Fifteen days in the saddle with 300 other people gave me an excellent opportunity to dig up all my favorite jokes!  We’ll start with the trailride favorite-

Ole answered an ad in the Farmer & Rancher exchange about an ‘M’ tractor for sale down by Scenic, SD.  He went to Scenic, decided to buy the tractor, loaded it up and headed out.  On his way through Scenic, he decided to stop at the bar.

Ole was drinking a Grain Belt Premium when this Indian at the bar moved his stool over.  “Hey,” said the Indian “I’ve got a riddle for you.  If you can guess the riddle, I’ll buy you a beer, and if you can’t then you gotta buy me a beer.” Continue Reading

I am back.  I got back Saturday afternoon.  But I decided to take a couple days to readjust to civilian life, so to speak.

I think Duane was happier to be home than I was at first.  He looked around like he couldn’t believe he was actually home.  The last three days of the trailride, he was extremely crabby.  The trailride for him was the Ft. Pierre to Deadwood Weight Loss Program.  I also think his front feet got a little tender, and he was probably a little cinchy as well.

I think I’ll quit for today.  But there will be more, lots more, starting with a podcast tomorrow.  See ya there!

This being a freighter is hard work!

I’ve got a thousand and one things to do.  I just know I’m going to forget something.  Clean the pickup, gather my toiletries, get hay, ride Duane, show Austin how to do the ESN, the list goes on and on.  Yesterday, Whoever Shows Up (my band, which currently consists of my brother Austin, my girlfriend Bonnie and me) had another practice for our August 8th performance on the Trail, and then I slept for ten hours.

Anyway, I’ll do the ESN tonight and then HH will be “off the air” for a while.  I believe that Austin and maybe Gemma will at least do the ESN for the next two weeks.  Be nice to them.

And wish me luck!

Oops!  The horse trailer isn’t John Deere green at all.  The neighbor was funnin’ me on that one.  But instead of turning me off, I got all excited about it and mentioned it on the podcast.  I felt like a dummy when I pulled in and saw it.  It’s actually been painted the ever-popular “rattle can silver” like most of the rest of the trailers around here.

It’s also absolutely perfect.  It’s a veteran of the road, and has been accessorized to make such a life easier.  It has interior lighting which runs on a car battery, a row of hooks for tack or clothing, a step to get into the goosenck, and SOUNDPROOFING.  That one blew me away.  Even better, it has a little portable panel corral on the side.

This morning me and Carl figured out how to use the camp shower (that was quite a process) cleaned out the trailer, put a bed in it, and figured out a system for my toiletries.  I started feeling like a pro.

Then we tackled one that had been bugging me for quite a while.  I hadn’t seen my spurs since I sprained my ankle at the end of April, and that fact was beginning to bug me daily.  Carl and I mounted a full scale search, turning the barn, the house and several vehicles upside down.  We finally gave up after an hour.  A half hour or so later I wandered into my brother Nick’s room very absent mindedly and the first thing I saw were my spurs.  On Nick’s dresser.  I don’t have a clue how they got there or how long they had been there.  I was absolutely elated to find them.  I went right out and caught Duane, and we had a nice little ride.  He’s sitting in his panel corral as we speak.  I’ve taken to calling the whole setup my “trailer house.”

I don’t mean to get all Holy Roller on anybody here, but it really seems like God is watching over me.  I believe in God (I think most of us do) and it just feels like he’s helping me find all the stuff I need.  Thanks God.

Daggone I’m excited!  But the lesson I learned yesterday is that an internet personality can’t be so gullible…

I made a big discovery today- I am not an Indian.

We have never kept any of our horses shod.  We always ride them “barefoot.”  At certain times of the year, that isn’t any fun but we’ve always gotten by.

But I had Laramie Opstedahl come over and put shoes on Duane Monday in preparation for the Ft. Pierre to Deadwood Trailride.  Ever since, I have intended to ride him (I should be riding him every day) but I just never got around to it.  Fate gave me an excellent opportunity to do just that today by letting all the cows out.

Duane is from Nebraska, a fact which I try not to hold against him.  I was pretty sure that he had worn shoes before.  I have decided now that he is much more comfortable in shoes than he is “barefoot.”  Ever since I have gotten him, he has stumbled all over the place.  His walk, since I have known him has in many ways resembled mine.  The old timers say that “a stumbling horse never falls” but that’s small relief when you’re on one.

But we went over hill and dale for about six hours today, and he never stumbled.  Not even once.  I even imagined that he seemed more relaxed.  Boy it was fun.

In addition, I got to ride with my brother John Paul, who recently returned from his trip to World Youth Day in Australia.  He is one of the few people I really miss when he’s not around, and I hadn’t got to spend much time with him.  It was a fun day all the way around.

Well, it got a little hot.