Early on a Sunday morning, my cell phone buzzed. At the other end of the line, a neighbor pleaded, “Can you come pick up a horse at the end of Nestor’s Wash? He jumped out of his pen across the street from our house and we tracked him there. I led him seven miles back home, only to see him jump out again!”

My husband Kenny and I hurriedly hooked up the trailer and drove down to the end of a nearby dirt road. There stood our doughty neighbor holding a lean, athletic-looking Appaloosa gelding. He willingly marched onto our stock trailer.

But where to take him? Back to his home, where his owners were apparently away for the weekend, didn’t seem smart. Given that the handsome Appy seemed to have a taste for jumping, we suggested our round pen. There he’d be safe and secure until his owners showed up.

We brought him to our ranch, for what we expected to be a brief stay. I snapped some photos as he rocketed around the round pen, kicking his heels high in the air. When equine biomechanics coach Donna Snyder-Smith saw my photos of him she commented, “Very nicely put together Appy, and I’ll bet he could do just about anything!”

Several days passed before anyone showed up to claim him. His owner, Joanie (not her real name), had recently moved her horse, dogs, cat and rabbits from Wyoming to New Mexico. Her horse was a 6-year-old Appy/Thoroughbred cross. She had named Morning Thunder, in honor of the rumbling skies on the morning he was born.

Joanie and her friend didn’t stay long. They handed over a few crumpled bills to help cover board until she and her friend could construct proper fencing and facilities for the horse. It was clear she loved him.

An extended stay

The new fencing was never built, however, and Thunder gradually became a resident on our ranch. He was athletic, quick on his feet and impressed us one day by neatly jumping over his slow feeder (he was also fond of climbing into it when it was empty). Reportedly he’d had 30 days of professional training a few years ago. He was friendly but shy and didn’t care to pick up his feet.

Months passed with no resolution. Finally, Joanie told us she was relocating again—this time to Virginia—and would be taking Thunder and her other animals with her. I shuddered at the thought.

This plan seemed challenging if not downright risky. Joanie was having health issues and could now only walk haltingly with the use of a cane. Her life revolved around doctor visits.

We offered to buy Thunder to help Joanie raise funds for her move as well as to help mold the horse into a solid equine citizen. Joanie initially declined; Thunder was her lifeline to hope and sanity. So we offered to ship him as soon as she got settled in Virginia. Unfortunately, her health continued to decline, and she tearfully agreed to sell him to us. Sadly, soon after she arrived in Virginia, we received word that Joanie had passed away.

In training

Meanwhile, we made plans to send Thunder for training at Walraven Horses, a family-owned working cattle ranch near Datil, New Mexico. During his three months there, Thunder went from round pen to cattle sorting to mountain trails. By the time he came home, Thunder was a well-mannered and athletic mount. He even learned to pick up his feet.

Plus, he looked good. Under his spots, Thunder was metallic silver, shiny and fit. I post-ed his profile on my Facebook page, and within the day I had an offer from longtime endurance rider and veterinarian Dana Reeder.

Dana and her partner Richard Stedman are well known in the endurance community for their free-spirited, vagabond lifestyle, one that most riders can only dream of. They live out of a pair of horse trailers and caravan with Dave “The Duck” Nicholson, the legendary American Endurance Ride Conference ride manager/veterinarian.

For more than two decades, Dave and his wife Annie have put on the XP rides, which originally focused on the historic Pony Express Trail and have expanded to multi-day events throughout the West. Helping with the effort, Dana and Richard require hardy, reliable, sound horses to scout, clear and mark rugged trails. And when all is ready and ride camp opens, they compete as well. In fact, Dana often serves as a ride veterinarian.

The XP rides are held in some of the most remote and beautiful places in our country, including Bryce Canyon in Utah, the north rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona and many more scenic trails, from California to Colorado. Thunder would be out on trail almost every day—in my view, an ideal lifestyle for a horse born to move. And Thunder would have no trouble navigating these trails and all that entailed—rocky footing, steep climbs and downhills. In fact, I believed he would love it.

On his way

Thunder hopped right onto our trailer, and we were off to meet Richard in Gallup, New Mexico, a few hours north, to hand over his lead line.

Before loading their new guy, Richard assured Dana (who was back in their home camp looking after the dogs) that Thunder was tall enough—turns out he was a hair under 15 hands. Thunder handled the hubbub of the Home Depot parking lot without turning a hair and marched willingly onto their trailer.

Soon we began hearing reports that Thunder, now nicknamed Woodie, was thriving in his new home. “He’s doing great! He’s getting stronger and steadier. I love his weird little Appy personality. And he is super affectionate,” reported Dana. “Richard is 5-foot-10, and his other endurance horse is 16.2! He gets teased sometimes about riding ‘the little Appy’, but he doesn’t look too big on him.”

As the months progressed, Woodie racked up several Limited Distance ride completions of 25 to 35 miles each. I tracked his progress in ride photo galleries as well as scouring ride results on the AERC.org website. It’s always a joy and relief to find that one of your “kids” is doing well out in the world.

Although Richard and Dana call him Woodie, they retained his original name out of respect for the woman who raised and loved him. Woodie shares pasture and trail time with their other horse, Z’ha’dum, whose barn name is Finn.

Best of all, Thunder has found a home that fits his adventurous nature. And he hasn’t jumped out of his pen once!