WoW!!!!

I am back, and boy was it an amazing trip. It was COLD but worth it.

Let's see we were supposed to leave IL Friday 1/16 in the early morning, only to find out that the diesel truck would not start - it was negative 30 at 6:00 am. The electric block warmer was plugged in overnight but the circuit breaker had blown. While shutting the drivers door the passenger window was blown out and shattered. It was so cold out that your nose froze shut. Needless to say it was a long morning and when we finally got the truck started it was 4 pm. All the glass places were closed so being the hardy types we put plastic on the window and left the barn at 6 pm, 12 hours later than we had planned. During the trip we had to replace the plastic with a blanket because the noise was unbearable. We pulled into Ohio at 5 am on 1/17 and promptly went to sleep.

We left Ohio at pm and headed to Maryland to stay overnight. We were fortunate enough to find a barn that put our horses up for the night. Thanks Saddleorts! Sunday morning, 1/18 we had to have a tractor pull the horse trailer up the slope. The truck didn't have 4WD and it had snowed and been plowed enough that there was no traction. We arrived at the Prince George's Equestrian Center in the afternoon and settled all the horses in. Then it was our turn. A hot show was definitely enjoyed. We had a great supper of homemade vegetable soup.

Monday 1/19 we were back at the barn for rehearsal and debriefing. I had a great time riding Quest around the facility. It was chilly but nice. I attended a meeting in the evening and then it was back to the hotel for dinner and sleep.

Inauguration day 1/20 was an early start. We woke up at 2:30 am to get started. On went the layers. We had to be at the barn at 4:45 am to feed the horses and get things ready. We loaded up the trailers at 7:00 am and then waited around to leave at 8:30 am. We were in the first motorcade and had a police escort into DC. It took forever. Once in DC we had to fight people traffic. Pedestrians were walking in the street in front of the trailers and in back of the trailers. They didn't care that we were only temporarily stopped and that we needed to stay together as a group. Insane! We unloaded and got tacked up on a side street in 45 min and then proceeded to be scanned for weapons. Then it was sitting around and waiting. I had hay available for Quest and that kept him happy for most of the time. The parade people provided breakfast- a muffing and orange juice and lunch - turkey sandwich, cookie, water, and an apple (for Quest of course). Which was very nice. We also had port-a-potties available, again very nice. Somewhere around 2 pm we were given 5 minutes to mount up. That was absurd. 20 women and one step stool, not a quick deal. Once mounted we stood around for a couple of hours before the parade started. It was cold and windy, I ended up getting stiff and putting a hand warmer package in my gloves. We had a great view while mounted of the National Mall- the Capitol on one side and the Washington monument on the other. We were able to take pictures and chat. Then we finally moved out, the sun was beginning to set and luckily we were at the beginning of the parade so we knew that it would still be light out when we saw President Obama. The streets were not as packed as I thought they would be. There were still people waving and cheering. I think that they probably got cold and had decided that after seeing the president they were ready to head inside to thaw out. I loved riding down Pennsylvania Avenue looking at all the buildings. And yes, on the top of most buildings there were snipers. Quest was welled behaved, he did his shaking of the head trick for the parade but that is usual. At a few points he was really looking at the street and the lines painted there as well as garbage passing though on the wind. Over all he was wonderful and I was comfortable knowing that he was not going to explode and bolt. He is very sensible and calm. :) When we got to the reviewing stand we were not allowed to wave. All the ladies turned and smiled. What a moment. There were lights above making sure that the area was well lit and the President was smiling. He was charming and made me feel that he was genuinely having a good time and enjoying the parade in his honor. I really remember the smile the most. After that I was on auto-pilot. We had a long trek back to the dispersal area and the trailers. By this point my toes were cold and I was sore and worn out. Quest took this time to slow his walk down to a crawl and mosey on down the streets. He was probably tired at this point too. The hard part was dismounting. It took a few minutes to get the body moving and it was pretty much dark out. The trailer ride back to the barn had the heat on full blast and all of us recounting our experience. We were all still on cloud nine. We finally got back to the hotel around 8 pm after a very long day. It was worth every hardship and difficulty.

Wednesday morning 1/21 we finally got the window fixed in the truck and took first a bus then the train into DC for some sightseeing. We went to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. I got to see the Hope diamond and then we walked around. Then it was bed for an early (5:00 am) start on 1/22.

We stopped in Ohio on 1/22 and then headed to IL on 1/23.

I am still tired and worn out, but I managed to get laundry done. I still have some unpacking. It was a great trip and I would do it again in 4 years.