October was our 3rd and final MINI contest for 2008. This contest was a mini version of the year long contest with points tallied the same but on a 30 day scale. Congratulations to the riders below. And thanks to everyone that made this month fun by blogging and sharing their stories during this awesome month!!

Adult Division:
Harold Fairchild - 1st place
Zoe Lirakis - 2nd place

Youth Division:
Cara Duncan - 1st place
Kristal D'Uva - 2nd place

(Susan & Ahd) Before AhD and I hit the trails for a misty evening ride, we did some refresher courses/groundwork to prepare both of us mentally. AhD has been behaving like a jerk in the pasture lately, so I wanted to get his mind on me to avoid Trail Jerkiness Syndrome. I tied him to the hitching post and sacked him out. I threw the plastic swimming pool around, let the dogs out to run behind him, and let him graze near the gobbling, displaying tom turkeys. Then I put a little grain in my pocket and enticed him to walk into the swimming pool. Once I was convinced he was going to be a (relatively) good boy, I saddled him up and we headed out. We had more of a training session than a relaxing riding session, but the leaves were beautiful, that fall smell of fallen leaves abounded, and a light mist was in the air. We passed a beautiful bright red maple and walked in the brook which was filled with floating yellow birch leaves. The fall foliage pictures will have to wait for a brighter day; but I promise you fellow RACers some nice New England photos before the month is out.

(Michelle & Lakota @ Chestnut Hill Curlies) I'm plugging along in my goal for 2008 with Lakota. Lakota told me last year that she was very unconfident out on the trail, and each ride steadily got worse and worse (total of 3 rides away from home). So I made the goal to break down our steps further. This year I have spent on getting her more soft and relaxed in the roundpen and taking walks on the property as an interim step before getting in the trailer and leaving for the big world. We had a bit of a setback in late July with a big spook that almost dumped me after she backed into the gate after refusing to walk out of it and spooked herself. So I had to backtrack a bit, regain her confidence in the pen (she became spooky for a few weeks even inside). So in August I started taking her for walks around the property in-hand, exploring new areas we hadn't been to before. I use clicker training, and she received treats for being brave and exploring new areas. Soon, it was getting fun to explore new things! So we have explored the entire driveway almost to the road, the far end of the yard and around the garden where the neighbors barking dog and screaming children are. We've explored the tight, scary area between the barn, tent shelter and horse trailer, and we've explored the kids pool, which is really quite scary! Kids heads float in there, and there is that horrible wet stuff that she swears will melt the hide right off her bones. Then in September we've started riding around the yard. We have avoided the "going out the gate" issue, and I warmup in the roundpen, dismount, take her out of the pen, then remount and continue the same exercises outside the pen as we did inside the pen (figure 8's, serpentines, small circles, all at a walk). We have also walked up over the picnic area and to the kids pool before dismount, and also walked halfway up the path to the barn. These were all big thresholds for her, and I'm very proud of her! Our last ride, we rode in the upper area of the paddock, which has a lot of rocks, stumps, logs, hillocks, tight turns. It was a little sticky, but our first time on uneven terrain. She was a little unsure that she actually could carry me over that, but she is getting better about learning to balance me on uneven ground. And of course, now its been raining for 2 weeks, and there is painting to be done, so there has been no riding for a couple of weeks. Hopefully we will get back to it very soon! Here are some photos of our paddock ride, including Lakota modeling her new Barefoot London treeless saddle, exhausted after our ride, and pulling her mule-face because she was having so much fun she didn't want to go back to the barn!

(Susan & Ahd) I took some time off from work this morning to hit the trails with AhD, and here are the promised fall photos. It was misting/raining, so the colors are fairly muted but still pretty. AhD is getting the hang of standing still so I can take pictures. I reward him with a few pellets of grain if he is a good boy. :)

( Zoe @ Top O' the Hill Farm)It has been a while since I have posted anything...been to busy. I just returned from my first Dressage Show and it went very well. I took WR Winter Dancer who is typically a lesson horse but when I found out about this show around a month ago I decided it would be fun to try it. So Dancer and I have been spending the past month working and preparing going out a couple of times a week. Since there was not that much time for preparation and it was a first for both Dancer and I we only did a walk/trot test. Well the work paid off since we scored a 65, which I am feeling pretty good about since this type of discipline is new to both of us. Pictures will be posted on the farm blog of myself and also two volunteers from the riding center who rode horses from the farm as well. I have plans now for some more next year, got to get those curlies out and showing off their stuff!!!!

(Susan & Ahd) It was a glorious day for riding in Maine, so AhD and I took advantage of it. It was very windy during the first half of the ride, and you know what that means...jumpy horses. So I headed directly into the woods and bushwacked to burn off a little extra energy. We were almost defeated by a wild rose bush at one time, but we changed directions, scrambled over a low spot in a stone wall, and came out onto the road about a mile from home. Interesting! We explored a trail that petered out, and as we headed slightly downhill on a back road, AHD GAITED! I was so thrilled. He hasn't done it in quite a while, and I was wondering if he had lost the ability as he has matured. On this ride we also got in some really nice canters on both left and right leads on a wide, grassy trail. Harold, you don't need to get out your glasses to see the beautiful color in AhD's saddle blanket.

(Linda @ Creekside Curlies)Oh MY....glad to see everyone else out there getting some riding done ;-) I picked up a "new ride" yesterday, I took my very first ride on our ranch stallion..."HeartBreaker"..! HB has been in training with Mike Kinsella for the last two months, at Twin Willows Equestrian Center in Deer Park, WA. We went to pick up HB and bring him back home, and I managed to talk husband into just a little extra time, so I could take a lesson on HB...and it went splendidly! This horse is just so cool, he has such a great mind. That line up of mares to ride at home, may take a back seat to HB as we work to keep in shape ( next year is First Level Dressage tests 1-4 ) and for me...to get in shape....Sorry, but my only pic of the day is when I asked Mike to take a "victory lap" on HB, for the wonderful year of competing that they had...no cameras allowed in my lessons...well, not yet anyway!

( Betsy & Zoe @ Top O' the Hill Farm) Here is a little change for an RAC post. I decided no one is driving so I better get out and do it ! Keri has not been hitched to the cart in I can't remember how many years.. but we had a nice drive out. This was on the 7th. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-miuKLvr5pY
October 8th, Zoe and I also got out with Keri and Tall Trees Sassie. Sassie is another wonderful therapy horse that does not get out of the indoor often enough . As a special treat, we took her down the road and on a small trail ride. Sassie has not left the farm property since before her first foal.. which was (I think ) 3 years ago. She was happy for the change of scenery. We even found some fairly deep water in the woods to vary her exposure a bit. She did great and had a super time.

More from Betsy & Zoe! Top O' the Hill Farm) Monday, we decided one of our lesson horses needed a break. Sudie seemed sad and cranky- a good trot down the road will rejuvenate her spirits. This time I did bring my camera- since I had it in the barn already anyway. I always say-- the first mile of our ride is fraught with obstacles.. after that-- it's home free. There are always ducks and herons flying up from the brook, turtles slipping off their rock, people raking their yard (horses just hate that rake rake rake sound it seems). And along the first mile for some reason, homeowners are obsessed with lawn ornaments of all varieties-- spinning and stationary. Today we were treated to the seasonal Halloween ornaments.

(Susan & Ahd) I've been out on AhD for two more spectacular rides, exploring the trails around my house.  We went up on Sanitorium Hill yesterday, and my Curly was so relaxed on the way out that he even SAUNTERED.  Now, I don't even remember the last time he sauntered, if he ever has.  He has the stand for pictures thing down pat now - or at least he does on the way out.  Apparently, he forgot how to do that on the way back.  ;)  Amazing, how clever these animals are.  Anyway, I think he is as "into" the photography as much as I am, because I swear he stops, turns his little face to me and says, "Don't you think this scene would make a good photo?"  He's so dang cute.  Of course, I'm sure it has NOTHING to do with the nuggets of grain that magically appear in my palm once the photo has registered onto my camera.  :)  I tried to take a picture of him turning into a pretzel to take the grain from my hand, but it turns out I can't bend over, hold my right palm flat, hold the reins and the camera in my left hand, twist my head, look into the viewfinder and not have my right fingers badly bitten in the process.  I'll have to work on it.  :)  It's quite a climb to the top of Sanitorium Hill, so I let my Didder have a yummy snack at the top while I soaked in the view and let the wind whip my face.  The view just wouldn't have been the same without him, either!  I could feel that this was a day the Lord hath made, and I am thankful right down to my sore tailbones for it.  p.s.  Yes, the saddle blanket is blue, but my fuzzy socks were pink.

(Susan & Ahd) More fall colors for you fellow RACers. This has been one of the most spectacular falls in Maine that I can remember, in large part to having a solid month of rain in late summer. Another BEAUTIFUL day; the trails in my area are breathtaking with bright fallen leaves and color everywhere I look. Dare I say it? NO BUGS! Peak color lasts only three weeks in the best conditions, and I am so thankful that I have been able to get out on my trusty pony to enjoy it. Here are some pictures of AhD in front of Rock Maples and Sugar Maples.

(Harold @ Curls N' Horns Ranch) Me and Curly went out again today and faced a lot of rain but I wanted to show certain people that we don't have the nice color they have!!! All in all we had a very nice ride. Also want to show Jed in his new stirrups. Harold

(Carol & Phantom) Girl's Weekend Gosh, what could be more fun than a three day weekend doing nothing but riding, camping and listening to your horse munch on hay as you drift off to sleep!! The girl's weekend tradition has been happening for many years. This year I was invited to come along and join in on the fun and it was an absolute blast!! I took my horse Phantom and I think she had the best time of all. At home, she is working her way up the pecking order in our herd of four so to be able to relax and get all of the attention, feed, water, etc for three days was the best for her!! We camped at a place called Stoney Creek part of the state forest preserve in Michigan. From Stoney Creek we had access to a large parcel(a thousand plus acres) of land called the Le Grande Ranch, a former buffalo ranch. We also had access to the horse trail(the blue dot) that travels all the way across the state east to west. Needless to say, as we rode for three days, we rarely saw the same thing twice!! Even though we did have to contend with a bit of rain and temperatures down into the 30's one night, to be able to be away from the grind of everyday living was wonderful. On Saturdayevening, after a day of riding over 5 hours, my husband Tom cooked and brought dinner out for the ladies. What a gem!! That evening we were also joined by more spouses and a few other horseback riding buddies who were not able to be with us over the weekend. As we sat around the campfire, talking and laughing, I kept looking over at Phantom, content and safe in her portable corral, snuggled under her blanket, chewing hay.....I swear she was smiling. The importance of moments like that one hit me right in the gut. I looked around again at the people who surrounded the campfire.....so happy, laughing, sharing horse stories, petting the dogs that had also been brought to camp....all of us so removed from the worries of the stock market, our vanishing equity, gas prices, the election blah, blah.....and I sighed as I was again reminded of the important things in life....God, family, friends, country and horses!!! Have a couple of pictures.....Alice(age 78) riding Rap and another view overlooking Stoney Creek flooding. Carol

(Susan & Ahd) Riding today was awesome! Warm, bright hues abounded everywhere I looked. I rode beside a stone wall for quite a ways, through some tall marsh grass - I felt like I was temporarily on safari in Africa! - and on down to my neighbor's pond. AhD trotted around the pond and we explored a new area with a gorgeous view of rolling hills. Then we headed down a trail littered with newly fallen leaves. The smell was heavenly and the sunlight dappled through the trees. I rode a second time in the evening (bareback!), accompanying my husband (on foot) to check out the level of grass in the pastures. The angle of the sun this time of year contrasts the clear blue sky and bright green grass against the vividly colored trees. What a fall!

( Laurie and Pyewacket) – We headed out on Saturday for a local trail ride organized by the Granite State Carriage Association. There were a mix of riders and carriages – the colors were spectacular, temperature just right and as Susan has mentioned no bugs. What a joy to be out. Pye behaved exquisitely both on the trail and in the campground. I think she learned quite a bit on her big Vermont ride. This was a no stress 10 miles or so. I attached a few pictures that show the NH fall colors.

(Brie & Sage) Sage and I have been enjoying the fall weather tremendously as we are having an absolutely beautiful foliage season here in Vermont. Sage has continued to improve under saddle so we are able to leave the security of the pasture and venture outside more often now. I am getting much better at sitting and posting his trot now that we are exercising more consistently. Sage loves getting out and seeing new things and doesn't mind leaving the barn in the least, even when his pasture mate whinnies behind him... Brie

More from Betsy & Zoe! Top O' the Hill Farm) On Wednesday October 15th, 2008, Dream On Curls Riding Center was excited to be participating in National Disability Mentoring Day. The third Wednesday of October has been nominated as the celebratory day since 1999, growing and expanding each year. This year is designated as the kick off for a year round effort for individuals with disabilities to get out and be mentored at different area business locations to further career development.
Here at Dream On Curls Riding Center, we had a woman come who loves anything horses. She spends much of her time reading horse books and magazines to study up on all the new things for horses. NARHA certified riding instructor Zoe Lirakis taught her how to clean saddles, an important job to keep everything looking new and in its best condition. After finishing with that Zoe introduced the mentee to one of the lesson horses, Sudie Bee, for some much needed grooming. The participant was fascinated with the curly hair on Sudie, never having heard of an American Curly Horse before today. She also could not get over how quiet and sweet Sudie was for her grooming. Peggy loved both saddle cleaning and the grooming. George had a chance to groom and ride Keri, one of our Curly lesson horses. Keri stands very still while George uses the big 3 step mounting block we built specially for our riders. Being able to offer this special program to our riders is gratifying and we are so fortunate to have such wonderful horses that take their job of carrying their precious cargo so seriously. Enjoy your day ~
All in all everyone had a great time and learned some new skills that may lead to more opportunities for the participant. Dream on Curls Riding Center looks forward to being a part of this national effort to dispel discrimination against the disabled and further their opportunities in the work force.

(Carol & Treat) Here are a couple of pictures of us riding today. We were working on turning on the forehand. Also here is a picture of Tom and Ron and dog Willie riding in our back meadow. (for Harold ;-)

(Harold @ Curls N' Horns Ranch) Last night I didn't make plans for today because it was supposed to rain all day!!! I got up this morning and watched the sun come up went and did my chores and saddled up Curly and rode off by myself and what a glorious day it was wonderful sunshine and slight breeze and warmth!!! My only problem was a 500 acre game farm I had to cross to get to my trails and I think they were trying to shoot me instead of the pheasants!!!!!!!!! Curly flinched a couple of times but we had no problems that we couldn't handle. This was truley a day to ride and rejoice in. What a day the Lord has made!! Harold

(Susan & Ahd) My ride on AhD today reflected the weather, brisk and invigorating! We started off on the steep and rough powerline, turned off on some familiar trails, and then crossed a stream to investigate a brand new trail. I had to be careful to remember exactly which subsequent trails we took because I am Directionally Challenged. Fortunately, we ended up on a local back road. We trotted and gaited down the road a piece to an apple orchard, shared an apple, and headed back home. The woods are still extraordinarily beautiful, but we are passing peak leaf season, so I am storing up memories for the bitter days ahead. Since my camera is broken, I am attaching a picture of AhD on the powerline taken previously this month.

(Laura & Billy) Billy has been home from his short training session for a little over a week and I have been having a great time riding him! The first ride out on the trail was a little scary (I walked with him for a mile before I finally mounted), but he stopped and disengaged beautifully every time I asked, so that calmed my fears and we ended up having a wonderful ride!! He is in much better physical shape which allowed him to trot for a mile without a rest. I did not even have to keep giving him leg in the trot. He just went and it felt marvelous!!! We have been riding nightly around the house working on stopping, bending around barrels, and disengaging!
This weekend we had another curly horse join our family. He is an amazingly kind and gentle gelding. He needs a little groceries but, his face tells me the true story of what a BEAUTIFUL horse he is soon going to be!!! He is eating and drinking and even gets little spurts of energy when Billy and Chic start running around. He is so graceful in his movements that I think he will be an amazing ride when he gets some muscle on him. He does not seem to be afraid of anything.

(Carol & Treat) Well, today was the best ever. I took my horse Dutch Treat on her first trail ride. Oh my gosh, we had a blast!! It was windy so I wasn't sure if she would be a bit spooky or just take things in stride. She didn't miss a beat. Not one thing on the trail alarmed her AT ALL!!! Pretty cool for a green horse!! Have some pictures. As you can see the leaves are about done for this year. Soon the area behind our house will be covered with snow!! CB

(Cara & Sunny) Despite all the cool, blustery fall weather coming in (sigh) I've been able to get out and do some fun things with the boys. Yesterday I took Sunny out for a bareback ride, and we had a lot of fun. That's his favorite thing- no tack, no nasty bit, just him and me having fun along the roads. Last Saturday we took Koko to a fall schooling show. I borrowed a friends English tack, and we set out to prove a gaited horse could be shown English too! Surprisingly enough, he did VERY well in English. Because of his huge sweeping canter, he couldn't really do it in the small arena there, and so we placed in the bottom in the w/t/c classes. But- in the English Favorite Gait, he placed second out of seven horses! I had discovered the day before that it is absolutely impossible to post to a foxtrot. Yes, I actually tried. Koko got all choppy and pinned his ears back, asking what in the world I was doing, crazy human! So I didn't even try at the show. We also placed well in costume, halter, western, fun classes, and trail. :-) Here's hoping there will be more nice riding days left...

(Tesla & Sage) The last couple weeks me and Sage have been doing drill team. I think he likes it, but it is very confusing for him. He is begining to get more into it. Last time though, he wasn't so good. The tractor was going back, and forth, and he was a little upset about that. Today he is getting a day off, so I think he will be better!

(Susan & Ahd) Had a sweet late October ride today on AhD, a nice stroll through the woods. We were not in a rush nor on a timetable, and it was wonderful. I noticed that AhD's coat is much thicker than it was two weeks ago. He is sporting his orange halter for hunting season, and Sunday Only riding is now in session. A few days ago, we had had a driving rain and crazy-wild wind, so any trees that were already peaked are now bare. The trails were very wet, and the brooks were overflowing their banks, but that was no problem for my trusty mount. I fixed my camera, so you can see that the leaves are still beautiful on the late-season trees. Even where they are "only brown," they are still gorgeous, with all the shades from deep red-brown to light yellow-brown and everything inbetween. Enjoy the scenery!