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About an hour and a half into the hunt the girls finally started to give out after one really, really long very steep uphill run so Rachel suggested we walk for a bit. I was great with that because I was having trouble staying in the saddle. Because Rachel was leading the third field I asked if I could get off to fix my saddle pad and she said yes and as I hit the ground my leg buckled and I plopped on my butt and stared laughing. I was exhausted! I fixed the saddle pad and then tried to get back on Ritza - there was no chance that was going to happen as tired as I was. So, I moved her next to a bank where she stood patiently while I grunted and moaned my way back into the saddle. It was not pretty and Rachel and John were laughing at me. That's OK I had not fallen off so all was still perfect in Erin's world.
I can't remember the exact sequence of the day but basically the day consisted of us jumping 2 small coops, galloping up and down hills, jumping countless ditches, weaving in and out of trees, ducking from branches (or trying to but failing in some instances), sliding down hills, stopping (not enough of this), listening and just really enjoying the day despite the fact that I was as tired as I had ever been on a horse.
We never found the hounds after we were separated, so we wandered back to the farm. We untacked and hosed the girls off and gave them some hay and grain and then settled in to recovering from the ride with some food and drink. The rest of the hunt showed up about an hour later and we all feasted on a wonderful potluck provided by the club members.
I can't express enough thanks to Rachel and her family for inviting me on this hunt and letting me ride Ritza. She was awesome! Also, many thanks to the Tennessee Valley Hunt for letting me ride with them. It was the ride of my life.
I had a lot of time to reflect on the day as I drove home to GA and of course the subject of will I do this again came up as well as did I feel like any animal was mistreated during the day. The hunts I had been a part of the past did not impress me. I didn't enjoy watching people fall off and horses being put into precarious positions because of rider inability or negligence. I didn't get any of that with the TVH group as they seemed to be professional and very competent. My lack of conditioning probably made me the most dangerous one out there. None of the horses were handled roughly and were very competent at their job, I was told all of the hounds returned to the farm and they never seemed to get especially close to the coyotes and the chases did not go on for long stretches. So, would I do it again? I probably will because that was one hell of a ride.
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