We Can Ride Trail Ride

Well after a whirlwind summer we finally made it to the We Can Ride Trail Ride Fund Raiser weekend. I went from having no horse to ride, to having a friend's horse to ride, to having my own horse to ride. J&J offered to bring Cody for me which worked out well in the end since Cinder is getting pretty old and deserves his time off and that meant Tricia only had Dusty to offer to me and/or Anne.

So while I packed as much stuff in my mini as I could, J&J loaded Cody and their two TWHs into the big trailer. Supposedly Cody had no issues loading. Though when he got off the trailer we noticed he had a big scrape on his back right hock. Since he loaded calmly the best we can figure is he just stepped on himself while in the trailer, maybe shifting his weight at a stop or something. Cody was a little sweaty already getting off the trailer but that's pretty normal, he gets nervous and sweats. So he stood tied to the picket line for a while and grazed a bit while we finished getting everything ready and had lunch and all that. He was actually very patient. We tacked up and tried to get everyone organized to go. J&J had already set out on the trail. Cody started off as he usually does, trotting and worried about life. The last time B and I rode this trail he settled down pretty quickly so I was hoping and waiting for that moment. But it didn't come. He pretty much trotted the whole trail. Around the time we got up to the road and started heading back to the trail head is when he started to settle in with bouts of trotting to keep up with Vinnie. We did lead for a few minutes but that didn't seem to make him any happier. He might have been better off in the back but we didn't try that this time. He was a ball of sweat by the time we could see the trail head. I did get one little stretch of canter beside Steph and Boogie (gorgeous saddlebred canter on him). At least when Cody is tired there's nothing scary about his canter since I know he'll stop and not get too wound up.

After the ride I untacked the sweaty boy and dumped the pools of sweat out of his hoof boots. I hosed him off at the well and then tied him up to the trailer. He actually stood at the trailer quiet for a long time. He must have been tired. I ended up loading him to go home. J&J's trailer has a ramp and that did not seem to faze Cody at all, so that was good. In my mind a ramp would be easier, no big step up. Cody balked once but got in pretty decent after that with just J standing behind him and telling him to step up. Since I had to pack up my car, unpack my car, and get to Minneapolis J&J were just going to take Cody home and turn him out for me. I imagine he got in a real nice roll when he got home and caked himself with mud that I'll have to chisle off him.