Great Safety Tip from Easycare

I'd probably try to find some sort of cover to put over the blade as well.  As clutsy as I am, I'd stab/slice myself on the damn thing taped there.

Full article below:

Safety Lesson Learned at Texas Trail Challenges:
Submitted by Carol Warren, Team Easyboot 2012 Member
The wonderful judges of Texas Trail Challenges and NATRC offered a Riders Clinic April 14th at C-Bar Ranch in Valley Mills, Texas. It was one of the most practical and informative clinics I have ever attended and I have been to some clinics presented by the most famous of the clinicians. The clinic was one day. We were divided into 5 small groups. During the first morning session we rotated through various stations demonstrating how to set up a safe equine camp, suggestions for what and how to carry gear on your horse for competitive trail rides, tips on what the judges are looking for, and how to present our horse to the judge and vet at CTRs. During the second part of the morning session, we worked in hand with our horses on sending, backing, turning on the fore and hind, side passing, and stopping. After a lunch break, we saddled up and rotated through sessions dedicated to teaching us how to improve our skills on gates, hills, cavaletti, side passing, turning, stopping, and dragging objects.

I would like to share with you one of the best tips I got from the clinic. As you know, it is always best to have a knife handy when around horses to cut whatever they manage to get themselves tangled in. Their tip was for everybody to have a sharp knife visibly taped to the inside of the trailer tack room door.  It should be a standard practice for everybody to do this. If you are walking by an unknown trailer and the horse got tangled up, just reach in and grab the knife. Or if it is in the middle of the night and you hear that awful commotion, instead of trying to find your old jeans with the knife deep in the pocket, just open your tack door and there is the knife. They suggested a carpet knife with the serrated edge towards the handle ending with a curved, smooth, sharp tip. The curved tip on my knife was very pointed and sharp so I just had my husband grind the very tip down a small amount so I would not stab my horse in an emergency.

The knife very visibly taped to the inside of the tack door. The red duct tape catches your eye. It would be a good idea to have another knife taped around a busy part of the barn, too.

The carpet knife taped to the door using only 2 pieces of red duct tape. Enough tape to hold the knife in place, but yet still easy enough to pull off. Notice the tabs at the top of the tape to allow you to quickly pull the tape off.

To make the tape easier to pull off, just fold the tape over on itself to create the tab.

Close-up of the carpet knife I chose to tape to my trailer door for emergencies.

I hope you enjoy and will utilize this tip as I have. I think it is a great idea. Maybe we can start spreading this idea around.
Carol Warren of Goliad, Texas

AERC Intro Rides: A Tale of Three Newbies

There's been a huge debate storming around on Ridecamp and the AERC Members List on how to possibly grow the organization.  One of the issues that's being hotly contested is the subject of Intro Rides, or rides that are somewhere between 10 and 15-ish miles in length.  AERC already has sanctioning and rules for Limited Distance (25-35 miles) and Endurance Distance (50+ mile) rides.

I've several blog posts on the subject and have skimmed through a lot of the list debates, so thought I would go ahead and weigh in with my humble opinion on the matter.  Should AERC SANCTION and/or track miles for Intro Rides?  NO  Should these rides still be offered and available for people to participate in?  YES  Here's why I feel this way...

Generally, someone that is going to become a full-fledged AERC member, someone who will renew their membership beyond the first year and attend events as they feasibly can, is someone that already knows they're interested in at least TRYING endurance.  These are people who have heard of the sport, and for one reason or another just haven't had a chance to officially get started. 

Newbie 1)  We met through a mutual online friend who knew we lived in the same general area.  She had emailed that other person, hoping to find a mentor to get started in the sport.  She had a young green horse and I had a (semi)steady campaigner.  I had finally gotten comfortable with the 50-mile distance and was toying with the idea of trying a 100.  We met in the winter and conditioned together as we had time and the weather cooperated (or not, one of the MAIN benefits of a riding buddy, it helps get you out the door!).  In the spring, I rode her first LD with her, which we both finished successfully and she won the LD Best Condition while my horse received High Vet Score.  Win-Win!  A few weeks later, we rode her first 50 together.  Again, we both completed without any issues.  She fledged out on her own after that, and has since become very competitive, having an amazingly talented horse, and has gone on to complete a 100 and is planning on doing Tevis soon.

Newbie 2)  We met through her blog.  As fate would have it, I started to follow her very shortly before it was announced she would be moving to my local area.  Again, she was interested in doing endurance, but had never been to a ride.  We rode together off and on as possible through the winter (seems to be a recurring theme) and attended a few local non-AERC club rides that offered 10-20 mile rides to participate in.  She didn't have a trailer, so was my captive partner in helping me to get MY young, green horse out and exposed to the world.  As things worked out, I was out of town the weekend of the first AERC ride of the season, so I loaned her my trailer so she could participate.  They happily finished the LD ride and have gone on to complete a 50 and are still active participants and planning for more.

Newbie 3)  She had heard of endurance but wasn't ever interested in participating.  We started riding together and she realized that she liked being out on the trail and going along.  Again, we did a few gradually longer trail rides together, and then I took her to a couple of the local club rides.  She happily finished the 10-mile distance and knew they could do more.  The next one, she and her horse completed the 20-miler.  However, she still has no desire to do endurance, or even try an official LD.  She probably will attend some of the local rides again, but may not ride the longer (20-25) distance.  Both she and her horse are quite happy and their fun tops out around 15 miles.  Could they finish a LD, yes, absolutely.  Does she want to, no, and that's okay!!

Thus why I stand on the opinion above in regards to Intro Rides.  Having these shorter distances *available* allows people to get their feet wet and see if it's something they would like to do (they don't even need to be conducted under the AERC umbrella, we have a very successful local club that ONLY offers shorter rides).  But the Intro Rides should not be official AERC events with recorded mileage.  If people are TRULY interested in being distance riders, they will set their goal for such and work their way up.  Once these rides become official, then Ride Managers may feel pressured to include them.  Better to have it be like it currently is, where they're fully at the discretion of being offered (in whatever type of format) solely by the Ride Manager. 

Both of the Newbies above who have continued on in the sport, already had an interest in doing so.  Exposing the third changed some of her opinions (we don't just bomb down the trail balls-out), but it's just not her cup of tea.  She has expressed interest in joining me at some out of state rides I'm hoping to attend, that both offer the shorter intro rides.  She knows she doesn't want to be an actual AERC member but would like to take advantage of the shorter rides and the camping and socializing opportunities.  I understand that AERC likes to offer a "big tent" atmosphere and be inclusive of many types of riders and their goals, but I feel we do need to draw the line somewhere in regards to the official and sanctioned direction of the organization.

No Nevada Derby

I'm just not destined to go to any rides this year....  =(  Our truck died on Friday, half-way out the driveway to go to the ride, with the trailer hooked up and the horse in the back.  I turned it off briefly to use my keys to unlock my car and grab a sweatshirt and a CD, and when I came back the truck wouldn't even try to turn over to start.  After having it towed later that week to the mechanic, it turns out the transmission is going and something "slipped" to cause the truck to think it was not in park (it wouldn't start in neutral either, we tried) so it wouldn't allow the starter to turn over.

Truck is temporarily fixed and is slated to be traded-in for a newer model.  Let the dealership have the problem.  It's been a GOOD truck and has never seriously stranded me with issues, it always seems to have the courtesy to breakdown at home if it's going to do something.  But it's a 1995 model with 185K+ miles on it, with a gas V10 engine.  Stuff is just starting to have issues in general.  We think we've found a replacement, and are waiting to hear from our Credit Union.

Good news is I can do a big CHECK OUT MY NEW RIG post in a week or so hopefully.  Truck isn't the only thing that's new (to me)!!!  ;)

Disappointment

Well, our Rides of March.... wasn't.  After vetting in successfully on Friday evening, when I went to hang up Diego's bucket to feed him some complete feed pellets while tacking up Saturday morning, he stepped over three-legged lame, hardly weight-bearing on his left front.  Of course I freaked out and grabbed him off the trailer to walk him around, which necessitated having to use a spare pair of reins to lead him as my lead rope was frozen solid at the knot.  Walking him around the camp fire in the main vetting area seemed to help some, he became noticeably less stiff and was walking easier, but still visibly limping at the walk.  Ride Manager and Team Easyboot Member Tami helped me to pull off both his front boots, to check just in case.  We couldn't find anything noticeably wrong.  Both front legs were cool with no filling and no reaction to our palpation.  He didn't get into prediaments on the trailer from what I could feel/tell during the night, and looked to have moved around enough as he had poop piles from one end of the lead to another. 

I had vet Susan McCartney check him out for me later in the morning to see what she might be able to find.  He did have some sensitivity with hoof testers to his left front frog.  Not sure how that bothers him enough overnight, with boots on in perfect sandy footing, to get that kind of reaction.  We were all a bit baffled.  For now I have a couple of theories:

1. I had his boot on too tight.  I don't normally use athletic tape unless at an actual endurance ride.  I find I don't need it for regular training, but appreciate the tighter fit and security provided with three wraps of tape around the hoof.  It also helps to keep sand and other small debris out of the boot.  On that particular foot only, when I put the boot on the tape rucked up from around the bottom of the hoof wall, and kind of was bunched around the top of the Easyboot Glove.  It tooks a screwdriver to pry the boot off.  Perhaps this pressure overnight was too much and caused the soreness.
2. He got cramped and chilled standing in the wind, rain, and snow overnight.  I did my best to park so he was on the lee side of the trailer, but it was still quite windy (gusts to 50 mph) on Friday evening and poured rain off and on until around 3 am, when the temps dropped and it switched to snow and froze everything that was wet.  I forgot my good insulated winter blanket at home, so had Diego in a polar fleece cooler with a waterproof sheet over that.  While he was totally dry and felt warm to the touch, perhaps he got chilled and cramped.
3. He stood in one place too long due to the weather (seeking shelter) and was stiff/cramped.  Again, same circumstances as above.  I actually considered putting him IN the trailer Friday evening as I climbed into bed, but I cannot shut the rear door of my trailer with the divider open (design flaw) and I didn't want him standing in such a small area overnight.  Perhaps he ended up doing just that anyways.

For now, things are at watch and see status.  Plan is to ride this weekend, and if all looks well during and after the ride, then we'll still aim for Nevada Derby in two weeks.  Fingers crossed.

Post of the Week: If People Were Horses

From Mugwump Chronicles, this made me actually laugh out loud!!! Love it:


If People Were Horses:

Just think how much simpler life would be if we were more like horses.

When we gathered around the dinner table the meanest one would get dessert first. Then the mean one would get to walk around the table and eat off everybody's plate and it would be considered good manners.

If our ribs were showing nobody would call it a "bikini body," they would call a rescue organization.

The bigger our butt the more desirable we'd be.

When our Grandma calls us "big-boned," it's a good thing.

If we didn't like somebody we could scream and kick them. Nobody would get arrested or question our motives.

If we DID like somebody we could still scream and kick them and we'd be forgiven.

When the mean girls in the clique snubbed us we could eventually win them over by following them around and looking sad. Then we could scream and kick them too.

Being big, fat, crabby and mean would only make you more popular.

Communication would be so much simpler.

If a woman didn't like a man she would scream and kick him.

If she did like him she would scream, kick him and then pee on the floor.

No conversation, no flowers, just scream, kick and pee.

Reining Clinic

This past Sunday, Diego and I attended a reining clinic hosted by local trainer, Kim Rapp.  This was our second lesson out at Kim's, having gone two weeks ago for a semi-private with my good friend Ronda and her horse Quik.  The clinic was a different format, being open to anyone interested. 

We started around 10 in the morning and had quite an ecletic mix of riders.  Digs was really calm coming off the trailer and getting saddled.  I took him over into the corral/arena first (it's really a HUGE roundpen, great format).  He was a bit snorty at the bull that lives a corral panel or two over, but got busy with some ground work.  He settled in pretty quickly and I mounted up before too long.  However, the more horses that came over and started to ride around with us, the more agitated he became.  After he couldn't decide whether to whirl around to stare at someone, or spook at something else, I decided safety first and got off and worked his little butt of in the center of the ring for a while.  Took loping quite a few circles with several quick changes of direction to get his focus back on me and his mind on the task at hand (and for him to realize he was NOT, in fact, going to die ).  We mounted back up and fell into the swirl of people, trotting around before catching a breather next to his buddy Quik.  That really seemed to get his head on and he relaxed totally.

Kim came in and got us started, she had everyone line up along the rail, then one at a time we went into the middle and did a few rounds to show where we were at with our training.  The first was a boyfriend/husband, obviously very green to horses, on an older paint gelding.  He was followed by girlfriend/wife, again a green/unschooled rider on a more well trained, but young grey mare.  Turns out the gelding was her old horse, who she's had for 12 years.  She recently purchased the mare, who has "training", and they were attending to both become more schooled riders.  She said new horse has buttons she wants to learn how to work.  :)

Diego and I went next.  He retained his calm demeanor and gave me a few nice trotting circles around, relaxed and supple.  We leg yielded across the center to change directions.  I was fortunate and was just turning back to the left when Kim asked me if I would lope him (something we didn't do last time) and he obliged quickly with just a kiss and a squeeze into a left lead - his strong preference.  He was a bit tense, Kim asked if I had noticed and I had, but I could tell he wasn't that bad and after a few strides he loped along nicely.  I thought I heard one person mention "That's a nice lope."  Diego carries himself very well, uphill and driving from behind.  He stopped quickly and I beamed with getting some compliments.  Turns out that was more or less the best he'd be all day!  LOL

A lady on a cute QH gelding named Blue went next, followed by Ronda and Quik.  Then one of Kim's reining students on what was easily the most well-trained horse there, aside from Kim's handsome drool-worthy roan stallion she was riding.  There was a lady on a hot little grey Arab, and another chestnut Arab that was a student of Kim's.  A lady just getting started in western riding, mounted on a cute Haflinger (who Dig was highly suspicious of at first - way too much fluffy hair for him), followed by friend Elizabeth and her TWH mare Dixie.  You can click on the link for her account.  So a total of 10 of us.

After everyone had a chance to show where they were at, Kim started working with us from the greenest to the more experienced.  It was great to watch and listen to what she was having people do, and seeing the transformation in their horses.  She had a lot of people work on rib and shoulder control by doing a counter-arc.  This was the same focus we had for Diego two weeks ago - to gain control over and help free up his shoulders.  This is a pretty good video to explain what it is:  Counter Arc  Kim had us start circling the same direction their nose was tipped in, then to keep a hold of their nose, and ask them to change direction and start to step across with their legs/bodies.  It's sometimes easier to start on a straight line, but it was helpful to see how many of us were working on this same concept, and how each of the horses would respond.

Kim worked her more experienced students in to demonstrate various manuevers throughout the first course of one-on-ones, so it happened that Diego and I were the last ones to go individually.  She wanted me to work on a right lead circle, since he had already done some nice ones to the left.  I wailed about, "But that's WHY I went left the first time!!!" ;) and we laughed.  That's what we were there for, to learn and work on the issues.  So right-lead it was.  Mr. Dig was all tense after having stood around for a few hours, so we had to trot a few circles to get loosened up and get his head on straight again.  Kim worked me through trying to get him to pick up his right lead.  I've been taught to cue by using my inside leg to support the bend, and then ask for the upward transition with my outside leg. 

This wasn't working for Diego, and he was getting frustrated with being asked, then brought down to a trot when he'd pick the wrong lead, then being asked, slowed, etc. and he got pissy and after a couple head-shake warnings, let loose one good buck.  Kim had me immediately turn him in a much tighter circle to the right, then get after him and ask him to lope off again.  He had displayed some of his pissyness two weeks ago, he will get mad and fight me, but this week we were trying a different tactic of NOT backing down and doing something else, but instead pushing him through and making him do it.  So I kept him in a small (10 m.?) circle and went back to pushing him through it.  After a few more failed attempts, she had me work on counter arc, and then asking him.  He picked it up and got the lead!  I relaxed and let him cruise in a bigger circle before we stopped him fully.  She had me repeate the small circle to counter arc to correct lead successfully one more time and then we all took a short break.

Near the end of the break, I started riding Diego around again.  Asking him to work off my legs and stay light in my hands.  Again, the more horses that joined us, the more aggitated he became.  I did my best to stay relaxed and with him, but was getting a little frustrated.  There was a lot of loud commenting of "Really, REALLY?!?!" and "Knock it off" coming out of my mouth.  Dork.  But he did get his head on straight (er, mostly) and we cantered around one or two more times before lining back up on the rail. 

Again, Kim worked through most of the other students first, and actually that worked out well, as E, Ronda and I were the last three remaining.  We're all fairly close together with where we're at, or as E so perfectly stated: "not polished at what we do, not rank beginners, not afraid to TRY at any speed".  Kim had me working with Dig again, then sent us to the fence to do rollbacks.  These used to be one of my FAVORITE manuevers to perform with a good reining, cutting, cow-working horse - actually, they still are REALLY fun!  But boy-howdy do they make you WORK!  We weren't looking for a lot of finesse, or slow, it needed to be quick, quick, quick, with Dig listening to my outside (cueing) leg and deciding to pick up the correct lead more on his own.  Whew, was it both fun and hard!  It took me a bit to coordinate myself, I kept wanting to kick with both feet coming out of the turn, and Kim wanted me to only kick with my outside leg.  So I had to kick, kick, ride, sit up, sit down, pull him around to the inside (fence), then grab and kick, kick with my new outside leg.  We were both panting hard after a few times.  After he picked up the right lead a few times on his own (I couldn't really tell, working that hard, Kim would let me know and pull him around soon if he chose the wrong one), we let him canter on his right lead off the fence and then stop.  Both E and Ronda started cracking up laughing.  I had stopped facing them, and I guess Dig had the most perfect "little kid that just got in BIG trouble" look on his face.  =)  But he DID it!!!  Good boy.  He also stood perfectly still while they worked on stops, until we did it one more time.  Kim told me to take him to the center, counter arc and ask for the right lead, and then send him down the fence again if he didn't take it on the first try.  So more rollbacks for us.  Pant, pant, grin, grin!!!  I don't know about Diego, but I LOVED IT!

So, I'm totally loving the lessons and can't wait to get back.  Plans are for a long ride this weekend (my last before Rides of March), then our club has motocross race the next weekend, then AERC Convention, then Rides of March.  So next lesson probably won't be until that weekend of 3/25.  Already looking forward to it.

About Me

I added a new tab at the top if you're inclined to click on it.  Go Diego Go isn't my first blog, but I retired my last effort when my dearly beloved horse, Sinatra, had to be euthanized due to cancer.  I left that prior blog as a tribute to his honor, and started a new one when I acquired Dig.