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[RC] What I learned in 2005 - roxanne koppwhich was my second season doing endurance....1. First ride was LBL in Kentucky in April, Eddie ( my horse) and I were doing great, had passed the second vet check but needed to wait for a farrier to replace a shoe when I went to put a blanket on him as it was a cold and damp day. For those of you there Eddie put on quite the show and proceeded to high tail it out of camp with me following in a Park Ranger's truck baha style down the trails. The story ended well but pointed out the need for more training at home. Eddies barn became the house of horrors with all types of blankets and tarps hanging all around and he had to try on and wear blankets multiple times a day for weeks. Blankets are now not an issue. 2. Fast forward to September where we rode the Kentucky Stampede at Daniel Boone Forest. Beautiful trail, very twisty and rocky. Once again doing great until Eddie pulled a front shoe a few miles into the last loop. Walked the entire rest of the ride and finished sound and fine. Got home and first phone call was to Easycare....the new Epics are very nice and Eddie has already gotten used to having them on while riding. 3. For some reason Edde is very afraid of sponges so we have not sponged on the trail yet. We do practice at home, I hang buckets and sponge from them after rides. At the Stampede I was able to actually use another riders sponge at a water stop and have him stand still....by next year hopefully this will be a non issue as well. 4. Eddie is a very strong horse and fun to ride. Camps well, behaves in vet checks. We completed five 50's this year and hope to do more next year. He pulses down quickly, but he has holes in his training. We work on those holes. He is gradually improving. 5. At the last ride, Spook Run in October, it all seemed to come together. But, as he gets stronger he wants to go faster. I have learned that it helps occasionally that instead of fighting and pulling on his mouth, to find a nice section of trail and let him go for a few hundred yards. He settles down again and it seems to get it out of his system. By forty miles he is able to keep up a nice rolling canter without trying to get faster. So, this winter we will be working on control and steady canter. All in all it was a great year and can't wait to do it all again in 2006. Roxanne in Kentucky =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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