Farm Breezes

We're still figuring how the Eureka forcast for yesterday morphed from the Sunday prediction of "isolated" showers to a flash flood watch at noon yesterday. To paraphrase Goethe the "tone" of all this for us deciding whether to go was quickly outhurried by the "fact". Unknown how much water Eureka actually got, but, I'm sure they needed the rain.

For us, we did farm breezes last night over our course. Thought I'd post the actual course. After we were done last night I was puzzling whether it's really 2.5 furlongs in length, so, this morning I took the car across it, and from start to end it was exactly .3 miles which works out to 2.4 furlongs. My 2.5f estimate was close.

Here is a Nob's eye view at about rider level of the 2.4f course were we do our speed work:

Speed starts at this very spot and heads for the tree at upper left with a slight veer to the left:
this is just past the tree heading for the turn:
Then, "the turn" so tight that Nob says he barely avoids blowing it at speed. You see the tightness of it better by left clicking to enlarge:
the view coming out of the turn, the breeze goes to the very top of the hill:
approaching the hill horse will finish at top, change to left lead, and veer left:
To this, and left again
to the gallop out. When horse get's to that far tree he'll turn around, trot or gallop back to starting point, and breeze back the way he came on the opposite lead.
After the breezes Nob was going "whooee". Each horse was fast and strong all the way. I estimate top speed at about 13 sec/f. Fair, since we're at 175 lbs tack and rider. The horses are going through the motions of racing, and we'll have to put it all together with about three more Eureka trips. Here is what they did:
7/25: Acesmash: galloped the course with 1F of "all out" in each of 2 heats. Nob said he was wobbly and unsteady. Might be due to galloping late in shoeing cycle. This horse grows a lot of horn to the point he's almost on stilts at the moment.
7/26: Groovin' Wind: 2 x2f warm up of each lead + 4 x 2.4f heats all out without rest between heats--he galloped out, trotted to the starting point and commenced next heat. Looked very good!

Aylward: Nob said just when he thought Wind was reverting to the Wind of old, Aylward reminded that he's the faster horse. Al performed same heats as Wind with some stoppage between, and only the middle two heats were all out. Al is a little behind Wind in training.

Art:
7/21/07 Sat. Off after Friday Burch Day3.
7/22/07 Sun. 10 min. under tack, "attempted" trot. Attempts failed. Oh well. Skipped riderless work this day.
7/23/07 Mon. This should be a Burch Day 3, but, decided on snappy 2 miles riderless with rests every .5 miles. Horse refused to rest. Best energy since late June lay off. Looked like "pre-problem" Art. Too dark for tack. Day 3 tomorrow.