Well, that went smoothly....or "How easy was that?! Almost TOO easy."

So, while I have a few hiccups to work out with frozen beet pulp (namely, getting it out of the freezer with enough time for it to thaw when I get to the barn), overall I would say the beet pulp/grain smush is a success!  As is the kaolin pectin/enduramax mix.

As I left work, I grabbed my 2 baggies of beet pulp and my Rubbermaid container of electrolytes and headed out.  Threw the baggies into the bed of the truck in the hopes any sun might help melt and thaw the ice.

Well, since there was a massive clap of thunder as I exited the building at work and a few scattered sprinkles as I drove to the barn, guess how well THAT plan worked?  *sigh* 

Pull into the barn, change into my barn clothes, and into Strider's bucket goes a scoop of his grain and his hoof supplement.  And into Dakini's bucket, just a single scoop of grain.

I had texted the gentleman who feeds the horses to please skip the afternoon feed this week for my horse as I'd be taking care of it this week.  So, when I pulled up to the pen, Strider assumed (correctly) I was there to stuff his face with food.

Now, lately I've been having some issues catching Dakini.  So, I put Socks and Strider into the feeding pen in an attempt to catch Dakini.

After having her scramble away from me 4 different times, I left the halter on the fence and with just the rope wandered around.  I would weave, pause, look at ANYTHING but her.  Made sure to keep my energy low.  Get near her and then leave (as long as she stood still and didn't move her feet).  Go up, pet Strider, and then repeat the process, getting closer and closer to her.

After about the 3rd time, I was able to step up to her and pet her without her moving her feet.  Retreat again, go pet Strider.  And weave my way back to her.  Repeat.  Retreat. 

I did this a few times until I finally looped the lead rope around her neck and led her to the front of the pen, haltered her and lead her out.

I got this feeling from her when I did that of "Dammit, I've been fooled.  Now I'm going to have to work."

So, I'd had her bucket soaking in water and the massive frozen chunk of beet pulp.  Poured some water over it, which helped to thaw some of the ice.  Spent about 5 minutes breaking it up.  Honestly, I think on a hot day, a frozen beet pulp/grain smush would probably taste divine to a horse.

Time for the electrolytes! 

I actually LOVE this blend.  It's smooth and flows easily AND doesn't gunk up my syringe like the applesauce/enduramax blend does.  Neither was super impressed, but, I got it done. 

Haltered and tied Socks off (so he wouldn't try and steal food) and then gave them both their buckets.

Dakini DIVED into hers and wolfed it down like a champ.  And THEN she licked the bucket CLEAN!!

Now, I hadn't gotten ALL of her beet pulp melted and into her original smush (maybe 2 or 3 handfuls didn't make it in there?), so I tossed some water on it and put just straight beet pulp in front of her, which she worked on with a little less gusto, but still ate a good quantity of.  I swear, she makes a better endurance horse than Strider does.  EDPP on trail and devours anything I put in front of her.  Really need to start working her up the distances as I'd planned.  And then find a light or middleweight rider to pilot her.

Strider actually seemed to enjoy this combo with beet pulp in as compared to times in the past where he wouldn't eat if I dared foul his grain with beet pulp.  I'm not sure if the rinsing helped (just seeing the amount of grit and dirt that comes off my SpeediBeet, that would perhaps explain his disdain for the regular beet pulp that I didn't rinse, just soaked) or if it was because he wanted to clear his palate of the electrolytes (I didn't rinse their mouths, just put their smush in front of them almost immediately).  Either way, he didn't leave much smush in his bucket.  What little was left I gave to Socks.  And what little was left of Dakini's beet pulp he also got.

My overall impressions were that if it's always this way, I'm VERY happy with the end result.  Both horses ate very well (truth be told, in one sitting, that was an entire DAYS worth of beet pulp, which they recommend be stretched out into 2 or 3 feedings; so I anticipated there being some left) and both horses took their electrolytes pretty well.

After I was done at the barn, I headed home and got started up on making up more baggies of frozen beet pulp.

I'm planning on taking 10 servings of beet pulp with me for this weekend, broken up.

I've broken down the current 1 gallon baggies I'm taking to the barn into 3 quart sized baggies.  So, I'll be stretching out a single day's (actually, he'll be getting more than a single day's feeding) and then some over the course of one day.

1 stepping on the trailer.
1 at a stop.
1 when he gets off the trailer.
1 as a late afternoon meal.
1 as a bedtime meal.
At holds.
Post-ride.
1 stepping on the trailer.
1 at a stop.

So, with all of that in mind, I got to serious work last night.  And got 24 quart sized baggies ready and labeled (1/3, 2/3, 3/3) and tossed them into the freezer last night.  I got started at about quarter to 8 and wrapped up around 10:30 or so.  Grateful that this SpeediBeet soaks so quickly!!

While soaking and rinsing, I quickly, again, made up today's batch of electrolytes and tossed it into the fridge.  I'm not sure I need to refrigerate it, but, no harm in doing it, right?

Had a mild freak out that I should just keep working on rinsing and prepping since, in about 2 weeks after I get home, I'll need to have prepped enough beet pulp to run 2 on.  And then I'll literally have 2 nights to wash and clean everything and get repacked to head out again and maintain 2.  Might as well just rinse and prep this entire bag of beet pulp!  And, while I'm at it, go ahead and order more kaolin pectin since each horse is getting about 8-9 oz of it a day right now to pre-load.  And I'll be going through it quickly and won't have the time to wait for it.  Also should just go ahead and order more Enduramax too.  Because it would be AWFUL to run out.  And, while I'm not running dangerously low, I think it'll go pretty quick.

Actually...*scampers off and just orders off Amazon*  Done and done!!  One less thing to fret over.

Tonight Strider's shoes and pads go on.  I had laid out my jeans and sneakers to wear to the barn; and then realized I left them at home when I was halfway to work.  ARGH!!  Thankfully I keep a pair of sneakers in my desk at work, so I'll dart into Dollar General and look for a pair of pants and a shirt I can wear to the barn tonight.

Glad his feet are getting done.  We've got some ugly toes and chipping happening.  So, hoping that this shoeing goes well for him.  I need them to last through this trim cycle.  Douglas is free to pull them off when Strider shows up for training, but I need at LEAST a GOOD 4 weeks out of them.

T-Minus 2 days.

Hiccups, SpeedBumps, Minor Issues....or "The Theme of the Endurance Season"

I'm feeling behind the curve at the moment to prep everything for this weekend.  Realistically, I know I'm not, but I'm certainly feeling that way.

As an example, I grabbed my first "ready to go" bag of SpeediBeet last night to triple rinse it and get it ready to go to the barn on Tuesday evening.  Not a big deal.  I did the first rinse in cold water, then did the second two in hot (don't ask me why I did that, I just did).  All together, after squeezing out the excess water and getting through all the rinses, it probably took me about 45 minutes to get it done.

As I was working, I had to stop to consider how many bags of it I was going to need through this week.

Thought process goes like this:
Strider will need 3 bags (1 for each night [Tue/Wed/Thur])
Dakini will need 3 bags (1 for each night [Tue/Wed/Thur]) - prepping her just in case she needs to go

So, there's 6 bags before we even step on the trailer.

Then I want to have a bucket in the trailer for him to eat on the way.  Stop once and let him eat/refill his bucket.  Eat again in the late afternoon/early evening.  Once more before bed.  All the hay he can eat all night long.  Fresh hay in the morning.  And then plan for him to have food breaks at holds, post-ride, and again on the trailer ride home.

So, just to be safe, I'm going to prep 14-15 bags in the next few days.  Assembly line style I imagine!

And then there's the electrolytes I need to get ready.

Again, 6 tubes of elytes for the two horses.

And, based off the notes my friend took at the convention, I'll want another 5 before we even start the ride (1 before he gets in to the trailer, 1 when he gets off the trailer, 1 at bedtime, 1 after I get up early and then 1 before I get into the saddle).  And then I need to plan out how many more to use while on the trail.  Thinking another 6 at my disposal.

My plan (we'll see how this works) is to pre-mix the electrolytes into a few different jars (some large ones to put into my cooler, and then a few smaller jars to carry on trail along with syringes) so I can just plunge and go.

Last night I got my garden cart put together.  It's small enough and light enough I'll put it in the bed of the truck to haul my buckets and gear back and forth from the vet check area.  It's not great, but I couldn't beat the price.

Then I had to get the 50 bricks out of the bed of the truck so I wasn't hauling them along to the ride and so I could move my water tank around.  My hands are raw this morning.  They're rough.  But, grateful for my garden cart so I was able to haul them a few at a time.


So, my HiTie has been in for the week.  I grabbed the trailer on Friday because I was HOPING to get it installed prior to the ride as well as installing a few bucket hangers in the manger area of the trailer.

Well, after looking at the trailer, where I -WANTED- it to go isn't advisable by people who have installed them.  So, I'm going to need to cut some of the rubber on the outside of the trailer off to give the mounting plate a flat surface and to bite through the "ribs" of the trailer.  So, that won't be done anytime soon as I'll need to find someone to do that for me. 

So, just lots of hiccups and things slowing me down.  I was awake for far later than I needed to be last night thinking and my mind churning.  It's almost like I've never done this before.  I have, but I'm being more diligent about making sure he's tanked up on water and electrolytes than I ever have before.  So, for me, it's new protocols I'm not yet sure how to maneuver.  But, I'll need to puzzle it out quickly as 2 weeks after this ride, I'm heading off again to take 2.  And then a few days after THAT, I'm heading out yet again with 2.

The next few days are going to be busy.  Wednesday we have our shoe appointment.  Somewhere in there I need to straighten up the tack compartment of my trailer.  It got scattered post-surgery when I had to ask someone to get in there to get some grain out, and it was towards the back beneath a lot of things.  I need to pack my new items in there.  Buy a few groceries. 

I'm sensing some late nights between now and Friday morning. 

But, I refuse to back down.  I WILL get everything done. 

And I'll have fun prepping for it.  Because, why wouldn't I?  :) 

Gearing up for another Last Hoorah!...or "Please, PLEASE let me beat these trails this time!"

Outwardly, I am calm.  I am cool.  I am zen.  I project a self-assured "We've got this" je ne sais quoi.

Inside, I'm quaking. 

I know my horse is ready.  I'm uncomfortable with his shoes going on next week so close to the ride, but I'm going to take a deep breath and roll with that.  We will go slowly.  We will come to the ride well hydrated.  We will stop on the trail and electrolyte.  And have a little snack.  We will leave behind the front runners. 

We will ride our own ride.

I have already started preparing to prepare him.

Tuesday night I ran to "The Feed Station" here in Austin and picked up some SpeediBeet.
 

In case you're curious about the nutritional value.

Then I went home (my HiTie has arrived, which is a mixed blessing!  HiTie, YAY!  But...nothing to use with it.  Boo!  I may quickly order accessories though and just order the customized tie later) and started prepping after doing the math.

So, for Strider's weight (give or take, I upped it to 900 lbs), he needs 13.5 oz of SpeediBeet (well, for maintenance, but I'm running with it).  0.84 lbs of it.

So, I got out my scale and started weighing it out in the kitchen into sandwich baggies.
 

This looks like the start of some drug cartel movie, doesn't it?  I assure you, it isn't.

My original thinking was "How simple this shall be!  I can grab a baggie, take it to the barn with me, soak it, mix it in with his grain and let him slurp it all down!"

Except, as my friend who went to the Dr. Garlinghouse seminar at the AERC convention told me, despite it saying it has no molasses in it, it still does.  Doc G suggests triple rinsing it.  So I'm still going to have to rinse it.  My friend says she rinses it, freezes it, and then sets it out and uses it.

On the plus side, since it only takes 10 minutes to soak in cool water, I can soak it, and do the triple rinse quickly.  On the down side, I'm still having to rinse it. 

Anyway, I got 29 baggies made.

29.  Yes, 29 "dime baggies" of SpeediBeet.

I'll stop by the store, get more sandwich baggies (maybe something a little larger.  These baggies are straining at the seams!) and attempt to finish this project.

The plan, at least leading up to Last Hoorah;
Electrolyte BOTH Strider and Dakini for the ride.  Should something happen (endurance gremlin), I can take Dakini and drop to an LD with her.  But I need and want her prepared for it.  So, I shall prep her as if she's going.  Actually, I outta do Socks as well, just to get him used to this process too, but, he's a good eater and so mellow about everything I do with him, that I think he'll take it all in stride.  And the fact is, if somehow both Strider and Dakini end up unable to go, I'm not taking Socks.  He has no hoof protection.


By this time next week, Strider will have his shoes and pads on (I'll be taking pictures again of that process).

I believe I've already stated it, but, I'm going to give up on composites for now.  For STRIDER they do not work.  Or, at least, the ones I tried didn't work.  I think they are an EXCELLENT product if they are suitable for your horse.  I just feel they're not suitable for mine.

So, we're padding up and putting on steel shoes.  And we shall "Never hurry, never tarry" on the 13th.  I am grateful that this ride is only "open" for the first 1/4 mile, then we dive into the woods where riders can spread out.

My plan is to ride alone for the whole thing unless we find someone who isn't going super fast and who we can pace well with.  Otherwise, we stay at the back, I put in one ear bud and we spend our day together.  I shall stop every hour to hour and a half to let him have a quick snack (I got in my collapsible bowl yesterday that will go on my saddle pack for him along with some grain).  And my syringes.  We'll electrolyte, nosh on some carrots and apples, have a slurp of soupy water grain for a few moments, then get moving again.

Well, that's the plan.  I know I can feed him carrots from the saddle.  And, I can afford to throw away 5 to 10 minutes per loop [depending on the length of the loop] to let him eat something wet.

Well, that's the plan.  We will electrolyte more than normal because, I expect it will be warm.  I haven't yet started compulsively checking the forecast yet....although, next Friday in Cleburne shows a 60% chance of scattered thunderstorms and a high of 79 and a low of 59.  Mostly clear sky Friday night.

Fingers crossed that the rains help keep the temps down on Saturday.  That would be ideal.  But, in the week leading up to Friday, temps in the mid to upper 80's. 

So, should you see me in the next week or so, while I may APPEAR calm, don't be fooled. 

Inside, I'm really anxious.  This ride season's been wonky for me with a MASSIVE curve and some scary hiccups at our last ride. 

I just feel like, if we can get this 50 done, and NOT OverTime again, that I will have gotten rid of the ill-luck which has been plaguing me this season and be able to move forward again.