HR: 40
HRR: 56
HR 10min: 40
Distance: 8 miles
Avg Speed: 4 mph
After my last ride, I realized that Hoss really needs to have boots on for riding, at least for now. I'm hoping eliminating the grain in his diet – which I added shortly before his last trim – will help keep him from being so foot sore. So I was contemplating this need to get him in four boots yesterday. Obviously just fronts are not enough. I thought about it for quite some time and came up with a solution I thought would work.
I still have size 1.5 Gloves. One of the size 1 Gloves is damaged. Although I was able to use it at Eastern Mojave, it's become clear it won't hold up as long as it should. I also have a size 1 Easyboot. Using all four Gloves wouldn't work. I only have three gaiters. So before riding, I gathered up the boots and went to work. I took the gaiter off the damaged size 1 Gloves and put it on the 1.5 that was missing a gaiter. I put power straps on both 1.5 Gloves. I put a power strap on the remaining size 1 Glove.
Once all this prep work was done (at the kitchen table; not a brilliant choice to work on dirty hoof boots), I took the three Gloves and one Easyboot outside. I got a rasp, hammer and a hoof pick, got Hoss out, and went to work. I put the 1.5s on Hoss's front feet. It wasn't easy, but they went on. I put the remaining size 1 Glove on his left hind. I put the Easyboot on his right hind. While I was doing this work, I kept hearing that song from Sesame Street, "one of these things is not like the others/one of these things just doesn't belong."
Booted up and ready to go, I loaded Hoss in the trailer and the dogs in the truck and off we went to try it out at Hollenbeck Canyon.
While saddling up, I started making adjustments to the new saddle. I removed the off side billet and put a latigo in its place. I put my front saddle pack on as well. With the latigo on the off side, it was easier to get the girth right.
Hoss started out on the trail a bit tentative. The tripping/limping I'd noticed on my last ride was gone, but he didn't seem to believe it would last. After we made the first water crossing, though, he started to perk up and wanted to go. I moved him into a trot, which he took up willingly. He wanted to slow down for the rocks, and I encouraged him to keep trotting. He was suspicious, but tried, and seemed to discover that it didn't hurt!
I kept pushing for trotting where it was possible. As we went, Hoss became more and more confident. When we hit our running hill, he took off pretty well, but then tripped pretty badly (hey, I got to test that I can stay in the saddle through some major stuff!), and I could hear a boot off behind. I dismounted and put the Glove back on him. I already knew the size 1s don't fit his hinds well, but it was better than nothing at all.
After getting the boot back on, we set back off at a trot. Evidently working uphill increases the odds he'll toss a size 1 Glove off a hind foot.
Hoss was still feeling more tentative than confident about his feet at this point, but when we turned down past the olive grove, he started to feel better. Of course, he's had a tendency to sand bag me a bit until we get to that point, where we've turned around and are headed back toward the trailer. Still, it was nice to feel him moving forward more confidently.
Halfway down the hill, I noticed the sound of metal flapping about. I didn't think it was likely to be anything on the saddle. In spite of having a fantastic array of clips, D-rings, and leather ties, I really didn't see any reason to think there was anything on the saddle to create this particular sound. I stopped Hoss and looked back at the single Easyboot. Sure enough, the clip had come loose of the cable. The only reason the boot was still on was that the cable had caught on the bottom edge of the mounting hardware, keeping the boot reasonably tight. I dismounted and fixed the problem.
When we reached the flat area, Hoss wanted to go. I pushed him forward into a canter, and he was really having a good time. He did want to slow down earlier than I would normally want him to. I let him slow down, concerned he'd popped a boot off. Once I established all his boots were on properly, I set him back into a trot. After we got through a rocky area, I put him back in a canter. When we slowed down again, I kept him at a trot to the top of the small rise before dropping back to a walk.
After we'd passed through the saddle between two hills, I set Hoss back to trotting on the slight downhill. He was really feeling good now. It helps that we were headed back toward the trailer. When we reached the steeper area, I slowed him to a walk. Once back on flatter ground, I pushed him back into a trot. We trotted all the way back to the water crossing.
Halfway through the water, Hoss stopped for a nice drink. While he was drinking, I could feel the mud under his feet causing him to slip around a bit. On our way out of the water, I felt him jerk a hind foot up. I stopped him once we were on solid ground, and sure enough, the Easyboot was off. I went back and fortunately found it easily. Rather than attempt to put it back on at that point, I put it in my saddle bag and rode back on three boots. It was time to walk, anyway.
When I pulled the saddle, I found Hoss had some dry spots, but they're better than what I've been seeing in the past. Additionally, this saddle sits significantly farther back, giving his shoulder blades more room to move freely. There were no sore spots. I'm thinking the old saddle had started to pinch his shoulders because it needed to be so far forward in order for the gullet not to sit on his withers.
For me, the new saddle is a good fit. The seat fits me nicely, and my legs hang down just right. Even the old saddle, which was a tolerable fit, didn't give me as nice a leg position as this one does.
All things being equal, I think this saddle is a keeper!
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