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[RC] My really short NC ride. - spiritwood@xxxxxxxxxMy really short NC ride. I am the "other" rider who was de-horsed in the "Irving Incident". I was riding in the middle of the pack and doing a medium trot. I was about 3/4 of the way up Hickory Lane, riding along and enjoying all the stars and the glow sticks. Suddenly I heard a lot of yelling from behind me and then lots of galloping horses, remember it was PITCH DARK at the time. A gray riderless horse went blasting by me on the left side, I turned my horse to the right to tell him he was not going with the other horse, when I was T-boned by another gray horse with a rider on board who was yelling something about stopping. My horse was knocked off his feet and I went flying off. It all happened so fast but it was so dark that I only say flashes of light. I hit the ground and rolled up into a yard because I still heard yelling and galloping horses and I had no light on me, the glow sticks were all on my horse. I was terrified on being trampled by horses I couldn't see. I got up and then started walking up the road. I remember asking people that were still going by to please look for my horse and to tie him to something if they found him. I described him as having 3 green glowsticks on him and rope reins. People were very nice and said they'd watch for him. At the last house before the turn a lady came out and yelled at me for "waking her up in the middle of the night and she had never heard of such maddness". I apologized and asked her if she had seen my horse. She went back in from her porch and slammed the door. I ended up walking about a mile and a 1/2 before hearing my horse answer me. I found 2 horses tied up by a wooden gate and one was mine and the other was Irving's horse. Someone had untacked both horses and the tack was in a pile beside each horse. I went over my horse with my hands and found cuts and scrapes and skinned areas but nothing really awful. The other horse had blood all down his right hind leg but that was all I could tell in the dark. I retacked my horse and walked him to see if he was OK. He seemed OK and willing to go. Then Zoe came by in her truck with her radio. In the headlights Irvings horse looked pretty bad and Zoe called for a trailer to pick him up, but since mine seemed OK I told her I was going to try riding on to the gate and go at Edinburgh Gap. We trotted off up the road and my horse seemed a bit subdued but it was really hard to tell much else. Since I could only see his head from the glow of the glowsticks on his breast collar I couldn't tell if he was bobbing it at all. He was perfectly willing to trot along up the trail, slowing down to walk all those nasty cement bridges that seemed to multiply. Just the first pink touches along the skyline when we came in to the Gate and Go. I already knew something was NDR with my horse so it was no surprise when the vet (I think it was Melissa Ribley) told me he "seems uncomfortable". He was sore on his right front and right rear so we loaded him up for his ride back to the treatment barn. There that wonderful Dr. Lynn found him to have some significant bruising on his right side. Probably a combination of the body slam he took, then the fact that he had obviously gone down when he turned on the asphalt road. Lynn had a time cleaning up his multiple abrasians, contusions, and skinned areas. He had smashed the right stirrup and part of the cage had broken and gouged him in the flank area, I even have road rash on my saddle! He had bruised his right knee, and his right hip, hock, and hoof, and the breast collar strap that goes between his legs had gouged his armpit area when the saddle turned, and there is still tar on him that won't come off. I ended up helping hold Irving"s horse while he was being treated, then mine after. This was sure not the NC ride I had planned to ride. My horse knows these trails and has previously done both the Old Dominion 50 and 75, and he had done the OD training ride here at Ft. Valley just last month. I don't know what made Irving fall off which apparently set up this awful chain reaction of paniced horses in the dark. I guess I was just in the "wrong place at the wrong time"! I wish Irving a speedy recovery and a safe trip home when he is able. I also want to give my great thanks to both Amy Cieri and John Crandall who caught my horse and removed his skewed tack. I told them both in person at the ride how greatfu land proud I am that even "front runners" can take the time to help another rider. I also want to give great thanks to all the OD staff who were so wonderful and supportive at a bad time, especially Zoe Sollenberger, Bonnie Snodgrass, Betty DeMar Mueller, and Teddy Lancaster. I'm just sorry I was not able to go on and try for Betty's wonderful turtle award! Becky Supinger AERC #20132 and Elektric, who just happens to be Heraldic's 1/2 brother. -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ . =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 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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