Hiya Sweetie,
Woke up to an early alarm again, had Flash loaded up and ready to go by a little after 8:00. We headed down to Tidewater, arriving just at 8:30 as the LD's were leaving in the Gator Run Ride. The plan today was to once again accompany Jo and Nikki and hopefully be a calming influence on her. By the time we checked in, vetted (I was astonished that Flash did his trot out just fine!) and saddled up, it was nearly 10:00 when we hit the trail. We didn't get very far before Jo decided Nikki was misbehaving and got down to walk her on a lead. That went on for a couple of miles. We finally hit water, and Jo was trying to figure out how to get around it when I kind of got a little frustrated and told her to just get on her damn horse. I pointed out that the only lesson Nikki had learned so far was that all she had to do was jig a little, and Jo would get down and she wouldn't have to carry her anymore. What can I say, everyone once in awhile, a little butt-kicking is in order. Well, she got back on, and lo and behold, actually made it through the puddle following Flash. She would have occasional periods where she would be fine, but then jig some more, but toward the end, she was about as settle as she could be. I could tell she just wanted to go faster, but Jo isn't ready for that yet, and doesn't think Nikki is either. Anyway, by the end of nine miles, Flash was so frustrated with the slow pace that I decided to do the same loop again and let him go as much as he wanted. He has been very patient over the last two days, but he got pretty bunched up toward the end. I let him eat for a minute, got myself a bottle of water, then we headed out on the trail at 1:05. I asked the timer to mark it, even though the intro rides don't time themselves, I was just curious. So Flash and I headed out the second time, and this time we went like gangbusters. He gaited and cantered for over five miles, then slowed down a little bit, but not for long. It was a beautiful day but it was starting to get warm but with a nice breeze, so I didn't mind. Then when we were about a couple of miles until the end, a woman on an Arab came cantering up behind us, and Flash took off like a rocket! He was NOT going to let that Arab pass! I didn't realize he still had so much gas in his tank, but he gave it everything, right up into a gallop, all the way back to camp! We ended up with a time of 1:20 for that second 9.5 miles, so I was very happy with him for that. I unsaddled him and cooled him off, and after a couple of tries, managed to get him pulsed down to 60, took him through the vetting where he got almost all A's again (a B on his gait, but he did his impulsion test perfectly again, yay!) and we got out completion, though I'll only get credit for the 10 miles and not the almost 20 that we actually did. Not worried about the credit though, this was all about HIM getting to do what he wanted for a change. I hung around and chatted for awhile before heading back camp, got him settled down (and when I looked awhile later, he was laying down, not surprisingly!), as I did likewise. Dinner, TV, hot tub, shower, tea and cookie, and I'm ready for bed! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
After a good night sleep and having to get up with the early alarm, I went to an appointment with a dermatologist for a skin tag removal, which took no time at all, then got back to camp by 10:30. Jo had asked me to have Flash ride along with her new horse Nikki, so she arrived shortly thereafter, and we got saddled up and eventually hit the trail, though we did a lot of schooling before that. Jo did a lot of walking, and Nikki misbehaved a lot more than Jo expected, so it turned into a pretty long day. We came back after about 3.5 miles, waited a bit, then went out again. Flash was unbelievably patient, which really surprised me, but it seems he getting used to the teacher role that has been thrust upon him. Nikki wanted to do more than walk, but Jo was insistent that was all we were going to do today, which is fine, since teaching Off Track Thoroughbreds to walk truly is a challenge! She improved a bit, though not as much as we both would have liked, but obviously, it's a long slow process that Jo is just at the beginning of. I'm rather glad those crazy days with my horses are over! Once we got back the second time, I put Flash away and after Jo left, headed over to Willards for a prime rib dinner, tonight's Valentine's day special. I haven't had prime rib (or much beef at all) since the Red Rock Ride last June, so I figured I was entitled to splurge. Nice not to have to clean the kitchen! Got back at six, fed the horses, and settled down for the evening with a full stomach. Watched a little TV, and won't be long out of bed! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Darlin',
Woke up on schedule, did my usual morning chores, then hooked up the small horse trailer and got Flash loaded up to go down to Apex. Had a quick meeting with the forest folks about the final preparations for the TOG, then met with Sherra in the day parking area and hit the trail! I followed the same trail that the Long Horse riders will use just to see if there have been any changes, and found a place or two to add another sign, but I'm pretty sure it's mapped out as well as it can be at this point. We had a great ride, her horse Blake didn't have much experience with water, and this trail had some wonderful long stretches to wade through. Flash led the first few times, but we finally got Blake out front, which, except for one crazy incident, worked just fine. The first time he was in the lead, he leapt off the trail into a very dense jungle on one side, and when she got him turned around, rather than just stepping back out, he leapt to nearly the other side, knocking Flash off his feet! It took a couple of tries, but Flash managed to get himself up with me still on his back, and there was no damage, just a moment of uncertainty at what that youngster might do next! He was fine after that, though, and we took that long stretch of water a couple more times just to get him comfortable. After all, today was all about schooling, and Flash's calm demeanor did rub off on Blake after awhile. It was a great ride, a beautiful day, couldn't ask for more! Got back to camp, put Flash away, dropped off the trailer, then went over to Helen's for a visit and to pick up her recycling, which the neighborhood contributes to the forest. Finally got back to camp and got settled in for the evening. Had to skip my hot tub, I forgot to put it on again this morning, so it didn't hit temps in time, but had my shower, tea, etc., and off to bed! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hiya Babe,
Woke up before the alarm, got my chores and breakfast done, then loaded up Flash for the hour drive down to a little trailhead parking area on the west side of the Withlacoochee Citrus Tract, where I met up with Sherra, a friend of my old friend Cherryl, and off we went! I had never been to this forest before, and had often wanted to come to the Tillis Hill horse camp, but until last July, dogs weren't allowed (well, except for the camp host, who apparently strictly enforced the rule, while herself had a dog!) so I could never camp here. She has a four year old quarter horse that's been giving her some problems on the trail, which is why Cherryl suggested riding with a nice calm horse like Flash might help. Interestingly, once Flash figured out her horse (Blake) was not in any way shape or form a threat to his lead position, he actually slowed down to one of his slowest walks so as to keep from getting too far ahead. Well, at least for about the first half of the ride. We did some lovely gaits and canters where we were more evenly matched, but a lot of walking as well, while she and Blake sorted out a few anxiety matters. It was a gorgeous day and a lovely ride! We did manage to make it all the way to the horse camp, just because I wanted to see what it looked like, and from my perspective, it was way too civilized. Worse, even though a lot of the sites were taken, we didn't see one horse in the barn, or even any evidence there were any horses around. The issue with this place is that no horses are allowed in the camping area, and you can't really drive anywhere near the barn, which is on the opposite side of the camping area, so you have to haul everything over there every time. Plus, relatively speaking, it was expensive for a public lands campground. Fine, now I've seen it, and ridden the trails, I don't have to go there to camp! We were out over four hours, a bit longer than she originally suggested, so she and her horse got a really good workout, though it didn't stop him from making a fuss once he was in the trailer. A bit of a knot head, but he's young, so entitled to his youthful ways for the moment. It was a very nice ride, everyone got along, and she wants to do it at least once a week somewhere, which is fine with me! She's planning on coming to Apex next week, so we can check the trails out there, and Blake can get some practice going through water, something he's not very familiar with. Anyway, I got back to camp a bit after 3:00, got Flash put away, then chatted with some day riders for a bit before settling down for the evening. A beautiful day! Love you, sweetie! Good night!

Hiya Sweetie,
Been sleeping well lately, I credit the hot tub and Sleepytime tea! Not to mention being busy, that always helps. After my usual morning routine, I saddled up Flash and headed out on the trails here at Black Prong, this time daring to take Lola with me. She's been doing pretty well on the short, slow rides with Apollo, and today's ride was only about eleven miles, and she's been taking her new medication, so I decided to take a chance. My goal was to find the best access to a tree that's down on a trail on the north end of this section, to see if a ranger truck can get back there or if we need a quad. It wasn't a critical ride, so I figured if Lola got too tired or in pain we could turn back, but as it turned out, she did quite well. Yes, she was tired towards the end, but she needs the exercise to get her muscle back, and I think she did great. The ride itself was lovely, so glad the weather has finally warmed up, it was a perfect weather day! The north section is a lot more wild, and is a nice change, nice to be able to ride out of camp rather than have to trailer somewhere else. Met Ranger Rick on the way back, and we decided now would be a good time to angle the post tops on the manure bin, so he came back to do that. Shortly after that, I headed over to Val's for a meeting about the upcoming Fun In The Sun Ride (FITS) next month, as I've been appointed ground manager, which means I get to be the parking czar, helping to lay out and provide signage for all the different areas of the field they are using. Worked with Chelle after that meeting to figure out what signs we needed, then got back to camp, put some water in the tank in the truck and hooked up the little trailer for a day trip down to Withlacoochee tomorrow. A friend of a friend suggested we ride together, and that section of state forest is one I've never ridden in, and happens to be almost exactly halfway between us, so we're meeting up in the morning. Finished my evening chores and settled down for my usual routine, including hot tub! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
A busy day here. Ranger Rick asked me to go with him to pick up materials for the manure bin that's been slated for Black Prong Trailhead, and that took more than four hours, then I managed to get a slug ride on Apollo, meaning short on mileage, long on time, but at least he and Lola both got some exercise. Finished off the day with a Taste of Goethe meeting, seems like we're on target for a successful event! Now I just need to find some volunteers to help me build the bin, and I'll be a happy camper! Got in a hot tub, ready for bed! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
Had a fine night sleep last night, I'm finally get back into a nice circadian rhythm. Another chilly morning in the low 40's, but more cold weather is moving in. Beginning to think this is the coldest January on record here! While it usually gets cold for a day or two, then warms up, lately it's been cold day after day after day. I'm sure the cycle will break soon! Anyway, I spent the morning doing computer work, then loaded up Flash and went down to Apex to recon what I thought would be the last of the trails. Made some interesting discoveries along the way! The fire guys went back and flattened out one of the trails I was considering (though not in my original plan, I think this one will work better), and there's a section of the green trail that is all on gravel road that I want to try to find a way to bypass because it's so nasty. Found a couple of big trees down that will have to be moved. It was a nice ride, and Flash was patient, even when I headed away from camp toward the end to double check a trail. Did almost 15 miles. Stopped by the office to pick up some maps and had a quick check with the supervisor, who said he was going out Thursday with his chainsaw so I should send him pindrops on maps, then got back to camp, fed the horses a little early, put their heavy blankets on again, and settled down for a quiet evening. Another fireplace night tonight! Enjoying a hot tub on these cold evenings, it's the only time I've felt warm all day! Shower done, headed for bed soon! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hi Sweetie!
So happy to finally get a ride in! I feel like I've been cooped up for ages! After doing my usual morning chores, breakfast, and some computer work on the trails I needed to check today, I got Flash loaded into the little trailer, and, after having to jump start the truck again (I really need to get new batteries!), we headed down to Apex to run through as many of the trails for the Taste of Goethe as we could. Turns out they've chewed up a number of them for firebreaks, and have burned some of the areas we want to use, so I'm hoping we have someone making a fire presentation before the trails open so people will understand why so much of the forest looks black. Looks like I might have to be rerouting a little, hopefully not too much. Flash was more than ready for a good ride, he did lots of gaiting and cantering whenever the terrain allowed, so we had a lot of fun! Met a couple of women with their minis pulling buggies (so cute!), I've seen them before out here, and we had another nice chat. They weren't happy about all the torn up trails either. On my way back, I passed them actually doing a burn, so I chatted with them for a couple of minutes, too. Got back to camp a little after 3:00, had to postpone some tree work I was going to do, then settled down for a quiet evening. Managed to get a nice hot tub in, but the wind is blowing and another cold front is coming through, the wind is already picking up. Definitely thinking I need to get farther south! Hopefully this too, will pass! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Darlin'!
Had a chilly start to the morning, requiring my Alaska parka, but fortunately it warmed up enough later in the day to finally get a ride on Apollo. Poor thing hasn't been ridden for a couple of weeks, and he was very sluggish for most of the trip, which was simply around the Steeplechase neighborhood, right up until we came to a farm that had pigs in their yard. Then all of a sudden he was stricken with the conviction that they were horse-eating pigs and he tried to turn around and run off. Fortunately, I was able to hold him back, turn him back around, and make him stay long enough to convince him it wasn't a life-threatening situation, and we were finally able to move on, though not before Lola became thoroughly bored and wandered toward the farm to get a closer look. Fortunately, the landowner was pretty laid back when I explained the situation, she was only concerned that my dog was a stray, I think, but was happy to learn she was mine. Anyway, we ended up going nearly five miles, which was plenty for both of them, and got back shortly before feeding time. I drained and stored the hot tub in the back of the trailer, fairly confident that after my discussion with the trailer repair place this morning that I will be getting my trailer back tomorrow. I had mentioned the plumbing issue to them again, which will require them to take off the basement cover (which I figured would be a problem with all the screws being rusty and having to be tapped), and found they hadn't started it yet. I was concerned that it would be more complicated and time consuming than it appeared to be at first blush, and was glad they were going to get to it today. Hopefully it works out okay and I'll still be able to get my home back tomorrow! I sure hope so, I miss having my own stuff around! Before my ride, I spent time researching Yellowstone pack trips, and have hooked into a potential outfitter, so now all I have to do is find five friends willing to go with me. I did a little outreach, so we'll see what happens. Enjoyed a dinner made by Chelle, and heading to bed! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!