(Since this blog is more of a personal reflective record than anything else, please excuse me if the language in this one is a bit convoluted. Many things have happened since the last post, and I feel that it will be somewhat difficult to keep things compartmentalized and organized. I'm going to try my best, so hopefully it makes sense in the grand scheme of things.)
The second half of Summer has given us a world of changes, both physical, mental, and emotional. First and foremost among such changes is the fact that Oz and I went to and successfully completed our very first limited distance ride! We did it! I want to shout it from the rooftops! We did it! We rode the full 25 miles with two good friends, and had a roaring good time the entire ride through. Even when I was reeling from the shock of having to go out again after the first 15 mile loop, as I was ridiculously unprepared for the pace at a ride, we were having fun through the exhaustion. Oz was a rock star, he pulsed down instantly when we came into camp, and stood perfectly for the vet, who complimented him every check for his happy attitude and calm demeanor. He was ears forward the entire ride, and was a powerhouse until the very end. I never knew we had a HA gear, as Brenda, my mentor called it, but we were in Hauling Ass gear most of the ride! It was definitely the best first ride experience I could have asked for, what an adventure! We ended up winning the Turtle award, and were very proud to be the last pair to finish the ride within the time parameters. This was extremely unintentional, I had assumed that once you were clocked "in" to ride camp you were within the time parameters and took my time cooling Oz down before getting his heart rate checked. Annt! Wrong! Oops! We still finished with about 50 seconds to spare! Yippie!
Our vet card was great, with a single exception, all A's and one C on back score. Oz was back sore, incredibly sore, I am truly surprised that we passed the vet exam at the end of the ride. Our saddle that we thought was a great fit, really showed its true colors after 25 miles of pounding trail. Its a no go, but we found a replacement which I will mention in my next post. I'm super excited about it! All in all, the ride was a huge success and we broke the mental blockade of the "first ride." Oz carried me to both the very beginning as well as to the summit of a long seated dream which I had almost given up on. Thanks buddy!
On the reverse end of the monster pony spectrum, the Poplar chronicle continues. Things are...going. She has exceed my expectations in the worst possible way. Why oh why am I not surprised? Needless to say, I am definitely worried at this point about getting her back and being able to ride her safely. She has been bucking with and without a rider...four feet off the ground, "I'm going to Texas for Christmas!" type bucking and will be staying at the trainers for another 30 days because of this. I bought a protective vest and I plan on duct taping myself to the saddle. I am hoping that it is just a saddle fit issue or a quirk that can we worked out. I should be OK, I've got this. Right guys?!
Ugh, horse ownership in a nutshell. The highs, the lows, the lower lows, and on we go!
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