Steady Goes

The sun came out, if for a moment!

I think it's just my bad luck that the past two weekends have been rainy and gray. Still NO snow though (knock on wood)...I'll totally take rain over snow at this time of year.

Quest was polishing off breakfast when I got to the barn so I was able to get right to business and had all of our tack out by the time she finished. Her blanket was a very muddy mess. So glad I didn't have to brush all of that off of her though mareface was quite very appreciative of grooming. Most of the time she politely "tolerates" my affections but today, she stood happily with her head down and eyes half shut enjoying the head and ear rubs.

For this weekend's ride, I decided to explore the north trail a bit more. Word to the wise, maps are not always representative of true conditions- you think I'd learn that by now with all the bushwhacking I do. We ran into a dead end where the trail dropped off a rather steep gravel incline...which I was not going to chance navigating downhill so we backtracked a little and found something much more horse-friendly and continued on our way. Miles flew by and Quest moved out well.

On our solo rides, I have been making a point to bring a dressage whip which has helped immensely with getting her mind unstuck and back on me when she stops listening. I haven't actually needed it much since just carrying it makes all the difference. On our way home, there was zero jigging which I was very pleased about. The trails were a bit busier than normal- lots of bike riders and hikers. We had two instances of dogs off-leash on the trail that came charging up to us, growling. I simply asked Quest to stand still and waited for the profusely apologizing owners to wrangle their animals. Mareface was quite unbothered in both instances- very good girl.

Also, Quest FINALLY drank out on the trail!! I've been trying for the longest time to get her to drink- she obliges when I point her at streams and puddles by lipping at the water but nothing more. Today she finally took sips from the stream; I heaped praise on her. We were about 2 hours in and at the 12 mile-ish mark. I'm thinking it probably takes at least that distance before she'll feel like drinking.

When I got home, there was package waiting for me.

Unboxing...!

Since we're finally getting more mileage under our belt, I figure it's time to start keeping more detailed records of our rides. I have been struggling with my phone GPS for the past year since it's a huge drain on the battery and...well, having a working phone on the trail just might be important for practical safety reasons. I plan to use this to keep track of time and mph stats at rides too.

I'll do a proper review of it once I have had some time with it but right out of the box, this is as intuitive as they come. I couldn't resist taking it along when I went for a brief walk later in the afternoon- and so far, I like it. Simple and straightforward. I stuck it in my jacket pocket and worked with no problems. Can't wait to play around with it on the trail!