole lot to maintain her feet.

When we brought the horses back up this spring, we had our farrier come up and do the trim, because there was no way I was going to take off as much hoof as need to come off. Eventually, though, I knew I'd have to do it myself. Frankly, it terrified me. Ole Thrush came back for a visit and I knew that I couldn't put it off any longer.

Last week, I took a deep breath, put my big girl panties on and gave it a go. First, let's just say that Mrs Mom and Mr Mrs Mom make it look far too easy, but I did learn something cool from them...

I may not be very good at the actual rasping of the hoof, but I can flip that damn rasp around and look impressive.

I was afraid to mess around with Estes' hooves, which is why I wanted to learn how to do it right. Frankly, after learning more about trimming, I went from being merely nervous about it to having almost a paralyzing fear of it. I could really screw up her hooves. I took a deep breath, put on my big girl panties, picked up the hoof knife and made my first itty-bitty cut. Estes didn't kill me and I didn't hurt her. I shaved bit after bit off of her sole and frog, then hit it with the rasp. To say that I was conservative would be an understatement, but I figured if I took off just the tiniest bit every week, I couldn't do too much damage.

It was, so far, the hardest thing I've had to learn to do to take care of my Equine Soulmate.

So, what about this give-away? I know that we have all had to learn to do things that we were afraid/intimidated/didn't want to do in order to take care of our horses. It may be the worst experience of our lives, but we suck it up and do it because we love our horses.

As a reward, someone should win a horse-themed gift. Leave a comment telling us what you did/learned/overcame in order to take care of your horse. Was it worming, vaccinating, trimming? Certainly we've all had things that we didn't want to do, but did out of love for our animals. Each comment left before midnight (MST) on Friday, June 17 will be entered into a random name picker and the winner will receive a $25.00 gift certificate to reward themselves with.

It's Baaaaaaacccckkkk...

2011-05-29T22:12:00.000-06:00

...and I can't get the stench off my hands our out of my nose.

Yep, it's my old nemesis, Thrush.

Poor Estee has thrush in three of her little feetsies and Washoe the Wonder Idiot's got it in one of his feetsies.

I knew it was coming. With all of the moisture, between the rain/snow/rain/snow, the pen hasn't had a chance to dry out. Estee's club foot just begs for thrush to grow. So, after a thorough cleaning, I sent Mom after the hoof knife. Which has grown legs.

I finally decide I can take the knife to Estee and it's no where to be found. Hopefully it will turn up before next weekend so I can clean up her feetsies.

Other than the discovery of thrush and the fact that Washoe the Wonder Idiot stepped on Mom, not once, but twice (he was kind enough to balance it out and step on each foot), it was a pretty good horse day. Mom and I got to go out for the first time this season together. Of course, there are no pictures of the two of us, so you'll just have to trust me on this one.

It wasn't a terribly long ride, only about an hour, but it was beautiful. In the thirteen years we've been riding in the forest, we've never heard the frogs singing in the meadow. With all of the moisture we've had, the meadow has a small marshy area and the frogs have moved in. I always feel so blessed to hear them singing - it's so rare - and to have them in the meadow is such a treat.

I may be cursing the moisture on behalf of Estee's feetsies, but I love that the froggies are happy and singing at the top of their lungs about it.

Balance Tip

2011-05-24T06:00:00.001-06:00

I know several riders who use a FitBall or something similar to improve their balance during the winter when they can't ride. I've done it in the past and was pleased with the results.

This year, Gymnastics Boy (my personal trainer), has had me doing a ton of work on a Bosu. We started out with it platform down, so that I was standing on the squishy-ish blue ball portion. He had me doing squats and basic balance work to keep my core working. He then flipped it upside down, like this:

...so that I was standing on the platform doing my squats and various other tortures that he came up with.

I have to tell you, while I was impressed with the FitBall's help with my balance, the Bosu has it beat hands-down. I've never felt more secure riding. I realized it on Sunday when Estes was wound up - it was a breeze to stay with her. My confidence in my balance has skyrocketed, which directly translates to my confidence on Estes.

I even felt comfortable enough to really get after her about halfway through our ride. Usually, I'm a little hesitant to really correct her when I'm riding bareback. She was being a bit of a mare and I corrected her harshly, which involved some quick movements during our discussion. It wasn't until I had my nice mare back that I realized that I'd done it bareback and without a second thought.

I can't recommend the Bosu strongly enough for all riders - not just the ones who feel like they need help with balance. Heck, when I started working with the Bosu, I was a bit cocky because I *knew* that I had good balace from riding. Boy, was I wrong.

Spring!

2011-05-22T21:33:00.000-06:00

Do you see this?

It's an actual shadow. And what makes shadows? THE SUN! Hallelujah! We got to ride in the sun. Can't tell you how happy that makes me.

The downside of the sun?

Run-off. It's tearing up the trail. This is the worst I've seen it on this particular portion of the trail. The ground is absolutely saturated and there's nowhere for the water to go.

The pond is full and the frogs were singing - guess they're sick of winter, too.

A Letter to Mother Nature

2011-05-18T12:50:00.000-06:00

Dear Mother Nature,

I know I asked for moisture after fire season came early, but enough already. I'm tired of riding in the snow and cold. It's almost the end of May, can you turn on the warm? Pretty, pretty please?

I didn't even ride last weekend because of the cold and fog, and I love to ride. Sometimes enough is enough.

Sincerely,
Tired of wearing eighty billion layers just to ride.

I'm Late! (In posting, that is)

2011-05-09T19:52:00.000-06:00

I didn't get a chance to ride this weekend, which was an absolutely beautiful perfect-for-riding weekend. Yes, I'm pouting about it.

I did get to ride last weekend, though, and had a great time. What started out as a quick ride in cold, overcast weather turned out to be a beautiful, two hour ride.

The ground that wasn't snow covered was brown and dead looking, I'm hoping that once the snow melts off we'll start seeing greenery; I'm done with brown and white. In our previous ride, I had dressed poorly and turned back because the snow was soaking throught my jeans and I was being a wuss. For this ride, I decided to make the looooooooong trip up the ten stairs to where my duster was stored instead of taking the lazy way out and freezing my butt off. The decision to dig out the duster was a smart one. Wearing a duster while riding bareback is a lot like having a heater in a tent, especially since my duster covers all but my toes when I'm mounted.

Bill and I went off roading, enjoying it while we can, and busted through the crusty, wind-swept snow. In the past, we had limited ourselves to the one-hour loop simply because our forays into the forest had been in inclement weather. By the time we broke through the tree cover, the sun was out and we could actually see shadows - what a novel experience.

Based on the weather, we decided to continue on to the meadow. Estes had a serious opinion about going one step farther than the one-hour loop. This time her opinion did not include a rear. No, this time she tried something new - speeding up in hopes that I wouldn't turn her away from the trail home. But, you see, I know something she doesn't know. She has to go where her nose is pointed and I had control of her nose. I even told her, "go ahead Little Missy, speed up, we're still going where I want to go."

She tried the speed up into the turn thing at two different intersections before she gave up. I won. Twice. Can't blame her for trying though, we have only done the one-hour loop since she's been home.

Bill and I rode around the brown meadow and headed toward Cody's trail (formerly known as the Trench Trail). Knowing that the snow drifts often cover Cody's trail until mid-May, we turned away from it and cut up through the Aspen grove. It was beautiful and by that time Estes had realized that we were out for a ride, not just a quick little jaunt around the top of the hill.

We did eventually have to turn back to home, at which time both Estes and Ranger found some energy. Since Estes wanted to go back at a trot, I allowed her to move up into it, but didn't allow her to slow down when she wanted to. There were a couple of times when I really had to work to keep her in the trot, but she wasn't going to get to choose when and where she wanted to trot - something she didn't really agree with, but was working too hard trotting up the hills to argue too much. You know, a tired horse is a good horse.

While I had so much time at the trot, I decided to see if I could post bareback. After all, if I could post in a dressage saddle without stirrups, I certainly should have been able to post bareback. Holy Moley! That is tough! I managed to post for a couple hundred yards before my legs were on fire. I did it a couple of times, kind of like doing intervals while running, before my legs absolutely gave out. It was a good thing we were already headed home because I was one wiped-out little girl.

I wish one of us had thought to take a camera with us, but we thought we'd be out a half hour or so in crappy weather, not two hours in beautiful weather.

Next time I'll remember a camera.

April (Snow) Showers

2011-04-24T22:59:00.000-06:00

Sometimes, you just have to get on your horse. Even if the weather is less than perfect. Saturday was one of those days. Nebalee and I made almost eight dozen tamales, and while they were steaming, Bill and I decided to go for a quick ride. For once, the wind wasn't howling, but it was snowing like crazy. Not that that's ever stopped us. Wind? Yep, that's stopped me once in a while. Gently falling snow? Nope. It was gorgeous.

Bill took a ton of pictures, which I debated on putting up. You'd never know by looking at the pictures that I've been going to the gym and have lost 16.5#. So, while I look like the Michelin Man, keep in mind it really is the extra clothes I'm wearing (yoga pants under my jeans, long sleeved shirt, hoodie, coat, etc.).

Yes, it was cold. But it was beautiful, so of course there's video. Thirteen years of riding these same trails and they don't get old. We ended up having to do some off-roading, as the trail itself is buried under too much snow. If the snow keeps up, I'm not sure that even the one-hour loop will be ready for the livery to open in May. I think Compass' permit runs from May 15 to October 15, but the trails have to be completely clear for her to take rides out. "Private" horses are allowed off trail, but "professional" (livery) rides must never deviate from the marked trail if the livery wants to keep their permit, that includes stepping off the trail just long enough to go around a snow drift.

I am, however, unbelievably thankful for the amount of moisture we've gotten in the high country, as wildfire terrifies me.

Moonlight Walk

2011-04-17T13:35:00.002-06:00

RockCrawlinChef bought me a new part for my car and I just had to try it out, so we headed out for a drive. In my post-9HealthFair clothes, I swore we were just going to go try out the part. But I had such a good time, that we headed up to the Lodge to see how the new part helped the handling in the canyon.

It was dark by the time we got to the Lodge, but since we were up there I decided that I might as well take a quick ride. That's the beauty of riding bareback (well, mostly bareback) - it doesn't take a whole lot of time to get set up to go for a ride.

Normally, I wouldn't have been caught dead in my pineapple pajamas, but I knew that Mom's guests were a bunch of scrapbookers. Now those ladies have worn some seriously odd ensembles and they wouldn't think twice about my gawdawful britches. Estes, however, might have something to say.

Monster gathered up Estes while I traded out my sweatshirt for my Carhartt, grabbed Estes' bridle and a bareback pad (I didn't want to have to ride home with Estes hair on my pajamas). Bill decided that it would be "safer" if he went along with me. That's just code for "get me away from all of these crazy women". I absolutely understand.

The moon was out and since there's very minimal light pollution from the "town", we could actually see pretty well.

Now, is this dead sexy or what? Estes' purple halter (it's enormous on her!) and my pink pineapple pajamas. Bill, at least, looks the cowboy part. But neither Estes nor Ranger look thrilled to be seen with me. Aparently, Bill's not the only human who can embarrass Ranger.

Let's take a closer look at my fashion statement...

...my favorite shooting hat, Carhartt coat covering up my ever-sexy black workout tank, and obnoxious pink britches. I was told I should have put on my boots, but going upstairs to get them was just too much effort.

Do I know how to live it up or what?

First Ride (Sorta)

2011-04-12T21:37:00.001-06:00

Sunday was a cold, blowing day, but I didn't care - I had to get out on my horse!

I had thrown the saddle pad on her and taken her around the block right after she got her pedicure on Monday, but the five minutes I was on her didn't count as a ride. All it did was make me want to go on a real ride.

My washing machine has decided to quit working, so each Sunday I've been taking my laundry up to the Lodge to do it and I had just enough time after I started the washer to go for a quick ride. I would have preferred a long ride, but the weather was nasty. We had horizontal snow, but I wasn't going to be deterred. After all, the sun was still out. It wasn't warm by any stretch of the imagination, but who cared?

Bill bundled up and braved the elements with me and off we went.

Estee wasn't nearly as excited about the prospect of going up on the mountain in the nasty weather, but managed to put one hoof in front of the other. With some urging, she even managed to do it at a reasonable clip. She and Ranger moseyed along the trail, willing to take us out but determined not to enjoy it.

Until we turned toward home. Suddenly Estes got all sorts of energy and when I got after her for it, she did something she's never done in a tantrum before - that little bitch reared up on me. It wasn't a big rear - she wasn't trying to put me off, but she was definitely letting her opinion be known.

Bill managed to snap the picture just as we were coming down. Thank goodness for all of the balance work that my trainer's got me doing and the few lessons I've had on M. I've had horses rear up on me before, but I was always in a saddle, not on a bareback pad whose cinch won't tighten enough to even make contact with Estes.

We had to stop and stand nicely for a little bit and then we headed off again. At the Estes Two-Step, which felt so good on my back, let me tell you! We did a lot of "whoa" and "stand" until she remembered how to walk. Then we did stuff we both enjoy - we got to go snow bashing!

I love riding through snow, and I love it even more when no one else has marked it up with their own little paw prints.

We weren't out very long - only about half an hour, but it was WONDERFUL! Cold, snow and all. I'm so glad to have my girl back. I even love that she's got opinions - it keeps life interesting.

I can't wait until I can get up there again to ride, but it'll be a couple of weeks, darn it. Between the Health Fair and coloring Easter Eggs with the family, I'm not seeing any ride time until the 23rd.

Warning: mini-rant

I recently read an article on how important it is to be able to control all four of your horse's hooves when out on the trail. I don't buy it. Estes knows a whole lot better than I do where to put her feet to get where we need to go. We rode over downed tree limbs covered in snow, skirted tree stumps and wove through the trees. Even when we were crossing multiple downed limbs that required her to place her feet in small spaces between the limbs, I didn't have to "control" her hooves. I feel like people who must "control" all of their horse's hooves don't have much trust in their horse.

I've been in situations on the trail that I've put us in and then had to depend on my horse to figure out how to get us out of it. And the horse (no matter which one I was on) managed to figure it out and get us back on the right track in one piece.

I just feel like there are a lot of people who want to trail ride, but want to bring the "rules" of the arena out onto the mountain with them. They work so hard to be "in control" of their horse at all times, that there is no trust built between the horse and rider. Of course, my perception may be skewed because the only effective way to work with Mustangs is to build trust. Estes isn't a Mustang, but she responds well to the same kind of treatment that they do. She has a brain in her head and she wants to be allowed to use it.

I'm the boss when I'm riding, but like any good boss, I'm open to suggestions. I don't want to micro-manage my horse. Do I have expectations for her behavior? Yes. Will I correct her if she doesn't meet those expectations? Yes. But does that mean I must be "in control" of her every move? Nope. We're a team when we're out on the trail - we may have disagreements along the way just like any team - but I trust her to get us home safely and she trusts me to not put us in too much danger.

Fire Season Came Early

2011-04-07T10:13:00.000-06:00

Our lack of snow has really worried me. As much as I prefer not having the frozen white stuff, it is necessary to keep our state from catching fire. The high country has had more than their share of white stuff, but down low, we're hurting for moisture and have already had several brush fires. One is burning thousands of acres just west of the town I live in.

Because of all of the fires (and April just started!), I decided it's time to revisit our evacuation plan for the horses. They're up in Allenspark, where the fire danger is currently very low, but that can change quickly. There are only two ways out of Allenspark, down Highway 7 to Lyons or up Highway 7 to Estes Park.

Should evacuation be necessary, Mom and Bill have to get their guests out of the lodge and to safety before they can even think of getting themselves out. We've decided that in the event of an emergency that requires evacuation, namely fire, we're just going to turn the horses out on the mountain to fend for themselves instead of trying to trailer them out. That's been our standing plan from the beginning.

The problem is, how do we put identification on them? We've heard/read all sorts of ideas. Ranger has a BLM brand, so they could eventually track down Bill. Estes has Ida's brand, so they can eventually track me down. But Jesse and Washoe don't have any brands. We've discussed freeze branding, tattooing and microchipping. Some of the ideas that we've received are to put them in a halter with an ID tag on it, but the only way we'd turn them loose with a halter on is if it was a break-away one and they might be found without the halter.

I also read about braiding a luggage ID tag into their mane or tail, but that takes too much time in an evacuation scenario. Or clippering a phone number onto their side, but we don't have clippers and if we did, there wouldn't be any time to clipper four horses before turning them out.

My favorite idea is to use DayGlo Orange spray paint to spray paint our phone numbers on their sides. Still takes a little bit of time, but seems the quickest. If we made a template for the phone number that we just held over their side and spray painted, that would even be faster.

What kind of ideas do you all have? We're open to suggestions, but they have to be fast and easy - something that could be done quickly with potentially worked up horses.

What plans have you made for evacuations?

Pedicure Time

2011-04-04T17:08:00.000-06:00

The horses' feet were REALLY long when we got them back on Friday. Their feet do fine while out on the mountain, but Ida had moved them to "fat pasture", where the ground is nice and soft. Makes for comfy standing around, but lousy hooves. We were lucky enough to get ahold of our farrier to come out and trim them up.

Estes used to be a real pain in the arse to trim and shoe. Used to be that they'd have to drug her to shoe her. We did the math and the last time she was drugged to be shod was in 2003; we ran the livery in 2004 and she mostly behaved herself while getting shod. And by that I mean that she only kicked the farrier once or twice and bit him once. Because of that history, I'm always a little anxious when she gets trimmed, even though we haven't had any problems with her since we took her barefoot. Do you think that she was trying to tell us something about the shoes? Now that she's completely barefoot, she hasn't had any issues with the farrier. (Mr Mrs Mom - before you object - she asked nicely for her foot back before she broke yours.)

Our farrier whipped Estee out in no time, despite the fact that she had easily an inch that had to come off of each. You could see her sigh with relief when he finished her club foot and she could touch the ground again instead of tippy-toeing around on her high heels.

I do feel sorry for our poor farrier, as the Mustangs' hooves are hard as rock. By the time he was halfway finished with Jesse, he'd completely dulled his rasp, so Mom loaned him ours. While he was working on Jess, I grabbed the bareback pad and Estes' new headstall and went for a quick walk-about. Usually I don't use the bareback pad, but she's a disgusting hairball right now and I was in my only clean pair of jeans.

It felt so good to be up on my own horse again, even for only ten minutes. I tried working on my seat, with the leg position I'd been practicing on M in my lessons. Yeah. Hmmm. She wasn't a fan. When I ride bareback, I usually just let my legs dangle, so there's not much calf contact. That she's okay with.

This "new fangled" seat (as she thinks of it, I'm sure) increases the calf contact and she's not happy about it. She got jiggy and snorty, but as soon as I let my legs dangle like I normally ride, she settled right down. The settling down thing was really important today, as I had fallen down the stairs right before I left the house and jacked up my upper back. The Estes Two Step did not feel good on my back, so having her move quietly was important. We worked on standing still; she's a rather impatient horse, so standing still is not easy for her.

Even though it was a very short ride - just around the block and the cabins - it was wonderful to be back up on my baby girl. I even think she kinda missed me. I've been getting all kinds of cuddles from her - and she's not a cuddler.

I can't wait until I can go for a real ride on her, not just around the block.

Sigh.

No matter, it's just wonderful to have them home.

There's No Place Like Home

2011-04-02T22:24:00.000-06:00

Mom posted the pics of the horses' homecoming, which left me with the videos. I'll do a real post in the near future, but for ~~mostly Mom's~~ your viewing pleasure, here's the video she managed to snag in between snapping pictures.

Here's a very abbreviated video montage of Ranger playing Wild Horse. It really is a game for him; I'm pretty sure he stopped and laughed at Bill a dozen times. He would stop, turn to look at Bill, lick and then take off again. It must be payback for Bill embarrassing him on the trail during the summers.

Love how Ranger unloaded on command (okay, Mom's right, all of their horses unload on command. Estes? Not so much, but we'll work on it.)

Estes started the herd off with her own snow pegasus, but we missed it on video. We couldn't believe that she would chose to roll in the snow instead of the dirt, but then Ranger followed suit and Eli wanted to, but chickened out.

12 Hours, 34 Minutes

2011-03-31T20:30:00.000-06:00

Until I go pick up my baby girl!

I ordered her a new halter and lead rope, 'cause she needed something new and pretty. Wait, she got a new, pretty head stall for Christmas. But this isn't Christmas. We'll call it a Coming Home present.

I'm hoping her Coming Home present was delivered today (I'm still at work) so I can use it tomorrow. I think she'll be gorgeous in her new purple halter.

Okay, full disclosure: Yes, she got a new halter and lead rope. But she got them because Ida accidentally ended up with her blue halter and lead rope and I won't see Ida tomorrow when I pick up Estes to get it back. But...shhhhh...we won't tell her why she got new clothes, we'll just let Queen Estes think it's her Coming Home present.

Big Girl Panties

2011-03-26T13:40:00.000-06:00

I put them on over my Depends, because I was absolutely sure that at some point I was going to soil myself. Used to be, when I was single, I'd do all sorts of stuff because I had to. Now that RCC and I are married, I've gotten kind of soft. If we needed to trailer anywhere, he did it. The Bitch is his truck and the flatbed is his trailer. But, then, who in their right mind would want to trailer Tinkerbell?

She's a big girl - makes the Bitch look small

The horse trailer Mom and Bill gave us as a wedding present, but RCC's so comfortable trailering that I didn't feel much need to step up to the plate. Since RCC had to work, I had to Cowgirl Up and get it done. I didn't want my first time trailering to be with Ranger and Estes in the back...I figured I couldn't do much to hurt the hay.

When Bill and I finished with the truck on Wednesday, he hooked up the trailer for me so RCC wouldn't have to do it between shifts at work on Thursday. (Side note to Rachel: Bill had time to take pictures because we have two rules: 1) you work on your own car, and 2) when using Grandma Nita's garage, there must always be token testosterone present. Bill was my "consultant" and token testosterone to make Grandma feel better.)

Friday, once we got the call that Ida was ready to load our hay, the Bitch and I were ready to go...

Deep breathing...lots of it for me

The drive to Lyons was mostly uneventful - there were a couple of times that I sucked some of the seat's cotton batting up, but overall, I was feeling pretty good by the time I got to Ida's. Bill took the trailer in to the hay field for me, as it's a little tricky, but I drove out once I was loaded.

The Bitch is an old truck and had to take it slow going up the hill. We had to pull over a couple of times for her to catch her breath.

Look at how small Bill and Mom's load is. Slackers.

We made it to the Lodge in one piece and then had to figure out how to get the trailer into the pen. This is the first time we've ever fed the large bales. We decided that it would be easiest to free feed while Mom is still healing, so the plan is to park the trailer in the pen, tarp one bale and allow the horses to feed off the other one. Bill walked the path we'd be taking and mapped it out. It was scary and I know he planned on doing the driving, but I decided I'd made it that far, I wasn't going to wimp out at the end.

From the Lodge parking lot, we had to drive down through the yard, between two big trees, hang a hard left and into the 9' gate. Easy, no?

More deep breathing...in, out...in, out... and we're off...

Managed to make the turn between the trees without a hitch

In through the gate...

Success!!!!

Okay, so it didn't go quite that smoothly, but I did manage to make it through with only a slight bump on the fence. Bill, being co-driver, was "kind" enough to video the whole thing...

On the coattails of my success, I decided to hook up the horse trailer and did it on my second try, which made me very happy.

Working on the B*tch

2011-03-25T23:50:00.000-06:00

Good news!

I didn't have to change the brake rotors afterall. The old rotors were in great shape, as were the pads. RCC was worried because there's a bit of a chatter when braking, but it appears that it's the anti-lock brakes causing the chatter, not the rotors. Can't do anything about the anti-locks.

However, Bill did manage snag some pictures of me getting my hands dirty while working on the B*tch (yes, that's her name, because she does all the bitch work).

Checking for warping...

There was a little lip on the rotor that we sanded off

Personal ~~torture~~ training is paying off

Yup, standing flat-footed, this is as far in the engine compartment as I can reach.

Couldn't reach the hood without standing in the bumper brackets.

So, I had to settle for only getting 2/3 of the windshield clean. It's all I could reach.

I Must Really Love My Horse

2011-03-20T22:31:00.000-06:00

In anticipation of the babies coming home, Bill and I worked on the fence surrounding the pen today. I counted it as my workout, as I couldn't face going into the gym when the weather was so beautiful. I figure that any physical labor that I do at altitude most definitely counts as a workout. Besides, my trainer can't simulate carrying poles twice as long as I am tall, using a crowbar to pull off old poles, lifting panels out of snow and flipping a water tank with ice in the bottom (okay, it wasn't thick ice and I was helping Bill).

Wednesday, I'll be doing something that I swore I would never do again. But because I love my horse, I'll break that vow to myself. RCC's truck, "The Bitch", has warped brake rotors. I need the truck to haul hay up on Friday and to pick Estes up next week. I can't afford to pay someone to replace the rotors. Guess who's going to be doing it? Yup. Yours truly. And Bill. RCC would do it for me if he wasn't working every. single. day.

I *hate* working on brakes. Hate it. I'm not sure anyone understands how completely I despise working on brakes. Yet, because I do love that horse of mine, I'll be knuckling down and getting dirty. But I'll be swearing a blue streak the whole day.

Friday is going to be a first for me. I've never towed a trailer, which I think is a huge failing. Every horse owner needs to know how to trailer and it's something I've been planning on learning, but never seem to have the time. Since we're going to be buying 1,500# bales in order to free-feed while Mom's still on the mend, we're going to use RCC's flatbed trailer to haul the hay up to the Lodge. I could have Bill drive the truck for me, but that would just be another opportunity to learn that I'd be passing up. I think RCC's a little nervous for me to take the trailer up to the Lodge, but I figure as long as I don't have to back it I'll be okay. I'll leave the backing to Bill because I don't want to be responsible for taking out the fence we just mended. It'll be a tight fit to back the trailer into the pen and get it parked where they want it.

I don't want my first time hauling a trailer to be with Estes in the back. Nope, I'll leave that for my second time. In order to get all of the horses up to the Lodge in one trip, we're going to take both trucks and trailers. Mom and Bill bought us a two-horse bumper pull for a wedding present, which is just big enough for Ranger and Estes. The three grays will go up in their trailer and we'll get them all up at once instead of taking two trips.

Wish us luck :)

13 Days

2011-03-19T21:26:00.000-06:00

...Until the horses come home! I can't tell you how excited I am. They're coming home a month earlier than usual, but so far the weather's being fairly nice(ish).

I had another lesson last week. Finally, between the weather, my schedule, and M's legs it all worked out. He's still not completely sound, but did well at a walk for an hour. No longe line lesson this time, it was all about teaching me how to help him hold his frame. It's so weird for me to not have slack in the reins. When I want Estes to do something, I "pick up" the reins, give my direction and then release. This idea of constant contact is just so foreign to me.

I finally figured out how not to "give my elbows away" and keep my own frame while helping balance M in his. We worked on halts and three-tracks. I *almost* got the hang of the halts, with M squaring up underneath me and had limited success with three-tracks. I could do it while moving around the arena clock-wise, but counterclock-wise was a total loss. Sharon also had me ride in a two-point position, which made me very thankful that I have been working out. I still only made it one lap around the arena before I started feeling the burn.

I left the lesson feeling so much better than my first one. I only had to be reminded to watch my legs a couple of times. I hope it's because I'm getting the hang of it, and not because she just got tired of telling me.

I was hoping to have another lesson tomorrow, but I've developed pityriasis rosea - a viral skin infection - that has migrated from my torso to my inner thighs and hamstrings. I can barely pull on my jeans without setting off awful bouts of itching/scratching, so I cancelled my lesson tomorrow. I can't even imagine the irritation that would be caused by both the jeans and the motion of riding.

Once Estes is home, I'll continue working on what I'm learning between lessons. Estes has lousy "whoa", so maybe if I can master the halts, I can carry that over to her.

Only 13 days...

28 Hours of Hope Update

2011-03-11T08:16:00.002-07:00

...to everyone who linked up, re-posted, or donated to the 28 Hours of Hope. If you haven't donated and think you can make it through the day without your espresso, why don't you donate your coffee money for the day? Every little bit helps and together over $36000 was raised. There's still time to donate (about 45 minutes), so I'll leave the link in the sidebar.

Thank you all so much!

28 Hours of Hope

2011-03-10T08:47:00.001-07:00

In the three years or so since I've been blogging, I've seen bloggers who have never met face-to-face pull together to help little girls with cancer, mommies with cancer, people just having a rough time who need a shoulder to cry on and have seen the bloggers stand together, strong, through good times and bad.

I've been lucky enough to participate in the blogging community and have been blessed enough to help some of our fellow bloggers.

This time, I'm asking for help. Not for me, but for abused children in Larimer County. I was lucky enough growing up that my mom got us out of a potentially abusive environment. She took the beatings for us until she said, "enough!" and got out. She had a very wise counselor at the time who told her that she was going to get out of the marriage no matter what - she either gathered her courage and left, or she'd get out of it in a pine box. There were no options. He also explained that wife beaters don't stop with the wives - they move on to the pets and the children and when he killed her, who was going to protect the kids?

People knew about the beatings Mom was recieving, but what is there to do? Our close neighborhood friends knew, but, you know, what happens behind closed doors, how is it their business?

We kids knew. Hell, Dad would line us up on the couch in birth order and command us not to move when the beatings commenced. We knew, but we didn't say anything. It was our own dirty secret. If we told, we'd be the ones getting the beating. Selfish, I know, but we were kids. Dad was a big, strong firefighter. What chance did we have against him?

Silence was our enemy.

We didn't tell.

The neighbors didn't tell.

The teachers didn't tell.

Silence.

Thank God for Mom's counselor. I don't know if she told or if he figured it out. He was a smart man. Smart enough that he knew the patterns of abusers. When Dad started in on Junior, the youngest of the four of us, Mom realized her counselor was right and got out.

There are a lot of kids nationwide, not just in Larimer County, whose parents aren't as strong as Mom is. There are a lot of kids for whom Silence is their enemy.

They don't tell.

Their neighbors don't tell.

Their teachers don't tell.

Silence...

...it's killing our kids.

The Good Morning Guys at K99 sponsor the 28 Hours of Hope every year in an attempt to break the silence and raise money to help abused children in Larimer County. They will stay on the air for 28 consecutive hours, taking calls and pledges from the community and Country Music celebrities. They went on the air at 5:00 am this morning and will continue to be on the air until 9:00 am on March 11th. Jeez, and I complain about working fifteen hours straight - these guys will be working non-stop for twenty-eight hours for a cause they believe in.

RockCrawlinChef and I will be making a donation and I'd like to ask each of my followers to make one, too. It doesn't have to be a lot. Even $1.00 on your credit or debit card will help. The change in your car's ashtray or change jar will help. To donate, click here or on the picture in the sidebar, that will take you directly to the donation page. You can make a donation on-line, over the phone, or via mail.

If you can't afford to donate, then do something about the Silence. If you suspect a child is being abused or neglected, tell someone. Break the cycle of Silence. All it takes is a phone call to break the cycle - either to the police department or social services.

And, please, please feel free to steal this post for your own blogs or link to it. The more exposure we can get, the more we can help the children and break the Silence.

The Bionic Cowgirl

2011-03-06T21:15:00.001-07:00

Or, Mom, as I like to call her, is home from her second total hip arthroplasty. Fancy words for bionic hip replacement.

She actually looks a whole lot better than anyone who has had Black & Decker power tools rooting around inside her has a right to. It's hard to believe that just four days ago she was under the ~~saw~~ knife. She's up and around and I'm pretty sure that her walker is just a prop. You know, more of that "soft support" that she threatens to use on Bill and Sophie. She actually takes the stairs from the main level to the dining room level much easier than she did on her non-bionic hips.

All I can say is that if four days post-op she's doing this well, I'm never going to be able to keep up with her.

Look At This Coolness!

2011-02-25T18:50:00.001-07:00

I know you're saying to yourself, "Self, I really like the High Country Rendezvous window decal. How on earth can we get us one?"

I'd tell you you could contact Megan at BuildASign, who is phenomenal to work with and design a cool window cling, window decal, or bumper sticker of your own. Megan contacted me about doing a review of their products and I have to say, I'm impressed. She's easy to work with and has some good ideas. In fact, the window decals were her idea. I had wanted to do window clings, but she was afraid the picture wouldn't show through tinted windows. So, instead of just sending me the clings, she also sent me window decals. I'm extremely pleased with how they turned out. Mom and Bill have one of the window clings up in the window of their office, and I've got one of the decals up on Ripley.

And you'd say, "Self, Megan sounds awfully wonderful, and so does BuildASign. GunDiva says she is and she really likes the products. But I really want one of those HCR window decals. How do we get one of those for our ownself?"

And I'd have to tell you, the only way to get one of these coveted HCR window decals is to register for this year's High Country Rendezvous at Allenspark Lodge B&B.

We've extended HCR this year by an extra day, as we didn't have nearly enough time together last year. We went on an amazing ride, attended a mini-clinic put on by a local equine chiropractor, and had an adventure with a flat tire.

This year, we're adding a "play day" with the horses, where we can play some fun horsemanship games that most of us haven't done since we were kids. The extra day also allows us to plan a trip into Estes Park to see the elk and do more riding.

The cost of HCR includes a room at the beautiful Allenspark Lodge B&B, any clinics we arrange, and meals at the Lodge. Horses will be provided by Compass at the Allenspark Livery, and will be an additional charge (but she's cutting us a good deal).

Due to the fact that the Lodge is at 8,700 feet in elevation, unless you own horses who live and work at that elevation, we cannot accomodate personal horses. It takes too long for them to acclimate to the altitude.

I'm In Love (Again, or Still...)

2011-02-24T18:44:00.000-07:00

Remember this beauty...

This is Estes' Granddaughter, Dakota, at just shy of a year.

Now look at her...

Now that she's just shy of two, I want her. Bad. Really, really want her.

But that doesn't mean I've given up on the equine love of my life...

Because, let's face it, Estes is my equine soulmate.

But that doesn't stop me from falling in love with her grandbabies.

Jelly Bean (Or, The Beginning of My Bionic Mother)

2011-02-21T20:51:00.000-07:00

It's been a long while since we've had a ROTW, but Mom was kind enough to provide me with one. Mostly, I think, because she's going batcrap crazy while healing up from her hip replacement.

First Ride on Jelly Bean (March 2006)

Four years ago, we were to visit some friends on their desert ranch in Arizona, for a two week riding vacation. It was March and here in Colorado is was cold and icy, so we could hardly wait to get to sunny Blue Sky Ranch. During our phone conversations with Bucky, he had mentioned purchasing a new “marvelous” mare at one of the local sales. She would be perfect for me to use the whole time we were there, so bring my saddle. He was so delighted with this horse it was all he could talk about.

After the normal 15 hour drive we arrived late and got settled into the bunkhouse. Next morning dawned bright and sunny, just right for a starter ride – and at breakfast all I heard about was this fantastic horse named Jelly Bean. (That name should have been my first clue.) We all headed out to round up horses. My second clue should have been when Bucky said nobody had ridden her yet because he was saving her for me, and letting her get settled into her new home – a very good idea.

We walk Miss Jelly Bean into the round pen, groom her and saddle her with my gear. She seems a tad jumpy, but not excessively so for being in new surroundings and with strangers. I spend some extra time with her and she seems to settle down and starts getting friendly, so I decide to mount up. Bucky is standing beside her head ready to snag her if she starts to walk off, as many ranch horses do. She stands rock solid like the well behaved horse I’ve heard about. I put my left foot in the stirrup and swing my leg over the saddle, gently settling down onto the saddle seat.

Boom! My other foot hadn’t made it to the stirrup when Jelly Bean exploded. She might have been small but she was definitely mighty. I went flying off on about the fourth pitch, hitting the dirt hard. Scrambling up and diving for the fence, I reach for the top rail to heave myself over and get out of this crazy mare’s way, who is now charging everything inside the round pen. That’s when I realize I have done real damage to my wrist. I had smashed it into the base of one of the round pen posts. I have yet to instinctively curl up and hit the ground rolling; I know this is what to do, but…. Just four months earlier, I had dislocated my left shoulder, so I tucked that into my chest and stuck my right arm out in front to protect it. Yeah, not such a good idea in retrospect!

After catching goofy mare and returning her to a pen, we spent the next three and a half hours trying to find a clinic/doctor/hospital that could take care of my wrist, which I thought was just dislocated. Not so, they all said, and continued to send me on to the next small Arizona town. Finally, an ER doc told us who we needed to see, and sure enough, that worked out. I ended up in surgery the next day, Good Friday of all days, and got to finish my vacation with a bandage on my arm. Thanks to a good orthopedist, I have a titanium plate and seven pins in my wrist…and 95% normal usage. Do I roll when I hit the ground now? Nope, still haven’t perfected that, but I am much more careful about strange horses.

Epilogue: Pour Jelly Bean got sent off to an ex-bronc-rider trainer at a ranch nearby. We started assuming she had been drugged at the auction to keep her quiet for the kids to ride around bareback. The trainer rode her for several days, doing his ranch work, without incident. Then he put his wife on her (a non-rider) for a ride and they loved her. A couple weeks later the trainer again got on her and said, “She broke in two the middle I hit the saddle; nearly put me on the ground. That horse can buck!” They wouldn’t tell me what happened to her after that, but she never got to come back to the ranch as a dude horse.

GunDiva's notes: What Mom left out of this story was that she took two ginger root capsules (!) for inflammation/pain control, and after they drove all over creation trying to find a doctor/clinic who could handle her injuries, she returned to the ranch to help feed. One handed. With no true pain meds. She refused pain meds, saying that the ginger root was doing just fine. She's either the toughest person on the planet or the craziest - I haven't decided yet.

I Got To See My Girl!

2011-02-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

I didn't have a chance to get my hand on her, but I did get to put my eyes on her while she was grazing on the lower pasture of the Homestead. I quick snapped a picture through Ripley's window, but it did my heart good to see her.

Ida moved the entire herd today to the fat pasture, where they will all put on some weight before we bring them home. Tomorrow, Bill and I will be visiting them at the fat pasture to treat them with tick stuff - apparently they're infested with ticks, which happens every year. It doesn't seem to bother them, but it bugs (pun intended) the heck out of us.

More pictures of the herd are on Mom and Bill's blog and hopefully I'll have more to post after tomorrow.

Horse Update

2011-02-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

I haven't seen hide nor hair of the horses since Ida moved them from the upper pasture to release them on her property behind a rock quarry. Mom and Bill usually hike in once a week to get their hands on the horses and check up on them, but haven't been able to due to Mom's hip surgery. We're used to turning them out for the winter, but we usually have an idea of where they are and the condition they're in. This is the longest we've ever gone without seeing them.

Needless to say, we were getting a little anxious.

Mom called Ida a couple of days ago to ask if she'd seen the horses and the answer at that time was no. But she called back on Friday morning and said that the horses were at the homestead and she was able to see that they were doing well, even if they weren't close.

I drove Monster up to the Lodge later that afternoon and was delighted to see the entire herd down in the lower pasture, where they are accessible. Monster and I pulled off and went to the fence to talk to them. The entire herd came off the hill and congregated at the fence to say hi. Even Ranger, who loves to be a wild horse, joined in the fun.

Washoe is a little on the thin side, and has a ton of cockleburrs in his coat; Jesse looks wonderful - she's lost her hay belly; Ranger, of course, is thriving; Estes is a little on the thin side, but not dangerous; and Eli looks great. All of Ida's horses look amazing and I still want to take her little black fillies home. Too bad they won't fit in Ripley.

I took a ton of pictures with my phone, but I can't get them to load from my phone to the computer and emailing them to myself didn't work either. Once I get the pics from my phone, I'll get them posted.

Bill and I are planning on hiking out to see them on Monday. If they're at the homestead, we'll just spend some time grooming them and getting our hands on Ranger so that when Ida moves the horses again next month she won't have problems with him. If the horses have moved back to behind the quarry, we'll get a good workout in while we search them out. Either way, I'm looking forward to it.

Estes Is A DVD Star!

2011-02-18T22:00:00.001-07:00

This afternoon, I opened my Facebook account and got a notice that Heidi Nyland had tagged a picture of me. That's not so unusual, as she tags all of the crew members when she posts pictures of shows we've worked on. It still didn't stop me from checking to see which photo she'd tagged, so I clicked on the notification and saw this picture...

Photo courtesy Horse Master with Julie Goodnight "Stand By Me"

Hardly the most flattering picture of me or Estes, what with me hanging like a monkey off of her back and Her Highness' ears pinned back. There was even a comment by Oregon Sunshine asking why Her Highness Queen Estes was being naughty and walking off.

The photo I was expecting to see was the one that Julie and Heidi have been using on Julie's blog banner and in some of the print media...

Yep, that's us in the lower left corner. A much more flattering picture than the previous one, isn't it?

I had two picture notifications on my Facebook account; the first one was that horribly unflattering picture of me and Estes. I'm not so bright sometimes, so I couldn't figure out what I'd done to Heidi to make her post such a picture. I went ahead, with some trepidation, and clicked on the second picture notification. And then it all fell into place.

My episode with Estes is one of the shows featured on her upcoming Trail Solutions DVD:

Pre-Release Special on Trail Troubles. Order now and get $5 off and FREE SHIPPING. Release date April 1, 2011. Call to order... 800-225-8827. Includes: Everything you need to help solve common problems getting to and going out on the trail.

From finding and evaluating the right trail horse to trailer loading, to working with a horse that’s barn and buddy sour, to approaching any obstacle you may face on the trail, Julie Goodnight and the Horse Master cast members will help you learn from real-life challenges such as getting in the trailer, refusing to leave the barn, walking off before you ask, balking at obstacles (such as tarps and water) and more.

• Shop til you Drop (horse buying) Horse shopping
• Loaded Up (trailer loading) Trailer loading
• Stand by me (stand still for mounting) Stand still for mount (This is our episode)
• Rearing to Go (refusing and rearing) Refusing & rearing
• Wave Runner (spooky horse into surf) Approach scary obstacles

Yup, there's my arse hanging off of Estes. The other pictures are at least cool looking, but there's nothing cool looking about not being able to mount up. Even though I have a copy of my episode, I'm going to order this DVD, because I've been dying to see the Wave Runner episode since I read about it on her blog.

Since this is such a cool suprise - being included on the DVD - I might forgive Heidi for that horrible, horrible picture.

I should mention that I'm not paid to promo Julie's stuff. I just thought it was cool and wanted to pass it on.

Sunday Rewind

2011-02-13T10:18:00.000-07:00

I'm missing my horse and equine therapy. Because of this, I was reading through some of my earlier posts, way back when I first started this blog and my only followers were my parents. I thought I'd recycle it since it made me smile today.

One afternoon I was alone at the livery when a small, hatchback car pulled up and out stepped an older lady. At first glance, I estimated her to be in her late sixties; she moved with dignity and spirit, but when I got closer, I realized that she was much older. She leaned on the fence, delight at seeing the horses all over her face. I could tell that she had a kindred horse spirit. I met her at the gate, wondering if she was stopping by for a ride even though we didn't have one on the books.

No, she hadn't stopped for a ride, but saw the horses and they brought back so many fond memories she just had to stop. In her eighties, she was car camping alone at nearby Olive Ridge campground. She explained to me that her kids were grown with kids of their own and didn't enjoy the mountains as much as she did, so she just packed up her car and headed up the mountain. She was too old, she told me, to sleep on the ground so she chose to sleep in her car, which was much more comfortable and if she got cold she could just turn on her heater.

I invited her into the yard to meet the horses, but she declined. She did tell me that one in particular reminded her of a horse she had as a child, so I brought that horse up to the fence. I don't remember which horse it was that I took to her, but I do remember the look on her face as I led the horse to the fence. It was as if the clock had been turned back and she was a child again, the delight absolutely radiating from her. She completely forgot I was even there, she was so lost in her memories. I stood quietly holding the horse watching her go back in time. The horse was as entranced as she was and stood absolutely still while she ran her hands over the horse and murmured her memories.

I'm not sure how long we stood there, the three of us, but it was an absolutely magical time. When she was done with her walk down memory lane, I offered to help her up and just lead her around the yard. She turned me down, but said that she may come back the next day to take me up on the offer then. We chatted a bit longer, then she drove off with a big, child-like smile on her face. I watched her drive away, absently petting the horse, and hoped against hope that she would come back the next day.

I didn't work the next day - I wasn't scheduled - so I don't know if she returned or not, but I'll always remember the look of absolute joy on her face. I can't quite explain the feeling I got from being a small part of her trip down memory lane.

Curse You, Mother Nature!

2011-02-11T17:07:00.000-07:00

Just heard back from my riding instructor...

Though the weather is absolutely beautiful and will be in the 50s tomorrow, there won't be any lessons, as the outdoor arena is still under eight inches of snow from Monday/Tuesday's snowfall.

Looks like I'll be heading to the gym instead.

And that's not nearly as much fun.

It's Been Forever

2011-02-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

Well, maybe not forever, but it sure seems like it. It has been weeks since my last lesson and finally the weather is cooperating. I've got me a date with the handsome boy M tomorrow at noon and can't wait to see if I can remember to keep my toes pointed forward. Who would have thought that it would be so difficult?

Ashinator is going with me tomorrow in Mom's place, since Mom can't drive yet on her new hip, so I should have a picture or two to post. I might even smile in them instead of chewing on my lips and concentrating so hard I look like a two year old being potty trained.

I've started with a personal trainer (okay, okay, I started this week, but it's still a start), so I'm hoping that I'm not as sore as I was after my one and only lesson. My trainer has agreed that I can count my riding lessons as working out. Mostly because I dared him to give it a try and then tell me it wasn't a work out. Poor kid's never been on a horse. Musta been neglected as a child.

Follow Up to "Who's The Boss?"

2011-02-06T16:28:00.000-07:00

There were a couple of comments on my last post that I wanted to respond to; mostly, how did the episode turn out?

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...the change was pretty astounding. Like most manner issues, the change has to come from the human. Once Michele understood that she had to be the leader, Jonas fell right into line. All photos courtesy of The Whole Picture, LLC.

Get out of my space!

Standing like a polite gentleman.

Oooo...scary quad. But wait...Mom's not scared...

Standing nicely on a loose line while I cleaned his boogers.

There was also another comment asking about seeing the whole episode. Well, I found out that you don't have to have RFD-TV or buy the DVD at the end of the season to see the whole episode. If you join RFD-TV's Country Club, you can watch all of the episodes on your computer. The cost for joining is $14.99/month, but you can get the first month free, watch all the episodes you want and cancel before getting charged.

One last update - I haven't had another riding lesson. Seems Mother Nature has been conspiring against my plans for lessons. I'm a bit - well more than a bit - sad about it. I really enjoyed my one and only lesson (so far) and can't wait for another. In the meantime, I've joined a gym and have a few sessions set up with a personal trainer, so maybe I won't hurt quite as bad once I get to ride again.

Who's The Boss?

2011-01-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

One of the episodes we filmed was about an ill-mannered horse and her submissive owner. I don't think that this is an unusual problem, though it is a dangerous one. One of the things that we were told in our crew meeting was that we weren't supposed to correct the horses and that it was best for the horse owners to do all of the handling. At first, it seemed like kind of a silly directive, but it made perfect sense; not a single one of us on the crew would have tolerated this kind of behavior from a horse and would have made a correction without thinking twice about it.

I know several horse owners who are excellent riders, but not such great handlers. Over the years, I've known several people who were injured by their horses because they've allowed their horse's manners to slip - or they've never instilled manners in their horses in the first place.

This is not to say that Estes is the best mannered mare on the planet. She's got manners, but just like letting my kids slide once in a while with theirs, I've allowed hers to slip somewhat. It's easy to do. Little things like letting her stop shoulder-to-shoulder with me instead of behind me where she belongs. She can be pushy on ocassion when I've fed her one too many treats and she gets it in her head that it's okay to start snuffling at my hands and pockets.

Linda over at Beautiful Mustang has written a post on how easy it is to raise a monster. Go read it, it's definitely worth your time.

The Day After

2011-01-16T19:13:00.000-07:00

Just like Sharon promised, I hurt.

Muscles I forgot I had (or maybe never knew I had) hurt. Who would have thought that just doing something like move my toes 45* would cause my knees to ache so badly?

Now, I know I'm not in good shape. Any semblance of good shape. The fact that I haven't seen the inside of the gym in almost a year testifies to that.

However, I ride. I ride up and down mountains, across creeks, over boulders. For hours. And I do it all bareback. I have better than average posture when I'm horseback. My core is fairly strong. In fact, that's the only part of me that doesn't hurt. My riding muscles should have been in good shape.

Sharon managed to kick my arse. Who would have thought that almost two hours on level ground going in circles could hurt so much?

Okay, okay. A lot of you warned me I'd be sore and I didn't believe you. For that I'm sorry. I should have believed you all.

I've decided that my arms are going to get quite the workout, too. I've always ridden Western. Very little contact unless I needed to give the horse instruction. After the few minutes I did yesterday of riding with contact, my hands hurt. I'm not used to helping the horse hold his/her frame and it's going to be quite a change. But I'm willing to bet my triceps will appreciate it.

First Lesson (warning: lots of videos)

2011-01-15T20:19:00.000-07:00

As you know, I was all sorts of nervous about my first lesson, thinking I'd make a total and complete fool of myself (which I only did a couple of times). The important thing is that I managed to keep Manassis between me and the ground, and on any ride, that's a good thing.

I first learned that I turn my toes out too much so that I'm gripping with the back of my calves instead of the inside of them. Learning to keep my toes forward is tough. For too long, I've ridden with them at about a 45* angle from the horse. Sharon was patient and spent some time going over proper positioning with me.

We then started at a walk, just so I could get the feel of the big boy. Estes is only 14.2h and Manassis is much bigger, so I think Sharon was worried that I'd be nervous riding such a large horse. I used to pick the biggest horse around to ride B.E. (Before Estes) - probably a little bit of short-person syndrome. Then I switched to smaller horses - Estes and Meeker - and realized how darn agile they are and fell in love.

I was familiar with the exercises we did at a walk and was comfortable with them. The hard part was remembering to keep my darn toes facing forward.

My first trot was not pretty; I kinda look like I'm flopping around up there trying to pick up his rhythm.

Then it was time to add in the arm exercises at a trot. I actually felt much better not holding on to the cheater strap. I felt like reaching down for it threw me off balance, so I was more than happy to go to arms.

Just to make it a little more difficult, Sharon had me do it without stirrups. I actually preferred being without stirrups, because I could feel myself bracing in them when I was posting. Gave myself a heck of a toe/foot cramp, too. This is where all the bareback riding I do paid off. I find that stirrups now are a distraction and I drop them every chance I get. Heck, even when I do ride in a saddle, I only use the stirrups for mounting and dismounting.

After a few rounds without stirrups, I went back to them and felt a difference. I was much less inclined to use them to help me post. I think that it's pretty easy to see that just the few minutes I did without stirrups helped.

Sharon had told me that she was going to have me ride three gaits today, so once I got comfortable with the posting trot, it was time to face my nemesis - the canter. I'm not quite sure why I'm so afraid of the canter - I know it's an easy gait to sit. It's a lot more comfortable than the trot, but I'm still not comfortable with it. I think that part of it is the fear of falling (always), but the other part is that Estes is so quick. She could leave me behind in a heartbeat if I'm not paying attention or off balance. I know this and she knows this. Another part is where we ride; there's not a lot of room to canter, but I'd like to be able to do it with confidence in the areas where it is safe to do so.

Please disregard the arms flapping like I'm a bird trying to take off. I was so focused on trying to keep all of the leg stuff straight that my arms just kind of did their own thing (That whole making a fool of myself thing? Yep, here it is.).

I had a blast! I learned that I'm going to be able to do this. I don't have too many bad habits to break; essentially my position is okay. I wasn't quite as big a dunce as I had anticipated, either.

Sharon told me that I had a lot more confidence up on the big boy than a lot of riders who have a lot more learnin' under their belts; even riders who are competitive dressage riders. I can chalk that up to having to ride so many different horses when I was working at the livery. It's not hard for me to get up on a strange horse; if I wanted to ride, I had to ride what was available. And maybe Mom and Bill should get some credit for dragging me out of my slump of riding only "easy" horses when they made me ride Estes the first time.

I'm A Little Afeered

2011-01-13T22:17:00.000-07:00

One of my resolutions for this year was to take riding lessons. I want to be able to use my seat better and purposefully give leg cues to Estes. Sharon, who was the Key Grip on Horse Master, offered to give me lessons on her retired boy, Manassis.

Photo by Heidi Nyland, The Whole Picture, LLC

Is he a handsome feller or what? Sharon and I set my first lesson for this coming Saturday. On one hand, I'm absolutely excited and can't wait. On the other hand, I'm terrified. I've never had a riding lesson (at least not that I can remember - my godmother had me up on Flame when I was just a young 'un, but I don't remember any lessons). Anyway, I've never had a riding lesson - what if I don't get it?

Don't laugh. I'm really terrified about being a totally uncoordinated doofus. I don't speak the language; hell, I don't even understand English tack. That God for Sharon during Horse Master. We had three English riders and since I was the Horse Grip, I was supposed to be able to help with tack adjustments and such. I know I looked like a deer in headlights. She took pity on me and gave me some very, very basic lessons on the tack.

I really want to do this, and know that it will help me, but now that it's almost here. Well, that's a whole 'nother story.

Mom's going with me to video tape and take pictures. I just hope Manassis doesn't give his mommy a bad report about my attempt at riding.

Picture by Heidi Nyland, The Whole Picture, LLC

Equine Resolutions

2011-01-01T23:35:00.000-07:00

This year, I'll be taking riding lessons. I want to learn to use my seat more effectively (and I'm sure that Estes will appreciate it too). I don't need to be able to ride bridleless, but I'd like to use my hands less and my legs more. Sharon, one of the crew members from Horse Master, has offered to give me dressage lessons on her super amazing gelding. I have no intention of ever competing in dressage - EVER - but I've been told repeatedly that it will help develop my riding; dressage is the basis of all good riding, much like ballet is the basis of all dancing. Wish me luck.

I'll also do my best to keep Estes' hooves trimmed properly (thanks, Mrs Mom). For the record, the thought of doing it scares the crap out of me. The last thing I want to do is screw up my horse, but I want to be able to use her all summer long. For the last two summers, she's been either injured or lame for part of the summer. I couldn't have avoided her injury, but I maybe could have figured out her lameness earlier and gotten her treatment sooner. By doing her trimming and handling her hooves on a regular basis, I'll be able to identify the beginning of thrush and treat it appropriately. I swear I'm not going to get lulled into the "I live in a mountain desert, we don't have thrush" mentality.

That's it for my horse resolutions; why about you? Anyone have any they want to share?

A Little Bling for Estes

2010-12-30T16:52:00.000-07:00

I had such a good time on my five minute ride yesterday that I just posted a quick video in which it was almost impossible to see her new bling. RCC got some great pictures and I have to share them before we get to the bling. What I love, Love, LOVE about our horses is that they've been out to pasture for two months and we were able to just hop right back up on them without any round penning or lounging.

I love this picture - love the way the sun's coming through the trees.

My favorite picture of Bill and Ranger.

She's furred up a little bit. I thought I'd be able to bury my fingers in her hair, but it just stuck straight up when I tried.

Terrible picture of me; great picture of her new bling. I think it fits her perfectly.

Oh Happiness!

2010-12-29T17:28:00.000-07:00

I just had to try out Estes' new headstall. Lucky for me, the horses are in a pasture just fifteen minutes away from the lodge and Mom and Bill always take treats when they visit, so they eagerly look forward to cars driving up the road toward the pasture.

I set up her bridle at the lodge where it was warm, using Ashee's as a measurement guide so that I wouldn't have to fiddle fart around with it out in the cold. In order to keep it warm, I hung it around my neck like a necklace and buttoned my duster up over it. Forgot to get a picture of me wearing my horse's bling, but you can see me take it off in the video to put on Estes.

Bill and I went for a very short ride, but I could have spent hours wandering through the pasture. RockCrawlinChef and Mom went with us and acted as camerapeople and we thought it might be - you know - rude to ride off and leave them behind.

There's kind of a bobble with getting me mounted up on Estes. Bill apparently really wanted me to kick him in the head, but we got that straightened out and when he boosted me up, he practically threw me over her back. Thank goodness the batteries were low in the Flip so it turned off before Mom could see me hanging off the wrong side of my horse.

So, here's 1:54 of happiness...

Still pics tomorrow.

Estee's Christmas Present

2010-12-26T13:35:00.002-07:00

Mom and Bill got me, well, Estes, a new headstall for Christmas. It's beautiful; the perfect balance between tough girl and pretty. It's got bling in the form of BBs, not flashy stones. And the leather is not dainty; it's good, sturdy leather.

I've been using Ashinator's headstall when I can get away with it (she keeps catching me at it, darn it!) and it's obvious that Estes prefers that one over her own. Since she's so light and doesn't try to rub off her bridle, I don't feel the need to use a traditional bridle with her.

She's currently in a pasture that is fairly easy to reach, so when I go up to the lodge on Wednesday, I have every intention of trying out her Christmas present, even if it's only a quick trip around the fence line and through the trees.

Pictures in a few days...

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T17:57:00.000-07:00

Love and hugs from Queen Estes and GunDiva

Remember Us?

2010-12-18T20:28:00.000-07:00

Way back in April, I met Estes' Grandbabies, two adorable fillies, who are amazing critters. They were so playful and sweet that I instantly fell in love. I didn't get to see them all summer long, as they were off being horses and I was busy riding, but Mom snagged this picture of them just a couple of weeks ago. Aren't they gorgeous?

Ida's got someone who is looking to buy them, which is the whole point of her breeding, but it makes me sad, because I want them both something fierce. But with no place to keep them and absolutely no knowledge whatsoever of how to start them properly, it wasn't going to happen anyway.

But a girl can dream.

Quick Horse Update

2010-12-05T18:03:00.000-07:00

I haven't been out to see the horses in their temporary pasture and am dependent on Mom and Bill for my updates. Lucky for me, I was able to catch up with them in Las Vegas and get at least a verbal update. I don't know if they got pictures last week when they visited, but they assured me that the horses are all doing well and have "fuzzied up". According to Mom, they've got twice the fuzzies they had when we turned them out and are fat and sassy.

Like you, I wish we had pictures, but we'll have to wait until Mom and Bill are back from the NFR in a couple of days.

Day After Turnout

2010-11-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

Since Mom and Bill turned out the horses at a pasture other than their usual one, they went back the next day to check on them. Mostly to check to see if Jesse had hopped over the little fence to take the horses back to the lodge.

They'd settled in, but were still happy to eat the treats Mom took them :)

In a few weeks, Ida'll move them down to their permanent winter pasture.

Well, Now What?

2010-11-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

With the horses gone for the winter, probably the only thing I'll be climbing up on are extra tall bar stools. But I'm not much of a drinker, so I won't be bellying up to the bar.

With winter here and no ride time, I'll have time to do some reviews. CSN Stores has added me to their list of preferred bloggers (woohoo!). Last time I did a review, I got to try out some cool boots, which I passed on to my mom because I managed to screw up the UK to US size chart.

I don't know that I'll find anything horse-related, as their pet section is mostly for indoor pets, but I do love wasting my day looking through all of the cool things they have. I've had positive experiences with them in the past and am looking forward to working with them again.

Winter Turnout

2010-11-21T13:26:00.001-07:00

Turnout is always a bittersweet day. It's good for the horses to be turned out for the winter. There's something about pretending to run free for a few months during the harshest part of winter that is just so good for the Mustangs' souls. During the time they are out, they will be without humans to take care of them - they go back to their wild roots. Mom and Bill hike in to see them every week or so, but other than a few treats, they don't take any food to the horses. Foraging for food and water (don't worry, their pasture has three rivers crossing it) is completely on the horses.

This will be Eli's first winter as a wild horse since Compass caught him several years ago. We've given him time to herd up with our herd and shortly, we'll be combining them with Ida's herd next month, so they'll be a healthy sized herd. Safety in numbers and all that. Last year, there was an issue with a mountain lion, so Ida brought them all down into her town pastures in early spring. This year, the herd will be big enough (and without a mini - poor Tigger) that they shouldn't have any predator problems.

Last Ride of the Year

2010-11-19T00:08:00.000-07:00

First things first...
Mrs Mom and Meg, this one's for you...

T!nK gladly rode Eli in your absence :)

Even though I *hate* this canned Flip video music, I got lots of positive responses on it, so here it is - again - on our last ride of the year.

*Sniff, sniff*

When Washoe the Wonder Idiot "crossed" the stream that he drinks from every. single. day he kinda broke Momma Fargo. I didn't get it on film, so it never really happened, and I can hold onto my record of never losing a guest on a ride.

Thwarted Ride

2010-11-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

Last week, Mrs Mom posted a video showing hoof movement in shod horses. I wanted to see what the hoof movement looked like in barefooters like our horses, so I called up to the lodge and made a plan with Mom and Bill to go out on Sunday, which was supposed to be a beautiful day to ride.

Knowing that I'd have to get up and down from Estes to get the shots I wanted, I decided that it wouldn't kill her to go out in a saddle (it doesn't fit well, which is why I haven't used it more than once this summer). The whole way up to the lodge I watched the clouds build behind Long's Peak, and hoped that they wouldn't break over the mountains. I really, really wanted to get the video of the horses' feet up on our mountains.

I knew that we'd be riding on borrowed time, but pulled Estes' saddle out anyway, ready to get whatever shots we could.

How pathetic is this...

Yes, that's dust on my saddle. I guess that's what happens when you don't pull your saddle out to use for over four months.

In the time it took me to pull my saddle and go pull Estes from the pen, this is what moved in...

I still wasn't ready to give up on our ride yet, until I got Estes tied to the rail and she gave me this look...

That is a cranky mare. Suddenly, between the snow beginning to blast us and the thought of riding a cranky mare, my need to get the video of her barefeets wasn't so great any more. I got over it, turned her back to the pen, moaned and groaned about missing my chance, and went home.

I kid you not. I get out of the canyon, back into cell phone range, and call Mom to let her know I'm down (old habits are hard to break - have to call before we enter the canyon and when we exit the canyon) and she tells me the storm has blown over and there's nothing but clear blue sky.

Stupid Colorado weather.

8:12 of Relaxation

2010-11-02T06:00:00.001-06:00

Compass and I went out for a ride on Saturday and I took along my Flip. There was a request for more videos a couple of posts back, so I took the request to heart. Our ride time is getting short - we're looking to send the horses to winter pasture in three weeks. We've gotta get all the ride time in we can!

Please forgive the corny Flip music; I tried to embed Templeton Thompson's GIRLS & HORSES, but it wasn't playing nice.

Thrush? In Colorado?

2010-10-30T19:51:00.000-06:00

When Mrs Mom suggested that maybe Estes had deep tissue thrush, I was confused as I've always been told that Colorado's too dry for thrush. I mean, we worried about it when it was damp for extended periods of time, but not day-to-day. Mom picked out Estes' club foot and treated it for thrush for a couple of weeks and Estes quit gimping. Huh. Thrush in Colorado.

I always thought of thrush (when I thought of it) as primarily attacking soft tissue, like the frog and surrounding tissues, but never thought about it attacking the sole. Holy cow was I surprised when Mr Mrs Mom took the hoof knife to Estes' sole and found all sorts of thrush. In fact, her sole looked like marble and her frog was a disaster, even after the two weeks' worth of treatment.

Here's a video of Mr Mrs Mom working on Estes' gimpy foot. It's long and there's lots of chatter in the background, but you can very clearly see the marbling in her sole from the thrush.

Did you notice that he didn't use a traditional farrier's hold? I love the way he held her hoof and it's much easier for me, too.

We'd ridden pretty hard before her trim and she was a little sore, which you can see at the end of the video, but it's nothing like her gimpy video.

A Little Video

2010-10-26T23:18:00.000-06:00

Mom and Bill, Mrs Mom and BrownEyed Cowgirls all already have multiple posts up about their visit last weekend. I'm feeling like such a dang slacker!

To ease my guilt feelings until I have time to sit and compose a post, here's a little video montage of our ride.

The video of the hunters putting their kill up on Eli is a bit jumpy because Ranger did. not. like. it.

Yeah, dead thing on the back of his new herdmate was just too much. He was pretty good, but wanted to get outta there.

Really, more to come in the next couple of days.

Spring/Fall

2010-10-19T06:00:00.001-06:00

The pond on June 10 this year. Wasn't it gorgeous? The frogs were singing when I took this picture. I love to listen to the frogs :)

The pond on October 17. No frogs singing, but still absolutely beautiful. I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was still water in it. I fully expected it to be completely dried up like it was last year at this time.

Ornery Estes

2010-10-17T20:54:00.000-06:00

Estes has developed a bad habit, one that is totally and completely my fault. Because she's been gimped up most of the summer, I've only been taking her out for short rides. As a result, she's become quite barn sour - always in a hurry to get home. Last week, she and Monster went rounds about her behavior.

Yesterday, Monster and Mom went out and Estes had a temper tantrum. Monster handled her beautifully according to Mom. When she got charge-y, he stopped her and made her stand still. He turned her away from home and made her stand. He put her behind Mom and Jesse. You name it, he tried everything in his power to calm her down. Unfortunately, a twenty year-old horse with a lot of experience isn't much match for a fifteen year-old boy with less than a month of experience and Monster ate dirt yesterday. His pride is hurt more than his body. And she really, really hurt his feelings by dumping him. He's not thinking much about their "bond" right now.

As a result, I had plans on riding her long and hard today to run off some of that excess energy. Plans changed; after getting out on the mountain, I decided that a long, slooooowww walk was more what she needed.

A big hug for my standing-still-like-a-good-girl mare...

Just before the big tempter tantrum...

...and one very pissed off mare...

...and now we piaffe (Estes two-step)...

"Mom, I am so mad at you!"

...and passage (quickly on the way to pissmeoff)...

...ultimately, I won and she came back like a good girl.

A roll well-earned...

Favorite Equipment

2010-10-14T06:00:00.000-06:00

I've been asked on occasion why I choose to use some of the equipment I do, mainly about the length of my reins and my use of quick-clips to attach them to the bridle.

First, the length of my reins. I use l-o-n-g reins. Long enough that when I've got them crossed over Estee's neck they still almost drag the ground. A lot of people see them as trip hazards, and I'll agree that if they were to drag the ground they'd be trip hazards. The reason I use them is so that when I'm leading out a ride, I can park my lead horse at the front of the line, dismount, play out the reins and help whichever guest needs help all while keeping contact with my horse. If I had short reins and had to keep my lead horse next to me when I went back to help the guest, I'd lose control of the line. A parked lead horse keeps the others from wandering off.

What about the quick-clips to attach them to the bridle? Monster demonstrated it perfectly on Sunday when he had to lead Estes back to the yard. He was able to leave the lead rope behind. When riding bareback, there's no place to attach the lead rope unless you leave it clipped to the halter and tie it around the horse's neck. It gets cumbersome. When Monster made the decision to lead Estes back to the yard, he was able to quickly disconnect the reins from the bridle and clip one end to the halter and lead her back without putting pressure on her mouth.

Out of Order

2010-10-12T06:00:00.000-06:00

I posted about my ride on Sunday with Monster and then realized that I never posted about his first ride on Estes.

Monster and Estes share a special bond that came from out of nowhere. Estes decided she loved Monster and he became her human, not-so-subtly removing me from the "favorite human" standing.

Monster's not really a horse guy. He's a skater dude. He had no interest in horses until Estes chose him as her human. He'd probably ridden less than fivetimes his entire life and hasn't enjoyed it much, so imagine my surprise when he told me he wanted to ride Estes. Estes is not a beginner's horse. Not even close to being a beginner's horse. In fact, I was terrified to ride her and then I fell in love with her. Ashinator is my horse girl and she has no desire to ride Estes.

I was worried about Monster riding Estes due to both his lack of experience and her tendency to be rather mare-ish. But then I watched them together and realized that she wasn't going to do anything to hurt him, so I grabbed Ranger and we got ready to go.

I don't know if it's because of the extraordinary balance he has to have to skate or if he's just a natural rider. We went around the block and called it a day. But the riding bug had bitten Monster. He's gained a lot of confidence in just a short period of time. The second time he rode, he rode in just a halter and lead rope (which I haven't been brave enough to try yet). The third time, he and Bill trotted more than half a mile. Sunday's ride was only the fourth or fifth time he's been up on Estes and he decided to tackle the trail.

And he's done it all bareback!

He spent the beginning of the ride asking when he would be able to canter on her. I told him that he'd have to wait until he got a little bit more experience under his belt before he could attempt a canter - so he agreed to wait until next summer.

We'll see what new goal he sets for himself next weekend when he's working.

Fall Ride

2010-10-10T18:49:00.000-06:00

Monster spend the weekend working at the lodge and wanted to go out for a short ride before we came home today. For the first time, he agreed to go out on the mountain instead of just riding around town. Since he wanted to ride Estes, I chose to take Compass' horse, Eli. Compass is off at Meeker, acting as camp cook until Tuesday, when she'll head down to Arizona to drive a team until November. In the meantime, Eli has joined our herd and she's been telling me all summer I should ride him, so I did.

The weather was less than appealing on the way up...

And it didn't get any better the higher I got...

But the colors were amazing...

I grabbed Eli (isn't he a handsome boy?) and away we went...

Monster hamming it up for the camera...(and Bill riding drag)

Monster lead out for a while and on the way home Estes decided to act up. This picture was just moments before Monster and Estes had a Come-to-Jesus meeting. Monster's an intuitive horseman...he doesn't see it, but he's got great instincts for dealing with her. She wanted to go home at her own pace; Monster said no. She said yes; Monster said, no and we're going to turn away from home. She said, yeah, well, take this and executed a perfect roll-back. Monster said, oh, hell, no and made her stand quietly while he dismounted.

The minute his feet hit the ground and he transferred her reins to her halter to lead her home, you could see her deflate...oops, I screwed up.

He spent the whole walk back giving her what-for and she listened intently.

Is this a sorry horse or what?

Mrs Mom's A'Comin' to Colorado!

2010-10-06T13:51:00.000-06:00

Yes, you heard that right. Mrs Mom and her DH are bringing their expertise to Colorado to help fix Estee's feetsies. How lucky am I?

I think we've got Estee's thrush under control and she's not limping as much. You have to look for it to see it now (otherwise I never would have taken her out for a canter) and she's back to her normal mare-ish self. Now it's time to take care of that club foot.

Rather than try to figure out how to do it via phone calls, pictures and videos, Mrs Mom and DH are coming out here to teach us how to take care of her feet ourselves. We missed them at HCR, but we'll still get to meet them for realzies. I can't wait!

I Did It!!!

2010-10-03T20:46:00.000-06:00

Back in June, I took my first canter on Estes in a saddle. I've been whining off and on about not having an arena to learn new things in, because, basically I'm a chicken and don't want to get hurt trying new things riding in the mountains. After my ride with Compass in June I decided that my summer goal was going to be to ride Estes bareback at the canter. Summer's technically over, but we haven't taken the horses down to winter pasture yet, so I'm going to continue to think of it as summer, okay?

Our first attempt was a bust. I started at a trot, cued up for a canter and Estes moved into her nice Morgan shuffle, so I cued up for a canter again and she just shuffled faster. Bill attempted video, but watch it at your own risk. In his own words, "it's the planet's most nauseating video".

I pretty much gave up after the aborted attempt. I was ready, but she was not. However, I thought I'd give it another go and we had success!!!!! This video's not quite as nauseating as the first, but don't play it full screen, you'll regret it.

We did it! Estes was so happy to be allowed to stretch her legs out that we did it again. She would have kept going, but I thought better of it. Okay, honestly, my butt thought better of it. Even with a bareback pad, it hurt when I got out of position and whacked my seat bones on her back.

We've still got some time before winter pasture and we'll be doing this again!

Sunday's Ride

2010-09-22T21:23:00.000-06:00

I've already posted the pictures of Sunday's ride, but thought I'd write just a little bit about it.

Estes has been on injured reserve since the HCR ride. She developed some deep tissue thrush (that's what I'm assuming it is - I'm not a vet and can't diagnose) and hasn't been rideable. Well, actually, she probably has been rideable, but we took some time to treat her.

She seemed to be feeling better and was definitely getting sick of being left behind so I decided to give her some Bute to take the edge off so that I could take her out to stretch out a little bit. I'd just Buted her when Compass called to see if I would join her on a two-hour ride. Heck, why not? I threw Bill's bareback pad on to keep my jeans clean-ish and bridled up.

Estes was eager to go and quite the handful while I was waiting for Compass' guests to get mounted up. Estes was beside herself that we had to travel at "dude speed" when she wanted to go. Even though Compass had invited us for a two-hour, I had to get back into town, so I went out with her and planned to break away from the group when it was time for me to head back.

I finally got Estes settled into dude speed and chatted with the guests who were not having nearly as good a time as we were. Unfortunately, the female of the couple wasn't into the ride and was not having a good time. Her husband, on the other hand, was having a ball and feeling guilty about it, it seemed.

Before I knew it, I was at my turn back point and broke away from the group. I felt Estes sigh in relief as she picked up a quick trot along a sandy stretch of trail. I was as anxious as she was to move and let her stretch out a bit. I considered moving her up into a canter, but wasn't feeling very balanced myself and decided to stay at a trot.

It felt wonderful! Her gimpiness felt like it was gone, but I'll chalk that up to the Bute making her more comfortable. We sought out a few aspen groves on our way back, breaking trail in the process, and picked our way between the beautiful trees.

I rode a bit harder than I had intended and was sore for two days to prove it. Estes, however, would have been much happier if we'd stayed out another couple of hours.

As excited as I am to be going to the WPA, I'm sad that it will be another week before I can get up go for another ride.

Fall Colors

2010-09-19T22:49:00.000-06:00

It seems like summer just got started and here it is all over, as evidenced by the gold on the mountain.

When the gold hits the trees, it's time to break out the orange...

There are hunters a foot and the only protection we have is our ability to don the hideous orange. Orange might not be my color, but alive is and I want to stay that way.

After our beautiful ride, Estes even got in on the orange action with a little Betadine soak...

Mrs Mom's Magic Arrow-y Thing-y

2010-09-18T19:49:00.000-06:00

I sent Estes' hoof pictures over to Mrs Mom and had her do her magic. Only one picture was suitable, but I found it helpful and thought I'd share it.

Red Arrows- that is where your deep tissue thrush is hiding. Clean the hell out of that area, and pack with any of the treatments we discussed

Lime Green Arrows- Shows bar tissue. Not out of hand, but you'll learn to trim that back to the level of existing sole

Blue Arrow- at toe- shows her breakover/ wear pattern for that foot. Nothing bad- just thought you might find it interesting to note.

Heels are flat and level- very nice. Might be a tad high, but hell this IS a true club foot you're looking at too.

On the top shots, all that really jumped out at me was that the heels on her non-club foot are a tad high as well, (which might well explain her sore shoulder- horse's have a way of evening themselves out to cope with issues in the distal limbs,) and I see some "lines" in the hoof wall. Some folks call those "event lines". I don't have a name for them, but note them as they are an indicator of changes in the horse's life, diet, exercise level, hormone levels, past illness, etc etc etc... The lower on the hoof wall, the long ago the event that disrupted the horse's system. Higher up obviously more recent. Not usually anything to worry about- just a good overall sign for us when we "read" the hoof.

I can't tell from photos how much retained sole she may have in there. May not be much, might be tons. Club feet tend to retain a lot.

Now- on that club foot- to test how far that deep tissue thrush has invaded, and how bad it has affected the internal stability of the hoof- you need to do the following:

1- lift hoof, and clean WELL- all cracks and crevices, and hidey spots.

2- place one hand on either side of hoof- thumbs over the sole, fingers wrapping towards toe.

3- Rotate inside hand towards to, outside hand towards heel.

4- Repeat, with inside hand going towards heel, outside hand going towards toe.

What you are looking for:

Flexion. Movement. Watch the hoof. FEEL the hoof- if you see and FEEL (FEEL is CRUCIAL) a lot of movement in the hoof, that shows you the internal structures are compromised.

Which means what?

Compromised internal connective tissue means a weaker heel. Means more movement on weight bearing. Means pain on movement.

Can it be fixed?

Yes- and with no shoes.

It will take aggressive treatment by you guys, packing those openings and cracks. Hooves can heal themselves amazingly well. All we need to do is clear out the crap that has taken over in there, provide exercise to tolerance, a good diet, proper balanced trimming and staying on top of ANY thrush that will try to invade.

Your supplies:

Q-tips

PenG soaked cotton balls, tubes of the mastitis treatment, triple antibiotic- any of those will work

Or White Lightening soaked cotton balls

Any of the above to pack the holes with.

Recovery time will depend on how deep the tissue was compromised- but within a couple months you should begin to see an entirely different frog and sole. Watch her move too- she'll tell you how things are feeling in there.

We've (and by "we", I mean Mom and Bill since Estes lives with them) been treating Estes with Pen-soaked cotton balls, which seems to be helping her movement. Monster is working with her this weekend and will take her out for a short ride to get her stretched out. I have hope that she'll be sound again soon.

Budweiser Tribute to 9/11

2010-09-11T11:08:00.000-06:00

This supposedly only aired once, as a tribute to those who lost their lives and helped in the rescue of the Twin Towers attack. Thank you, Budweiser, for a beautiful tribute.

Estes' Feetsies

2010-09-10T23:05:00.000-06:00

So here are some not very pretty pictures of Estes' feet. Probably her shoulder problem is coming from the ground (as most of you were kind enough to point out). She's in desperate need of a trim and I'm working on getting Mrs Mom out to Colorado to teach me how to trim her.

The fronts...

The backs...

Club foot (front right)

What do you think? Besides the fact that her back right is in bad shape - are the heels constricting on her club foot? I think I saw, and certainly smelled, some thrush. Mrs Mom tells me that deep tissue thrush is common in clubby feet, so we're starting treatment for thrush.

Sorry I'm missing lateral views, as they didn't turn out well. Next time I'm at the lodge I'll see if I can get some better lateral views.

I'm At A Loss

2010-09-05T18:48:00.000-06:00

Estes has been gimpy off and on the whole time I've owned her. Mostly she's been able to stretch out and get through it, but as she gets older, her gimpiness gets worse. She's got a club foot (front right), but I feel like her gimpiness is coming from her right shoulder, because if I stretch her out or get her adjusted, it goes away (for a while).

Mom and Mrs Mom have said that club feet sometimes have an issue with constricting heels and deep tissue thrush. I've picked her feet and didn't see any signs of thrush, but I suppose it doesn't mean it's not there. So, if you guys would look at this video and tell me what you think is going on, I'd appreciate it. Mrs Mom asked for pics as well, so I'll get those up next week.

Monster did the honors walking and riding her - I think her gimpiness is worse when she's being ridden.

As I'm watching this for the millionth time, I see good range of motion through the shoulder, but I know from stretching her out that it's super tight. What about her wrist? Does it look like she's maybe hyperextending it?

BOOK REVIEW: Whirlwind

2010-08-30T06:00:00.000-06:00

Photo credit: http://www.alisonhartbooks.com/

WHIRLWIND is the sequel to Alison Hart's SHADOW HORSE (originally released in 1999, recently re-released).

Ms. Hart was kind enough to send me both books, though they can each stand on their own. I read each book in an afternoon, and loved them both. Since they are both young adult novels, they're a fairly quick read.

WHIRLWIND picks up where SHADOW HORSE left off, with Jas Schuler living with her foster mom on at an animal rescue, awaiting her grandfather's release from rehab following his stroke. Having rescued Shadow from certain death at an auction, Jas found out that he was actually Aladdin, a horse who had supposedly died five years ago. Armed with that knowledge, Jas sets out to prove that Whirlwind is still alive.

From the first page, I was drawn into this book and the world that Ms. Hart created. I couldn't put the book down until the last page. She creates a world where a scared thirteen year-old can band together with the good people in her life and fight the "bad guys". The images flow from the page and I was with Jas and her friends throughout the entire thing, experiencing the heartache, uncertainty, fear and ultimate victory right alongside them.

I enjoyed both books so much that I wish I was a tween again, because her books would find a spot on my shelf right next to my Walter Farley books. As an adult, I've had a great time spending a couple of afternoons in Ms. Hart's world. I can't wait to pass the books on to my niece Autobot, and will anxiously await her take on them.

Who's Who?

2010-08-29T06:00:00.000-06:00

So, there have been lots of HCR posts with pictures and I'm about to inundate you with more - some one-on-one pics.

Bill and Ranger

Me and Estes

RockCrawlinChef and Gem

Juanita and Jesse (doing their Stacey Westfall impression)

Rachel and ~~Head Banger~~ Baggins

Momma P and Timber

After the horse-swap, Rachel giggling her fool head off on Timber in the creek.

Killashandra and Raja, who holds a special place in my heart.

Riding through the Horse Smorgasboard: Juanita, Momma P, RockCrawlinChef, Rachel and Killashandra

One of my faves, me and RCC.

Shirley over at Ride a Good Horse recently hosted an equi-blogger trail ride in her neck of the woods. Click on over there to see some absolutely beautiful pictures from her neck of the woods. I'm glad to see other riders getting together to do things like this. Ours was a blast and I can think of a ton of places I'd like to visit and ride and a bunch of equi-bloggers I'd love to do it with.

Take Off Your Hat!

2010-08-28T20:28:00.000-06:00

As I was busy being traumatized by Bill, the rest of the HCR attendees were at the livery getting signed in. Compass, the Barn Boss, has met my husband on multiple occasions. In fact, the week before the ride, we'd had a bonfire at the livery to celebrate her birthday. The woman knows my husband.

However...

She's getting everyone signed in and collecting money and gets to RockCrawlinChef. Being a smart ass, she says, "that'll be $500, please." RCC, without missing a beat (so I'm told), tells her to put it on "GunDiva's tab".

She looks up, looks him over in his cowboy outfit (the man in a cowboy hat is - wow) and honestly has no clue who he is. Really, Compass? We just celebrated your birthday together and you don't recognize RCC?

He thinks she's kidding about not knowing who he is until she demands that he take off his hat. Then it sinks in that she really did not recognize him and wasn't being a smart ass.

Oops.

Dinner Time!

2010-08-27T22:46:00.000-06:00

The 1st day of HCR was hectic to say the least. I spent the morning shooting with my best GunDiva buddy, Tara, ran home threw some clothes in a suitcase for RockCrawlinChef and myself, changed clothes and headed out to my former boss' memorial service. In the midst of all of the excitement of getting to spend time with Tara and getting to meet Killashandra and Rachel for realsies, reality intruded and RCC and I spent an hour or so at a memorial service.

She was an amazing person and one of the most genuinely nice people I've ever met. She died far too young and without warning, leaving an adult daughter. The fact that her daughter is an adult doesn't make it any easier - her whole life, it was her and her mom against the world. Luckily, she got married a couple of years ago, so she's not completely family-less. Nevertheless, I was too chicken to stay for the reception and face her daughter in the midst of her grief, so RCC and I headed up to the lodge.

Check-in at the lodge is at 3:00 pm every day, but I knew that Killashandra and Rachel weren't going to be getting there until 5-ish, so I wasn't too stressed out about getting up there before them - I figured we'd make it. And we did, but not by much. The minute I walked in the door, Bill asks me, "Have you heard from Rachel?"

Um, no. Was I supposed to? Seems Mr. Daddy had called the lodge looking for her. And when he called the lodge looking for her he identified himself to Bill by his alias, Mr. Daddy. Which cracked me up. Only when bloggy land meets real life do we have to refer to ourselves as our aliases (or alii?).

Mom was a bit stressed out because there was still so much to do before everyone arrived, so we headed out to clean the horse pen and then it dawned on me...most people clean their houses for company, we were cleaning our horse pen. Only for equi-bloggers, I tell you.

About halfway through the cleaning process, Killashandra et al. arrived and Bill brought them over. I was thrilled to meet them face-to-face, despite the fact that I was slinging manure. I have to tell you, I fell absolutely in love with Killashandra's boots. They were amazing! Red with just the right amount of bling. I was so dazzled by her boots that I couldn't even gather my thoughts enough to get a picture of them. In fact, I'm pretty sure I gushed over her boots before I even managed to tell her hello properly.

Mom headed back over to the lodge with them while RCC and I finished up the pen. Tell the truth, we kind of didn't do the best job in the world finishing up, I was too excited to go spend some time with our guests.

We stalled for a bit, waiting on Rachel and her mom, but we were getting hungry, so I set the table while Mom put the finishing touches on dinner. Bill rang the brass bell to announce dinner and we sat down. Before all of our butts were in our chairs, up pulls Rachel and her mom. By God, not only can the woman read lips, she can read minds!

We didn't even give them time to unload, just met them on the porch with hugs and ushered them to the dinner table. Click here for the dinner photo and Mom and Bill's take on dinner.

It's Here, It's Here!

2010-08-19T19:14:00.001-06:00

The first annual High Country Rendezvous starts tomorrow! Yep, you read it right. First. Annual. So if you aren't able to make it this year, pencil us in on the calendar for next year. We're gonna have a great time getting to know each other in real life, we're going to get some one-on-one instruction on horse anatomy and saddle fit, go for a beautiful ride and eat ourselves silly. I can't wait!

Behind the Scenes at Horse Master: The One In Which I'm A Total Dork

2010-08-17T06:00:00.001-06:00

If you've ever watched Horse Master with Julie Goodnight, you know that during each episode she does what's known as her "Quick Tips". They're 15 - 30 second of bite-sized pieces of information. At the end of the first day of shooting, we were ahead of schedule, so we decided to go ahead and film some Quick Tips and do some sponsor-related stuff.

Now, I don't know about you, but I'm kinda in awe of Julie and her horses. Dually and Digs have been on multiple magazine covers and are featured in her shows and articles. To say I was a bit star-struck by her horses would be an understatement.

Julie decided that we'd use Dually for one of the Quick Tips - I don't even remember which one - and I got to hold him off-camera. You would be surprised at how thrilled I was to just stand there and hold that silly horse while she was doing her bit on camera. When we were finished, we went to the barn and I got a little one-on-one tutorial about how she sheets her horses. I've never put a sheet or blanket or cover of any kind on a horse, but she was really patient and answered questions I had about it (not many - it's pretty straight forward, but I didn't want to screw up with one of her horses). We used her husband's horse, Digs, for another Quick Tip and I got to hold him for that too. I know it makes me a total dork for being so excited, but I know I'm careful about who handles Estes and she's just my mutt. I was super honored to get to "handle" Dually and Digs.

A couple of days later, she asked me to pull Dually and get him tacked up for an episode in which she was going to be riding alongside the cast member. Never have I ever been so happy to groom and tack a horse. Again, I know how picky I am about who handles Estes and I rarely let anyone else tack her up for me. Call me a control freak if you must, but I want to know that she's tacked up safely and correctly.

Behind the Scenes at Horse Master

2010-08-15T18:32:00.000-06:00

I'm a good month behind on this post, please forgive me. I've been debating on how to proceed without telling too much about the episodes or any crew secrets. I also tend to be a bit wordy, so I was afraid my post would be way too long (that's still to be seen, huh?). I've finally settled for some of the more memorable moments, at least from my point of view.

The morning of the first day of shooting was beautiful. The weather was perfect and the backdrop. Well, the backdrop, not so much. Julie's neighbor had been building a barn for the three months prior to shooting. They'd built the roof on the ground and were going to use a crane to lift it into place on the barn. Guess which day the crane was scheduled to lift the roof? You guessed it, the first day of shooting! Cheryl (her wardrobe wrangler) had talked to the foreman the night before and worked it out so that we could call over when we were ready to shoot and they'd cease moving the roof, then we'd call back when we were clear. It was unbelievably gracious of Julie's neighbor to agree to such a thing. After a few times, though, Julie decided that it wasn't that distracting and that we'd just continue to shoot through it saying, "do you know what it costs per hour to rent one of those?". If I hadn't been a fan of hers before, I would have been after that statement. She's so down-to-earth and wants to continue to be a good neighbor that she was willing to do her shooting around her neighbor's barn raising. So, when you watch the Colorado episodes when they air next year, if you hear some odd background noise it's her next-door neighbor's barn going up.

Normally, six episodes are shot in three days, but for this shoot Heidi scheduled eight episodes in four days. It actually worked out perfectly, though a great deal of that was because we were at "home". If we needed something, we could go dig in the barn, tack room, or bunkhouse to get what we needed. I heard horror stories about how they'd shoot from sun-up to sun-down and were always scrambling for the light. I didn't feel any of that at this shoot. In fact, we were done with filming no later than six o'clock each night. We were still plenty exhausted, but we were at least able to get a good night's sleep each night. Those of us at the "party house" - Lucy's house - were in bed by eigth-thirty pretty much every night. So much for being bachelorettes for the week.

The first three episodes were all English disciplines. I know nothing at all about English tack, which proved to be a challenge for the Horse Grip. I was lucky that Lucy was around to teach me how to do the stirrup length adjustments that needed to be done and to teach me about over-girths (still don't get them, but I know what one is). I always thought that English tack looked pretty simple, but I'll take Western tack any day. There's so much stuff that goes along with English that I never knew about; there's nothing simple about it.

Also in one of our first three episodes was a 17.3 hand Hanoverian jumper. His rider had to use a three-step step-ladder to mount. I really wanted to get my picture with him, but couldn't figure out how to hold him and get a picture with my camera at the same time (without disrupting the others who were working). Since I'm 15 hands, that horse was almost a foot taller than me at the withers. It's kind of mind boggling. At one point, I was on the opposite side of the horse and both Julie and Heidi were looking for me. I raised my hand to show them where I was and they couldn't see my hand over his back. How crazy is that?