Snow Riding

When we brought Mata Hari home late fall of 2013, it was already getting too cold to ride outside, beside the fact that we were worried about her not respecting the very low fence around the outdoor arena being that she was VERY green.  So Madison only rode her in the indoor arena until the weather got better in the spring.  This winter they were ready to try a bit of an outdoor adventure so after the "big snow" started to melt a little, out we went!

Madison couldn't get over riding on the fresh snow and looking down it was just so WHITE - like riding in a cloud.

In this shot you can see how Mata Hari is shaved on her neck and chest so that she doesn't get so sweaty during training sessions.  This does make it a bit chilly so she normally has heavy blankets on with a neck cover.  But not for riding. Plus it was relatively warm at 40 degrees out.

They even did a little trotting and had a blast!  The snow had drifted so some spots were much deeper than others.  Mata Hari had to really pay attention and lift her feet up!

The Big Snow - February 2015

It was supposedly the third biggest snow storm for the area on record.  I remember one of the others - 1974.  I remember riding around the neighborhood with my dad on his snowmobile helping dig people out of their driveways where their cars were stuck and asking if they needed anything from the store that we could run get for them.  I was about 11 years old.

This storm lasted a full 24 hours.  It started early on Sunday morning.  By Sunday night - it was getting deep.

By the time it stopped and the sky turned blue, it was almost 18 inches deep.  That little nub sticking out of the snow is the top of our well pump. The cap is about 20 inches from the ground.

But it was a glorious morning after the snow with a brilliant sunny sky.

Alas, while Scott was plowing out his customers, I needed to dig out my truck where it was all but buried from the snow that had blown off the roof of the garage.

This gigantic pile of snow was in the back of the parking lot at work.  It looks kind of funny because the big front end loaders had started scooping it up to move it out of the parking lot because the mountain was taking up so many parking spots.  It was easily 20 ft high.