Conditioning Ride 9-1-10 or A Nice Leisurely Ride!

RHR: 36

HR on return: 60

HR at 10 min: 48

Distance: 5.6 miles

Average Speed: 4.5mph

Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

As the title suggests, this was essentially a leisurely stroll! The current heat wave was just starting and I was tired. Exhausted, really, or very close thereto. I wanted to get a little bit of a ride in to exercise the dogs and keep Hoss from getting too fresh. I also wanted a nap before choir practice! I was very fortunate to get both in.


We trailered out, and I was getting a little sour on the Hollenbeck area, so we went a little farther to Horsethief Canyon. The trails here that I know are pretty short, but it's beautiful. It's a nice place to go with some challenging areas to keep our minds alert. In the winter, there's a lot of running water and a pond.

We started out by heading down the fire road into the open space area. Once it was relatively flat, I asked Hoss for a trot, and we hotted along for a couple of miles. Once we turned down into the trails, however, it became harder to do much trotting. Many of the trees have become over grown, and some have fallen. This area burned in the Horse fire a few years ago, so there are dead trees that have started coming down in the last year or so. As a result, we just went at a leisurely pace for most of the ride.


At one point, Mac, being his usual doggy self, was rampaging through the underbrush and flushed up a flock of wild turkeys!  He came bounding out of the bushes, looking utterly shocked.  He's never seen a turkey before!   I asked him if he'd got one, and he looked at me as if he wondered what I could possibly want one for.


When we got to the pond, I was disappointed to see that it had already dried up. I'd been hoping the dogs would have a chance to play in the water. Usually it dries up earlier in the year, but this year it was still there as recently as a month ago. There was enough water left for the dogs to get a good drink, though.


I knew I was tired and that I just wanted to go home, so I started asking Hoss to trot more frequently. He knows where the tough parts are, and he slowed down on his own several times. He was really good about getting me through the treacherous rocks without taking my feet off. We made it back to the trailer after a relatively long climb, so his heart rate was a little high, but truly not bad. Many rides set 60 as the heart rate criteria for vet checks. He dropped nicely, but not as much as I would have liked. I suspect this is due to the short distance and the heat. I didn't have water to sponge him with. The best I could do was brush him out, although I did hose him down when we got home.


All in all, a nice ride. Every once in a while it's nice to get out and ride just to ride.