Another short solo ride's in the bag

I rode Ruby yesterday and she felt great so I asked Heather if she'd like to ride today.  Ultimately, she decided it wasn't worth the sweat equity (can't say that I blame her).  So, what to do?  If you're like me, you have two little voices in your head.  One of them is completely reasonable.  This is the one that says, 'Maybe it's not a good idea to let the kids run through the kitchen' (re: pots of boiling water, hot oven, knives, etc).  Then there's the other one.  That other voice is a complete coward and will keep you from living your life if you let it: if you take a plane, you might die; if you walk out your door, you might die; if you do that, you might screw it up.  Part of getting back into horses for me has been telling that second voice to shut the hell up.  So, I hooked up the trailer, loaded Ruby, and headed out. We went to Tenoroc, which has wide, mowed trails and is only a ten-minute drive.  It was actually a great day to go riding: no rain clouds in sight, a nice breeze, and it wasn't 'make-you-wanna-die' hot.

It took me a good ten times to back the trailer in straight, but I'm getting it.  Regarding the rub and this saddle pad: I am in the process of modifying a Toklat Woolback pad into something that I (hopefully) will be able to use.  In the meantime, I sprayed her sides with Show Shine and put a thick line of Desitin on the seam of the right flap.  The plan was to hop down and check every so often and watch her body language: if I listen, she will tell me when something isn't right.   

Not a care in the world...

Ruby was completely calm standing by the trailer but is a different beast after you mount up - she becomes completely incapable of standing still.  In fact, she doesn't even possess the ability to walk at less than break-neck (well, for walking) speed.  We went around and around (and around) the parking area, with her giving the hairy eyeball to the trail head - at the beginning of a ride, she dislikes thick brush being close to the trail.  When I got serious about pushing her to the trail entrance, she went.  We have gotten a lot of rain in the last few days, so there were muddy parts and places under a few inches of water.  She's a bit of a prima donna when it comes to getting her feet wet so I let her choose her way across as long as she stayed on the trail.

We rode for about 30 minutes when I decided to hop down and check her for rubs - so far, so good.  I walked her maybe another 20 feet, mounted up and headed back to the trailer.  I didn't want to stay out too long because I'd completely forgotten sunscreen and the trail has next to no shade.  If it wasn't so muddy, we would have done more trotting and gotten more mileage.  

Heading back

When we popped out into the parking area, I expected Ruby to make a beeline for the truck but she marched right past it and started following another trail.  Laughing, I decided to see how far she would go until I almost caught a spider in the face. I turned her back towards the trailer, and she picked another trail beyond it and made a beeline for it.  Ruby is a trip and I love that she seems to enjoy the trails.  She didn't spook once, only tried to trot off with me a few times, and was willing to keep going when we were done - I'm proud of my girl :)

We rode 3.4 miles in just under one hour, average speed 3.7 mph: https://www.strava.com/activities/167592460.  I was worried that our first solo ride was a fluke, but today proved otherwise.  My girl is ready to go solo.  I cannot tell you how freeing it was to pull in, park and fiddle around until everything was just right, with no one waiting for me or vice versa.  If things went well, fantastic, if not, I could leave whenever, no big deal.  And, I no longer have to wait for anyone else to want to ride - if I feel like riding, I'll go.   

New/different things:
The Desitin and Show Shine did what was hoped, but we might not have ridden long enough.  For now (as long as there are no new rubs), this will have to do.  As stated, I am modifying another pad that I hope will work for us until I can buy a new one.

I think I've finally figured out which pad to buy when I do buy a new saddle pad.  I'm on a mostly self-imposed budget (is there anyone else that feels guilty spending cash on horse stuff when their spouse doesn't?) so I research and research and research, then I cross my fingers and say a little prayer before pushing the 'Buy' button.

Jeggings - super cheap and way more comfortable than my cheapo riding tights.  I read about them on the AERC Facebook page.  They may not hold up for very long, but at under $13 a pop, I can afford to replace them.

Side pull - Ruby prefers the side pull so no more bit for her.  Oddly, she is also more responsive in the side pull than the snaffle bit.  Maybe at some point I'll find one she likes, but until then we're going bitless.

Finally, my dressage lesson has been rescheduled for Monday due to the rain - I'm looking forward to it!