Spent the weekend at Winding River Resort in RMNP

 It is a very nicely set up campgrounds.   Of course I have enough of my grandfathers blood to feel like "yeah, but it needed to be a really really nice set up for >$80 per night."     Friday we did a lot of chatting around the propane fire ring that C and & T have and it was fun.   But between the cost and the drive *I* would opt to just camp at Indian Creek or some other NF undeveloped campground that was easier to get to.  

The trails were nice and dry in the non-rocky sections.   Saturday's ride got a bit scary.   Wind was gusting, not terribly hard/fast but the trees are so overcrowded and beetle damaged up there that they were coming down crack, boom right where we were riding.    Not good with an 8 horse group which is about 4 horses too many for the endurance pace riding we all do without extra drama from falling trees.   But there were no casualties.   We got to a trail split and M & J announced "its a pretty ride to those falls but we are heading back"   This got us split into two groups of 4 and things were better after that.  I won't say relaxed cuz M and Rocky were cruising through some trail sections where I would have kept the pace down to a slow to mid-pace trot so I was having to suck it up and go with the flow some.   

Then when we were back at the resort there is a river ford and Tanza got his feet tangled up in the rocks in the river and fell down.  Luckily the only damage to either him or me was tiny scrapes under our knees but we were both dismayed by the unexpected dunking.   Tanza was very unhappy cuz he got water in his left ear.   But fancy campground with unlimited hot shower so it was not too bad for me after I walked Tanza back to our camp spot and got him in his pen.   I got out of the shower and found I had not put my jeans in the bag.  I tied my towels around my waist to walk back to my trailer, rather than put my wet riding tights back on.  That was fine, the towels covered as much as a skirt would have.   

K brought over some flavored vodkas that she had got J and M for their birthdays.  I was a bit like "oh shit I didn't know I should have gotten a gift" but later when M was talking it came out that he had sponsored K's granddaughter at a ride, so she probably felt like she should get them something for being so nice.  I *think* J and M are good with not going to gift exchanges with B and I.   It isn't like they invited us to some mountain property they own and did extra work to host people joining the birthday camping trip.   

I hauled B's horse Taj up on Friday so she could work her normal day and just drive up after work and he is staying here until Tuesday night so she didn't have to rush home on Sunday, or skip shopping or whatever weekend errands to haul him home.  She drove her car up to RMNP, rather than burn all the extra gas to take her p/u.  She has bible study tonight and because I'm fine with keeping Taj  she will just leave him the extra night.  I am fine with this,  I can feed Tanza extra hay and feed w/o having to wait to put him back in the paddock since Taj also needs extra groceries and the two geldings get along so well together.  

I must remember my norms if ever riding with J again

I totally forgot my "I don't try to train/manage other people's horses" motto yesterday.   And J is no rookie although he was talking like it yesterday which contributed to my stupidity.  But he is like my mom, always doing that self-deprecating way of talking and then annoyed when people believe any of it.  I knew he has been riding for over 20 years and knows his way around all his horses but I just forgot for a bit since he was riding K's mare and not his gelding.  Sighhhh.

The day had a bigger "oh crap" element when L's horse tripped and went down on her foot.  Torqued her ankle good so it was a slow walking ride back to the trailhead after that.   Freak accident but I had been in front and picked up a trot so I am feeling like I should have been more cautious about where I decided to trot since her horse is 28 years old.  

I got home and was just wiped out and felt like I should not have been since I had not been working hard in the heat.  Oh well.  All the do list items can be gotten to eventually.   I need to resume progress on the cleaner house and de-cluttering.  I fear that I will never get back to it if I stop pecking away.  I should see if there is any local effort to collect clothes, bedding etc to ship to OR or WA folks who lost stuff in their wildfires.   That might be a good reason to sort through some excess blankets and mom's clothes.  

B is all moved into her new condo.  I drove her car over there on Saturday.  She still had a carload of stuff here, so after everybody left after toasting with champagne we stopped at Bass Pro for her to buy an air mattress since the one she bought to be delivered from AFW won't arrive till end of Sept.   The house seems lonely now.  I need to move some stuff back into the guest room.  Still have a bit of 'should I just get rid of this' decision tree stuff but it would be fine to just move things back in there for now.  

Tanza and I survived grueling heat at Basin ride Labor day weekend.

 There were 4 100 milers that showed TRUE endurance, riding 100 miles Saturday with temps that got to 100 degrees.   One got pulled at the last vet check, her horse was lame.   Another rider said the horse had been forging all day.    It would have sucked to have ridden all but the last loop and have the temps finally cooling off and get pulled; but she is an excellent horsewoman and I'm sure was on board with not taking the horse out for 12 last miles when it was not sound.    Because I was riding the next day and was wiped out after doing the 55,  I did not stay up to cheer for the three that finished.   I think the one from my state that I know felt slighted by that.   Oh well,  I know myself and I had to be able to function and take care of my horse the next day.  Its not like his 3 person pit crew (well 1 was riding the LD  on Sunday) came over and offered to help me if I stayed up and gave J a bigger cheering section.  

Only 3 riders did the 55 on Saturday.   Most folks had planned on only riding one day and opted to ride on Sunday when it was forecast to 'only' get to 90 degrees for the high.   We all rode the first 5 or so miles in the dark together and then G was moving out on her great fast 100 mile horse.  I did not want to go that fast when planning to go again the next day, plus did not want to leave L entering his 2nd 50, after having pulled from one 3 years ago all by himself.   L and his horse kept a pretty good pace.  We did the first loop in just over 3 hours, right on the 8 mph pace I had wanted.   On the 2nd loop L's horse was not wanting to go as fast and I didn't want to push past the mare's fitness level and kept Tanza behind her and we took almost 3 hours to go that 18 miles.   That was not what I had wanted but was not a big deal.  On the last loop when we turned off on cutoff and Tanza knew the loop was shorter he picked up the pace and I figured L and his mare would be fine or could slow down since it was the last loop.    L is TOUGH.  He did not have a camelback or pommel or cantle packs to hold water bottles so he was not drinking the whole ride like I was with my camelback.   Tanza looked good at the finish and I was wiped out,  took me a couple hours to summon the energy to take a shower.   J's wife convinced me to put Tanza in a now empty pen and move my trailer to the grass.  This was much nicer for Tanza on Sunday so I'm glad she talked me into doing that.   I had thought that the E family that had joined us at Happy Jack camping the previous weekend would come and ride but they never showed.   C may have been pressed into working OT as she is with the county health dept and I heard on the radio that the Univ. had 5 positive covid tests.   Seems like the rest of the family could have come anyway, but they did not. 

6 riders started on Sunday.   A did a fast ride,  3 of us did a fairly slow ride and Y and G took it even a bit slower, G was getting his decade award (10 years doing at least 1 50) with his awesome mare,   G is 80 years old; hats off to him to still be able to ride 55 miles.   Y was being a true friend and helping him get through the ride.   She got her decade award with her great gelding last year.   The 2, I ended up riding with on Sunday were not quite as good to ride with as L.   The one has been riding for close to 20 years but 'cant bring myself to drink from rubbery tasting camelback'  Picky little princess has to use metal water bottles and we couldn't pick up a trot when she was drinking because she couldn't get the tops screwed back on going faster than a walk.   I was good and tired of that by the end of the ride.   If it been been just the other rider, who is, like L fairly new to endurance I think she would have been on board with walking just a bit through rocks or whatever and then picking the pace back up right away.

Tanza was a bit off at the end of the ride.  Between that, and people helping G and Y out (well of course, cuz G is a hero doing endurance at 80 years old) but no other riders offered 2nd day me any help or any kudos all day I lost it for half an hour or so and couldn't stop tearing up.  Got over that finally.  Y was very kind to me after she and G finished.  She is such a great gal.   Tanza was fine Monday morning.  I cleaned out his pen; noticed with a good bit of "lazy slugs" judgement that J and his pit crew had not cleaned their pen before heading to Thermopolis to get a jump on the Monday drive.   Got myself and Tanza home safely, listening to radio warnings for the winter storm advisory coming in on Monday evening all the way home (after dealing with that heat all weekend!)  But that is not so rare for CO/WY weather. 

Not even halfway to Basin I was thinking "I am NOT driving clear to UT for Ant Island in 3 weeks."  So this wrapped up the season.  With Tanza needing Chiro (ride vet's suggestion) and to get his weight back up I definitely need to just call it a season.   He FINISHED the BH 100.   That is a huge we can call the year a success.   

Enjoyed a camping trip Aug 28-30 at Happy Jack with B and some HJ folks

 That trip is like a distant memory already.  But we had good rides and enjoyed good food and company.   K came up with her GD and GDs friend.   I like C, she is a great little rider.   K is a bit of a PITA.   "my horse HAS to be in front"   Of course he does,  heaven forbid you should teach him some manners and to deal with being in different spots in a group.   But it was good.  Tanza and I ended up at the back of the pack for most of the morning ride and I got to cowboy up and not get all angst that he'll get stupid being at the back of a larger group.   He had just a few mild issues and he and I got some good mental training to deal with something he was a bit bad about when he was more green.   Sat afternoon we got rained on.  Not a big deal except the leaders horse ended up chilled that evening.   She put on her hostess hat right away when we got back and didn't focus on getting him happy first.  Oh well, next time perhaps I'll tell her "we are big girls and boys and can wait or manage on our own for a while"  

On Sunday,  B's horse was a bit off,  T offered her his gelding and B, and myself rode with C and her grown daughter K.   That was a nice ladies ride.   We traded off who was in front a lot and it just seemed to click pretty well as a group.   K took the girls and did the other loop and  J and A had a guys ride on that loop by themselves also.