Whew, what a week! I feel I got the mild version of a trip to the AERC National Championships, not that it’s a bad thing. A heck of a lot happened, but folks are healing and horses look fantastic from all accounts, so it was a successful trip for many including us.

Packing for this trip was the smoothest I’ve ever managed, partly due to cleaning out and really sprucing up my trailer for a horse camping presentation for a local group (Oregon Equestrian Trails, focused on keeping horse camps and trails open in Oregon!) Everything was super organized, all I had to pack was the usual last minute items of human food and clean clothes. Oh, and leaving the trailer at the barn the night before so my friend Rachel could toss her stuff in at the last minute! I’m so glad I had the forethought to dig out Tarma’s third backup blanket (her others are at the cleaning and repair shop for the summer). The haul over was smooth as glass. I took the slightly longer way via Eugene and Highway 58, which is a much straighter drive and easier on the horses. My usual copilot abandoned me to sit in the backseat with the dog, so I was left alone with my new Deadpool themed playlist and Buffy rewatch podcast. Every trip I make without a rig related issue makes me feel like I won the truck lottery, and I always give Denna a nice pat for a job well done.

We rolled in Thursday afternoon and tucked ourselves in the back, far away from the hustle and bustle and right next to some friends who were volunteering. Setting up two horses on their Hi-ties takes no time at all with Kade’s help, and I was able to vet Tarma in with no trouble. I blanketed her in anticipation of a slightly chilly night, then went hunting down the blood machine (forgot to get her after ride blood draw, dangit!) and a clipper to stencil a crown onto her butt (which I absolutely adore!) I missed a bit of socializing as I don’t drink or stay up late the night before a ride, alas. I also was one blanket too short to be fully comfortable (high desert in August is still chilly), so I didn’t sleep the best even with my Labradork heater. I also had to get up a bit earlier than usual to wrestle Tarma’s boots on, and I remembered why I’ve been shelling out for composite shoes as it took me a good 25 minutes to get them set just right…and she still rubbed her front heel bulbs (Regular Scoots, so I might switch her to EasyBoot Gloves all around, because the Gloves on her rears didn’t budge or rub even a tiny bit, even though they are a pain in the ass to ensure they are on correctly at 5 in the morning!) Once I had stuffed cold brew, a banana, yogurt and Excedrin down my gullet, we were ready to rock. I took a chance that almost went sideways, I both mounted in camp to start and wore my warmer Artic Skirt, as it was pretty chilly! After riding calmly out of camp on LDs all season, Tarma decided to be almost too spicy but I breathed deep and lectured her, so while we went slightly sideways out of camp we did so with no airs above ground. Jala did catch some lovely photos of us heading out with my skirt on!

The first loop went by like blazes, we’ve never done a loop so fast! We managed 23 miles in just over 3 hours, for a moving average of 7.1mph! My plan going into this ride was to really let her move out as long as she wasn’t feeling like she was working too hard or bellowing. This loop was pretty flat and not super sandy overall, it was still cool and foggy and Tarma was fired up. We even passed someone once! I kept to my half dose of electrolytes every 9-10 miles protocol, though she didn’t really drink this loop even though it was 23 miles. I did hop off and insist she eat something a few miles outside camp (and to pee, of course) and I think this helped a little. Unfortunately her buddy gelding (#stay where I can see you but don’t you dare breathe my air!) was out riding when we settled in for our first vet check, so she spent the first 45 minutes staring off into the distance and occasionally screaming. Of course she’s never cared where he was during a race before, but that day she really cared. When my friend got back we took turns hand feeding her, once she had yelled at Cody for daring to not be where she wanted him to be. I gave her an hour at this hold versus the required 45 minutes to ensure she actually ate something, and at least she was drinking super well.

The second two loops were pretty short compared to the first one which was basically an LD itself. We circled out around the Hole in the Ground, and this is where I discovered that given the choice trying to cover ground over deep sand, Tarma preferred to canter. A ton. We spent at least a third of this ride cantering, more than I ever have at any endurance ride. Almost as soon as we’d settle into her normal road trot, she’d roll into a nice, round, controlled canter., and maintain it for a half mile or more before I pulled her back down. It was so much fun, even as I erred on the side of caution in the afternoon and walked more than normal (of course the afternoon loops were pretty much without shade). I think I’m going to switch from a sponge to a cut up milk jug to splash water over her in the future, like the cool kids do! Even cantering a ton over the sand in the direct sun, she wasn’t getting quite as hot as I feared, and for the second loop she never hesitated. We finished 12 miles in a respectable 2 hours, dropping our moving average to 6mph, more our normal speed.

She did manage to spend the 45 minute second hold (again, only 30 were required but I wanted her to eat and we had it to spare) mostly eating, so I was happier. We cantered out and around the back of Hole in the Ground, only this time we had to climb it. I could feel her start to flag a bit, she was marching but not trotting up it so I busted out in song as we could see forever and were basically alone. She clearly didn’t eat enough in the morning and I think the cantering took a bit more out of her than I expected, because once we marched up Hole in the Ground, she declared she was absolutely starving. She sucked down water at the tank at the top and told me to get off, so I did and we meandered around the rim, stopping to eat every two feet or so. Even though we had plenty of time I was ready to call it a day and we had a measly three miles to camp, so I eventually hopped back on and asked for a trot…which I got for 50 yards and then she returned to eat, take a few steps, grab a bite, take a few steps, contemplate the view. Usually we hit a mutual bonk around 35 miles, today we made it to mile 44 before she flagged. Convincing her to keep walking, that camp was juuuuust over there and then she could eat all night took a few minutes, but eventually she sighed and agreed to keep chugging down off the hill.

Naturally, when she was going her absolute slowest and doing her best to convince me to just let her stand in one place and eat for awhile, is when a young rider in the championship ride blasted happily past, looking young and fresh even while dirt covered and having gone 73 miles already. All of a sudden Tarma realized she wasn’t alone in this howling wilderness, and she started pulling at me. I laughed and let her canter across the finish line, can’t let those young whipper snappers have all the glory! She took a few extra minutes to pulse down at the finish, but not so long I worried. Rachel and Kade helped me strip tack and boots and cool her down, while she made grumpy faces because all she wanted to do was eat at that point (not like she hadn’t had two vet holds to stuff her face and chose not to do so!) We finished that last loop in 2:20, nearly 25 minutes longer to go a mile less than the second loop, for a moving average of 4.7mph. Negative splits, what are those? Though to be fair, we did the biggest climb (all of 600 feet, but all in less than a half a mile) at 3pm during the hottest part of the day with no shade, and she did march up without a break. And our max speed on this loop was the fastest, at 22mph if I want to believe the Ride With GPS.

She passed her completion exam with flying colors, including compliments from the head vet himself (even if I did have Kade trot her out for me). I had managed myself pretty well all day, and while I was functional my stomach was a bit delicate, enough that if I didn’t make any sudden moves or bad food choices I was fine. I slept much better as it was warmer, and Tarma was a happy camper all night. The next day Rachel offered for Kade to ride Cody with me so Tarma could get a leg stretching ride, but that required me to get back on the horse. Instead I opted for something I didn’t think was possible a year ago: Kade rode Tarma without me, following Rachel and Cody. I didn’t burst with pride, but that’s cause my ribs hurt from all the cantering.

Once they were back and Tarma was well settled with alfalfa, timothy hay, beet pulp and Outlast mash for the afternoon, I set up shop with Luanne and Sharke at the out timers canopy. We spent the next 13 hours, give or take, tracking the 100 miler championship riders as they headed out on their various loops. At one point while watching the massive lightning storm over the mountains we thought it might hit us, so I popped Tarma’s blanket back on and worried if it was waterproof. Luckily we didn’t have to test it, as we never got more than a few drops, though a few big wind gusts took out several canopies. As dark fell we snuggled into our warmest clothing and continued to cheer on the intrepid riders. I learned so much just staying quiet and listening to these two experienced riders and ride manager chat. At one point we got a little loopy trying to keep each other awake, and I mentioned Oregon’s exploding whale. Apparently Luanne had never heard of this, so Sharke and I spent the last hour explaining it to her and howling at our own crazy wit. Sometime about 130am the last riders headed out for their last loop, so we packed up and fell face first into bed. I did turn on my Mr. Buddy heater while I changed and turned it off once I crawled into bed, and that made it easier to sleep for a few hours before the awards.

We packed up quick after cheering on all the finishers and headed home, with a pit stop at my favorite spot along the Deschutes River at Warm Springs. Tarma popped off the trailer looking like a million bucks, cantering out to her favorite rolling spot in the pasture before shoving all the other horses away so she could drink. Now, if only I could really get myself into a good shape, we’ll be as set as we can be to pursue our next goal, our first 100 miler next year…..