OF Turkey Trot

Since I started riding three years ago, I've always wanted to be part of a barn community that actually DID fun things together- Not just talk and plan, but actually follow through and do the fun thing. I'm an introvert by nature so nothing will ever replace the satisfaction and contentment I get from hitting the trail solo but I won't ever deny or turn away the opportunity to enjoy horses in like-minded company.

This past weekend the BO and his daughter hosted a fun scavenger hunt pace at the barn to celebrate Halloween/Thanksgiving/autumn. The event was very low key and since the pace time was based on a slow walk, I was comfortable that it was safe to participate with Quest.

We partnered up with JA and Lucy and both agreed beforehand that we would ride in costumes (which was highly encouraged). The night before the pace, everyone got emailed the instructions and ride order. To our bemusement, JA and I were assigned to go first at 9AM- it was a little curious why the two newest boarders (JA had arrived in March) were given the earliest start time. Maybe because of the fact we had the highest chance of getting lost and sending everyone else off on the wrong track? lol

Despite our newbie-ness, JA and I worked really well together. Quest and Lucy got along fine and paced each other nicely. We found all of the clues and only one of the riddles completely stumped us at first- we eventually puzzled it out after a detour but the confusion cost us too much time in the end. To be honest I wasn't too bummed since all I really cared about was having a good, safe time with my mareface in our first "competition" since her injury.

Kudos to anyone who can guess what our costume is!

The scavenger hunt put Quest on new trails that we had not yet had a chance to explore together and the mare was rock solid. She didn't even pause at the scary things that apparently spooked other horses (who have been at the barn longer than she has) that day. At one point during the pace, we were passed by a horse on the trail jigging to get back to the barn- Quest paid him no mind and plodded along on a loose rein minding her own business.

OF is certainly no WSS but for now, we will make do with what we have and take our time with lots of long slow distance walking. JA knows of a lot more places to ride and is more than happy to show me the trails. I'm excited to see what other things the new barn has to offer (:

Windy Hollow Hunter Pace

Quest and I did our first ever hunter pace together this weekend and it was SO fun!

Happy mare and happy me <3

With the stifle injury hopefully well behind us, we have been working hard every weekend since then to get good saddle time and mileage on the trail. Schedule differences have prevented us from riding with J and B this whole time but the solo trail ventures have helped me and Quest gain confidence in each other. She is still alert of her surroundings but there is less tension now and more curious interest- a minute difference, but a pretty huge deal in my opinion.

When I gushed to J how well the mareface was doing, she suggested that it was time to up the ante and see how Quest handled a few more “realistic” ride competition settings. With that, the Windy Hollow Hunter Pace was scheduled to be our first ever away-from-home trail ride.  

In the days leading up to the event, I was excited but nervous too. Quest has improved SO much mentally since I first had her and as eager as I am to get ourselves active and competing on the trail, I wanted to make sure it was a fun experience for her too. Almost if to assuage my worries, our ride on Saturday went particularly well- we did another solo 8 miles and trotted everything we could. Towards the end of the ride, we passed another rider on the trail who was working with a cute 5yo chestnut gelding. He asked to tag along behind us on the trail; Quest didn’t seem to mind so we helped pull them along and dropped them off at their barn. Even though Quest is still green herself, she acted like a trail veteran and power trotted past all the “scary” things without hesitation. We were moving at a good clip/our usual trot pace too- I could hear the gelding behind us cantering from time to time in order to keep up!

When I arrived at the barn the next morning, I finally got to meet the other boarder M who owns Remy, a cute stout buckskin QH mare. We chatted amiably together while we got our horses and tack ready and waited for J, B, and J’s husband P to show up with the truck and trailer. They soon arrived and while the trailer was readied, we got the horses fed and ready to load up. J told me to lead Quest on first- she stepped up without hesitation after me. Good mare! Next was Remy, then Pedro (J’s gelding pony), and finally Soup (B’s warmblood mare). Everyone on, everything packed, we hit the road.

The drive took about an hour and went by quickly since we were all chatting away. M talked about her job which involves art so that was super cool to learn about. And B told us firsthand about her AERC Nationals experience- which by the way she and Maddy won, got Best Condition, and tied for High Vet Score. Pretty awesome!

When we arrived at the hunter pace, we went to the tents to get signed up in our teams and pay. Quest and I would be riding with B and Soup in the Open division, while J would take Pedro and team up with M and Remy in the Hilltopper division. Then it was back to the trailer to unload and tack up. Quest was a little sweaty but definitely NOT a lathered mess this time so I’ll count that as a win. Once off the trailer, she was eager to graze so I think that's another win. Tacking up and mounting up was definitely a two person job this time though- probably 30% standing still and 70% moving around. While the latter wasn’t too unexpected, I’m hoping it'll get better in time since that'd make my life a whole lot easier.

Everyone all mounted up, we all set off for the starting area. In a few short minutes B and I were given the okay to move down the trail. Quest was definitely feeling good and moved out in her power trot. Soup and Quest matched each other very well in pace and we had zero issues efficiently weaving through single track forest paths and along cornfields surrounded by gorgeous autumn foliage.

Riding the fields of corn- A first for us and no problem for mareface

The trails were very well marked with plenty of ribbons and signs

Pausing for a quick snack while humans pause to take pictures.
I was very glad to see this!

There were a few rather steep hills that I was dubious about doing at anything but a walk but Quest powered up every climb at a trot or canter with ease and energy. This was definitely a side of her that I have not yet seen before so that got me very excited. The only hiccup we faced the entire day was the cows. Fields and fields of horse-eating cows  meandering along the trail. Poor Soup, who had been leading the whole time, had quite a meltdown so Quest took the lead to get us past them.

B and Soup did the jumps while Quest and I happily took the go-arounds...Though I sincerely think Quest would have had no problem jumping if given the opportunity because she seemed to "lock on" to the jumps and I felt pretty bad telling her no each time. I guess we're going to go play with jumps soon. Very soon.

My absolute favorite section of the trail was also the most terrifying part. A little more than half-way into the ride, the trail opened up along a stretch of pristine green rolling pastures. B and I started to canter, no problem there. Then I saw B and Soup move ahead even faster. I felt Quest click into a gear that I had never felt before and suddenly we were moving faster that I've ever gone. 

I've NEVER ridden a gallop before, let alone on hills going both up AND down, and we were literally charging up and down those hills. I was rather preoccupied making sure I didn't lose my seat or stirrups. But I did indeed survive. Quest never felt out of control but the speed was both absolutely thrilling and terrifying all at the same time. I went back to check my GPS later and we apparently got up to 23mph!

We galloped the hills behind the trees

Walking at a much more sedate pace after.

The rest of the pace went by rather quickly after that. Endomondo on my phone started late and cut out before the end so I'm guessing the total distance was around 7-8 miles. I was a bit surprised by how short it was since I was actually enjoying myself and Quest was eager to keep going. There was a steady wind blowing the entire time though so B and I was more than happy to hide away in the LQ to warm up after we untacked the girls at the trailer, got their coolers on, and grabbed a bite to eat. We chatted away while waiting for J and M to get in and it was neat to hear about B's experiences doing endurance and some pretty exciting plans in the future. This entire time Quest was tied outside to the trailer alongside Soup with zero issues. Good mare.

J and M got in about 30 minutes after we did. Since B needed to be back home early afternoon, we didn't hang around much longer then needed. All present and accounted for, we packed everything back into the trailer and loaded up. Quest was good about loading and unloading again. I checked her feet (she handled the trail with no problems barefoot) and let her back out into the pasture after she got her lunch.

All in all, I'm very happy with how the hunter pace went. Quest did much better with the trailering, she was responsive and listened on the trail, and was calm about hanging out tied to the trailer afterwards. She stayed sane, safe, and I could not have asked for a better result for our first ever off-property trail ride.

SHPC Hunter Pace

After much talking and planning, Rori and I finally did our first hunter pace together!

All smiles all day

The morning of the hunt pace, I arrived at the barn early to get Rori ready and pack our things. She was a dried muddy mess when I fetched her from pasture so it was a good thing I factored in extra time. After I got the mare all cleaned up I headed to the main barn where H was getting her mare Penny ready.

C texted us that she was having issues with the trailer and finally arrived...after 2 hours. Rori loaded up with no problems and while Penny took a bit longer, she soon hopped on as well. We packed in the rest of our tack and hit the road. After about 50 minutes, we pulled into the lot and made it JUST in time to the tables to register as one of the last teams heading out. We hustled back to the trailer to unloaded the horses and got them tacked up. Rori was totally chill throughout the entire process and I was soon all mounted up. With H and Penny in tow, we headed over the the starters and waited for our turn. One of the ladies saw the bright orange biothane bridle on Rori and asked if I did endurance. I grinned, "That's the goal!"

We were given the go ahead and started down the trails at a walk with C on foot. Both mares were doing well, but H was still nervous that Penny would act up so we took it very slow.

After about a half mile, C told H and me to continue on and turned off the main path walking toward a barn. I was totally confused until H told me that she was going to borrow a friend's horse for the ride. Hmm okay....

H and I ended up waiting for C to join us with her pony and we set off, for real this time. The pace had two trail options: a shorter 6-mile and longer 8-mile. My group did not want to go fast nor did they want to ride the longer trail. I think this is the moment that I realized that I needed more speed and distance. (Hello endurance riding!)

I brought along my GoPro and it was my first using it for an event and on a longer ride. I got some good video but didn't capture the two most exciting moments. First, C's pony decided that it would be fun to suddenly bolt across an open field. H and I halted and waited for C to regain control and trot back to us. Neither rider or equine were worse for the wear so we continued on. The next exciting thing to happen was Rori and I tripping and almost falling flat on our faces. The trail opened up in one section and we were riding 3 abreast trotting along. H's mare Penny pick up a canter first and our horses quickly followed suite. Suddenly Rori's head disappeared from under me and I felt her stumble for an instant. I somehow held on and managed not to fall off while she regained her balance and continued to canter- Apparently it was quite a save and I really wished I had it on video!

Much too soon, the ride came to an end. We were among the last teams to return back to the trailers. It was extremely humid out and Rori was totally lathered in sweat. I quickly untacked and I went to find water but there was none to be found...Apparently the volunteers already dumped out all the water troughs and started clearing the site up. I felt really bad and stuffed her with carrots instead.

When it came time to load up, Rori got right on no problem. H's horse Penny however was having none of it. It took a literal village to get her loaded and we finally hit the road almost 30 minutes later. We all arrived back at the barn safe and sound though. Rori got her water and a nice roll in the mud.

All in all, it was a great time. Rori was fantastic. It was my first time riding that far and that long but I had a blast! It was so much fun trail riding in a more competitive setting and moving at speed. Little did I know this was the start of something new.