# Rabbit Run 50 mile ride



## phantomhorse13 (Feb 18, 2011)

This weekend my DH and I headed for New Jersey for the first ride of the season in the NorthEast. Despite the calendar saying it was the end of March, it felt more like the middle of February. Temps were in the low 20s and it was spitting snow as we left our place. Temps only warmed into the low 30s and there was a wicked wind and it rained off and on. We made sure to park in such a way as to let the trailer provide a wind break for the boys.











Entries were down as so many people hadn't been able to get any conditioning done due to the terrible winter. Tacking up in the morning was a chilly experience, but we were happy to see the sky was trying to clear. Unfortunately the wind hadn't diminished any.











Jersey is known for sand and pine trees. This year was no different, though this ride does break things up with some jaunts around the cranberry bogs.





























The first 20 miles flew by, with the horses feeling fresh. Walked into the vet check and went right to the vetting as mother nature supplied the cooling!




















Heading out into the second loop, we came upon a section of trail that still had snow and ice on it! :shock: That was a first.











Some cranberries that got missed in last year's harvest:











Great water spot just before the second hold. No sponging needed this year!












The last loop was a shortened version of the first loop, so no surprise the sand and pine trees looked familiar!











https://youtu.be/d1lPx_NCyRs


We finished the ride with the horses feeling good and wanting to go faster. I had wanted to do the ride in 6-6.5 hours and our ride time was 6:14. We wound up tied for 14th.












As a fun aside, I have another great example of why trying something new on ride day is never a smart idea. Because of the cold, I didn't want my feet to get cold, so I decided to wear my normal compression socks with a pair of light wool socks over them (and under my tights and half chaps). Bad idea!! 











Luckily the rest of me doesn't feel too bad, which is a surprise as normally all that ride about kills me. Guess all the riding in the snow was worth it after all! :lol:


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