My [growing] love of endurance

My first stint with the spor twas five years ago on an Appendix QH - it was amazing.  The attitudes of the Arabian owners toward me were less than desirable, but my training paid off and Stan performed amazingly.  All that hard work showed in our unofficial 2nd place.  We could easily have snagged a first in the 30 miler.  And I didn't have to ask him to do much - he just went.  He loved it.  If people who were seasoned veterans had been a little nicer then we could have won - but we didn't know the rules.  And no one was very helpful.  One gentleman was - I still regret not catching his name - but he wasn't around at the finish line to tell me I could shoe Stan before the vetting out (as he'd thrown one on the last loop).  So we were disqualified - and then shoed immediately after - and then told "oh, by the way, you could have done that prior to vetting out".  Gee, thanks.

Basecamp

The Arab version of Orion lol

Orion Arab again

This big Percheron/QH mare completed 30 miles

But this weekend!  Oh, I'm hooked after this weekend.  Absolutely hooked!!  It was kind of a huge tease - wanting gear, wanting horses.  But, oh, did I learn a lot!  I helped out the vets with all of the participants as they came through their loops.  I know what vets are looking for as the horses come through.  What is good, what is bad, what one can do to better themselves and their horse in different kinds of weather.

Flea-bitten paint - go figure!!

Kasif, an 11 year old Egyptian Arabian gelding - my favorite horse at the race hands-down.  And he was a top 10 finisher.  I want one like him one day.  Tall and leggy and gorgeous.  Aaaah!!  Oh and behaved, did I mention that?!

My next foray into this sport will be for good.  I'll go big and do it all.  Get the right saddle, get a nice bridle, get a single horse trailer that a not-huge car could pull successfully.  I'll get into it and I won't get out.

So much to look into in the mean time!  Gear, feed, breeding.  Breed choice will definitely be an Arab after this weekend.  The benefits of their physiology compared to the non-Arabs was proven to me time and time again.  They pulse down so much quicker!  The high humidity was rough on all the horses - but the Arabs did the best.

Whole hog slow-cooked all day to feed 100+ people.

Oh dreams and goals....so much to do in the mean time though!  I will get there.  Ideally in the next ten years - but we will see.  My love of horses and desire to do more with them has definitely increased after the past weekend though!