Biltmore Mountin' Hopes

[Rides 2 Far <rides2far@juno.com>]

Well, here's the scoop.

Went to the Biltmore Mountin' Hopes ride this weekend.  It's over the
same trail (mostly) as the big Spring ride, but has no 100.  Knew it
would be really dry, but Kaboot likes that trail.  He was 7th last year
in 5:28.

Bekki Crippen and I were hauling together.  I made a 6 hour special trip
to Dandridge TN. to move niece's horse up there the week before the ride,
even though that was on the way...just so I'd have room to haul Bekki. 
It's been getting to where I could use a 3 horse more and more often and
I've been considering getting one if I can ever get a truck that can pull
one.

My brother, (who works much harder than me) called Friday to let me know
he'd decided that if neice (Ashley) was going to be going to these things
with me we might as well have a place to sleep.  He witnessed my idea of
"camping" at Dawson Forest and wasn't very impressed.  So...after
noticing aluminum horse trailers keep their value very well, he went out
and purchased a 3 horse aluminum trailer with an extended dressing
room....we're talking HUGE! (to me).  He also recently purchased a 93
Dodge 3/4 ton 4x4 extended cab long bed truck with a Cummin's deisel
("Mom, this sounds like a school bus!").  Let's just say...nobody will
recognize me when I come into the next ride.  >gbg!<  

However, since LOTS of family had decided to come to this ride, and the
trailer was SO new, we decided it would be the "people camper" and Kaboot
& Buddy hauled up in my "humble mobile"... a true monument to my immunity
to peer pressure.

We went out on a pre-ride Friday evening and I had SOOO much horse.  As
we left camp there was a 4 foot long black snake next to the trail.  I
could have ridden by without Kaboot noticing it but I sort of wanted to
see his reaction since there's been so much talk of snakes coming close
to homes during the drought.  Well, I pointed him at it, and eased up to
scare it, and when it crawled away....OOOOOH BOY!  NOT a good idea.  I
now had a totally wired insane to compete endurance horse who was leaping
shadows and sticks in total panic.  NOT a fun pre-ride.  DON'T try this
at home!

Lately I've got a new theory on starting rides.  It's called "hunt a
heavyweight sponsor".  I've found that heavyweight's horses have
excellent self preservation skills, and their rider CAN stop them. 
Started out behind Joe Edwards until things calmed down and all was cool.

The trail was VERY rocky and dry with lots of exposed roots.  I was
amazed at people cantering down the hillsides.  In the Spring you can go
pretty fast since it's sort of a loose loamy surface, but this was VERY
hard packed with loose rolling rocks.  On the 2nd loop I was with two
riders who were going pretty good down a hill and I'm sure it didn't feel
that bad on horses that weren't so excited, but I refused to let Kaboot
canter down it and had a MAJOR fight.  NOT fun.  You know how it is when
you pull them down but it's like letting water build up behind a
dam...they just go that much harder when you DO let them go.  It was just
a couple of miles out of camp and he knew they were just ahead on the
road so it was pretty bad.  Since they kept their speed up pretty much
into camp, I had to get off and walk him the last 200 yards or so just to
manage to ease him in.
  
Rode the last half of the ride with 2 other horses. We paced fine, it was
VERY dry.  One thing I've never understood about this course is why
management never puts out water.  It seems like it would be terribly
simple since we keep looping back to the same River road and it's not far
from camp and on private land, but I've yet to see anybody put out a
drop.  I'd be more than happy to trade the ride meal for some water on
the trail.  It was so bad that I saw one horse licking a rock where it
was too shallow to sip...and Kaboot drank from a mudhole that was
literally thick...it was one of 2 I saw on the entire trail, and he
drained the other.  Several riders mentioned feeling sick.  I felt a
little bad and I think it was because I was putting my water on Kaboot
instead of drinking it on the trail.  Tried to make up for it in camp,
but that's not as good.

The three of us left out of the last vet check 6th 7th and 8th.  We set a
10 mile per our pace over fairly tough terrain, and it was pretty warm,
so I felt like we went pretty hard.  Felt like I had plenty of horse at
the end so I was happy.  Came as a total shock when the vet said Kaboot
was grade 1 at the finish.  I hadn't even looked since he was trotting
out so big.  I watched the second time and "yep" I saw it.  

I asked the vet if he could tell where it was coming from and he said if
I'd hang around till he had a break he'd see what he could do.  I stood
around and watched at least 5 or 6 horses vet thru and not one wasn't
grade 1...so, as much as I hate it, I didn't feel alone.

Out of our group from home only one horse wasn't grade 1 at the
end,...the one they'd said was grade 1 or 2 at vet in...he was fine.
>sigh<

My favorite part of the Mountin' Hopes ride is the demonstration of the
kids on the therapeutic riding program.  That always chokes you up.

The hardest luck award went to my friend June Parsons.  She rode her
horse 40 miles, and then the vet said he was off.  He had her boyfriend
trot him for her to see, and it was "gone".  He said he guessed the horse
warmed up out of it and she could finish if she'd take it easy.  She went
out and rode him walking the next five miles, and when she'd decided he
really was off, she walked the last 5 on foot...only to not get a
completion. BUMMER!

Bekki Crippen (mentally handicapped rider) was riding Buddy in the 25. 
At one point on my last loop (yellow) I came down a hill and saw Bekki
and Buddy ambling along from another direction on another road.  I
yelled, "Hey Bekki" and she waved.  I said, "What loop are you on?" and
she answered "yellow".  Well, WE were on yellow and she was not.  We were
really booking so I just shouted, "It goes THIS way" and pointed the way
we were turning.  I have no idea where all she'd been.  It's very scarey
to me to think she could have gotten lost out there.  She usually manages
to stay with somebody but she'd been left behind. 

 Joe Edwards told me that at one point he'd ridden up on her and Buddy
(21 year old former schooling horse who takes good care of her) and said,
"Hey Bekki, how's it going?" and she'd replied, "I've never been on a
horse this slow in my LIFE!" (as if she's ridden others >g<)  I'd planned
to discuss with management the fact she'd been off trail and see if she
could get completion only, but as it turned out she went over time by
about 30 minutes.  She'd thought she was done when she crossed the 50's
finish line and had walked all the way back to camp going 30 minutes
over.  Buddy looked great.  She never knew she was over until they failed
to mention her name at the ride meeting.  If I hadn't been so fried
myself maybe I'd have noticed and could have asked them to call her name.
 Sure wish I had.  

My brother, who'd had his first experiences begging Ben Amil and Kaboot
to eat while in the vet check had met me with a look of disbelief at my
3rd check and said, "That spotted horse came in and ate EVERYTHING we had
for both horses.  We had to go back to the trailer and get more of
everything!" Ha.  Bekki had gotten hot in her turtle neck and sent Josie
to trailer with the directions to "bring me my turquoise shirt".  Josie
said she got down there and crawled in Bekki's turquoise tent, over her
turquoise sleeping bag and looked in her turquoise suitcase and EVERY
t-shirt in there was turquoise!!!  She had no idea which one to get. >bg<

  That evening, Josie my 9 year old wanted her picture taken trotting. 
We put her on Buddy with just a lead rope.  I didn't think she'd ever get
him to trot after him being out there for 6 1/2 hours, but instead he
took off trotting, then did a rollback and cantered back to the trailer! 
The old guy could have been on time if he'd wanted to. >g<

So, the final results were, Kaboot came in 6th out of 70 horses in 5:09
(21 minutes faster than his 7th place finish on better footing last
year).  It was a good ride.  I drove a HUGE rig home and it's in my
driveway.  Wasn't able to convince Bill that I won it.  Hope to do the
Liberty 100 in 2 weeks, but will have to see about that grade one thing. 
There was absolutely no swelling, so can only hope it was a mild stone
bruise.

Angie & Kaboot
"The bigger they are, the farther YOU fall."

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