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July 29, 2018: The New Normal

I am very late and it is very tired. Har har. But I am going to write a dispatch, dang it. I have not slept in two days. We camped at Saddle Up, under the awning, Pete pitched a tent on Friday. He put the Thermarests in there but he did not blow them up. So Friday night I essentially slept on the ground, and not very well. Last night I figured out that he had not blown them up. I did not sleep any better but I was less sore today.

It was quite the day. I was up at 5:15 A.M. and busy until 8 a.m. when we rode out of camp – there were four of us, Judy, Sarah, and a young woman named Kewaunee. Kewaunee was doing the novice class – Pete had recommended that she join us.

She was extremely competent – very forthright, and as it turned out, a good rider. We put her out front after a bit – Raudi was moving more slowly – and it was evident to us that she was on a much faster horse. Of course, our horses, and especially Raudi, were tired from yesterday’s jaunt.

It was a good day’s ride – Hrimmi wears boots and she lost one when we waded through a very lengthy stream in a swamp. There was this young fellow who was on the shore, walking alongside the riders, offering instruction, and he managed to retrieve it. What we learned is that Renegades float.


Alys and Ruadi


Raudi was not her usual energetic self – we are thinking that her back has changed and she might need to have her saddle adjusted.

After, Sarah and I spent a lot of time walking the horses, so as to reduce the swelling in their rear legs. Then finally, we did the same sort of evaluation that we did on Friday. Sarah showed Hrimmi and I then showed Raudi. Raudi and I did really well with the exception of the fact that I trotted her around from the outside instead of the inside.

I had a wonderful time hanging out in the area where we were camping. Yesterday and today, Sarah’s husband Neil brought kegs of beer, which were in the rear of his truck. So people came and said hello and sat down to drink.

Finally, it was awards time. There were lots of prizes and lots of ribbons. I really don’t know how Pete organized this. Well, the final rundown is this – I won the Icelandic Breed award. I came in third in horse (condition of the animal) and fifth in horsemanship. And Sarah came in first in horsemanship and fourth in horse. Our scores in horsemanship were near identical. I also won an Excellent ribbon for having a Horse score above 90 – very cool. Both the breed award and the excellent ribbon were significant to me.

Now I am wrapping up this dispatch. I am standing here at my standard desk, hallucinating, which means it’s time to call it good.

Next: 211. 7/30/18: Conversation with Tyra

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