June 2019 50 By Robert Piekow,… Publicist gecriders.com Bumble Bee Campout The first weekend in May found our club at Bumble Bee Ranch for a campout that has become one of our favorites. This time was no exception with plenty of excitement and fun for almost everyone... more about that later. We had a great turnout, and Mother Nature cooperated by providing fantastic weather... not too hot and not too cold with a nice breeze when we needed it. Friday's ride was southbound on the Black Canyon trail for several miles, then down to the river for the return back to camp. This is when things got interesting. Sheila's horse decided to take a roll in the soft sand, sending Sheila to the ground in a quick second. Luckily no harm done, Sheila got remounted and we headed back up the river. Horses and riders were having fun splashing through the river bottom in about six to twelve inches of water. Things were going smoothly until Vickie's horse decided to enter Vickie in a wet shirt contest. Again, no harm done and we all enjoyed watching Vickie empty the water out of her cowboy boots. Another CFC (cause for concern) was when Phil's horse faltered on a steep incline. Phil dismounted and walked his steed up to the top, and everything was ok after that. All in all, this was quite the drama-filled ride. Everyone enjoyed himself or herself and we returned with a sense of accomplishment and respect for our hard-working horses. Getting back to camp, cleaning up the animals and ourselves brought us to the famous GEC potluck. Always a favorite with enough food for two clubs. No one goes hungry at Bill’s campsite with Bill providing the main course and everyone else contributing backup dishes. Thanks to everyone for the great meal. Saturday's ride started off with sixteen riders but unfortunately hadn’t even really got underway when a mishap occurred. One of the horses got a little excited and sent its rider to the ground with enough force to result in a fractured hip. Jerry underwent surgery on Monday and is expected to recover after some PT and time. I personally know how painful that is. Prayers from me and the rest of the club go out to him. The ride must go on, however, and we trailed on up to Antelope Falls, stopping several times to water the horses. After a brief rest at the falls and petroglyph site, we started back southward to return to camp. With the horses put away and a little cleanup many members of the club piled into pickups and headed up to shake a little dust off in Cleator, Arizona. The Cleator Yacht Club was hopping as usual but not too crowded for Vickie to show off her championship surfing moves accompanied by Diane and we've got pictures to prove it. We once again piled into the trucks and returned back to camp for an amazing dinner put on by the folks at the Bumble Bee Ranch. They always put on a good spread, and our club deserves a hand for sponsoring the dinner. To help pay for this the club has a little poker run and raffle to offset some of the cost. To cap off the dinner and poker fun we had Billye teach some of the group a little dancing, as in two-step and a line dance. It was a lot of fun to see the members out on the dance floor. Sunday afternoon, we safely returned to our respective homes and all were happy. Glendale Equestrian Club RIDE REPORT