A lot has happened since last week...anyway, here's a follow-up to the trail ride competition that Max and I went on two weeks ago.
After a night of little sleep, thanks to Max banging the bucket on the side of trailer, I woke up at 5:30 AM to get ready for the ride. The ride was due to begin at 7:00 AM so I had a lot to get done. After feeding Max, I had a pretty light breakfast- I was too nervious to eat much and I didn't want to risk discomfort (or the possibility of having to stop and take a dump on the side of the trail).
After grooming and saddling up Max, it was time to mount up. Naturally Max was all keyed up and mounting him was a pain- fortunately someone was nice enough to hold him while I got on (I hate mounting from the ground!). I then had to get Max's attention so I proceeded to ride him around in circles and patterns. There wasn't much room to do this in, with all the horses and due to the fact that much of the ground was covered in gopher holes (that's something I definately DID NOT need to have happen- Max stepping in a gopher hold and injuring himself).
The ride management was releasing riders in groups of two, spaced one minute apart. I was paired up with a lady named Lori who was riding a throughbred named Shyster. When we were finally released to go, Max was jigging down the trail and it took everything to keep him in control- he was convinced that he was superhorse and he wanted to move out and move out FAST!
Soon we began to make our way up into the mountains, going up a series of switchbacks up some 1500 feet. The trail was narrow and let's just say that I was in no mood to look down- riding on narrow mountain trails isn't a favorite so I tend to focus on the trail and the horse in front of me. Max was very energenic and if it had been up to him, he would have cantered up the whole thing. We pretty much took the whole thing at a fast walk and it was not the most comfortable ride in the world.
After about an hour of this, we finally arrived at the top and the trail began to widen out. Soon we came to the first vet check (or PNR point). Max was covered in sweat and was blowing pretty fierce. After resting Max for a mandatory 10 minutes, the ride staff checked pulse and respiration on Max. I was very concerned at this point but as things turned out, he pulsed in at 11 (11 heartbeats over a 15 second period) which equates to 44 beats per minute.
Basically, the ride rules stipulate that if the horse pulses at 17 (68 beats per minute) or more, then he'd have to wait another 10 minutes and get re-checked again. Max was well in the acceptable zone. The rules on pulse and respiration are more rigorous for endurance riding and there's a whole science to it- I haven't delved into it that much.
After passing the vet check, Max and I waited until my friend Debbie and her horse Molly had been checked and we then left together, along with her daughter Stacy. So now it was the three of us. The best part was that now we up in a series of gentle hills intermitantly covered with trees and brush- no more confining mountain trails. We now made good time, especially since the field was now strung out a bit and we weren't riding up against any horses directly in front of us.
We made good time, trotting at some points and walking fast at others. Max had finally settled down and he seemed to be enjoying himself- he was supremely confident and not once did he shy at anything. He was alert but seemed to be relaxed about the whole thing.
We made our way down some gentle trails and then hit a fire road. It was hear that we really moved out at a fast trot and all the horses seemed to fall into it in a calm, organized way- it wasn't a road race and the horses were cooperative.
Soon we were back to more narrow single-track trails that snaked in and out of wooded areas and brush. The view from up here was excellent- at one point we were high enough to see all of Pyramid Lake and at another, we could see the whole Antelope Valley. It was a million dollar view and it couldn't have been done from anywhere else other than the back of a horse.
Finally, we arrived at the second vet check and Max was measured again. Unfortunately, I let Max eat some grass and that elevated the pulse so he pulsed in at 14 (I lost the only two points for this, otherwise I would have maxed out the vet part of the scoring). After the vet check, we stopped for lunch and Max was soon eating fresh alfalfa and some Omolene that I'd brought along.
After lunch, we began to make our way down the mountain down another set of switchbacks. All the horses were calm and collected and everything passed without incident. When we finally reached flat land and began to head back to the start point, Max then began to get a bit anxious- basically barnsour. He telling me "Come on Dad, we can take these horses, let's canter!!!!"
Just before the final approach there was one pretty steep hill we had to go up. Because the ride rules state that all hills must be taken at a walk (or you lose points), we had to walk up the hill and that was rough on Max to the point where he was tripping. I was tempted to kick him up into a trot anyway, points be damned. Personally, I disagree with this philosophy- trotting up a hill is a lot easier on a horse and especially on a very steep one. I felt that I was being cruel making him walk it- in the future, I'm not going to let that happen again. It just isn't right, in my opinion.
It was a lot of work to keep him in line but we succeeded and soon we were clocked in at the start point, We were #7. After cooling him down and a final vet check, it was over.
In terms of scoring and awards, it was a tight field and I didn't win anything. Max was tied at 98 points (out of 100 possible) for the veterinary part and my horsemanship was lower at 91 points. I got gigged on a number of things- pretty subjective but if I do one of these again, I'll be better prepared.
That night, Max slept pretty soundly and there was almost no moving about (thank god!). The next day, we took down the camp and Max loaded with no problems. Travelling home went without incident and as soon as I unloaded Max, he proceeded to call out, as if to say "I'm back and I want my alfalfa!!!"
Overall, it was a big success and I hope this is the beginning of many good travelling adventures with the Max.
After a night of little sleep, thanks to Max banging the bucket on the side of trailer, I woke up at 5:30 AM to get ready for the ride. The ride was due to begin at 7:00 AM so I had a lot to get done. After feeding Max, I had a pretty light breakfast- I was too nervious to eat much and I didn't want to risk discomfort (or the possibility of having to stop and take a dump on the side of the trail).
After grooming and saddling up Max, it was time to mount up. Naturally Max was all keyed up and mounting him was a pain- fortunately someone was nice enough to hold him while I got on (I hate mounting from the ground!). I then had to get Max's attention so I proceeded to ride him around in circles and patterns. There wasn't much room to do this in, with all the horses and due to the fact that much of the ground was covered in gopher holes (that's something I definately DID NOT need to have happen- Max stepping in a gopher hold and injuring himself).
The ride management was releasing riders in groups of two, spaced one minute apart. I was paired up with a lady named Lori who was riding a throughbred named Shyster. When we were finally released to go, Max was jigging down the trail and it took everything to keep him in control- he was convinced that he was superhorse and he wanted to move out and move out FAST!
Soon we began to make our way up into the mountains, going up a series of switchbacks up some 1500 feet. The trail was narrow and let's just say that I was in no mood to look down- riding on narrow mountain trails isn't a favorite so I tend to focus on the trail and the horse in front of me. Max was very energenic and if it had been up to him, he would have cantered up the whole thing. We pretty much took the whole thing at a fast walk and it was not the most comfortable ride in the world.
After about an hour of this, we finally arrived at the top and the trail began to widen out. Soon we came to the first vet check (or PNR point). Max was covered in sweat and was blowing pretty fierce. After resting Max for a mandatory 10 minutes, the ride staff checked pulse and respiration on Max. I was very concerned at this point but as things turned out, he pulsed in at 11 (11 heartbeats over a 15 second period) which equates to 44 beats per minute.
Basically, the ride rules stipulate that if the horse pulses at 17 (68 beats per minute) or more, then he'd have to wait another 10 minutes and get re-checked again. Max was well in the acceptable zone. The rules on pulse and respiration are more rigorous for endurance riding and there's a whole science to it- I haven't delved into it that much.
After passing the vet check, Max and I waited until my friend Debbie and her horse Molly had been checked and we then left together, along with her daughter Stacy. So now it was the three of us. The best part was that now we up in a series of gentle hills intermitantly covered with trees and brush- no more confining mountain trails. We now made good time, especially since the field was now strung out a bit and we weren't riding up against any horses directly in front of us.
We made good time, trotting at some points and walking fast at others. Max had finally settled down and he seemed to be enjoying himself- he was supremely confident and not once did he shy at anything. He was alert but seemed to be relaxed about the whole thing.
We made our way down some gentle trails and then hit a fire road. It was hear that we really moved out at a fast trot and all the horses seemed to fall into it in a calm, organized way- it wasn't a road race and the horses were cooperative.
Soon we were back to more narrow single-track trails that snaked in and out of wooded areas and brush. The view from up here was excellent- at one point we were high enough to see all of Pyramid Lake and at another, we could see the whole Antelope Valley. It was a million dollar view and it couldn't have been done from anywhere else other than the back of a horse.
Finally, we arrived at the second vet check and Max was measured again. Unfortunately, I let Max eat some grass and that elevated the pulse so he pulsed in at 14 (I lost the only two points for this, otherwise I would have maxed out the vet part of the scoring). After the vet check, we stopped for lunch and Max was soon eating fresh alfalfa and some Omolene that I'd brought along.
After lunch, we began to make our way down the mountain down another set of switchbacks. All the horses were calm and collected and everything passed without incident. When we finally reached flat land and began to head back to the start point, Max then began to get a bit anxious- basically barnsour. He telling me "Come on Dad, we can take these horses, let's canter!!!!"
Just before the final approach there was one pretty steep hill we had to go up. Because the ride rules state that all hills must be taken at a walk (or you lose points), we had to walk up the hill and that was rough on Max to the point where he was tripping. I was tempted to kick him up into a trot anyway, points be damned. Personally, I disagree with this philosophy- trotting up a hill is a lot easier on a horse and especially on a very steep one. I felt that I was being cruel making him walk it- in the future, I'm not going to let that happen again. It just isn't right, in my opinion.
It was a lot of work to keep him in line but we succeeded and soon we were clocked in at the start point, We were #7. After cooling him down and a final vet check, it was over.
In terms of scoring and awards, it was a tight field and I didn't win anything. Max was tied at 98 points (out of 100 possible) for the veterinary part and my horsemanship was lower at 91 points. I got gigged on a number of things- pretty subjective but if I do one of these again, I'll be better prepared.
That night, Max slept pretty soundly and there was almost no moving about (thank god!). The next day, we took down the camp and Max loaded with no problems. Travelling home went without incident and as soon as I unloaded Max, he proceeded to call out, as if to say "I'm back and I want my alfalfa!!!"
Overall, it was a big success and I hope this is the beginning of many good travelling adventures with the Max.
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