Nevada Derby 50

Helloooo everybodies, how are you? I am fabulous. Have you been missing me since Cyd doesn't do my typing so often anymore? Don't worry, I still have fabulous adventures. This one is loooong, so get some snacks, k? I love snacks. Especially emergency snacks. Definitely always keep snacks on hand. I'll wait...

Fortunately for me, Cyd deemed it too cold to wash me before we left on my adventure. It started raining sooner than planned. Fortunately I was already super duper shiny. See?

Not even brushed, just this shiny!

We left on Thursday cos for Cyd having a meeting. I stayed at a barn in Rohnert Park, where I had a pen and free access to a stall. I was a bit scared of the stall so Cyd showed me around. She put my hay in there, and my bucket food, but I still spent so much time outside that my blankie soaked all the way through and got my back all wet. I got put in my pony trailer really early Friday morning, and we drove to a whole different state in the rain. I was in Nevada, at the desert. Spoiler alert: There is not so much to eat in the desert, and it's a very bit windy.

First up, we had to get our camp set up. The water tank in my pony trailer got fixed, but Cyd didn't bring a hose, so she got creative. Mr Jason says this is NOT engineering, hehe. Cyd did camping in my bit of the pony trailer, and I often peek in to see what she's up to, and to check on the cookie sitch.

Next up, we had to get me vet checked to make sure I'm all kinds of healthy and ready to do enduring. I was looked at by a vet I never met before, and I was a bit skittery when she checked me. I got a B on my back score, and we hadn't even started yet. Cyd thinks I was being a bit twitchy and that combined with having my blankie taken off suddenly and being cold made me tense up. I got a B for one of my hydration indicators, but everything else was As, and my pulse was a bit high at 52 but, you guys, it's just So Exciting! Back to my pony trailer to rest up for the night, waiting to see if the sky fell.

The weather was a bit dramatic.

Right before bed time, ALL the rain fell, and kept going all night. I still ate my hay foods, and my bucket foods, and drank a ton of water. I did it by slurping loudly, and pulling the hay out so hard that it shook the trailer where Cyd was trying to sleep, but being kept awake by me being a Good Enduring Pony is not a hugely bad thing. Before we knew it, it was time to get up!

I was a bit wiggly getting my saddle on, but mostly very well behaved. Cyd mistimed our starting, so we got to the start early and had to wait. This also meant I was surrounded by the speedster ponies. Fortunately, it's a very easy trail to pass on, so once we set off, faster ponies just came by me. It was pouring rain, but everybody seemed pretty cheerful. I did a bit of bouncing, but mostly was very well behaved. 

Lately, I've been wearing Scoot Boot go-faster booties for my hard-on-hoof trails. This trail is exceptionally hard on hoofies, with all the rocks EVERYWHERE. Seriously you guys, did you know the desert is totally made up of rocks? The scooters stay on me really good, but after a few miles I flung one off. We were in a group of 9 or 10 horses, and I got a bit wiggly when nobody offered to wait for me to get my boot retrieved, but with patience and some strong words Cyd jammed it back on and off we sailed. Just a couple of miles later, it was gone again, but Cyd didn't notice at the time. A mile or so after that, the other front one was gone. We'd have to slow down a bit now, to protect my hoofies from the rocks. After a couple of miles, I was riding with some others and the peoples were talking about Cyd being paranoid about me getting bruises, and one of the riders promised to tell her if the last bootie came off. Wait, what?! Where was bootie number 3? We were only 10 miles in, and I only had one bootie left. This might be a disaster!!!

I didn't believe in slowing down to help my feeties, or to save energy for later miles. Cyd was most commonly heard saying things like "Duuuude" or "Are you kidding me, horse!" or "Uuugh" and holding my face with my reins. I am Ricky Bobby. I wanna go fast! See where my hackamore is? Hackamores should not be sideways! Cyd likes to do hands free ride photos, but it was totally not safe to drop my reins this day, hehe. I would try to twist my head and have it down low to shield my adorbs face from the wind, but when Cyd would loosen my reins enough to let me do that, I would just chaaaarge down the trail like a raging bull. Apparently doing canter down sandy or rocky hills is Not Appropriate Behavings.

Pro pic by William Gore

Pretty soon, we arrived back at camp for our 25 mile vet check. I walked into camp, Cyd gave the timers our number, we walked to pulsing volunteers, and I was at criteria. I passed my vet check with all As, no sign of the supposed back soreness of the pre-ride check. Cyd was worried they might make us stop cos for me not having go-faster booties or shoes on. She explained to the vet, who looked at me extra close, and said I looked spectacular on the gravel vet check area, so as long as we were careful I could continue enduring without booties.  I didn't eat as much as Cyd would like, but still quite a lot. I did finish my mash when Cyd held it up for me. I was quite distracted by the crazy wind. I drank a ton of water, which was good, because I only had one good drink on the trail, about 22 miles in.  

Before long it was time to go out for loop 2. This one was a bit shorter, 20 miles. It was also terrifying. We know this because I nearly tossed Cyd out of my saddle 4 TIMES! Can you believe that? Of course you can, this is me we're talking about. Teleportation maneuvers are my specialty. I was still raring to go, and Cyd had to hold me back some. There were more big hills on this loop, including a long deep sandy down hill that Cyd had bad memories of when she rode here 4 years ago. Turns out, the rain had made it a lot more pleasant. The sun had come out by now, but the wind was crazy. I just kept on trotting. I did get hungry though. We would be trotting along, and suddenly I would remember that I was starving, and spot a tuft of grass. Emergency Stop! Grab grass while Cyd wriggles back into my saddle, trot off again. Sometimes I tried sampling the sage brushes, but you know what, it's not really super tasty. Soon enough, we were back to camp. Just like before, walk in, give number, walk to pulse box, and ready to vet. Easy peasy. I got all As again!! I only ate my bucket food when Cyd held it for me, but I did eat it. I would pick at it on the ground, but there was just so much to look at. We only had 30 minutes this time, so Cyd was back in the saddle before we knew it.

Got my der-face on cos for wind, VC2, mile 44

Our last loopy was only 6 miles. The wind was still howling, but we didn't have far to go, and this one was all flat. I didn't even hesitate wandering out of camp, and picked up a trot right away. I was finally relaxed, but being a bit silly, spooking at grasses blowing, and giant scary puddles. It didn't take long for us to get around. I crossed the finish line with my new mare friend that we rode most of the second half with, still with a pep in my step. I traded out my saddle for not 1, but 2 coolers, and was ready for my final vet check. Guess what? Totally got all As AGAIN! This was my best score card I ever got. I got a ton of compliments on my snazzy gear and my general cuteness. I was still distracted at eating but did a good job drinking. After some dinner and beer and talking with friends and cheering for everybodies, it was time for bed. 

Until 2:45 am. I finally realised I was super hungry. The wind had finally eased up, and there wasn't much to stare at in the middle of the night. I finished the giant hay bag Cyd had left for me. I ate the whole huge bucket of mash that I had turned my nose up earlier. And I was still hungry. I started dancing around, and wobbling the trailer, and generally being noisy. WAKE UP! It's basically an emergency. Cyd FINALLY got up to give me more food. Rock star ponies get what rock star ponies want, and I'm pretty special. But you knew that. Byeeeeee!