My friend, Dianne, posted this picture on her FB a couple weeks ago. It immediately made me think of how Luba feels to me sometimes - like riding a fire-breathing Arabian.
photo credit: Artur Baboev
A FB conversation ensued about this being why we keep ourselves in good shape (physically and even more important, I would argue, mentally), so we can "tame the beast", or train your dragon.
My friend, Nancy wrote these wise words to me:
YOU chose to ride an Arabian and do a speed outdoor sport so you have a horse with more hemogloben than the ones around you. You have a horse that was born to run , so you are not going to have quick stops and complete obedience that you would ask of a Quarter Horse a Morgan or cold blooded horse! So The Arab needs to slow down slower turn less sharply. You need to not MAKE your horse do something, rather COMPROMISE and with finesse convince your horse that this is what we are going to do. It may take three strides more than other breeds . Try the gallop with a snaffle and let me know if it works. I assume you will be standing two point when you canter (This is NOT show ring) .
She also sent me an eventing article by Lisa Slade from The Chronicle of the Horse, Oct 29, 2012 edition, entitled, "In Search of the Most Balanced Gallop". Two types of rider positions for gallop have emerged among eventers in US: one with a closed hip angle, crouching over the horse and the other with an open hip, standing more upright. Nancy recommends the more upright position for endurance riding.
Nancy Beacon riding Traverston Sadat at the 1994 World Equestrian Games
One of the most common faults discussed in the article is galloping more or less in a two-point position, but your bum gently tapping the saddle with each stride."Every time the rider's weight tips back and taps that saddle, it is wearing and tiring on a horse." I worked on this with Sandra Sokolowski at her clinic in October. Lots of the exercises she gave me were aimed at strengthening the muscles needed to maintain this kind of two-point position. Nancy, bless her, pointed out that I could strengthen these muscles by riding in two-point. LOL
So practising canter/gallop in the two point and practising compromise is part of my plan for How to Train my Fire-Breathing Arabian. Notice that two-point is also the way to ride a dragon:
Last weekend, the snow finally arrived! So the footing is good again for faster work :) And Uwe just plowed the Paddock Track yesterday, so including the lane way, we have almost a mile for cantering! And lots of snowy trailbreaking in the woods to really work those glutes. Almost makes me sad to leave for Arizona on Monday. Almost.
So we are getting November weather in December. Wet and hovering just above or just below freezing. And it is December dark.
The bad news is that the only good footing at the farm is the driveway. The good news is that there is a lot of driveway!
I have signed up for the Ottawa Half Marathon in May as a way of motivating myself to run and get stronger for riding. I started a walk/run program at the beginning of November. Alas, after one week, I had strained a tendon in my ankle. Walking was okay, and we got in a few good Sunday morning family hikes in the Gatineau. But no running.
This week, I saw a picture on FB that made me decide that it was time to try running again. What's your excuse?
It is much easier to run with a partner, so I picked Luba. We walked/ran up and down the driveway on Monday and Wednesday evenings. Then we did a light ride in the rain on Friday. This morning, we walked/ran on the driveway leading to Forced Road which is a quarter of a mile long. Then I tacked up and we trotted and cantered up and down the driveway for about 15 minutes and then walked in the woods for 45 minutes to cool/dry out.
November is typically a hard month for me. Shorter days, often cloudy, cold and wet. Luckily, this November was not too bad. We had lots of sun, no freezing rain and the ground did not really freeze until last weekend. I went sunrise riding a few times before work too. You don't have to get up that early in November to see the sunrise! Luba and I also spent November finding our fit with the new farm. It is great to have a group to ride with when we want some company. Friday night riding from 6-8pm is magical. Last Friday, everyone else was sick or thought it was too cold. But it was a marvellous night for a moondance. The forest became brighter as the full moon rose, making moon shadows. No need for a headlamp. There was no wind, so the only sounds were Luba's hooves crunching on the snowy trail and the coyotes singing.
Night riding is great for learning to feel your horse. Last Friday night, I realized that sometimes it is better not to pay attention to every little thing that catches Luba's attention. I can't see what she is looking at, so I don't bother with it. This seemed to help her settle more quickly and bring her focus back to the trail. I have worked very hard to have a "rateable" horse. We go the speed I want pretty much all the time in all the gaits - which usually translates into slower than Luba's preferred speed. Since our goal is to go faster, the plan is to let her set her own faster pace (after a suitable warm up, of course). Learn how to let her go as fast as she wants and then slow her down. Even teach her a cue for going as fast as she wants, like "Let's go!". My friend, Nancy Beacon, says the trick is to "feel the horse back", slowing her down just a bit with each stride. This reminds me of Uwe's advice to me after Luba bolted (see Run, Bolt, Bail, Walk), to just stay with her and ride it out, guiding her in the direction of my choice until both of us slowed down. It is going to take some time for me to get used to letting Luba go. We have a 0.4 mile track around her paddock aka the Paddock Track. The first time I experimented with letting her go on this track, my first instinct was to rate her canter. I had to really focus on letting her go as fast as she wants. So going faster is more my problem than Luba's problem :) Now the ground is frozen and there is just a skiff of snow cover. Today it is raining and it will freeze tonight. So the footing will not be good for canters until the real snow arrives. However, that doesn't stop me from letting Luba pick the pace more often. It's Luba's ride too :)
The endurance community lost an icon this week: Kathy Brunjes (1953 to 2012). I met Kathy this summer in Maine at the Pine Tree Ride, put on by her and her husband, Tom Hutchinson. Despite recently being diagnosed with cancer, Kathy was everywhere, making sure all the ducks were in a row for the ride. She put Luba's number on after we vetted in for the 100.
We were the only ones to stay over an extra night after the ride. She and Tom checked on us often to make sure we were all doing okay. Of all the tributes I have seen to Kathy in the past few days, this one resonated with me today:
Steph Teeter said, "Kathy was very special, I have some great memories of her. Especially of her and her horse Theatric at the World Championship in Malaysia. At the start, he was acting up, beautifully as always, rearing slightly. She sat him calmly and I asked if she was ok, she said "oh yes, he's fine. He's just, you know.... theatric". "
Between cold, rainy weather and an unfortunate sneeze that put my back out, Luba was left to her own devices to settle in at Horses of the Sun this week. I popped out a couple times to see her and give her a scratch, but did not ride.
Charlotte and I went out on Saturday for her riding lesson, so I decided to just walk Luba around and give us both a chance to settle at the farm. I also wanted to make sure that my back was feeling strong enough for riding. We had a lovely time wandering through the woods at the back of the property. Luba wanted to trot, but we kept it under wraps.
Today, we joined in a group lesson in the sand ring. Luba was quite well-behaved all things considered. All 7 of us rode precision figures. As usual, the far end of the ring was scary. We also had some interesting canter moments - Luba was like a coiled spring and just wanted to go fast! Sonja put us behind Cadance, a large horse who does everything slowly. A couple of times, Luba felt like she was going to buck in the canter, so I shouted, "Hey! Stop that!". I did have the presence of mind to sit and push her forward. And to sit and take both reins in one hand and we rode through.
After the lesson, Sonja told me that it must have felt worse that it looked, because when I shouted, she wasn't sure who it was at first. Neither of us was out of control. Just ride.
Next time this happens, I am going to think of Kathy Brunjes. I can't imagine a classy lady like her shouting at her horse. I will sit Luba calmly and say to myself, "Oh yes, she's fine. She's just you know...Luba".
One of the things I have learned about practising yoga is that you bring a different body to the mat every day. The trick is to accept the body you bring today and find your fit. Breathe.
With all the short day trips we have been doing lately, Luba has been loading like a pro. She loads for Charlotte, she loads for strangers, she loads for me and she even loaded herself one day for the return trip. I pointed her at the trailer and she walked on.
On Saturday, we moved Luba to her new home at Horses of the Sun in Vars. Here is how she looked this morning:
spontaneous left canter enjoyment at HOTS
On Saturday morning, Charlotte loaded Luba on the trailer and we headed to Roadapple Ranch for the First Annual Haunted Horse Haul.
All 9 of us had a great 3 hours on the trail. On the way home, Ryan noticed that Luba had lost one of her hoof boots. So we let the others go ahead and turned around to go look for it. These were the same trails Luba and I last rode for the Stormont 75. But Luba and I were bringing different bodies to the trail this day.
She happily left the group at at strong trot and we flew back to the "ravine" part of trail where we found the lost boot. Luba stood quietly while I put it back on and and we turned around again to catch up with everyone. We were on fire (well, a controlled burn). Big trot and lovely canters. When we joined back up with the main trail, we went left, cantering all the way to the trailhead parking lot on the Berwick Road. By then, I realized that the others must have turned right. We were having so much fun, we just kept on going, trotting and cantering our way back to Roadapple Ranch. Fun, fun fun.
When it was time to leave the farm, Luba had a different idea. I was mad at Luba. I forgot that we bring a different body to the mat every day. And that horses are not furry bicycles (as Gayle Ecker once said).
Thanks to Mike for pointing out being angry was not going to get Luba to load on the trailer. Horses are bigger than we are. The trick is to accept the body (horse) you bring today and find your fit. Breathe.
So with calm, firm convincing, especially from Denise, we found our fit, loaded up and drove to our new home, ready to experience life with horses at Horses of the Sun.
Luba and I took it down a notch after the Stormont 75. I gave her a couple of weeks off, she got adjusted, I got adusted. Our first ride was 30 minutes of walking and grazing in the back field. Bringing ourselves back slowly off of the R&R.
Another piece of the puzzle is to become more relaxed about trailering. So we have been trying to get out for day trips. So every time we get on the trailer, it is not a 4-6 hour drive, two or three nights of camping and a 50 mile ride thrown in for good measure.
So far, this strategy seems to be working! Luba is loading like a pro and has even started eating on the trailer! Here is some photographic evidence.
Our most recent day trip was to Venturing Hills in Luskville, Quebec for a clinic with physiotherapist, Sandra Sokolowski. Her mantra is "The posture you live in is the posture you ride in!"
We did a videotaped mounted semi-private session followed by a private physio-therapy assessment and a group exercise session. She tries to focus on a few targeted exercises and give you tips so that you can incorporate into your existing daily routine. Here is my list:
1. Toilet stretch - when you go to the bathroom, bring one leg across the knee of your opposite leg and fold forward. Repeat on the other side.
2. Springy legs on bike - when you ride your bike to work, keep "springy legs" - loose and flexible heels, knees, hips - with no side-to-side movements.
3. Oblique sit ups. More oblique sit ups. And then more oblique sit ups.
4. Stand as if you were on a horse - feet hips width apart, springy legs, engage pelvic floor (otherwise known as mula bandha). Fold forward slightly at the hips as if you were in two point and keep upper back soft. This will keep your lower back round and strong. Hold 3-10 pound weights in each hand and move them out and back as if they were following the reins.
5. Lunge forward until your calf is perpendicular to the floor (your can still see your toe). Face forward and let your hip fold, push straight up from your heel and feel your glutes engage to push you to standing position over your front leg. Repeat repeat repeat. Repeat on other side.
Oh yeah. And breathe.
The most important stretch for all riders is one that I practice every day at the office. It is called the coffee machine stretch or the microwave stretch or the photocopier stretch. When you are waiting by one of these machines, take that minute to practise this stretch.
Stand with feet about hips width apart. Fold forward and grasp your elbows so you are hanging like a rag doll. Breathe. When the coffee is almost ready, pull your belly button in towards your spine as if you had a porcupine on your belly. Keep breathing. When the coffee is ready, release the position and slowly roll up. Put your hands in your back pockets and open your heart, arching gently back for a few breaths.
Add a bit of cream and a teaspoonful of honey. Stir and enjoy.
Last July, Luba and I rode the Vermont Moonlight 50. This is truly a special ride, as the endurance ride is held in conjunction with a 100 mile ultramarathon. The only thing crazier than riding a horse for 100 miles is running a 100 miles on your own two feet!
The ultramarathoners are allowed to have a pacer at mile 70. You know, a friend who is willing to run a marathon plus 4 miles to help you get through the last 30 miles of your run. We kept meeting up on trail with a particular runner who had no pacer. He always had a wave and a smile as we rode past. The morning after the ride, I saw him walking up the hill towards his campsite, carrying all his ultramarathon running and crewing gear. I saluted him, and told him how amazing he was to have run the whole thing alone. He smiled and replied, "Yes, I am alone and unafraid."
During the Stormont Ride last weekend, I had occasion to recall Mr. Alone and Unafraid....
Just getting to the ride felt like an ultramarathon. My daughter started school last week and promptly caught a cold. This developed into an asthma attack and we spent Friday morning at the hospital. Thankfully, it was not serious and we left the ER after only a few hours.
I headed out to the farm in the evening to check on Luba and do some final packing. To my horror, poor old low-on-the-totem-pole Luba was sporting a nasty bite just behind her withers on the left side of her back. There was a small wound (a tooth scrape) about the size of a toonie with edema all around it. When I touched it, she dropped her back. I got a package of chopped spinach from Lloyd's freezer and put it on the would for 10 minutes every hour for 4 hours. I sprayed on some Dermagel, rubbed arnica around the scrape, tucked Luba into a stall for the night and went home hoping for the best.
The next morning, my trusty crew, Kara, and I breathed a sigh of relief to see that the swelling had gone down and Luba was less sore. We kept up the cold therapy and the arnica and left for ridecamp hoping for the best, with a cooler full of ice packs.
I really wanted Luba to work hard enough to sweat as a way of preventing tie up, but I didn't want to put a saddle on the sore back just yet. Luckily, Kara is about the most athletic person I know. She took Luba for a run in hand for about an hour in the afternoon. Bless your soul, Kara! We iced Luba's back one more time and then headed over for the FEI inspection and vetting.
Photo: Pat Kuffner
Luba got a B for wounds, but all As otherwise and was cleared to start the ride by Dr. Don Hamilton. We celebrated with a round of cosmopolitans, ripple chips and dip! Dr. Heather Hoynes suggested keeping the scrape well covered with vaseline for the ride.
Wayne, another member of Team Luba, arrived just after 7am Sunday morning, as Luba and I were warming up. We started out at the back of the pack of 7 horses with our soul sisters, Lysane and Mae.
Photo: Pat Kuffner
We kept a steady 7 mph pace for the first 18 mile orange loop. Luba had a nice lemondade pee about 2 miles from base camp, so I knew we had made it through the danger zone for early tie up. She celebrated by stepping on my left big toe at the water trough ;)
Mae, however, was looking a little off in the hind end. Lysane tried to massage the cramp out, but alas, they were pulled at VC1.
Luba vetted through with a CRI of 52/44 within 3 minutes of arrival. The scrape on her back was unchanged and not bothering her. Having two focused crew members was amazing. I stuck my bruised toe in a bucket of water and sat eating and drinking for most of the 40 minute hold. Bliss!
Our out time rolled around all too quickly, and we headed out of camp on the 14 mile yellow loop at a trot and then a canter, with our friends waving and cheering! Alone and Unafraid.....
Photo: Pat Kuffner
....until Luba realized I wanted her to go down the road away from camp. She veered left and then refused to continue on down the road. Since we were riding FEI, I was not allowed to carry a crop. Luba can be very stubborn, so I hopped off and she happily trotted along beside me as I ran. I ended up running about 2 miles until we turned onto a wooded abandoned railway line. I mounted back up and we made some good time until we got close to County Road 9 when she got worried and stopped again.
I led her a bit more in hand, and after the water stop at Homestead Organics, I got on again. We made good time most of the way to the away crew spot - although Luba kept losing steam on the gravel roads. Kara and Wayne were a sight for sore eyes at the away crew spot at Doug Lowe's Garage. This continued for the rest of the 14 mile yellow loop. Good speed in the bush, but me on foot on the gravel roads.
By the time we finished this loop, I was not having much fun. Luba vetted through with a CRI of 48/48 within two minutes. She was not tired. She only had gut sounds in one quadrant, so Dr. Sinclair asked for a recheck. She ate like crazy, got her guts moving and had a CRI of 36/36 for the recheck. How can you not go back on trail with a horse that is fit to continue (physiologically anyway) and has a CRI of 36/36? We had been the turtles all day for the 75, but the 50s were now on trail. So I figured that someone would catch up with us sooner or later and Luba would find a new friend to run with (instead of me!!)
We left camp on foot for another trip around the 18 mile orange loop. It was mainly bush and hayfields, so it wasn't long before I was back in the saddle :) Kara and Wayne crewed us again at Doug's with some extra sponging help from Melody. We took a good break, refueled and Luba hit the road with renewed energy. This was all good while we were heading towards Roadapple Ranch (RAR), which we use as home base for training rides. But when we turned down the road to go away from RAR, the wind went out of her sails.
As usual, she perked up on the bush trails, but as we got close to the trailhead parking lot and water stop at County Road 9, she slowed again to a walk. At this point, I noticed that my left eyelid felt weird. I was having an allergic reaction, and both my eyes were swelling up. But for now, I could still see :)
Sherry, the road crossing spotter, assured me that the front runners for the 50 were not far behind me, and their next loop was also the 13 mile white loop. She said, "Don't give up on yourself, yet, Nancy".
Before long, Stephanie, Monica and Krista came across the road. Their horses gave Luba the lift she needed and we cantered a mile or so with them, before settling down to our own race pace. We ran into Jacques, the ride manager on the Dump Road, and asked him to please find out what drug I would be allowed to take for my allergy.
We arrived back in camp much later than we had planned to a very worried crew, but met parameter in under 2 minutes. Luba's CRI was 52/56, so Dr. Sinclair said that she might be more physically tired than I was giving her credit for, though obviously not exhausted. Maybe I just needed to ride her more aggressively, he suggested?
I have never ridden Luba aggressively, so this was a new concept for us. I thought about it during the long 50 minute hold while Luba devoured everything in sight.
Photo: Kara Stelfox
Colette researched the drug protocol and determined that I could take Reactin for my allergy. I was back at the camper, taking out my contact lenses and changing into fresh clothes when Maura came by. She said, the daily dose for Reactin is one tablet, but Colette says given the way you look, you should take two. Bless them both! I used my neti pot, popped the two allergy tablets and headed back to the crewing area.
We were going out on trail again, Alone. Now was time to become Unafraid.
The first trip around the 13 mile white loop was the Guyatri Mantra loop. I again walked Luba out of camp, and mounted up on the road. I started chanting at the top of my lungs and low and behold, she started trotting. DOWN A GRAVEL ROAD! Hallalujia!!
We stopped to graze in Oscar's hayfield when Wendy and Firefly came cantering up the side of the field. Finally, a friend to ride with! We met up with Stephanie and Rammit near Neville's woods. Steph was feeling pukey, so we gave her some Tums and brought her along to Doug's where we had a quick crew stop with Kara and Wayne. A few more riders were not far behind, so we knew Steph would be okay when she decided to slow down and walk. Firefly and Luba flew through the last half of the loop, hunting glow sticks as dusk fell upon the forest.
With the faster pace, Luba took almost 7 minutes to meet parameter with a CRI of 52/56. Everything was looking good. Just one more loop to go! Even if we had to ride Alone, we were now Unafraid :)
Kim and Farley, who had been well ahead of us all day, were still in camp, as was Dessia, who was riding a slow 50 on her young mare, Kiera. They hit the trail maybe 5 minutes before our out time. So even though Luba and I left at a walk (with me foot) for the final trip around the white loop, I knew we had a chance of catching them as soon as we got going.
Luba was happy and forward in the cool dark night with a full moon rising. We caught up with Kim and Dessia after about 3 miles. I knew we would make it home safely, as these ladies were the ones who marked the trail :) Kara and Wayne crewed all of us one last time at Doug's and were home free!
We cantered over the finish line - Turtles in the FEI** and Open Endurance Canada/OCTRA ride and Reserve Champions AHA Region 18 Championship event. The next morning, we were also awarded Best Condition for the AHA ride.
