ACTHA Ride at the Hatley Ranch

I rode down to Deary, Idaho with a friend and had a fun filled weekend on George Hatley's ranch. We got there Friday evening in time to go for a trail ride. Saturday morning, we went on the ACTHA Competitive Trail Challenge ride, which was sponsored by the Appaloosa Museum. It was a six mile loop with six judged areas. We got out in front so were able to flush a couple nice whitetail bucks, among other deer, birds, etc. I rode Cayenne in the Open Division. The course was as follows:

Log/Trail: Ride across a log, stop, turn 180 degrees, cross log again. Then ride back over log and negotiate a little trail through the sticks, bushes, and trees. Cayenne did fine, pivoting on a hind foot for both turns at the log.

Gate: Open gate, go through, and close. Cay did this with ease although I bumped her hind foot with the gate while closing it.

Water: Go to center of a shallow pool of water, stop, back 3 steps, continue straight out of water. Cayenne hesitated at the edge of the water, sniffed the water briefly, went in and completed the rest of the obstacle fine.

Hill: Ride up a hill, stopping in the middle for about 5 seconds. Cayenne did this perfectly.

Ground Tie: Dismount, lead horse through round corral gate, closing gate behind you, ground tie in center of round pen, walk a complete circle around horse, lead horse back out of round pen, and mount on off side. We did this well except Cayenne ate grass while ground tied! I also failed to check my cinch and headstall before remounting but am not sure if the judge was looking for that or not. I forgot about that little trail competition detail!

Back Up: Back a figure eight around a tree and a stump. Cayenne did great, backing and steering easily on a fairly loose rein.

The Pleasure Division, which my friend rode in, was slightly easier. We rode together but each of us stayed well away from the obstacle while the other was completing it. The differences in pleasure included: They did not have to do the turns at the log crossing, they simply crossed and rode out the little trail. They did not have to close the gate behind them. They crossed straight through the water without stopping or backing. They rode up the hill without stopping. They had to do the entire ground tie exercise but remounted on the near side of the horse instead of the off side. They backed a circle around the tree instead of the figure eight.

I think the ACTHA rides are a great way to get riders interested and experienced in the trail competitions. I like the ACTHA rides but I prefer more of a challenge. The other thing I noticed is that because of the small number of obstacles, if a rider doesn't do well on one obstacle, it pretty much takes them out of the running. Some competitions I go to have 20 or more obstacles so if a rider's horse doesn't do one obstacle or does poorly on a few, they can still be competitive. I think the ACTHA rides appeal to many people because they do get to go out and ride the trails. They are also low key and fun so are not intimidating to people who don't show horses. Overall, I have to say that the ACTHA rides are a great idea!

Cayenne and I ended up winning the Open Division! I was really happy! There were only three of us in that division but my competitors were seasoned riders on good mounts. I was also happy that instead of "ACTHA Bucks," the prizes were tangible items. I got to pick out a really nice hay bag for my Open win and also won "Best Dressed Female Rider!" I picked out a bottle of wine with Appaloosas on it for that. My wedding anniversary is coming up so maybe I can have a drink of wine to celebrate!

The second ride of the day was a fundraiser for the Appaloosa Museum. I hadn't planned on doing it but it was for a good cause and part of the money was jackpotted back. We rode the same course but went as a group with the judge riding with us. I wish I knew his last name but "George" was our judge and a very experienced eye. He critiqued each rider after each obstacle so it was a great learning experience! I think we would have had more riders if everyone had known it was going to be a lesson! I rode worse and Cayenne didn't behave as well on the jackpot ride! I would have thought we'd have done better the second time around. I think her youth came into play more as she didn't feel as comfortable leaving the large group of horses to go complete each obstacle by herself. She didn't do badly but it took a few obstacles to get back in the game. I was really happy that she did not eat while ground tied though! I corrected her with a voice command as she started lowering her head and she stopped and stood quietly while I walked the circle around her. We ended up winning the jackpot for our group.

On Sunday, I think there were 39 of us that went on a guided pleasure ride. It was a nice "thank you" from the Appaloosa Museum to all of the participants. We cruised around over various terrain on the Hatley Ranch as well as Forest Service ground. Since we were walking head to tail, and often two abreast, we got to b.s. the entire ride. It was a relaxing way to end the weekend.

The Hatley Pony Club grounds were perfect for the trail event. I look forward to another one next year! The cook shack was a nice gathering place for everyone to talk horse and eat. The volunteers were friendly and helpful all weekend. A big thanks to everyone who made it happen!