Wraff Tales-Yellow Slicker Adventures

I no longer ride if it's raining. I won't even consider riding if there's rain in the forecast, even if it's not yet raining. I really have a fear of the rain. If it rains & I'm riding, I might have to put on the Yellow Slicker.

I bought the yellow slicker about 20 years ago. For a long time it sat packed away in my truck as insurance against the rain. Surely if I carry a slicker it won't rain. My reverse psychology on Mother Nature hasn't always worked. I don't know how many times I've had to put on that yellow slicker. For anyone who doesn't know, I'm an endurance rider. I used to not care what the weather was, I was going to ride. I've even been known to drive over the Sierras in snow flurries just to get to a ride. Ok, I'll admit that one time I tried to get over in a blizzard. Good thing the CHP had more sense than I. Anyway, back to that yellow slicker.

Hindsight has established that my love-hate relationship with the yellow slicker might be because I'm 5'1" & that slicker is 6' long. Don't ask why I've never cut the bottom off because I've thought about it many times. Just never got the scissors out.

I think the first time I wore it was at the Koche Kobee ride many years ago. I had ridden in trash bags before I got the yellow slicker so Wraff wasn't bothered by the large, flapping, yellow plastic flying in the wind. He was less than happy with it touching him however. Wraff was a horse who hated anything that tickled him & he'd buck to get his point across. I'd even had him buck when sweat ran down his side so if you ever saw me doing all kinds of weird gyrations with my legs, that's why. I had to keep the sweat wiped away. But now I digress so back to the yellow slicker. At the start of the ride I realized that I couldn't let the slicker touch Wraff's butt or he'd buck so I had to sit on it. That extra foot of length bunched up under me quiet unpleasantly. And because I was sitting on the slicker, water ran down my back underneath me. So much fun riding in the rain with wet pants. At the first vet check I didn't stop to think about the situation before I got off. Before I knew what happened I'd stepped on the bottom of that slicker & out my feet shot, sending me into the mud. Then I had to trot Wraff out for the vet & wouldn't you know it, I tripped over that slicker & fell on my face. I can't say the day got any better as I battled rain, mud, & the yellow slicker. Maybe I should be glad they no longer hold the Koche Kobee ride.

That yellow slicker did come in handy when I woke one morning at the Washoe Valley ride to snow covering the ground. I hadn't packed a heavy jacket so it was just me, Wraff, & that yellow slicker. I did better in the battle that ride. I used the wonderful fix all, Duct Tape, to tape the bottom of that slicker up so I wouldn't trip. The only time it almost got me was when I got off to walk down the SOBs & Wraff thought it would be great fun to teach me to ski. I slid 1/2 way down on my butt but at least that slicker kept the mud off me.

Many years ago my friend Laurie & I rode the American River 70. The first 30 miles were a great ride. Then at the first hour check the rain started. I couldn't believe I was going to have to wear that slicker for the next 40 miles. Off we went after our vet check, braving winds, storming rain, & the freezing cold. I was glad that day that the yellow slicker was very heavy, thick plastic because at least my body was dry & out of the wind. I wish the same could have been said for my frozen, blue hands & feet. The trails were getting muddier & slipperier as we rode. We were so cold with chattering teeth that we didn't talk. We just plodded on one behind the other. It was so bad that at one point there was a new easy boot on the trail & neither Laurie nor I could bear the thought of getting off to pick it up. We came to a steep hill that we could see horses had struggled getting up. Laurie & her horse Emblem were in the lead. Half way up that hill Emblem stalled & couldn't get traction to go on. Wraff caught up with him & turned to go around. That proved to be a very bad move. As Wraff turned across the hill, all 4 of his feet slid out from underneath him. As he was going down & stepped off to the high side. Minor problem was that I stepped on that damn yellow slicker. The next thing I knew Wraff was sliding down the hill on his belly with me rolling right behind him. The slicker had pulled over my face so I could see nothing. Twice as we slid down that hill Wraff would stop sliding & I'd slam into him, between his front legs. Never did he try to get up. He just stayed as still as he could as we slid. That slicker was like being on a Slip N Slide. At last our momentum stopped & I was able to crawl across the mud slide area & into the brush. Wraff managed to get up then & continue up the hill. Laurie was at the top yelling to see if we were alright & I just yelled back to catch Wraff. I finally managed to pull myself to the top, through the brush. As I was finally able to get untangled from the slicker, Laurie & I just burst out laughing. How funny that had to have looked to the poor guy at the bottom of the hill. I'm sure he was terrified to come up but he had no other option. The remaining 20 miles was as miserable as it gets. By the time we finished that 70 mile ride we were both close to tears from the cold & misery. But to this day the memory of that yellow slicker Slip N Slide sets us off into uncontrolled laughter.

Yes, after all these years I still have that yellow slicker. It's tucked away in my truck & I hope it stays there. As for Wraff that day, he was a hero. If he'd panicked when I kept crashing into him I would have been trampled at the very least. The guy behind us was amazed because he could see that Wraff was protecting me. I like to think Wraff was my superhero that day, battling & winning over the yellow slicker.