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2020 Trail Rides

73K views 961 replies 50 participants last post by  phantomhorse13 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Thought I’d go ahead and start the thread for the new year! I saw a couple rides posted today in the 2019 ride thread, so hopefully they can be cross-posted here as well.

Any special riding goals this year for anyone? My only goal is to ride a higher number of miles then last year [emoji23] [emoji2372] Even if it’s only a mile or two more... I’ll take what I can get!


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#2 ·
For the third year in a row, I was able to ride on January 1st! I’m happy for my new tradition :)

It was sunny, around 40F. Very, very windy so Chase was on high alert most of the ride. Though, I felt like even with his not so great moments were better than they were our last solo ride, so I’m not too upset about it. We made it through it all without having to dismount.

The only pictures I really took were around the evergreens. Everything else is pretty desolate looking this time of year [emoji23]




We did the front field twice: once at the start, and again at the end. The first lap, there were a couple of guys flying a drone... and dogs barking... and we were less than graceful jigging and side-passing along the driveway to get past. The later lap was much better sans drone, and I was able to insist he stay on the driveway and walk forward like a normal horse.

We also had a little “moment” near the stream, not his favorite place on a good day... but the wind was making the bamboo creak and groan like mad- it was even a little eerie to my human ears, so I know it was freaking him out. But, after some persistent urging... he made it through.

Total 2020 miles~ 4.88


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#4 ·
And so a new year begins!! 2020 We are ready

Was cold last night, down to 29F so I waited until it was 40F to ride. It quickly warmed up once the sun came out.

I got in a 30 minute ride on Chivas today, mostly walking with some slow gaiting. We are both totally out of riding shape! Just stayed in the pasture, then ride got suddenly cut short when the fireworks began again. The big boom had Chivas flinging his head and me jumping off. Or maybe flopping off would be more accurate :rofl:


So we worked on ground stuff for a while, standing at mounting block while I climb up the stairs. He seemed ok, so maybe tomorrow will try mounting from it.


Going to just track hours until such time as I do some real trails and know the actual miles.


1-1-20 30 minutes
 
#5 ·
Trail Riding 2020!!!

Didn’t see anyone start a thread yet. So here goes...

Rode Duke solo today for 7.1km. We got fresh snow and Duke was all excited before we even started tacking up. Our older guy was eating his grain just outside the barn and Duke was worried that he couldn’t see him. So it took some effort to tack up as he kept trying to move around. Then the saddle seemed to be sitting way too far back and it was a pain trying to get it in the proper position with the western pad and a hi viz English pad (we have yet to acquire proper hi viz gear) and me in snow pants and really starting to sweat. It was a balmy -2C. When all was said and done it took 45 min to groom and fiddle with the tack fit before I actually mounted up. Then as I was about to get going I remembered I brought a sheepskin rug to try as a seat saver. So off we go to the house.
Once we finally started the ride, Duke seemed to be on edge for the majority of it. Doesn’t surprise me, as there were a TON of coyote tracks and deer tracks criss crossing whichever way and the 3-4” of new snow. I had our GSD with us who likes to circle us and ‘talk’ A lot. Every time Duke would balk or sidestep a bit, Kody would be right there woofing or letting out barks. The horses don’t care about the dog, lucky for him. So he doesn’t get kicked unless it’s by accidental bump.

I was planning to have a leisurely ride. Well it turned out to be more of a working ride. Duke kept trying to turn back home and was speeding up without being asked. At one point he broke into a fast canter while walking on soft ground. I was riding with a halter over the bridle and reins attached to it, but after he failed to slow down at all I grabbed the reins and was able to get him to gear down. That earned him work. We did Up and down transitions and circles and figure 8 s throughout the ride. In general he’s pretty mellow and does respond well. But the wind up his hiney was messing with his head and Montana who was screaming for him from the pasture back home was not making him concentrate any better. He never whinnied back though. I’m happy for that.

We took the long way around the neighbors field and explored a few nooks and crannies of some wooded spots. At this time some other neighbor on the opposite started letting off rounds of shotgun? Pretty loud but it didn’t seem to add to Dukes uneasiness. I counted 8-9 shots total. Just in case though I decided to not be on high ground and we headed home.

Overall it was a good ride. Hope next time he’ll be a bit easier though. The sheepskin did good except that it kept trying to move out of place during transitions. So need to puts some ties on it and secure it next time. I felt nice and cushy though.

The only wildlife we seen was a hawk. I wonder how many animals were watching us though. Let after the ride when it got dark I could hear a whole chorus of coyotes pretty close to us. An eerie sound.

Happy trails.
 

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#7 ·
We had a severe snowstorm last night. I thought great when I wake up, it will be over and I will start the new year off right by going for a trail ride. Up and down the road which is fine, it's a couple of miles. I work graveyard last night, I woke up at 1 p.m., it's raining!!! But I am glad you got out Saigold, looking good!
 
#10 ·
@AnitaAnne too funny about your ride and having to jump off. Or as you said flopping off.😂

No riding here yet for 2020. I'm just lucky to still have my boy ice,so am greatful for that.

It will be a while before I can ride ice again ,only hand walking for now. Some day I will tell what happened,and how ice almost died Sunday night.
Greatful for an awesome vet ,who was here in 15 minutes.

I'll be lurking here enjoying the awesome pictures of everyone else's rides.

Happy trails to all for 2020. 🐴
 
#12 ·
Didn’t see anyone start a thread yet. So here goes...
Rode Duke solo today for 7.1km. We got fresh snow and Duke was all excited before we even started tacking up. Our older guy was eating his grain just outside the barn and Duke was worried that he couldn’t see him. So it took some effort to tack up as he kept trying to move around. Then the saddle seemed to be sitting way too far back and it was a pain trying to get it in the proper position with the western pad and a hi viz English pad (we have yet to acquire proper hi viz gear) and me in snow pants and really starting to sweat. It was a balmy -2C. When all was said and done it took 45 min to groom and fiddle with the tack fit before I actually mounted up. Then as I was about to get going I remembered I brought a sheepskin rug to try as a seat saver. So off we go to the house. Once we finally started the ride, Duke seemed to be on edge for the majority of it. Doesn’t surprise me, as there were a TON of coyote tracks and deer tracks criss crossing whichever way and the 3-4” of new snow. I had our GSD with us who likes to circle us and ‘talk’ A lot. Every time Duke would balk or sidestep a bit, Kody would be right there woofing or letting out barks. The horses don’t care about the dog, lucky for him. So he doesn’t get kicked unless it’s by accidental bump.
I was planning to have a leisurely ride. Well it turned out to be more of a working ride. Duke kept trying to turn back home and was speeding up without being asked. At one point he broke into a fast canter while walking on soft ground. I was riding with a halter over the bridle and reins attached to it, but after he failed to slow down at all I grabbed the reins and was able to get him to gear down. That earned him work. We did Up and down transitions and circles and figure 8 s throughout the ride. In general he’s pretty mellow and does respond well. But the wind up his hiney was messing with his head and Montana who was screaming for him from the pasture back home was not making him concentrate any better. He never whinnied back though. I’m happy for that.
We took the long way around the neighbors field and explored a few nooks and crannies of some wooded spots. At this time some other neighbor on the opposite started letting off rounds of shotgun? Pretty loud but it didn’t seem to add to Dukes uneasiness. I counted 8-9 shots total. Just in case though I decided to not be on high ground and we headed home.
Overall it was a good ride. Hope next time he’ll be a bit easier though. The sheepskin did good except that it kept trying to move out of place during transitions. So need to puts some ties on it and secure it next time. I felt nice and cushy though.
The only wildlife we seen was a hawk. I wonder how many animals were watching us though. Let after the ride when it got dark I could hear a whole chorus of coyotes pretty close to us. An eerie sound.
Happy trails.
 

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#19 ·
I thought of another goal for myself... to have my phone charged and properly track every ride in my app. Not that I care all that much, but I like statistics and looking back at my activity over time. The app has so many cool features that I wasn’t able to use last year because I didn’t log my rides properly so often.


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#20 ·
Had a rather interesting ride yesterday. Raya was still cranked up from the fireworks the night before, but I thought a nice ride would help her letting off some steam...
Prancy, looky horse while saddling up, but she stood like a rock for mounting... Other riders were still getting ready, so I took her to the pasture besides the barn to ride some rounds... And of course at exactly that moment someone decided they have some more fireworks to get rid of :eek: I am very proud of Raya that she didn't lose it right then and there! Jumpy and tightly wound up, but she held it together reasonably well...

BO had friends over, and 2 of them (absolute beginners) joined us on our ride. So it was going to be a (hopefully) very quiet ride :Angel: Raya and I took over the back, to help look out for the two guests, but I don't think Raya walked more than a few steps. Tossing her head and wanting to GO!
Unfortunately at the first ditch crossing the rider on the big mustang mare lost his balance (round horse + loss of balance = free slide off)… Luckily he wasn't hurt, but the mare took off :gallop: And Raya really wanted to follow - her boss was running off, so she should follow, right? But I could convince her to stand and wait... Not relaxed, but her feet were still :wink:
After catching the other horse we continued the ride without incident. Except I was trying to tame the fire-breathing dragon I was riding. One time she got awfully light in the front, and the BO asked me what I was doing, as it looked like a Piaffe :rofl: Not intentionally, for sure!
Slogging through the slippery mud made her antics even more fun, but she never got even tired! And the mud flying on her croup apparently told her to speed up more :rofl: One ditch (that is normally completely dry) I underestimated a bit. Guessing it about to be knee deep, we apparently found a hole and suddenly my feet were wet :oops: At least it washed some of the mud off! :biggrin:

But everyone survived the ride and I was so proud of Raya. She never relaxed throughout the whole ride, but she kept it together and did her best to listen :love:
No pictures, as I was way too busy riding :rofl:


 
#21 ·
@rambo99, that is really scary sounding about Ice - but glad that he is doing better and you are able to sleep easy.

I guess I logged a bit of riding time yesterday on New Year's Day - but it was all in the arena. I am hoping to keep better track of my trail miles this year for both horses. I am optimistic we will log a lot as I am really hoping to be able to do CTR/endurance events on both my horses - should be interesting introducing my mare to that world. A friend of mine hosts her endurance ride in May and is offering shorter distances - so I'm hoping Amber & I can get her feet wet by trying the 12 mile ride and building from that.

We got a bunch of fresh snow last night and temps are very mild (-4celsius this morning)...but sadly I will not have time to ride after work as I have to go pick up more hay. I think things start to cool off greatly, so no idea when the next ride will be :(
 
#22 ·
Don't have a Between the Ears shot, but we did ride yesterday at Platter Flats. My boss laughed at me when he found out on Tuesday we were going Wednesday. Said it'll be cold, the horses will be acting fresh and hyped up... Have FUN with that!


Nah! They were upstanding, polite, good citizens. I had a few of my usual issues with Trigger - nothing to discipline him over, just stuff to make mental notes to work on next ride, but otherwise, he was a peach.


Picture is from While we Wait - because I always beat T and her daughter to any trail system. LOL And while we waited, I wormed him and he got lots of snacks and praise. He was mid step toward me in the picture, and had he not been tied to the trailer, he'd have followed me around like a pup... all because he knows I keep snacks in the pockets of my hoodies. :P I explained that because his body + saddle looks weird, but it really was the angle and the way he was moving when I snapped it. LOL


Anyway. Rode 2 hours in, 2 out. The weather was chilly... it was actually lower 50s, but very humid and had a scalding wind coming off the water of Lake Texoma, so unless you were deep in the woods, it just ate through to your bones. Fired up my Coleman stove when we got back to the trailers, had frito chili pies, and afterwards, hot cocoa, loaded up and came home.


It was a good day - no one got hurt.
 

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#23 ·
@SwissMiss that was quite an adventure! That girth! Solid MUD! Yikes!!

Hope the rest of the year you have some slightly calmer rides; we need pictures :rofl: Maybe time for a GoPro :smile:

@AtokaGhosthorse Trigger looks so much more relaxed from when you first got him. Notice how soft his eye looks now? :smile:


Snack at end sounds yummy!


I will not be able to ride today, got up late (7 am) and the rain was already here :sad:
 
#24 ·
@AtokaGhosthorse Trigger looks so much more relaxed from when you first got him. Notice how soft his eye looks now? :smile:


Snack at end sounds yummy!

Thank you so much! He really has 'unwound' emotionally - I've had to reverse engineer him to re-teach him. It started with snacks as bribes, progressed to gentle, low key praise and physical affection, plus snack as rewards for the most basic of things - coming to me rather than running away, accepting a halter without losing his noodle, etc... to praise and affection for basic things, but no snacks, and praise+snacks+affection for the next stage (Not walking off while I only have one foot in the stirrup, stopping when asked on the trail, etc.)


We still have a lot of work to do, but I guess you never really quite stop working on things, either for yourself or the horse, do you?


But I digress even more - last time we camped, he made a new friend. A spastic 8 year old girl. He went to sleep with his head on her shoulder, and he approached her first, no snack needed.



 
#28 ·
Yay for a new thread! :D

I hope I can post in here more than I did last year, because I am planning on doing more trails this year! Hoping to do longer distances too.

I wanted to go on a trail yesterday, but the ground was sooo mushy/muddy from the rain the past few days. :icon_rolleyes: Supposed to rain tomorrow & Saturday too. Ugh!

So jelly of everyone that got a New Years ride in!
 
#29 ·
It poured rain all day today. 50 degrees Fahrenheit and raining. That is not fun weather.

I understand what @SwissMiss means by mud. I was just wondering? What is this snow stuff people keep mentioning?

I am really really OCD about keeping up with my miles. I know exactly how long each trail around here that I ride is. I also take my Garmin with me most of the time. I put my miles into a spreadsheet that tabulates all of the mileage by month and then also adds it up by year. If anyone wants a copy of the spreadsheet (Excel), just PM me your email address and I will be glad to share the template that I have.
 
#30 ·
No ride yesterday, and rain (and work) today and tomorrow. Saturday will be snot slick mud. Maybe Sunday? I met a young lady yesterday who knows how to ride but has no horse. I've invited her out to see if she really does or is just saying so. If she's competent, I may have found a riding buddy that will get my butt in the saddle more often AND get both horses back in condition. Plus, she's young so may be willing to trade chores for rides, saving my back from some of the heavy lifting! 😊
 
#31 ·
I got my first rides of the new year today!
The whole story is in my journal.

I started off with George:





Then, I went over to ride with Nicole. I rode Tegan:




2020 mileage
1/2 george 5.46 miles 617 ft climb 5.2 mph 28F 5.46 total miles
1/2 tegan 4.71 miles 335 ft climb 4.2 mph 36F 10.17 total miles
 
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