Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Aziim Returns to Leland's Road
On Sunday, Aziim returned to Leland's Road. If you remember, the poor boy wrote a story on the blog a few months ago, after Wind had convinced him that Leland's wasn't bad and puddles were not be be worried about....Aziim still hasn't forgiven Wind for that discussion. Anyway, Sunday Aziim put on his Big Boy Pants and up Leland's he went.... here's a little video of his experience.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Pam and Todd Ride in Stanely!
Well, Saturday was a blockbuster day for Pam and Todd! Pam and Todd trailered Tiki and Ali to Stanley and rode! This is the first time Pam's had Tiki on a trailering trip and it is the first time Todd has EVER rode 10+ miles! They had a great day and we are proud of both of them. The horses were great, the weather was great and the BBQ Gary had ready for us when we got back was awesome!
Pam and Tiki in Stanley. It's been a while since Pam's been riding in Stanley...a long while. She says it felt good!
Not the greatest picture, but had to find something to mark the occasion! Todd at the end of his first 10+ miles!
Pam's watch says 10.75 miles at 3.9 mph....that's a good part of an IDR guys!
Pam is happy, happy, happy!
Good job Todd!
Tidy up and come'on home!
Not the greatest picture, but had to find something to mark the occasion! Todd at the end of his first 10+ miles!
Pam's watch says 10.75 miles at 3.9 mph....that's a good part of an IDR guys!
Good job Todd!
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
McDonald's Judged Pleasure, 2013
The second day we were in New Brunswick earlier this month, we rode in a Judged Pleasure. You have a choice when riding in a "JP" to ride just for miles (your miles count towards your official total) or to also compete. Judging is based on how clean your horse is, how clean your tack is, and a whole bunch of horsemanship criteria.
Three of us rode that day. Shelley went out alone on Spirit. Tammy/Wind and Lynn/Paris stayed together as a team. I didn't compete but Shelley and Tammy did.
It was a beautiful day and some of the Tidal Treasures Crew (mostly Carrillee I think) took some great pictures. I made the mistake of trying to photo edit the pictures so they would look even nicer and they did on iphoto slide show but the second I transferred them to YouTube they were terrible! So last night, I recreated the slide show onto Imovie and transferred it to YouTube. (They still seem a bit fuzzy but I give up.)
Also, if you have a phone or a tablet, you will not be able to view this. I found out that because I am using "current" music from itunes that it is only playable on a computer (Stupid, I know). May have to find another way to source my music.....or go back to songs that are not copyrighted.
Now that I'm done complaining about the process, here's the link to the slide show!
Link to McDonald's JP
Three of us rode that day. Shelley went out alone on Spirit. Tammy/Wind and Lynn/Paris stayed together as a team. I didn't compete but Shelley and Tammy did.
It was a beautiful day and some of the Tidal Treasures Crew (mostly Carrillee I think) took some great pictures. I made the mistake of trying to photo edit the pictures so they would look even nicer and they did on iphoto slide show but the second I transferred them to YouTube they were terrible! So last night, I recreated the slide show onto Imovie and transferred it to YouTube. (They still seem a bit fuzzy but I give up.)
Also, if you have a phone or a tablet, you will not be able to view this. I found out that because I am using "current" music from itunes that it is only playable on a computer (Stupid, I know). May have to find another way to source my music.....or go back to songs that are not copyrighted.
Now that I'm done complaining about the process, here's the link to the slide show!
Link to McDonald's JP
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Helmet Cam Video of the Trail
Has it really been a week already? This footage was taken on Saturday during the CTR competition (McDonald's Run, NB) Except for one small piece, the footage is in the same order as the ride itself. Hope you enjoy. If you have never participated in a distance ride, take a good look at how much fun this is, maybe we'll see you soon!
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Photos of Riders at McDonald's Run CTR
McDonald's Run - CTR
Another wonderful ride weekend here and gone! Happy to report that both teams achieved their goals! Team One (Troy and Marie) brought Marie through her first successful 30 mile competition. Pretty impressive for an 11 year old! Team Two introduced Paris to her first CTR She came through with flying colours...Spirit lead the way and Ali was her "wing" man! Shelley also completed her first CTR - She has done LD's before but never a CTR.
The weather forecast for the weekend was not looking good. We thought the rain was going to really dampen our spirits (pardon the pun), but it held off. By the time the rain started on Friday, we were all set up for camp and sitting around enjoying little camp humour. For the most part, the rest of the weekend was quite dry.
On Saturday morning, all five horses vetted in without issue and once all 30+ horses were vetted in, the ride began. Troy/Wind and Marie/Willow headed out first. We tried to put some other horses between us i the line up to keep some space between Wind and Spirit so that they wouldn't try to catch up to each other.
A few minutes later Shelley/Spirit, Lynn/Paris and Kathleen/ Ali (Team Two) headed out on the trail. Within minutes we picked up a trot and were on our way. As it turns out, I spent a good part of the the next five hours saying "Shelley, just try to trot him a little bit slower"! Poor Shelley must have gotten tired of listening to me. Spirit, of course, wanted nothing to do with "trotting a little bit slower" so she had her hands full. I was trying to get the speed down "just a notch" so that Paris would be completely relaxed. Turns out I had nothing to worry about, her heart rate at the hold and at the end was awesome! Spirit's on the other hand, was a bit high (still well within parameters) probably because "trotting slower" is NOT in his comfort zone!
The ride is well marked and has a lot of variety. There are lovely wooded paths, some great for a good canter and other wooded areas that are wet and muddy where walking is pretty much the only option - technically challenging in that manner especially with about 30 other riders on the trail. It was great training for Shelley and Kathleen regarding how to juggle where you had to walk with when to go faster, and determining whether to pass other groups of horses or stay behind them, all while keeping an eye on the required 6 mile an hour average. We are putting together a helmet cam video of the trail itself and hope to have it up on the blog within the next few days.
We did catch up to Troy/Wind and Marie/Willow at one point and passed them. It was a bit of a challenge for Troy to hold Wind back, complicated by the fact that Troy was riding with a sprained wrist! That's a lot of horse to hold back with one hand! Eventually, they caught up and passed us. That left Shelley holding back Spirit, a) because Wind was passing and going out of sight and b) because there was the intermittent voice behind her still droning..."Shelley could you trot just a little bit slower." Poor Shelley, she was a good sport about it all and did her best. She said that Spirit was a challenge but not as bad as he can be when Wind is pulling away out of sight.
The last mile or so of the ride is through quite a bit of muck and so, a lot of the riders caught up with each other. As a result, many of us ended up coming into the end of the ride together. It was quite a sight! Our optimum ride time was 5 hours 10 minutes (you have 15 minutes leeway on either side). Team Two came in at 5 hours and 12 minutes. Team One came in at 5 hours and 14 minutes. All five Tidal Treasures rider/horse teams passed final pulse criteria, trot out and hands on presentation to the vets. Great job everyone! Paris placed 6th place in Conditioning. Kathleen and Marie were the only two juniors riding so they both placed very well! Kathleen/Ali received first place for conditioning. Marie/Willow second place. Trail Horse placings were reversed; Marie/Willow first place; Kathleen/Ali second place!
Over the next few days we will be posting a helmet cam video of some of the trail and a slide show of photos of the riders. Thank you to the McDonald family and all the other volunteers that make this ride possible. It was a fantastic weekend.
Marie and Willow - Marie's first CTR!
Shelley and Spirit - Shelley's first CTR!
The weather forecast for the weekend was not looking good. We thought the rain was going to really dampen our spirits (pardon the pun), but it held off. By the time the rain started on Friday, we were all set up for camp and sitting around enjoying little camp humour. For the most part, the rest of the weekend was quite dry.
On Saturday morning, all five horses vetted in without issue and once all 30+ horses were vetted in, the ride began. Troy/Wind and Marie/Willow headed out first. We tried to put some other horses between us i the line up to keep some space between Wind and Spirit so that they wouldn't try to catch up to each other.
Marie holds Willow as the vet checks her over pre-ride on Saturday.
A few minutes later Shelley/Spirit, Lynn/Paris and Kathleen/ Ali (Team Two) headed out on the trail. Within minutes we picked up a trot and were on our way. As it turns out, I spent a good part of the the next five hours saying "Shelley, just try to trot him a little bit slower"! Poor Shelley must have gotten tired of listening to me. Spirit, of course, wanted nothing to do with "trotting a little bit slower" so she had her hands full. I was trying to get the speed down "just a notch" so that Paris would be completely relaxed. Turns out I had nothing to worry about, her heart rate at the hold and at the end was awesome! Spirit's on the other hand, was a bit high (still well within parameters) probably because "trotting slower" is NOT in his comfort zone!
Team Two arriving at half-way.
The ride is well marked and has a lot of variety. There are lovely wooded paths, some great for a good canter and other wooded areas that are wet and muddy where walking is pretty much the only option - technically challenging in that manner especially with about 30 other riders on the trail. It was great training for Shelley and Kathleen regarding how to juggle where you had to walk with when to go faster, and determining whether to pass other groups of horses or stay behind them, all while keeping an eye on the required 6 mile an hour average. We are putting together a helmet cam video of the trail itself and hope to have it up on the blog within the next few days.
We did catch up to Troy/Wind and Marie/Willow at one point and passed them. It was a bit of a challenge for Troy to hold Wind back, complicated by the fact that Troy was riding with a sprained wrist! That's a lot of horse to hold back with one hand! Eventually, they caught up and passed us. That left Shelley holding back Spirit, a) because Wind was passing and going out of sight and b) because there was the intermittent voice behind her still droning..."Shelley could you trot just a little bit slower." Poor Shelley, she was a good sport about it all and did her best. She said that Spirit was a challenge but not as bad as he can be when Wind is pulling away out of sight.
The last mile or so of the ride is through quite a bit of muck and so, a lot of the riders caught up with each other. As a result, many of us ended up coming into the end of the ride together. It was quite a sight! Our optimum ride time was 5 hours 10 minutes (you have 15 minutes leeway on either side). Team Two came in at 5 hours and 12 minutes. Team One came in at 5 hours and 14 minutes. All five Tidal Treasures rider/horse teams passed final pulse criteria, trot out and hands on presentation to the vets. Great job everyone! Paris placed 6th place in Conditioning. Kathleen and Marie were the only two juniors riding so they both placed very well! Kathleen/Ali received first place for conditioning. Marie/Willow second place. Trail Horse placings were reversed; Marie/Willow first place; Kathleen/Ali second place!
Over the next few days we will be posting a helmet cam video of some of the trail and a slide show of photos of the riders. Thank you to the McDonald family and all the other volunteers that make this ride possible. It was a fantastic weekend.
Monday, August 5, 2013
What's YOUR Story?
We had a great time at McDonald's Run. Details to follow. For now, here's a little video fun we had with a few of the Tidal Treasures Crew early on Sunday Morning (ride day for the 14 mile JP).
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