Mature Rider Starts 1000 Mile Ride

My friend and mature rider, Belinda Daugherty, is truly starting the riding adventure of a lifetime. A week from Monday, Belinda will be leaving her home in Ten Sleep, WY, to ride 1000 miles through Wyoming and Montana to the Canadian Border and hopefully win admission to the Long Riders' Guild.

The Long Riders' Guild is an international association of equestrian explorers, with an invitation-only membership drawn from 39 countries. To win an invitation, a rider must cover at least 1000 miles in a single, continuous equestrian journey. The rider must also conduct the ride humanely, and abusing or neglecting the horses and mules used will disqualify a rider.

I met Belinda about 15 years ago when she was leading rides through the Big Horn Mountains from Lander, WY. For many years, she operated her own adventure riding business called Renegade Rides, and she led rides in Wyoming and around the World. The information below was provided in an email from Belinda:

"Hi everyone,
Hope the sun is shining on your trail and your horses stay sound.
As some of you already know, I am going on a very long ride this summer, beginning July 6th. I thought you might be interested in how we get along. I am doing the ride with Christina, my guide from Patagonia. She is a heck of a hand and will be a good person to do the ride with. Below is the description of the ride that I sent to the 'Long Riders Guild". Who knows, we may be eligible to join if we have a successful ride!


We will be riding 2 horses which I have raised. Petunia, a Morgan, is 7 yrs, has hoofs like iron and travels smooth. Sandy is an 8yr old QH gelding and has nice gaits. They have both been raised in rough country, are surefooted and sensible, and know the camping routine. We will be packing 2 mules. Jim Bob is a big Arkansas sorrel, 9yr old and Rosalita is a little grey, 14 yr old, molly mule. I've only had the mules since the 6th of June. However, I have been working with them both and they are working well.

Our route: We will ride from Ten Sleep, heading west across the Big Horn Basin. We will ride through Worland, and on to Meeteetsee WY, resupply and stabling are arranged here. This route is pretty gentle, compared to the mountains ahead and will be a good way to break the horses in gently, to the trail. From Meeteetsee we head into the Absarokas, along the Greybull River. Our route takes us throught the SE corner of Yellowstone, before coming to Pahaska, at the east entrance of Yellowstone. There, a friend will meet us for resupply. Next town is Cooke City MT. We will be met again for supplies. Then west , through the Beartooths and on to Gadnier. We will stay at the rodeo grounds. Then it is on to Ennis, where we have someone to stay with, Dillon, then north to Wise River, again with stabling and a ride for supplies, arranged. We continue north, crossing I-90 at Drummond- to Ovando. At Ovando, we enter the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Heading north through the Bobs, we will be met half way, at the Spotted Bear Trail head, for supplies. Then north to St Marys, at the east side of Glacier NP. Depending upon conditions, we may go into Glacier, or we may just ride north to the Canadian Border. From there we will begin our ride back south, ending somewhere around Cutbank MT. I'm trying to avoid big towns and stay in the mts as much as possible. I figure the Canadain border will be around 900 miles. We will ride south from there to make sure we did a thousand.

That is a condensed version of our route. As I'm sure you know, unpredictible events can lead to a change in plans. We have 10 weeks scheduled for the ride, July 6th - mid Sept. I am hopling to average 20 miles per day, 5 days a week and 2 days off. We shall See!

Though we will be packing the mules, we still will pack like backpackers. I have an excellent tent suitable for almost anything. We will have a Kelly Kettle, water filter, etc. I have an electric corral kit for the horses plus hobbles and they are all picket broke. The horses will be wearing sheep bells, because of the bears. We will be packing pepper spray and a handgun. I have an extensive first aid kit.
We will have excellent photo and recording equipment, a gps and our cell phones. I also plan to do watercolors along the way, besides keeping a diary."

I'll post updates of her progress and any photos as I receive them. I'm sure you'll join me in wishing her a safe and successful journey.

Returning to Riding from Injury and Breast Cancer

To listen to this podcast, please click the title link above.

Claire Thompson volunteered for a podcast interview to provide her advice and insights as a middle-aged rider returning to the saddle from a severely broken wrist and then breast cancer surgery and chemotherapy within a two-year period. Her advice is very much on point for anyone recovering from serious injury or surgery with the intent to return to riding.

As shown in the picture at left, Claire started riding at an early age. She grew up in California and rode whenever she could using horses owned by friends and even braiding tack from ropes off of the family boat. She continued riding off and on as an adult, and in her 40s, she started serious work with dressage rider and trainer, Irene Moser Hill, in Austin, TX. Now living in Charlottesville, Virginia, Claire remains a dressage rider, and she's currently working with a Dutch Warmblood, nicknamed "Tigger" and pictured below.

In the interview, Claire makes the point that you have to impress upon your doctors and physical therapists that although middle-aged, you're a rider and an athlete, and you're not willing to settle for just recovering enough to get on a horse and walk around the pasture. Your medical and therapy teams should help you plan the support necessary to return to the level of riding you enjoyed before your injury or illness. That therapy support level may be more than your insurance plan would normally plan to provide for you.

Claire also advises people, when possible, to get into the very best possible state of physical fitness before surgery. If you can, it will make your recovery much easier and you'll be ready to ride again more quickly.

In her interview, Claire also describes her struggle to maintain fitness during her chemotherapy. She talks about how important it is to be a part of a fitness and therapy support system -- encouraging other patients while being encouraged by them -- as you sometimes have to drag yourself to the gym.

If you have any questions or comments for Claire, you can post them to the blog.

To Claire, thank you so much for sharing your experiences and insights with us. I'm sure you'll help lots of people facing and recovering from similar situations.

Teaching Mature Riders to Jump

My friend, Susan McCarron, recently sent me a link to a great blog called, The Enlightened Horseman, authored by Robin Shen. Susan told me about Robin's blog post called, A Jumping Exercise, which described an innovative way for teaching mature riders the correct position for jumping without the beginner angst associated with actually riding the horse over jumps. When the correct two point position becomes a part of muscle memory, the mature rider will then have a much easier time starting over jumps.

Robin's post describes his own training in jumping from a veteran pony club instructor. He started by trotting poles in two point and then moved to hopping over an "X". Over time the poles were raised and Robin eventually started jumping oxers, combinations, logs, and other stadium and cross country obstacles.

Robin says that this is still a very effective way to teach young riders to jump, but middle-aged beginner riders have problems with this process. The young riders can adjust and correct their positions during the very short time the horse is in the air, but the mature riders often lack the flexibility and agility to do that.

Robin solved the problem by putting horses and riders to work on a hill. Moving at a trot and then a canter up hill and down, in jumping position, gives the beginner rider plenty of time to respond to instruction and correct his or her position. Robin listed the benefits for beginner jumpers as:

1. Extended time with the horse in the ascending and descending jumping positions, providing plenty of time for instruction and correction.
2. If the rider's having trouble, the instructor can stop the horse on the hill, which provides an infinite amount of time to correct the rider's position.
3. Riders will look at the top of the hill ascending, which keeps them from developing the bad habit of looking down at the jump.
4. It's safer for the riders and horses because the riders won't actually start to jump until they've learned the correct position.
5. No need to reset the jumps repeatedly turning the teaching process. By the time the rider starts jumping, the rider will be helping the horse clear the jumps with a good position.

I took jumping lessons in my 40s, and I remember being apprehensive about my mare's last second refusals. Several times she stopped at the jump and launched me over it. I'm sure that my fear didn't make her confident about jumping, and her refusals and my fear certainly affected my position. Following Robin's techniques, I wouldn't have started to jump until I had a good, secure position and could give my horse the confidence to jump cleanly.

I'm certainly not a jumper rider or an instructor. What do the jumper riders and instructors think about this idea?

Horseback Riding Fitness for Mature Riders -- Help Your Body When You Ride

Guest Post by Nanette Levin, Owner of Halcyon Acres

First, I’d like to say that I don’t consider myself mature. You (usually) can’t see my gray hairs, there’s not too much gathering in my midsection, the sun hasn’t yet cratered my face, I’m more active than most teenagers (that’s not saying much these days), and I’ve been accused on more than one occasion of being childish.

It seemed important to make this clear. That said, I’ve definitely noticed some challenges riding, particularly in the last decade or so as I have seen my thirties wane and have roared well into my forties.

Paul asked me to discuss how I’ve altered my routine to accommodate some of the physical challenges – many borne from injury, some just plain about getting older - that have developed over the years. For the record, I still gallop Thoroughbred racehorses at an area track and start and fix young horses under saddle at Halcyon Acres.

Stretching prior to riding (I’m not as vigilant about this as I should be) has really helped. This is a good practice for anyone, but becomes essential later in life. Try to stretch the muscles you use most (think thighs and shoulders), but don’t forget about the hips, ankles, calves, the neck, and back. Simply spending twenty minutes stretching, can not only keep you from getting sore, but also help avoid injury. To offer extra assurances the toxins are released from my muscles periodically, I have also incorporated massage twice a month.

These days, I always wear a back brace when riding. Having torn a major ligament, my back just isn’t what it used to be. It helps to have the support to avoid future injury and offer additional strength. If you have an area that’s giving you trouble, try wrapping it and you may be amazed how much less pain you suffer.

I now listen to my body instead of riding through the pain. If I pull something, I take care of it. Sometimes this requires rest. I’ve also become a big believer in ice. Twenty minutes on; twenty minutes off; coupled with some massage to an injured area can really speed the healing process and minimize the discomfort.

Sometimes you have to learn to say no. This can be extremely challenging when you’re used to doing it all, but I do not hesitate to let some cocky young rider rise to the challenge of a difficult horse anymore as I happily climb aboard the “boring” steed. That’s saved me from feeling old on a whole bunch of occasions.

You get wiser too. I spend a lot more time on the ground than I used to with young horses that are fractious, concerned or just plain belligerent. It is amazing how effectively you can teach a lesson in the stall, the round pen or with long reins and have it understood once you hop on their backs. This saves a lot of time in the long term too, because riding becomes a pleasant cooperative experience developed from a communications process that is clear. It’s also a lot easier to ride without pain if you’re not brushing dirt off your backside.

I’ve found water to be more critical as the years have passed. Merely keeping hydrated can help you avoid a lot of muscle ache after a particularly rigorous day.

Finally, I’ve had to slow down. Gone is the routine of riding twenty or more horses in a day. Instead, I take on less, but enjoy it a good deal more. Breaks between horses also gives the body time to recuperate and muscles time to relax.

Older and wiser is a term that didn’t mean much to me years ago, but as it’s become necessary to supplement brawn with brain, I’m getting it. Now I just wish I could go back a couple of decades and institute the care required now to avoid some of the creaky quirks that remind me daily of neglectful mistakes made in the past.