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[RC] Cougar Prowl - Roxi AndersonWe now affectionately refer to this ride as the ride from hell. Not because of the ride. It was great! But getting there was interesting. Between my farrier driving a hotnail 2 weeks before the ride, the brakes messing up on the way to and from the ride, driving into the ditch out of sheer excitement and thankfully being pulled out by very nice and helpful people...thank you thank you thank you to them, my daughter losing her latigo 5 miles into the ride (I couldn't believe it when I looked back and there she was riding with her cinch flapping in the wind, but her martingale worked to hold her cinch on for the next 45 miles), my friends horse stepping through her martingale at the vet check and running away, her clutch on her truck going out on the way home. These are only a few of the things that happened. Yep, definitely the ride from hell! But, even through all the signs that said stay home! We went and we had a great time! We beat the odds! The vet check area w as ran differently then what we did out west but I'm always open to learn new things. I was told on the trail that "down here we pass on the left". Could someone please explain this too me? Is it true? Do you only pass on the left? Is there any other rule of the trails that is different in this region then what I'm use to in WA, OR, ID, CA, MT, TN, .........? I always thought that if the trail was clear on one side or the other you just said passing on the left or passing on the right, whichever the case. Just would like to know the rules so I can follow them. I was glad to see that camp wasn't as bad as the ride discription implied it to be. We had a lovely parking spot in a great grassy open area. It was so fun watching the kids play with their horses in the lake after the ride. What a hoot. We loved the views of the lake out on the trail. What lake was that anyway? I'm probably nuts for saying this but I think the added rain ear lier in the week helped to make the trail a bit more interesting. This ride could have been a very very fast ride had it not been for the mud the rain left behind. The flowing red rivers were interesting too. It was so great to see green grass on the drive down! I liked that the finish line was out and away from camp. My daughters horse tried to tell us that we were going the wrong way when we turned left for the finish line instead of right to camp. Too bad he couldn't tell us that we missed that first turn out of camp in the morning. Oh yeah, the big Belgian that one gentlemen was riding on the 25 mile distance was pretty awesome to see. It was just so great to be a part of the sport again and sharing it with my kids. And of course, as a proud mom I have to throw out some bragging here. Through all the chaos of getting to this ride and staying in the ride my 12 year old daughter won the 50, my horse that was sent to auction for slaughter (thank you very much to the person that threw this horse away for me to find) finished 2nd and my friends horse was 3rd on her first 50 (and my friend had a heart transplant 3 or 4 years prior)! <vbg> Oh yeah!! We're still smiling and hoping to continue beating the odds!!! WHEW!!! So now the pony's are in the field playing and munching and happy as can be. Of course, Angie wasn't smiling so much when she had to leave her trailer and horse at my house to get her truck home and fixed. You definitely need a second home in Iowa Angie! Big huge thanks to the management of Cougar Prowl! Great respect goes to anyone that manages a ride. What a job, trying to please everyone-impossible! Roxi
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