Newsletter October 2009

October 2009 Newletter

You’ve been seeing this logo for months and now the big event is almost here. I’m so excited to see it all come together…sure hope you are all planning to attend the October 4th Ride for the Cure! Thanks to everyone….you are truly a fantastic bunch of ladies!

Kickapoo River Canoeing Perhaps you may remember me mentioning the fact that a few of us went canoeing while camping at Wildcat Mountain in September. Well, our dear Deanna Z. has written a wonderfully witty account our adventure. . I almost bust a gut laughing as I read Deanna’s account of our adventure! You’ll love it too.
Article Pdf File.

Hagmania Sunday, September 13th
I’m sure everyone will agree, Hagmania 2009 was another wonderful HON success. This year we had 47 entries…more than ever before! We had some new games and some of the old favorites and everyone seemed to have a great time. A big thanks to Jessie W. for organizing everything, to Deb S. for once again taking registrations, to our many helpers in the ring including Donna M., Floyd, Les and Rob, and to our scorekeepers, Chris L. and Kris A. Our Reserve High Point winner was Diane C. and the High Point winner was Heather R. . It was great to see several of our new members at Hagmania 2009 as well as so many Hagmania veterans. I have many, many photos from the day thanks to Marise F’s friend, Misty. You can view some here.
Photos here.

Coming Soon……
Rock County Multi Use Trail Group Fall Fundraiser October 3rd Bring your thinking cap and come enjoy brunch, the Riddled Trails, and prizes. Check in is at 9:30 a.m. at Gibbs Lake County Park. The cost is $15. For more information, visit RCMUTG. Sounds like a lot of fun!
Photos

Pink Ribbon Ride for the Cure
October 4thOf course, we have the Pink Ribbon Ride for the Cure on Sunday, but you’ve gotten lots of information on that so I won’t say any more about it here.
Just keep your fingers crossed that everything goes well!

Fun Show.....
Fund Raiser Saturday, October 10th The Southern Kettle Moraine Horse Trail Association is sponsoring what looks to be a very fun event. There’s a Countrystyle Riding Course and an Indoor Fun Show. Classes include events similar to those at Hagmania; favorites like egg in spoon, Ride a Buck, Barrel Racing and more.
The best part is that proceeds go toward supplying electricity at
Horseriders Campground in Palmyra. Also see
MAP.
Check out the flyer for more details.

Endless Valley.....
October 17th and 18th Once again we have a HON Retreat planned for Saturday, October 17th at the lovely lodge at Endless Valley in Spring Green, WI. I think we have all the beds reserved now but there is a waiting list in case someone cancels. Contact Sherri T. for more information and watch your email for details on meals, stalls, etc.

Leslie Desmond clinic….
The Feel of the Horse October 24-25th For those who don't know,
Leslie Desmond co/wrote a book with Bill Dorrence just before his death, it's called, 'Horsemanship through Feel". Most of Leslie's clinics are either on the west coast or in Europe. However......... She's coming to Wisconsin October 24 & 25th! For anyone interested please check this out...... . What an opportunity! I talked with Hannah (the sponsor) and it is at the Childrens Ranch at Prairie Du Chien.
Don’t miss this one!

Mental Meanderings…by Sue N.
Going off trail for a moment…. I am delightfully impressed with the contributions of time and effort so many of you have made to the success of our Pink Ribbon Ride. While it’s reasonable to assume that nobody gives a tinker’s damn if I’m impressed, I would like to add that being older (make that “more experienced”) than most of you, I have witnessed surges of enthusiasm for a vast array of ideas and ideals. As I have become a tough audience, I have also learned that it’s important to have one’s efforts acknowledged. I don’t want a single person to go without hearing “Thank you.” You should all be very proud of what you have accomplished. It may take a few years to get the word out and the numbers up but everyone who attends will have spent the day, and their money, well.
One Horse Away From Being The Crazy Horse Lady
This past month Emma has been lounging about the paddock enjoying her semi-retirement, Jasper’s feet appeared to be wearing decently, and I was feeling horse-poor so I skipped a farrier visit. How much money did I save? Let’s do the math…. One trim = $35. One pair of boots to compensate for ouchy feet? $150.00!!!
Along with the boots came the realization that, while spending a small fortune on Jasper’s feet, I generally hit the discount stores when shoeing my own feet. That got me thinking about Jasper’s winter coat costing slightly more than mine… the coat he simply had to have – just in case mankind faced a new ice age. It followed that I would recall my husband’s comment regarding the sanity of a person who has three saddles for two horses when she can ride only one at a time. And that led to pondering all those halters hanging in the shed….. You know which ones I mean… the ones that are never used because they are a tad frayed or simply the wrong color.
Was I one horse away from being “The Crazy Horse Lady?” Should I start looking for a 12-step program to help me deal with my addiction to horses? How many brushes do I really need?
It took a while for me to realize that there are thousands of unused halters in the world! I am not alone! I am a Hag! And, as a Hag, I am part of a veritable gaggle of women just as out of control as I am! Consider the following: If there is just crazy horse lady for every 1,000 halters produced, Hag membership is virtually limitless! We could go global!
Yes, I believe each of us is one horse away from being ‘The Crazy Horse Lady” …something to be remembered as we count our blessings.

We have another new member this month!
Welcome Joslyn S. from Milton. Joslyn is an avid endurance/competitive trail rider and would love to introduce others to the sport.
She is also a farrier, specializing in barefoot performance horses. Welcome, Joslyn!!

News From Our Members
***** From Carol B.
What a GREAT weekend I had! I first met Diane and Floyd a month ago, during the HON weekend at Wildcat Mountain. At that time I thought to myself, 'These are a couple of really nice people!'
I could have only guessed, just what a wonderful, sweet, helpful, and knowledgeable couple, they really were. I learned a lot from them this past weekend, and no doubt will learn more, if and when, we are able to camp/ride together again.
At the last minute, I decided to load Turbo (2 year old colt) into my trailer along with Taz. I intended to leave him penned up at Horseriders Camp, Like I do when I take him with me to Ukarydee, but Diane and Floyd talked me out to doing that. They encouraged me to Turbo out on the trails. Floyd lent me a rope halter that had and extra long, soft, lead attached (a necessity that I didn't have packed) to use for ponying him. Though I had practiced ponying him off Taz's back, inside an arena, earlier this spring, he'd never been ponied out in the open, and I was some what apprehensive.
Thanks in part (pretty darn big part too!) to Floyd and Diane, Turbo's first, on the trail, ponying experience, went as perfect as any first ponying experience could ever be expected to go!
When were getting ready to hit the trails on Saturday morning, Floyd, was right there, to help me get a seamless start, by holding Turbo while I saddled up, and by handing him off to me, so I didn't have to mess around with that part of the process.
When we got on the trail, Floyd took the lead, and Diane set up behind Taz and I, and Turbo.
I realized right away, that this positioning, on their part, was no accident! It was evident, that Diane was taking up the rear, just in case, we'd encounter any problems. Through out the first few trail miles, they both took turns, (for loss of a better term) baby-sitting our progress!!! I had not expected either of these, near strangers, to put themselves in the position of being caretakers/overseers. It totally surprised, and equally, delighted me!
Turbo has always had issues with most anything, approaching him from the rear.
With Diane and Floyd, taking the time, to take up our rear, and then hold that position for awhile, and then ride past us, and every now and then, return to follow behind us for several minutes, and then pass us again, Turbo received lessons, that I wouldn't be able to teach him while practicing at home. Diane&Floyd will probably never realize how very much I appreciated what they did. Thanks to them, I can now take Turbo along with us (Taz & I) when we hit the trails, and I can do so with confidence!
In life, we meet all kinds of people, but there aren't very many horse people that I've met, who can measure up this this couple. And, Sandy, I met them through the HON's, so, thank you!
I sure hope that you had as good a time at Rock Cut, and enjoyed the trails, and the horse lovers, you were with, as much as I enjoyed the Finns, and the other gals, who joined us Saturday evening. Carol

News from members.....
*****From the Hag Up North …. Babs H.
Read about Babs H. adventures in Canada, including her new additions. Interesting stuff and a great read!

***** from Ronda S.
Ronda S. just returned from Buck Brannaman clinic in Deorah Iowa. He's amazing to watch. No wonder they call him one of the 5 greatest horsemen in the world. Of those 5, 3 are now deceased. Bill and Tom Dorrance and of course, Ray Hunt. The last of the 5 is a woman named Leslie Desmond. For those who don't know, Leslie co/wrote a book with Bill just before his death, it's called, 'Horsemanship through Feel". Most of Leslie's clinics are either on the west coast or in Europe. However......... She's coming to Wisconsin October 24 & 25th! For anyone interested please check this out...... . What an opportunity! I talked with Hannah (the sponsor) and it is at the Childrens Ranch at Prairie Du Chien

***** from Louise H.
PUT YOUR CAR KEYS BESIDE YOUR BED AT NIGHT!
Tell your spouse, your children, your neighbors, your parents your Dr's office, the check- out girl at the market, everyone you run across. Put your car keys beside your bed at night. If you hear a noise outside your home or someone trying to get in your house, just press the panic button for your car. The alarm will be set off, and the horn will continue to sound until either you turn it off or the car battery dies. This tip came from a neighborhood watch coordinator. Next time you come home for the night and you start to put your keys away, think of this: It's a security alarm system that you probably already have and requires no installation.. Test it. It will go off from most everywhere inside your house and will keep honking until your battery runs down or until you reset it with the button on the key fob chain. It works if you park in your driveway or garage If your car alarm goes off when someone is trying to break into your house, odds are the burglar rapist won't stick around... After a few seconds all the neighbors will be looking out their windows to see who is out there and sure enough the criminal won't want that. And remember to carry your keys while walking to your car in a parking lot. The alarm can work the same way there ..... This is something that should really be shared with everyone. Maybe it could save a life or a sexual abuse crime.
by Louise H.

*****from Ronda S. and Dee S.
From Ronda S. and Dee S. (This is almost too crazy to believe.) Apparently these gals were riding at one of their favorite parks (Kinickinic) about a month ago. When a tree branch brushed against Dee, she lost an earring. Well, our gals went back several times in search of that earring. No luck. Until last week, that is. Believe it or not…Dee found the missing earring. It was hanging on a branch in that tree for several weeks. Now how strange is that! We like happy endings, don’t we?

October Birthdays......
Diane S. - Oct 3
Deb W. - Oct 9
Sue N. - Oct 12
Tammy T. - Oct 13
Kenda S. and Pam T. - Oct 25
Katie D. - Oct 27
Louise H. - Oct 28
Remember, birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live!!! Happy Birthday to you all!

Happy Trails,
Sandy

Contact: Herd Mare