Santa Fe ACTHA Weekend ~ A Pictorial

 

Camper’s packed and hitched up. Ready to go.

 

Apache Mare loaded and comfortable.

 

Cowgirls discuss directions because………Y’all know that Cowgirls Don’t Get Lost.

 

Arrive at Caja del Rio National Forest, set up corrals and camper.

 

Hey! Nice views from inside the camper.

 

Kicking back relaxing until dinner time. Temperatures are dropping, clouds are rolling in.

 Brrr! Down to low 50’s and it starts to sprinkle. After dinner we head off to bed and it rains steady from 8:30pm until 6 am. This is not normal weather for New Mexico this time of year. We’re so glad we packed two extra sleeping bags to keep us warm and toasty.

 

Woke up Saturday morning to hungry horses who knew we were within earshot. “Yes, hay burners, we’re on our way out. Hold your horses!” Afterwards we crawled back into the warmth of our sleeping bags. Brrr! We could see the steam from our breaths!

 

ACTHA ride was delayed until after 12pm due to the greasy, slippery mud. The Forest Service shut down the entire area to protect the dirt roads from becoming deeply rutted and the natural environment from becoming destroyed. No vehicles in and none out. Shelley, the ride coordinator had the arriving riders and vehicles park a few miles up the road in a parking lot near some baseball fields, and stand by until the ride was to begin around noon.

But the ground did eventually dry out enough to head out after the 12pm Rider’s Briefing. (That’s Shelley in the red jacket)

 

One of the Junior Riders, K, a very talented young lady who has been doing ACTHA rides as long as I have. We are actually neighbors and only live a couple miles from one another. Her horse, Laddie was trying to get her attention. What do you think?

 

Olga and her lovely Haflinger. These two normally do Dressage and this was their first ACTHA Competitive Trail Ride.

 

 

Hey! Check out the Helmet Cam! Olga has a blog and shares ride videos with her readers.

 

Two of my local horse friends, Roni and Laurie.

 

Hand Grazing Apache out on the Caja. She sees Roni and her mare Halley in the distance.

 

After the ride was over it was time to visit with horse friends, like Matt and his Clydesdale, from the NM Mounted Search and Rescue. This was their first ACTHA ride as competitors, although they have volunteered as safety riders a few times in the past. They were hosts of our last ACTHA ride at Founders Ranch, that Apache and I rode in, too.

 

Olga’s Bucket List included “Riding a Clydesdale”. Now she can cross that one off.

 

Posing for a photo with Matt and Prince. Apache dreaming of what it would be like to be a Draft Horse. I’d say that Prince and Apache really hit it off well.

 

We also found some time to visit with Theresa and her handsome Lipizzaner/Hungarian Warmblood, Zeema. Who, as many of you all know, is one of the 5 contestants from New Mexico in the running for America’s Favorite Trail Horse, which you can watch on Dish TV on HRTV every Tuesday night at 6pm Mountain Time. You can also catch each week’s episode on ACTHA TV for FREE!!

Remember to vote for Zeema #223 on September 20th!

 After visiting with everyone, Roni and I decided to take a sunset ride on the Caja together.

 

And my friend, Shelley played Peek-A-Boo behind my Apache Mare, who couldn’t figure out what that strange giggling lady was was up to, crouched back there. 

And after a delicious Potluck dinner around the campfire at THE END of the day, it was time to head to bed.

(Go ahead and sing it. You know you want to……………….”I Like Big Butts, and I Cannot Lie!” lol!)

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The next morning dawned bright and sunny and much warmer. Ranchman threw off the blankets and jacket and donned a short-sleeve shirt. And I prepared myself for a day of Judging Obstacles.

But first there was the Rider’s Briefing, which was a special one that day, because it was the 10 Year Anniversary of 9/11 and the theme of our ride was Ride for the Heroes.

 

Donna Woods, one of the 5 New Mexico Contestants competing with her mare, Elektra, for the title of America’s Favorite Trail Horse, may not ever win an American Idol contest for her singing, but her rendition of the National Anthem still brought out a few tears from folks at the Rider’s Briefing, and even gave me goose bumps. Especially on a very emotional day, such as 9/11. 

 

There were quite a lot of horses wearing hoof boots that day. There is something endearing about a horse wearing boots, over a horse wearing metal shoes, don’t you think?

This horse was so relaxed in her pretty hoof boots. I really wanted to ask this mare’s owner for some tips or advice to get my mare to the same point when she wears her own hoof boots.

And I just fell in love with this gelding’s tack. He and rider looked so good together!

 

               Oooh! La! La! And Bitless, too!

 

Olga and her Haflinger were ready to go! And don’t you just love her friend’s horse’s hoof boots? Stars and Stripes. The American Flag! Perfect choice for such a special occasion.

 

And Theresa and Zeema were all decked out for the theme “Ride for the Heroes”!

Don’t forget to watch Theresa and Zeema #223, on America’s Favorite Trail Horse on Dish TV on HRTV on Tuesday Sept. 20th, at 6pm Mountain Time. You can also watch each episode on ACTHA TV for FREE.
The First Episode, from last Tuesday, which is an introduction to ACTHA and America’s Favorite Trail Horse, is ready and waiting for you to view! Check it out: ACTHA TV

Then it was time for Shelley to take both Karen and I out to the obstacle we had been assigned to judge.  Karen and I set up the obstacle and after Shelley took care of a few things back at Base Camp, she came back to hang out with us.

Of course we had to take a few photos of all the fun we were having. (It’s tough to pose for a photo when you’re tall and someone else is…...not).

 

Shelley is one of the funniest, coolest, and most go-with-the flow people I know. I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. I just love her.

She and her handsome Mustang, Macho were one of the 5 New Mexican’s chosen to be in the finals to compete for the title of America’s Favorite Trail Horse!! Their Episode airs in November, and you can be sure you’ll hear more about that when their time gets closer!

 

Obstacle #6 “Celebration” was our obstacle. It was the last one of the day. ACTHA rides are usually 6 miles with 6 obstacles. This one required Pleasure riders to weave at a walk around the balloon covered poles and then turn around and walk past them to the exit. The Open riders were required to weave at a trot around the poles, trot over to the tree covered in inflatable beach toys, grab one off, and trot back to a judge and hand it to them, then trot to the exit. And Shelley was there to do the Soundness Check. (Oh, and yes, some of the balloons managed to pop as riders were maneuvering their way through the poles...)

 

This is Mike B. His horse’s name is Chester. Mike adopted Chester from the horse rescue, Walkin N Circles Ranch Horse Rescue, where I am a volunteer. He and Chester are truly awesome. They have placed in the top 6 and won First Place several times during ACTHA CTRs. They have a beautiful bond together and are a real team. It just goes to show that a rescued horse really can go on to do great things.

Notice the pilot’s uniform? That’s not just any uniform. That’s Mike’s pilot uniform that he wore when he flew F-18 jets! Notice the pockets on his legs? They used to be filled with Official Pilot Flight and Safety Equipment.

But I wonder if Mike ever imagined, when he was flying those F-18s, that those same pockets would one day hold Horse Cookies?

 

And here we have our own Dun Appy of the Bluewater Ranger Bred Blog. Just to see DunAppy riding on Sunday made me happy, because it almost didn’t happen, due to serious truck troubles that caused them to be stranded on the side of the Interstate, in the rain, for several hours on Friday night. She and her husband couldn’t ride on Saturday because they had to take their truck into Santa Fe to get those Radiator Repairs done permanently. It was a very stressful situation and caused her husband to give up the opportunity to ride in his very first ACTHA CTR. She still came prepared as a true hero on Sunday, wearing her official Fire Fighter uniform, while riding her sweet little Appy mare, Baby Girl.

DunAppy’s friend Linda rode the famous, talented and beautiful Lady Bug, DunAppy’s usual mount, because Linda’s horse seemed to have a lameness issue during Saturday CTR. 

 

After the CTR it was time for everyone to gather under and around the Base Camp Shelter for lunch and awards. (Did I mention that there was green chile pizza? Yum!)

 

This Jr. Rider and her lovely horse were practicing some trust exercises, and caught my eye.

 

This young lady, A, is a volunteer at the horse rescue where I volunteer, Walkin N Circles Ranch Horse Rescue(WNCR). She bought her little Mustang mare, Sadie, last year, from my friend and mentor Colleen, also one of the founders of WNCR. She and I have ridden together over at Colleen’s ranch and she is boarding her horse at Jessica’s ranch, where we have taken Group Lessons together. She is a very talented young horsewoman and she and her Mustang mare, Sadie, were participating in their very first ACTHA ride……and won FIRST PLACE in the Junior Rider Division!!!! Isn’t that totally awesome???!!! I’m so proud of them!  

 

I really enjoyed the entire weekend, despite the cold, the rain and the mud. Everyone seemed to have a great time riding, camping, and visiting with wonderful horse friends and making new ones. But, all good things must come to an END.

Don’t forget to watch America’s Favorite Trail Horse every Tuesday night at 6pm Mountain time, on Dish TV/HRTV, or for FREE on  ACTHA TV! Support the 100 Riders from around the country as they compete for the highly esteemed title of America’s Favorite Trail Horse!!

Ten different horse and rider teams will compete each week!!

Visit ACTHA after the September 20th Episode and vote for Zeema #223!

Friday Fotos ~ Caja Sunset Ride

 

My hubby, Ranchman John took all of the following photos, either with his cell phone or with my camera.

                                                     Tacking up

Getting ready to head out, posing for a few photos first.

 

My friend Roni on her mare, Halley. Apache was on high alert distracted by all the sights, smells and sounds.

 

Heading out to ride the trails on the Caja del Rio and enjoy the beautiful sunset.

 

                                                        “Red Sky at Night, Sailor’s (Rider's) Delight”

Horse Camping Weekend ~ Part 1

 

Wow. Has it been a week already? I think this may be the longest absence I’ve ever had from my blog. Anybody miss me?

I’ve just not been able to get caught up lately. First there was my twinling’s Boy Scout backpacking trip up to the Pecos to prepare for, along with my birthday camping trip up to Santa Fe for the Caja del Rio AERC Endurance ride that I worked as a Pulse and Respiration Assistant (where we learned how uncomfortable it is to sleep inside a leaky tent during a powerful thunderstorm).

(One of the 50 Milers coming in for his final Vet Check)

Then there was our Back-to-Homeschool schedule to get organized for beginning right after Labor Day weekend, followed by Apache’s Hoof Boot MisAdventure, followed by another lesson with my instructor Jessica. Then the next day we had to be all packed up for a weekend horse camping trip and back-to-back ACTHA CTCs held in the National Forest at the Caja del Rio up in Santa Fe.

To say I’ve been busy is truly an understatement.

The morning after the Hoof Boot Misadventure was the lesson with Jessica. The temps got down to the low 40s that night and when I went up to feed Apache she was quivering. I’m still not sure if it was from the cold or from nervousness, though. Once I put her in the barn with some hay and I spent a few minutes just grooming her and rubbing her down, she did stop shivering, but she still seemed jumpy and nervous. I was concerned that the experience the night before had traumatized her and caused her to mistrust me, even though the experience did end on a calm note.

I think Jessica sensed something different was going on with Apache, although I never said anything. Even though I got Apache all tacked and saddled up, I never got the chance to ride her that day, because Jessica had us doing groundwork for the entire 2 hour lesson instead.

It quickly became apparent that ground work is just what Apache needs most right now because she doesn’t always move off pressure or respect your space. She is also known to have a grouchy attitude sometimes…or what FernValley coined as an Apache-tude.

                                           (Who me?)

She is mostly willing and brave, but she also has a strong sense of self-preservation and stubbornness, too, especially if she thinks something you’re doing isn’t in her best interest. Jessica says this is something common with Mustangs and when I finally told her about the Hoof Boot Misadventure she wasn’t shocked and said that she’s surprised more horses don’t wig out the first time a pair of clunky horse boots are strapped to their feet, and that Mustangs tend to react much differently than the typical domestic horses do.

So, I didn’t get to ride my horse on Thursday, but we worked on side passing and lunging for respect on the ground, which wore both Apache and I out when we were through. At one point, with Jessica working her, Apache didn’t move her butt away from Jessica fast enough and my mare wasn’t paying attention to her feet. Apache slipped and fell on her side, which made me a little sick in my stomach. Seeing your horse do a “flop-splat”, removes some of that confidence in how strong and powerful we assume these creatures are, and that we trust to carry our frail bodies around safely on their backs.

Anyway, the lesson was overall a positive experience and even though at times I felt a little overwhelmed, uncoordinated and challenged trying to learn new techniques, (and I know Apache did, too), I did immediately notice a difference in Apache’s behavior and Jessica gave me some hope and encouragement for the future, too.

(Apache behind Jessica’s barn, at the end of our lesson)

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But Friday morning was a new day and the weather had turned even more into a typical Fall day, with temps in the upper 30s and a brisk little breeze blowing through. Apache was full of herself when I went up to her paddock in the morning to feed her and get her ready for our horse camping trip and the weekend ACTHA rides up in Santa Fe. She was prancing and cantering along her fence line up and down the hillside, every so often throwing in a buck with a twist. At one point she did quite an impressive Airs Above Ground maneuver, leaping above the ground and kicking out with her legs, a lot like the Lipizzaner Stallions do with the Capriole.

(Short video showing a Mounted Capriole)

I could tell she was wired up and had a feeling she might give me a little trouble that morning. And she did. She pranced her way into the barn, shaking her head, and flipping her mane this-a-way and that-a-way. When I went in with the halter and lead rope, she ducked away and ran out of her stall and down into the main paddock. Well, ok. She wants to make it hard on herself. Fine with me. I’m not playing that game. Even with all the rain we’ve been getting here the last couple weeks, the weather has turned cooler and the grass has stopped growing. So, there’s not much in the main paddock to eat, except some tough, sour-tasting weeds. (How do I know they’re sour? Yeah. I’ve smelled them on her breath. bleh.)

So, I closed her stall in the barn, with her breakfast inside and walked back down to the house so I could enjoy my own breakfast and finish packing. When I got down to the gate at the bottom of the hill and looked back up to the barn, I couldn’t help but let out an evil laugh because Apache was standing at her stall gate eyeing her hay and then turning her head to look at me. “Well……..girl, if you would have let me halter you when I wanted to and not ran away, you’d be enjoying your yummy hay in your cozy stall right now.”

So I let her think about that for a while and when I came back outside about 45 minutes later, as soon as I opened up the gate to the main paddock, there was Apache nickering at me while calmly lowering her head and literally stuffing her nose into the halter.

She politely walked beside me up to the barn and I finished grooming her while she ate her breakfast, and then I closed her into the stall so she was able to finish eating in peace until Roni showed up about 1pm to pick up Apache for the drive up to Santa Fe.

(Roni at the Caja on Sunday afternoon, horses loaded, ready to head back home.)

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The drive was uneventful and quick. We live less than an hour from Santa Fe and we drove the scenic Turquoise Trail behind the Sandia Mountains, instead of the busy I-40 and I-25 route through and north of Albuquerque, so there was no problem with traffic (there was probably less than 5 cars that shared the road with us on a Friday afternoon), and the views were incredibly beautiful as usual.

We easily found the Caja del Rio and because the area is located on the southwestern side of Santa Fe, about 20 minutes from The Plaza, there was very little traffic. So we arrived late Friday afternoon with plenty of time to get a good campsite close to the bathrooms and the large Ramada shelter.

We set up our campsite and portable horse corrals and enjoyed a tasty cowboy dinner, then visited with some of the other ACTHA folks around a cozy campfire set up beneath the Ramada shelter.

(Roni in her Cowgirl pajamas on Saturday morning)

 

But the weather was changing and by 8:30pm, the rain began to fall and the temperature began to drop. We headed off to our campsite, (me, grateful not to have to sleep on the ground in a tent) and after checking on the horses, fell asleep to sound of a steady rain falling on the camper.

It continued to rain all through the night and into the early morning, which is something we New Mexicans just aren’t used to. We’re more familiar with our powerful monsoon storms that dump a couple inches of moisture on the ground in an hour or less and then moves on. Steady, constant rain is a rarity here but something the soil, plants and underground aquifers actually need.

Except we didn’t especially appreciate this storm the night before one of the biggest ACTHA CTCs in the country was supposed to take place: The Guinness World Record Ride for the Mustangs.

Would it even take place?

 

Come back to find out…..