Yesterday was my first endurance race, the Freeze R. Burn 25 mile at the Grasslands in Decatur, Texas.

Okay, so I was afraid. Not that Glamdring wouldn't make it. That I wouldn't make it. That I'd fall off and get hurt. Or some other disaster would happen. Like Mark Twain, my life has been full of disasters that didn't happen. Yet.

I need not have worried. Glam did fine. Becky led the way on her horse, Berry, and all G had to do was follow. There were some tense moments when other horses passed us, but overall ... it was great. We had some great canters, too, through the fields and woods of the Grasslands.

One thing I didn't know about endurance riding is how fast the horses have to go just to average 7 miles an hour. I mean, we did not walk. We trotted, jogged, and cantered.

I learned a little bit about how the horses do this -- you give electrolites before and during the ride, and offer water at every opportunity -- and with taking care of myself, the rider, as well.

"You'd better eat something," Becky told me before we set off riding the first loop in the morning. But I didn't, really, unless you can count a Nature's Valley granola bar and two thermos-fulls of coffee. I was too nervous. By the midway point, I was worn down, worried about the last ten miles, and though Glamdring's physical recovery was great, *my* pulse was elevated.

"Sit down, eat a banana and another granola bar," Becky told me.

Her friend, a veteran endurance rider and Arabian breeder, asked me how much coffee I'd had that morning, then shook her finger. "You've got to knock off that coffee," she told me.

After eating I felt better, and vowed never to drink so much coffee on an empty stomach again. When we got out on the trail for the second loop, something had changed: I knew I could make it. I relaxed and everything started to be fun. Glamdring was trotting on a loose rein. We went through a grove of pine trees, and scrunched over the deep, red-brown needles. A troop of boy scouts was beside the trail, and we waved to them. And the moment was beautiful. It is these memories that we go searching for when we try stuff. And so, I rate the endeavor a success.

Now, when is the next ride?