As this morning, Pete and I were going over our list for Mimi, our house sitter, Pete remarked that preparing for this weekend’s competitive trail ride has been as time consuming as preparing for our long distance treks. And we are taking pretty much the same gear along with us.

So finally, off we went, three horses in tow – goats, chickens, and dogs all in good hands. Neither of us felt as though we were missing anything – quite obviously a good sign.

We first picked up ice for food and cooling down the horses. Then we next dropped Hrimmi off at Terri Mielke’s

Tinni tied at 2014 CTR

place. Nice digs for our little filly. Had her own paddock and a covered shelter. She lso had a a buddy, Skip, and older gelding, to hang out with. Hrimmi said hello to Skip and to Joe (who was also to participate in the CTR) and then began chowing down on her hay. She didn’t even look up when we left.

We next headed to the CTR camping area/staging grounds. A handful of campers were already on-site. The person in charge of parking gave us directions to our site and a list telling us where others would park. All was good. We parked next to Frank and Claudia, our riding/training buddies, and in front of Heather, who I have known for ten years. Cathy and Jane were on our far side. And Amy who lives in the Kenai was across the way.

We picked up our ride packets after exchanging brief hellos. Then we all began getting our horses ready for the veterinarian and horsemanship judge. 47 horses were then examined, trotted out, and lunged, in what was pretty quick order. I fell in behind Pete and Tinni. The pair moved a bit slow and Raudi a bit fast. But both horses were found to be in good shape and sound by the judge.

Later, we all attended a briefing in which Katie Carney, the ride manager, reintroduced the judge and veterinarian to us. She then went over the route – we were given maps, and she had two volunteers hold up a large one. I tried really hard to pay attention to what she was saying, but it was difficult. I kept going back to the fact that I had some concerns about Raudi, who would not stand still in the lineup. The best I could do was attribute this to her being nervous. I couldn’t help but wonder if she was picking up on the fact that I was nervous. Didn’t seem likely – I’d planned on riding with Pete and Tinni, almost guaranteeing that all would go well.

Next: 197. 7/19/14: Lessons Learned: Day #1 on the Trail