The Peregrinations & Misadventures of Brigadier D+/ (1 Viewer)

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Briggy stumbling? That does not sound good, I hope it's nothing serious.

On a different note,that must be the cleanest horse trailer I've ever seen.
 
The dude fell asleep getting shod yesterday.

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The farrier backed the front shoes up a 1/4" off his hooves.

Hoping that this means less stumbling.

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Long and slow 10 miles today. He did very well, and I think I need to do a better job of listening to him. So good to be in the woods as they are coming back to life after a long winter!

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This might be the slowest 10 miles we've ever done.
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11 miles today. Still pretty slow. This is exactly the kind of day I wish for all winter long...cloudless skies, open trails, and no time constraints.

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About 10 miles. My phone had to be restarted so the mileage is wrong. Stumbling is gone and he is feeling stronger as we are both regaining muscle tone. What a gorgeous day!

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And a dirtbath...
They used to say a horse was worth a lot more if he could roll all the way over.

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Dave moved all his jumps around as he is schooling his horse for show season. This was Briggy looking at one of the jumps.
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Looking pretty Arabesque.
 
It's official. This dude has retired from endurance races.

It was a tough decision, but I do not want him to break down because he can't recover as well since he is older and I am overriding him. I would much rather he stay sound for riding recreationally.

I decided to wait until fall of 2020 to decide if I want to buy another horse to compete. There is a good chance we will start spending our entire summer out West, so it's hard to justify another horse when we will spend so much time doing other things, and I've got a husband who is completely on board with river running...

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He's going to be damn near impossible to replace. He's such a gentleman--everything about him is easy and effortless and he makes it look so good.
 
Briggy's pasture mate is a 25 year old gelding with a suspensory injury that never resolved itself, so his owner only hops on for ten minutes and rides him in the ring.

I offered to let her ride Brig this summer. I am gone almost all of August and once I return from the OBX the first assignments are due for my college class. Last year they averaged 30 pages each, so that'll take me awhile.

It'll be good to have a second pair of eyes on him for ticks and injuries, even tho Dave is wicked conscientious.

Anne rode him for the first time Monday. Fun to see someone else ride him!

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As I was hitching the truck to go Mohonk the other day, Dave invited me to hack out from his property instead. Did seven or eight miles. Briggy was pretty naughty for the first couple miles, then on the way back he worked very hard to steal rein. He has a lot of fun on trails he doesn't know, always looking around and interested in his surroundings but always confident at the same time.

This creek is actually a road crossing that Onur and I like to drive through, called Fording Place. I'd never ridden through it before.

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I thought that looked familiar when you posted the crossing picture the other day!
I past you in Stone Ridge on Friday I think.
 
I thought that looked familiar when you posted the crossing picture the other day!
I past you in Stone Ridge on Friday I think.

Yep! Sorry I missed you; I don't usually miss your truck.
 
I decided to wait until fall of 2020 to decide if I want to buy another horse to compete. There is a good chance we will start spending our entire summer out West, so it's hard to justify another horse when we will spend so much time doing other things, and I've got a husband who is completely on board with river running...


River running > riding horse :).

We just sent Toccoa off to a new home in Florida. He's 21 and he was hardly being ridden but still in good health. We are now horseless.

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River running > riding horse :).

We just sent Toccoa off to a new home in Florida. He's 21 and he was hardly being ridden but still in good health. We are now horseless.

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Congrats! I've sold some horses and it takes time to find the right person. I know you guys have been working on that for awhile.

I don't think another horse is totally out of the picture, because Onur will work longer than I will, and since he travels so much for work, riding and competing will be a good way to stay busy. But it won't be next year, or likely the year after.

And I know...I'd rather be behind the oars than any other place on the planet, but it's hard to compare the partnership I have with Briggy to anything else. We've spent 1000s of miles together over trails from WV to ME. It's a different kind of spectacular...and difficult to understand if you've never had a partnership like it.
 
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Hazy, humid day at Mohonk. We saw the biggest porcupine I've ever seen, and had a lazy eight mile ride up the ridge.
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I savor these last summer days, when we are both sweaty and feeling strong and you can tell the light is already a little different from the sun's angle. There are white blossoms on tall flowers in the woods that have a heady, dark fragrance. I wish we would have a few months of this. It is a spectacular time to live in the Northeast.
 
Also, I found a coffee cup which fits perfectly on my saddle. I don't know how I ever went without this.
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Answer to life! 🤓
 

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