I am pooped out and every joint in my body aches. That was some ride! I took a Tylenol#3 and a HOT bath . That helped a lot but my butt still feels RAW. I need to invest in one of those sheepskin seat covers that the endurance riders use.
Anyway it was a good turn out and it's always nice to meet new friends. My only regret was that I didn't mingle more with others especially the ones who seemed to be riding alone. I hope they didn't feel left out or ignored.
I was so impressed with how much energy Mocha has. He goes up the hills like a mountain goat. I hope no one was annoyed with me allowing him to do so. I tried to wait till the others were clear of the top of the hills.
I think he would do well in Competitive Trail riding if/when I can afford it.. All he wanted to do was trot the first few miles, we were doing circles off to the side so he wouldn't tailgate. He was better coming back but occasionally got his second and third wind and seemed inpatient and wanted to go faster.
Almost had a wreck on the last hill. I waited till the others were far ahead and let him run up it. At the top his boot slipped out from under his hoof like a banana peel and caused him to stumble. As his front end was going down I let the reins loose and held on the the saddle and I had that feeling that "Oh S*#t , imagining I was going to hit the dirt with him landing on top of me! But it didn't happen. He regained his footing. Lori was behind me. She thought he had bucked. It felt like he came down on his knees so when I took his boot off I checked him for injury but he was fine. I walked him a little ways to make sure he hadn't pulled a muscle or anything but he was moving along fine so I got back on.
That last 2 or 3 miles back to the trailers sure seemed long! Usually Mocha picks up speed when the trailers are in sight but he didn't this time. He wasn't dragging like I thought he would be though, he was alert, head up, ears up and he would trot if I had asked him to.
After we got home Mocha was a dirt powder puff from rolling. Doesn't seem stiff. It never ceases to amaze me how much they can take.
Almost had a wreck on the last hill. I waited till the others were far ahead and let him run up it. At the top his boot slipped out from under his hoof like a banana peel and caused him to stumble. As his front end was going down I let the reins loose and held on the the saddle and I had that feeling that "Oh S*#t , imagining I was going to hit the dirt with him landing on top of me! But it didn't happen. He regained his footing. Lori was behind me. She thought he had bucked. It felt like he came down on his knees so when I took his boot off I checked him for injury but he was fine. I walked him a little ways to make sure he hadn't pulled a muscle or anything but he was moving along fine so I got back on.
That last 2 or 3 miles back to the trailers sure seemed long! Usually Mocha picks up speed when the trailers are in sight but he didn't this time. He wasn't dragging like I thought he would be though, he was alert, head up, ears up and he would trot if I had asked him to.
After we got home Mocha was a dirt powder puff from rolling. Doesn't seem stiff. It never ceases to amaze me how much they can take.
This picture was taken from the dirt road to the staging area. Boy was it dusty! Mocha was covered with dust when we got there...
Everyone ready to go...
Mocha happy to be back to rest at last!
