My main story is just Shade is a trooper. My left ankle felt stiff and a bit sore most of the ride. Ride pics show I had my right leg way in front of me instead of flexed normally, so probably I had my left knee too straight as well so the ankle was in a funky position and having to absorb extra motion as well. SIGH, I HATE that I was making things harder for my horse by having such poor riding form. Oh well my steel magnolia got through in spite of me. I was also having some heat issues. Someone told me my hair was holding in heat. I think she was correct, so I am going to try to get my hair cut before the next ride and get some velcro on my helmet and on a scarf or bit of cloth to keep the sun off my neck but allow more air space. I don't really want to dunk my hair to cool myself. That works but puts extra water dripping down my glasses + the hair gets into an awful tangle doing that.
The ride was sneaky tough. It was a mountain ride with a lot of elevation change but it was all trails that bicyclists had put in, and they took a lot of care to keep the gradients from being at all steep. Having ridden it, and only one person who had planned to ride the 50 again on sunday did so I think the nearly constant climbing up or down was harder on the horses than some steep climbs mixed with flat stretches like Shamrock would have been. I don't use an altimeter or GPS so I don't know how the elevation amounts between the two rides compare though. I do know that I had not conditioned for 2 fairly tough rides but the fact that all those other folks also dropped out from the second day says it was not JUST me riding poorly and not having conditioned Shade.
Two horses had colic after this ride. (maybe more) but folks camped near me hauled their horse to the veterinary clinic about 9:30-10 pm. The ride vets had given the horse some IV fluids and probably a small dose of banimine around 6:30. When he got uncomfortable again the owners took him to the clinic. He did come around with fluids overnight. I think from eavesdropping on the conversation the next morning when they came back to get the riding daughter and her other horse that they had not been syringing electrolytes because the horse acted like that hurt his tummy --possible ulcer, they said he had been eating real well but unless they had lots of lytes mixed in his food that was probably not enough on that hot day for that amount of work. I told them I use the CMC to mix with electrolytes and it works for Shade who used to hate seeing a syringe.
The ride managers younger daughters' horse also had a colic overnight --I guess the ride vets could feel the gut was twisted so that horse was euthanized. I don't know if they did a field necropsy and I don't know if the horse came off the trail looking stressed since I was still on the trail. I think I saw him shortly after they left the 2nd vet check with a small group of horses and he did not look bad then. The horse was a rescue so the ride vets said it might have had worm damage that caused its colic. I guess the AERC horse welfare committee will study it and probably post their findings and I'll learn a few more details. Horses are so strong, carrying us over all those hills and rocks and yet they can be so fragile - when something goes bad with the digestive system it can quickly become a deadly issue. I have to remember to dig out a sympathy card and send. I feel extra bad for the RM to have that tragedy hit after she worked so hard to find and mark trails to put on the ride.
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