Update July 24, 2012
Several weeks ago – not too long before the heat wave – I was riding Chance and suddenly realized I was thinking about racing him at Kentucky Downs. I couldn’t believe it. I was day dreaming while riding!
Since then I have been so much more relaxed, especially on Zola. Not that I was tense, but I didn’t have the naturalness and lack of concern that I had years ago when I rode regularly. I guess it could be called trust – not just in the horses, but in myself. Being comfortable in the saddle, no matter what I was doing.
Like bike riding, horseback riding is something you never forget, but if you stop bike riding for 10 or 15 years, you lose the naturalness you had years before. When I was in my early teens, I practically lived on my bike in the summer. I could ride with no hands for a very long way (miles). I could stop in a skid without thinking about it, I could coast in to a stop while standing up, on one side of the bike, standing on one pedal with one foot, while the other leg hung free. I never gave it a thought it just happened one day, naturally, and became part of my my muscle memory.
When I bought a bike in 2001 (at the age of 50) it was a very different story. I felt awkward. Turning was unnatural, stopping was unnatural. I had to think and plan. Then one day several weeks later, I realized I was riding with no hands. Just like that, it was back. Without a thought, without trying.
That’s what’s happened with my riding. Suddenly I feel just like I did when I rode all the time. At home in the saddle. Natural, comfortable, unconcerned. I don’t know when it happened, just when I noticed it. And what a great feeling it is!!
Last night, when the alarm on the HR computer went off, and I brought Chance to a walk, I didn’t feel he didn’t want to do anything, but like me, he didn’t really want to go around the track. Booooring. So I turned to the right and as soon as I did, Chance’s ears perked up. We rode toward the hill to the outside of the track – fairly steep but not long – and headed up. Chance broke into a trot, and then a canter. We turned left at the top and came down the slope (at a walk) that runs in the same direction as the track, then turned left again into a circle that led us back up the hill a second time. We came down again and headed back up the track the “wrong” way. Chance was trotting and I figured he was eager to be done and get his grain. But no, when we got to the spot where I normally dismount, he resisted stopping, so we just continued the wrong way down the stretch. We kept going straight, ignoring the turn, and headed to the road. Deciding to see how hard it would be – or if it would even be possible – to get to the big hill, we crossed the road and continued further down to an open area.
Turning left into the open area, we found it quickly narrowed into what might have been a path years ago. Chance was a little concerned, but much better than I expected. We plowed our way through thick weeds, crossed big flat rocks, went down into a little gulley, then back up the other side. Crossed fallen trees and twisted our way through undergrowth and woods. I know I was having fun and I think Chance was too.
We did make it to the hill! And we headed up. This part of the hill is wide open and just long grass. Last year it was mowed, so I know what the ground is like, and had no concerns about hidden holes or rocks. We walked for a short while, then Chance wanted to trot. I was amazed what a smooth, airy trot it was. He didn’t seem to be working hard at all. Eventually, he broke into a canter which felt just as good, answering the question,”is he fit enough to gallop up the hill?” I would say a definite yes!
At the top, I decided I didn’t want to try to find our way back through the woods, so opened the gate that leads into the horse enclosure and headed back that way. This of course required getting off and then getting back on – which was again, not pretty, but Chance was a trooper and didn’t move a muscle.
What a blast!
Interestingly, though we were out for quite a while altogether, the max heart rate remained 174, and the average HR for the entire ride – including the hill climbings was 159.
Below are some shots of the hill. In the first one, taken partway up and looking back down, you can see the hill in the field where the track is (sunny area to the right). All these photos were taken late last September. It looks very different now. The grass on the hill is over waist high, and if you look to the right of the fence, where all the weeds are, that is all now grazed down. Behind the clump of trees is a barn, and that tree that stands alone is huge and is in front of the barn. The power lines are about halfway up.
Click on images to view larger version.
View of the hill in the field – 9-23-11
The hill looking down from near the top (Sep ’11)
Looking toward the top of the hill from halfway up (Sep ’11)
At the end of the ride, I took off the monitor and realized why I can’t consistently get the HR monitor to report a heart rate. I do not girth up as tight as necessary to keep the electrode pressed against his skin. I’m not going to girth up any tighter, so will have to work out another solution. Maybe a pad between the sensor and the girth – to keep it closer to the skin. As for the GPS – it really does require a battery fresh out of the charger only minutes before use. That is extremely annoying, but easily solved.
Later, after I fed Chance his grain, I walked down to the end of the road to check something. On the other side of the fence, Zola whinnied and followed along. I took that to mean, “what about me?” “What about me?” I ducked in and gave her some scratches – how can you resist a horse who’s so clearly asking for attention? Makes me feel good that she wanted her turn.
I had ridden Zola the day before. It was hot and humid, so I kept it short. She was very good. We trotted and walked, stopped and started, cut across the center of the track for the heck of it, and to practice steering. She did everything I asked and was a good girl!
The day before, I rode Chance. I didn’t feel well, as I’d done too much mowing in the heat, but I wanted to work on getting the HR monitor and GPS down. We didn’t go far, 1.02 miles, we did gallop, with a max speed of 18.7 mph, and a max heart rate of only 115. And the HR monitor and GPS were both working. So I was pleased.
I’m still working on mastering the computer and the data on the web to get the data in graphical format. Quite a challenge, especially as the manual is terrible. Googling for better instructions revealed I am not alone in finding the manual lacking. Apparently the manual for a similar product is much better – so I have downloaded it and will read it later. I can only hope it clears some things up for me.
The “squeaky” noise
I have heard the squeaky noise many times. It appears to be something only male horses do.
None of my horses did it all the time, and I always noticed when they did. My first thought has always been that perhaps the bladder is full, or something. I have never believed the commonly accepted reasons for it – that the sheath needs cleaning or that air is trapped in there. I just did a google search in hope of finding a veterinary answer, but only found the usual.
However, in one response I read the person said their gelding only did it when he was agitated. I of course believe it’s more likely to be the other way around – it causes him to be agitated.
It doesn’t make sense to me that it’s related to a dirty sheath – then the horse would do it continually. Ditto air. But then why is it males only??
Oh if only horse researchers were as curious about the whys as computer scientists!!! How often do computer geniuses just throw out and accept off the cuff excuses?
Thoughts on heart rate and heart rate monitors
Last night I rode Chance, and of course continued to try to get the heart rate monitor and GPS both working at the same time!
I soaked the belt in water while I got Chance. Applied gel to the first electrode, which goes on Chance’s right side, just behind the wither. This one stays in place well. Then put the saddle pad on, and the saddle, applied gel to the electrode that goes under the girth, down behind Chance’s elbow. Then attached the strap to the electrode, which wraps around the girth for security. I then put on the GPS transmitter, which is on an elastic strap that goes around my upper arm (left arm), and the HR computer watch, which I wear on my left wrist. Put my helmet on and bridled Chance. I felt good! Things had gone smoothly, and I thought, “I’m getting the hang of this!”.
I turn the GPS on and see the blinking red light which means it’s searching for satellites. Good. We get to the mounting block and I get on. My plan was to turn the watch on just before we hit the track, so that the time is accurate. I turn the watch on and wait for the heart rate to come up. It’s then that I realize that I forgot to attach the transmitter to the belt! OMG. I ride Chance over to the trailer, hop off and attach the transmitter. I struggle to get back on – I haven’t mounted without a mounting block since 2009. Chance was so good! He stood still while I clambered up.
Walking back across the road to the track, the computer beeps and says Check GPS. I check the GPS and it’s off. I turn it back on, see the blinking red light – for 4 or 5 blinks – then it goes off. I give up on it, clearly the battery had been out of the charger too long!!!! Of all the annoying things. By now I am frustrated but happy to see a heart rate of 31. However, the fun is going out of riding.
We walk around the track halfway and then trot to get away from a big horse fly – it’s after 7 pm! Neither Chance nor I is really interested in working at this point, so he is trotting relaxed and slow. As we go around the clubhouse turn, the watch starts beeping. I look at it and see a HR of 174! (I had made changes last night, setting HR zones, hence the beeping.) I am shocked to see such a high heart rate. This is the second highest reading ever – with the highest rate coming at full gallop. I had watched the HR before, and with a good solid trot Chance’s HR had been 99.
I immediately asked Chance to walk. He seemed fine, I had noticed absolutely nothing out of the ordinary, except he was making that “squeaky” noise geldings make, which he normally doesn’t do. Other than that he seemed uninterested in working. The only thing different than normal was that he had been out grazing for an hour prior to my tacking him up, and I let him have a small drink on our way to the trailer. And by small, I mean 7 or 8 swallows. Could either or both of those things caused his heart rate to be high?
And here is where I see the real value of a heart rate monitor. As a rider I can feel certain things about my horse. I can tell when he’s off, I can tell when he’s not interested, I can feel when he’s eager to go, etc. But since horses are prey animals they tend to try to act as normal as possible. What are they hiding? We normally have no way of knowing – often until it’s too late. Horses have been known to die while being ridden. Most often it’s assumed it’s a “sudden” death. Perhaps it’s not so sudden. Perhaps the horse was in distress for some time, but as instinct demands, was acting normal.
I would like to see HR monitors made much smaller and simpler and have them be worn by all racehorses while training or racing. A higher than normal heart rate for a particular activity could mean many things; illness, stress, pain, that the horse had just taken a big drink of water before being tacked up for morning exercise, etc. Maybe horses who break down have skyrocketing heart rates from the pain of fatigue. Maybe horses that die of “heart attacks” had heart rates off the chart and if they had been pulled up, might have been fine when the cause was determined. Whatever an abnormal heart rate means, it certainly shouldn’t be ignored.
- It’s Another New Year! January 5, 2013
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