Trail Ride Extravaganza!

It's exactly 20 days until the glorious 19th of May- also known as Spring Hunter Pace Day! Kyla and I have been working Cal and Gina regularly to get them fit for the ride. Our third team member, Levi, tells us he's been working his horse Bubba, too. We're all pretty excited- after all, Kyla and I have our third-place finish to defend!

Levi's trailering us to the event, but wasn't sure if all three horses would fit into his stock trailer. He assured me that it fits six calves, but since we weren't sure what the ratio of calves to horses is, we decided to load everyone up and take them on the trails at the local lake. 

Kyla and I hit the trails a few weeks ago with our friend Will and his horse Misty. The horses were good then, so we were really looking forward getting out again. The horses loaded up in Levi's trailer without too much fuss and fit totally fine. Once we arrived at the lake, we tacked up our guys and got ready to set off. 

Gina was totally fine until we set off toward the trail. She immediately zoomed backwards at maximum speed, shaking her head and flailing around. I jumped off, removed her flash noseband, and got back on. She was quieter. We headed down the trail, with Cal and Bubba in front of us. About 100 feet into the narrow, slippery trail, a plastic bag lay. Gina was not having the plastic bag. She reared. I clung to her neck. She spun. I ducked to avoid tree branches. She galloped out of the dense wooded trail and back into the parking area. I stopped her. After that, we decided to take an alternate, slightly wider and less tree-filled route. 

Kyla and baby Cal

Gina calmed down after that and we ended up having a great ride. We let the horses gallop on a long, flat stretch. Bubba, who's a sturdy little Quarter Horse used for ranch work, smoked both Cal and Gina (two race-bred TBs!). We're planning a rematch, though, since Cal wasn't feeling his best and was recovering from an abscess. 

Me (left) and Levi (right) after galloping.

We spent about 2.5 hours riding and traveled about 8 miles. We wove through forests, across streams, over rocks, and ended up right on top of the lake. I suggested we swim across the lake to make for home, but somehow, no one was with me on that suggestion. It would have ruined my tack anyway...

This was the least-dense area we rode through. The lake is beyond the trees.

The horses were tired and soaked with sweat when we got back to the trailer, and we (and our tack) were covered in mud, sweat, and bug bites. No pain, no gain, though, right? We're definitely ready to smoke the competition at the hunter pace!