Yeah, yeah, I know I promised this to you yesterday, but I dragged myself to bed later than I had hoped to and I just wanted to sleep. You may point out that it's later still tonight than even Monday's post, but this is by choice. I decided that since the dogs are plotting against me EVER getting a full night's sleep this week (Bucket crying to go out and poo at 2:30am Tuesday morning, Delilah barking at who knows what this morning at 4am), that I'd just roll with it and quit trying to go to bed early. But I digress.
Country Catering and Cattle Round Ups. That's why you're here. I may not make it much past breakfast today, because, well...I am tired. But we'll get there eventually.
So there was this big whiteboard advertising breakfast from 6am to 6:45am that we had seen the night before. And sure enough, 6am rolled around and there was an honest-to-god breakfast bell. It wasn't a triangle or an iron bell like we used to have waaaay back when on "the farm", but it was a giant oversized copper cowbell of sorts. And they weren't shy about using it to let us know that it was time to get up and get movin.
Breakfast done cowboy style, but with a bit more finesse... Pancakes (I passed), bacon (I sure as heck didn't!), eggs to order, fresh fruit, juice, coffee, cocoa. It was an amazing spread and we ate as though we wouldn't see food again for days. Probably a bad choice, looking back on it, as it was just a gateway meal to many other overindulgences, but boy was it good.
We met up with our rental horse wrangler, Rob, who gave us our assignments. My horse? Princess, a formal barrel horse with "some spunk". Eep. Considering that I hadn't ridden in something like 6 or 7 years, and then only for a short short stint around the jousting ranch in OKC, I was the tiniest bit nervous about whether or not I would be able to sit a "spunky" horse. S would be on Dunbar, and Roommate K would be on Sunflower, whom S had ridden the year previous and had warned us was a big ole stick in the mud. If K was at all disappointed, she didn't show it, but took it in perfect stride.
We went and got our cowduds on (yes, we ate in our pajamas, but lest anyone worry themselves about me traipsing around in a tank top and holy pajama bottoms, let me remind you that we were camping. on a ranch. in october. I was sharing a tent with two other people, and it was chilly. I was more clothed than I often am during the Phoenix summer!), and went to where the horses were kept. To our surprise, Rob and his son had gotten all of our horses completely ready and saddled. All we had to do was water them and tighten the cinches and make sure our stirrups were set to the right height.
I really do have photos, and I really will post some someday. But for now I'll just tell you that while I dreamed for months of having a paint pony or a buckskin, and dreaded the ever-popular "brown horse", that's pretty much what Princess was. Almost a Bay, but too scruffy to pass. Not light enough to pass for Sorrel... (and here I act like I know what the hell I'm talking about! ha!). But she was a tall horse, and relatively narrow, for which I would be eternally grateful. She tested me a bit, but we eventually got along like...well, like a trail horse and a noob rider. :)
Dunbar was a stocky little thing, and even sassier than Princess, and more brown and plain. But he totally suited S--they looked like they'd been together forever. And Sunflower was the perfect match for Roommate K...a gorgeous palomino paint that looked like it had been created just for the shiny, bubbly blond.
After we watered up and rode around the camp for a bit to get adjusted, it was time to ride out.
And true to form, I've exhausted myself in the telling thus far, and my eyes are stinging me to sleep. So the actual tale of the ride will have to wait, yet again!
I like to keep you hangin. ;)
1 comment:
hanging...
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