Nowaystails Blog - Full StoryAugust 29 2013
Preparing for a ride takes some thought...and some planning, and some loose arrangements. I have found that the ability to go with the flow has been the way to tamp down the preparation butterflies to a controlled flutter.
There is a group of us that seem to flock together due to location, for conditioning our horses, food planning, drink planning, support and of course the all important, fun. We have learned that on a two day ride, or more, it is much less stressful when some of us ride one day, and the other half crew, then switch for the following day. Especially if there is one or more away vet checks. Of course there are the toughies that can ride both days, or more, which for us is no problem since we are many...:)
Within our club, The Daniel Boone Distance Riders, we have team competitions. And certainly we do some ‘arranging’ so as to try and get team points, but, when it gets down to it, we DBDRs are of one team pitching in where needed. Heck, we even pitch in to help the other crewless...
The VA Highlands ride is a top notch ride not to be missed! I have had the good fortune to have ridden and finished it all five years. It just gets better and better. It is one of the more ‘challenging’ rides that I do. I would compare it to Leatherwood, another must do ride, that I have had to miss the last couple of years due to the date, which falls on same date of one or our DBDR rides.
The South East has experienced a lot of rain this year...a LOT. And more than one ride has had to make camping or trail last minute decisions. It fell to Don and Nicki Meuten and their fabulous volunteers to that task, since the ride camp borders the New River. Fortunately, the ride was on! But, there was MUD...however, Tom Hagis and his golf cart got us all in there without a hitch. At least not that I ever saw...:) Four wheel drive is a good thing... He even got our little group parked together even though we arrived two different days..Thank you!
Since the first of our group got there on Wed. we were able to stretch out the work. Often times these rides can be a production. Vicki Crance and her horse Banjo hitched a ride with me. Greg Jones and Mary Lynn Stockdale, and Mary Kolb all got ourselves driven and parked within a few, well several hours of driving. Mary had the farthest to go but also managed to hook up with us so as to caravan down. No blown engines, no flat tires...whew! We got set up, horses in their corrals, (a bit on the muddy side), awnings out, etc, etc. I think I mentioned MUD...
Read more here:
http://nowaystails.blogspot.com/2013/08/va-highlands-ride-2013.html?showComment=1377874238740#c5402259030929369841
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