2023 Tevis Cup - Mark Montgomery

August 2 2032
by Mark Montgomery

Mark Montgomery and his mustang MM Gus finished in 8th place

Tevis 2023 - almost didn't happen for me this year. My horse Gus came up lame just three days before the ride. I called my crew, and the Tevis office to let them know we were out. My wife Linda DVM couldn't find anything obvious causing the lameness, so she recommended pulling the shoes. Upon doing so, I found that the N/G shoes had cupped, causing sole pressure. I ground out more sole and put the EasyCare Flex shoes on him, which are more ridged than the N/Gs. Gus instantly went from lame to almost 100% sound, but he was still slightly off. His sole was still sore. It's now Wednesday evening. I start calling farmer friends, looking for Vet Tec, to add sole protection. Scotty Mayfield came to the rescue. He had a tube of Vet Tec and the applicator, and he gave me a demonstration on how to apply it. A huge Thank You to Scotty. We are good to go, and back in it. Woody has had great success for years with the EasyCare N/Gs, but Gus is more flat footed, and needs a shoe with more support.

Do to the depth of the snow over the top of the Sierras, this year the ride started at Soda Springs, in the dark, early Saturday morning. The first part of the trail was a long downhill road, starting with pavement, then changing to gravel, then to dirt. My friend from Israel, Ilan Dvir, was riding my mustang Woody. Woody is very competitive, and can be very difficult to ride, but Ilan is an excellent horseman and rider. The plan was to use Gus as a blocker, to slow Woody down. Ilan is also very competitive. They got ahead of Gus and I, and started working their way through all the riders in front of us. We were doing our best to keep them in sight. When we got to the bottom of the canyon I asked a spectator “How many are in front of us?”. He said “Nobody, you’re it”. We climbed to the top of Lyon Ridge, where Todd Barnum and crew were managing the trot by and water stop. While our horses were drinking, I jumped of and gave them their electrolytes that I carried in my backpack, along with some extra shoes, a hammer, and some nails, incase they lost a shoe. We headed out of this stop just as other riders were starting to arrive.

Ilan and Woody were leading the way, and as we approached Cougar Rock, Ilan and Woody were having a disagreement on which way to go, over the Rock, or go around on the bypass trail. Last year I let Woody choose, and he chose the bypass. Ilan won the argument, so over The Rock we went. The ride photographer was not expecting to see riders so soon, and was not quite ready yet, consequently our pictures are a little fuzzy. Sorry Bill, I should have yelled that we were coming.

Woody is known for his big spooks, at high speed, resulting in the rider (usually me) hitting the ground. That’s why I always hold on to my Oh Shit Strap while riding him. We left Cougar Rock with about a ten minute lead on the other riders, with Ilan in the front. As they flew around a blind corner, a man with a camera stood up from behind a bush, causing Woody to spook, a duck and spin, resulting in Ilan falling off. The ridge and the trail was heading West, but Woody took off, heading North, down off the ridge, over an almost vertical 300’ drop, and disappeared into the timber below. I stayed on Gus, at the edge of the cliff, while Ilan climbed down the bank in pursuit. A short time later I hear him yell “Got him”, and they climbed back up to the trail. I asked how he was able to catch him so easily, expecting Woody to run clear to the next vet check at Red Star. He said that he approached him as if he was another horse, bobbing his head, with a non confrontal slouched posture. It worked, and we are back on trail, just as three riders pass us. Ilan and Woody were able to pass, putting them back in 1st place. Gus and I were content to follow the three riders at a more moderate pace, so we came into Red Star in 5th place. I pulled tack, and got water on Gus, and his heart rate was immediately down to criteria. One of my highlights of my ride was looking over and seeing Chuck Stalley hand feeding Woody some hay. With support like that, I knew it was going to be a great day. We left Red Star in 1st place, and came into Robinson Flat fast, with a good lead on second place. At Robinson, Gus pulsed down almost immediately again, so off we go to vet through. Our vet at this stop was Mike Peralez DVM, the head vet for the ride. As he preformed the CRI, Gus’s first pulse was 48. After the trot out and back, Mike checked his pulse again. He looked at me and smiled with amazement, Gus’s pulse was 44. I jokingly said “You better check that Again”. Mike gave us the green light to proceed. Unfortunately, Woody was off at this vet check, and was pulled. Could he have injured himself earlier, running down that embankment, who knows, but he was 100% sound when we trotted him out the next day at the Auburn Fair Grounds.

Gus and I kept a good fast pace heading down the trail, only slowing down for the steep downhills. As we came into the Dusty Corners water stop, a volunteer commented how good Gus looked as she handed me a slice of watermelon and I offered Gus a drink. He was not interested in drinking at that time, and we took off down the trail as we see other riders coming fast into this stop. As we leave, the volunteer yelled “Only 4.9 miles to the next check at Last Chance.” Gus and I were in sync, flying down the single track trail as one body. He was on auto pilot, only slowing to a trot for brief moments when necessary, for our safety. I did take a glance down off the cliff at Pucker Point as we flew by, thinking that it would be the end of us if we went off there. There were fresh bear tracks in the trail, and we were lucky that we didn’t encounter a bear while cantering around those blind corners, on that narrow trail, with a drop off on one side.

We came into Last Chance with a good lead, and Gus looking great. He ate and drank, and vetted through right away, so off we go, heading down into the first canyon. I usually get off and run this section, but my left knee was starting to give me trouble, so I stayed on. In the past, I’ve always taken my horses into the river for a swim below Swinging Bridge. It was still early in the day, it wasn’t hot yet, and Gus didn’t seem hot or tired, so we skipped the river, and across the bridge we go. The climb to Devils Thumb is brutal. I consider it the toughest part of the ride, so when I could start to hear Gus breathing, I would get off and lead him. By the time I got to the top, I was beat. I could hear Greg Kimber and other volunteers offering encouraging words, but I was too exhausted to look up and acknowledge them, we were heading for the water trough, where we were treated with more volunteers with treats and cooling sponges.

Our next vet check is Deadwood, only a mile down the trail. We quickly vetted though, and down into the second canyon we go, at a fast trot, only slowing down for the steep sections. So much work has been done to improve the Tevis trail, and this section was no exception. We felt very safe, as much of the trail has been widened. Seeing all the chainsaw work that had been done was amazing. So many huge dead trees from last year’s fire had been cut out of the way. This will be an ongoing project for years to come, as more dead trees fall.

As we neared the top of Eldorado Canyon, Gus was getting hot, so I jumped off at the last creek crossing before Michigan Bluff, to cool him off. As I was pouring water on him, two riders passed us. I figured that cooling my horse was far more important than maintaining our 1st place position. We left Michigan Bluff and came into the next vet check at Chicken Hawk in third place. Gus pulsed down right away, and we probably could have left Chicken Hawk in the lead, but Gus was finally starting to get an apatite, so we stayed a little longer to let him eat. I lost track of how many riders passed us at this check while Gus was eating. I think that there were about five out areas of us.

Coming up Bath Road was perfect. My crew were amazing. Ilan and his son Rotem met us part way down the road with a gallon jug of ice water. I was pouring it on Gus and drinking it as we trotted up the road to the rest of our crew. I said to my crew“Get Gus straight to the P&R person”, as from past experience, I know his heart rate will be down. He was down right away, and that put us leaving Forest Hill in third place, just four minutes behind first. While at this check, I noticed that he had lost his Vet Tec padding. Luckily, the farier, Joby Souza, was there to apply more.

The next section of trail goes right through downtown Forest Hill, on pavement. We quickly caught and passed the next rider, putting us in second place. Dropping down the switchbacks, I could see the lead rider about a minute ahead of us. We caught her just beforee the Cal 2 water stop, and we led the way down the switchbacks from Cal 2 to the river. We were flying, but we couldn’t out run them. Turns out, it was Jenna and Kong, they are an amazing team. We rode together for a while, trading off the first place position.

About a mile from Franciscos, three other riders caught up to us. They were trotting fast down the road. Gus wanted to go with them, but my knee was done. I could not go that speed any longer. I had to turn Gus in a circle to slow him down to a walk. My knee was swollen, and the skin had worn off where it rubbed on the saddle. We came into Franciscos a couple minutes behind the group of four. Gus pulsed down right away again, but he was breathing hard, and I was exhausted. I could not keep up that pace any longer, and at that point I realized that we weren’t going to win, and resigned to shooting for a Top Ten finish. We stayed a little extra long at this check so we could both get our strength back. I was feeling really overheated at this point and the volunteers were wonderful helping to get me prepared to hit the trail again. Another rider passed us while we were resting in the vet check, putting us in 6th place.

The next section of trail had to be re routed up Drivers Flat Road, a 2 1/2 mile steep climb to the top. As we passed the usual single track trail to the left,, that goes to the river crossing, Gus looked at at me saying “You are going the wrong way, we are supposed to turn here”. He lost his motivation at that point, and we walked all the way to the top. Our crew was waiting for us at the top, a welcome site for sure. They cooled Gus while I rested. Gus remained unmotivated for the next several miles. He knew we had missed a turn, as he had done this ride once before, with a junior rider, Rotem, in 2019. It’s amazing how they remember the trail. While we were jogging down the trail, two other riders caught and passed us, putting us in 8th place. Gus stayed with them for a while but finally let them go. At this point, I was exhausted, and my poor riding form was taking it’s toll on Gus. I was riding with both hands on the pommel of the saddle to help relieve the pressure on my knee, just letting the reins go free on his neck. The new re route of the trail seemed to go on forever. Finally, just before dark, we reached the highway crossing at the Forest Hill bridge, and we were passed by another rider, putting us in 9th place.

The long steep descend down to the confluence of the North and middle forks of the American rivers brought us to the final vet check before the finish line. Gus vetted through right away again, but just as I mounted up to leave, he decides that he wanted to stay and eat hay. Every couple minutes I would suggest that we really need to get going, and he would just keep eating, so I let him, knowing that we would probably be passed by other riders. Finally he had enough hay and we were back on the trail. Just before No Hands Bridge, my crew found me and let me know that two riders were coming up fast behind us. When Gus got to No Hands Bridge, he new where we were, he wasn’t lost any more, and we flew at a fast canter. He had been dogging it for the last couple hours, and now he had a renewed energy. We quickly caught the 8th place rider, putting us in 8th place, but we could hear the other two riders, in the dark, pushing hard to catch us, all the way to the finish line. They crossed the line less than a minute behind us. Gus cantered most of the lap around the track at the stadium. He felt and looked great at the finish, and at the Best Condition showing the next morning. I was in no condition to show him. Thanks Caroline De Bourbon for showing him for BC for me, you did an excellent job.

My crew was great, they could not have done any better. I was spoiled all day. They went above and beyond to be everywhere for me. A huge Thank You to Karen Gardella, Shane Lesher and his wife Angie, Amy Rawlins, Ilan and Rotem Dvir, and my wife Linda DVM, and Mike Shaper for moving my rig from Soda Springs to Auburn.

Chuck Stalley and his crew of volunteers did an amazing job to make this ride happen, from dealing with the mess from the fire last summer, to re routing the trail because the river was too high to cross, to all of the work done to make the trail as safe as possible. The Traill was the best that I’ve seen it - Outstanding job guys. And as always, the vets were great keeping all the horses safe.

A huge Thank You to everyone.

2023 Tevis Cup - Alexandra Collier

July 31 2022
by Alexandra Collier

Alexandra Collier and the mustang JM Gibbs finished in 52nd place

7 years ago I made the decision to move from Maryland to San Diego, California. I had discovered that Auburn was the endurance capital of the world and where Tevis takes place. I didn’t move to Auburn specifically though for fear of lack of opportunities. Around this time period, I was not well, all around. I was in some of the lowest years of my life and just a mess. I had been contemplating and convincing myself that moving somewhere where there was “more endurance” would help set me on the right path to personal peace.

Fast forward to this morning at 4:42am, JM Gibbs and I completed the Western States Trail Ride aka the Tevis Cup. Until this weekend, Gibbs and I had never met. What I knew about him was that he was a stocky ole mustang from Devils Garden and “kids safe.” According to his AERC record, he has done a handful of 50s, maybe 5ish and the placings I saw were 25th, 28th, and 37th. Neither Gibbs nor I had ever attempted Tevis. I had a 100 mile completion under my belt, but Gibbs did not even have a previous attempt.

On paper, if someone were to be interested in leasing a horse for Tevis, Gibbs wouldn’t light someone up inside with excitement. Now, this is a normal person I’m talking about. Then, there is me.

Amongst all the reasons why Gibbs might not be someone’s best first interest for Tevis, I saw it differently. Mustang, underrepresented breed in endurance, underdog of endurance, not likely to finish, a mental challenge, a long long 100 miles, lots of mental effort into strategic planning, anxiety, more anxiety and worry. I won’t say I “like” all of those things, but that’s how I saw it. This wasn’t about a Tevis completion, truly. It was about how many crazy boxes I would check IF we completed and IF we didn’t, so what if we just did something crazy, and tried.

After winning the Tevis benefactor entry, this was my green-light-go sign. My gut, my heart, all shouting “You cannot miss this opportunity, despite the foreseen challenges.”

I met Gibbs on Thursday before the ride. Friday I took him for a 30 minute walking ride just to get a feel for things. Then I woke up on Saturday morning and hopped up on his back and off we were to conquer 100 miles. Our goal was to finish faster morning miles in the cooler weather to accommodate for the hot midday sun. Gibbs and I were doing great, until the canyons. It was hot, it was unmotivating for him, it was rocky. When we reached the swinging bridge we B-lined it for the river. I dismounted and walked him in submerging myself fully and letting him cool down for a few mins before the hike up Devil’s Thumb.

We crossed the bridge following two other riders that we eventually let go on without us. I dismounted to get a rock out of my shoe and thought to myself “No part of me wants to hike this canyon up to the top but I probably should as it may be our saving grace at the end.” So we hiked it together, miserably. Gibbs’ attitude was “this is so not it.” Between the 2mph walking and my quite literally dragging him, I felt discouraged but continued on step after step. I mean literally looking down at the ground watching each one of my boots cover another small increment of ground.

We made it to the top, just to barrel down into another canyon. Same thing again. Walking, breathing, internally dying inside. We hit a relatively level point and I mounted Gibbs, gave him a kick, just for the result to be a dead stand still. He would not go. He knew that his body needed to recover and did not believe there was any urgency in continuing on. So I got off and resumed my dragging routine. “Mustangs take care of themselves” they say. And yup, they sure do. And sometimes that means, “I’d just like to rest and not do anything anymore despite us being in the middle of a very serious ride with a time cut off.”

We lost so much time. We came into Michigan Bluff with me thinking I had arrived at Chicken Hawk, but we had not. There was another handful of miles left. Gibbs was spent and morale was low for me and him. Luckily between my crew and Terry Howe’s positivity and motivation, I felt a surge of life. I left Michigan Bluff choking back my tears from the reality that this might be it we may not make it. Two riders knew the “bad times” were hitting me and they kept pushing me to continue on, keep up, and attach Gibbs to them for motivation. They saved me. The last 1.5 to Chicken Hawk felt ENDLESS. Somehow, somehow, we made it in with a few minutes to spare. My amazing crew immediately helped me and set me up for success. If my timeline of the story doesn’t align with location names or anything, it’s because anything after Michigan Bluff is an absolute complete blur. It was all just work and a one track mindset, GO.

The switchbacks following felt endless. We came into Forest Hill or Cal 2 with one minute to spare. One damn minute. After this, any concept of where I was just fell from my mind. We must keep moving forward and not waste much time. It was dark, which meant it was cooling down and our only opportunity to make it.

Every check after that was “you need to pick up the speed,” “you’re right at cut off,” “you can do it, but you have to keep moving and use every minute wisely.” I was riding with someone who had a gaited horse which was great for pacing a faster walk. We were working together to try to get this done. I was in charge of time and he was in charge of leading. I’ll be honest, every time he asked me the time, I lied. I told the time was five minutes past what the actual time was so that he didn’t believe we had any extra moment.  Probably saved us both in the end because he finished as well. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind the lying now if I told him my strategy.

At 1:52am, I realized the reality of we might not finish. Calculating, recalculating, mathing, running through my mind how could we possible make it 20 miles in 3 hours. That’s 10mph give or take. How is that even possible, we aren’t capable of that. We just aren’t. My text was sent to my crew at 1:52am during this breakdown and it read “I am not convinced we will make it in time.” I had to prepare my team for the disappointment to come despite their amazing efforts of crewing for me and cheering me on all day.

I asked myself if this was my giving up moment. No, it sure as heck is not. And we are going to fly at any damn opportunity that we can and if we don’t finish AT LEAST WE TRIED.

Every pulse Gibbs had coming into check, he would come in at about 80, but within 5 mins of snacking and drinking, he’d be down to 64. And we would head out essentially by our crew pushing us out the gate.

Francisco’s and the street crossings still had me tense about time, but once we hit Confluents, I started believing this is real. We are about to finish Tevis when I spent majority of the day mentally preparing myself for a potential pull or being overtime. We FLEW. I made sure he attached himself mentally to the butt of another horse and we kept going. There was no thinking really just following the glimpse of a riders sillouette in front of us. I tried not to let myself believe we “had this” before the end because I was still panicking about a stone bruise flying like that in the very dark forest. Again, if felt endless. Any glimmer of a light, I was hoping for the finish.

And finally, there it was. Lights up on a hill and my heart is beating so fast; I’m feeling so many emotions. How in the heck did I just pull this off? Just, how. But we did it.

With endurance, I get into this mindset where it’s like I’m using every single aspect of my brain. As I’m sure we all do. But I assess, reassess, push, pull, tweak this and that. It’s not easy with a horse who isn’t guaranteed to finish. There is so much that goes on internally in my mind throughout the process. I knew Gibbs would be a challenge, but what worked in my favor is that for the last two years I’ve been riding a mustang who is equally, even more so stubborn. I know how to navigate them. It’s not about demanding, it’s about asking. And sometimes they straight up tell you “No” and not a single thing will change that. So when this happens, is when I have to change the plan, again. And again, and again. It’s not a straight line.

I had a paper I was following with “set goal times” and the cut-off times listed. The first few points we were an hour to an hour and a half ahead. During this time I was of course feeling positive and motivated. Then, the lull of the ride was when we were coming in an hour to an hour and a half AFTER what our goal time should be and seconds before cut off. There is and was never any plan, truly. Do what you can with your best effort, and adjust. If it doesn’t go to plan, the day is not over, the ride is not over. We keep on going and we make it to the finish.

A very special thanks to Gibbs’ home Crater Hill Equestrian Center and all of their crew, Samantha Ellis, Gibbs’ rightful owners Jennifer Elizabeth Mayfield & Scotty Mayfield, Ashley Sansome whom I ventured on this mission with, Valerie Jaques for setting me up to borrow her Garmin, Terry Howe for letting me borrow her saddle, the benefactor who made it possible for me to have an entry to the ride, every single person who was out there on the sidelines in-person or from home, Jacqueline Davis for providing me with the resources and experience the last two years to have the knowledge that it took to complete this ride, and Gibbs of course for all of his hard work to make this happen.

I am so proud of our teamwork and our ability to finish the ride in time. This memory I will cherish forever. It checked so many personal boxes for me with regards to goals and putting myself to the test to see what I really am capable of as a rider and person in general. I am ecstatic and still in shock, so very happy with my ability to overcome challenges and prevail in the end. Gibbs is a very special mustang and although at times he wouldn’t give me what I wanted, in the end he gave us both what we needed to make it happen. Gibbs was part of the 2020 round up and brought in as a stallion. He was not gelded until 2 years ago (I believe) and has only been broke for 2 years as well. From RoundUp2020 to Tevis2023, really awesome.

I will try to forget about the embarrassing demonstration he put on for everyone as we did our victory lap.

2023 Old Dominion 100 mile Endurance Ride - Nancy Sluys

June 12 2023
by Nancy Sluys

Sometimes you just have to hang your wishes on a star and see what transpires! Coming onto 2023 my hopes and goals were to ride Danny (Jets Danny Herlong), my mule, in the Old Dominion 100 mile (in one day) endurance ride, also known as the Beast of the East for it’s reputation of numerous rocks and long climbs! He was a bit short on his conditioning miles after only having done one 50 in 2022 on Thanksgiving weekend. I had backed off endurance for a while with him to concentrate on relationship building and training after our last mishap the previous January, which resulted in my 3rd broken bone from coming off this mule. I worked hard to rebuild my confidence and troubleshoot our relationship. Now we were back on track and getting ready for the year. This past winter was very wet and I had a hard time conditioning on slippery home trails in North Carolina. When the weather got a little warmer I went up to our place in the Virginia mountains where the footing was well drained and firmer and tried to get some good miles in but in early March Danny got caught up in barbed wire that was hidden in the leaves alongside a trail and got a serious cut on the back of his left rear pastern that took over 2 months to heal up. I thought our hopes were dashed as we just didn’t have the miles that I would have wished coming into a challenging 100.

At the AERC convention this winter in Jacksonville, Florida I won a free entry to the 55 mile ride at the Old Dominion so I thought that was a good revised goal to work towards. Between weather and a busy schedule I didn’t get the trail time that I had hoped for but I did get a good 2 days and 35 miles of mountain riding in 3 weeks before the ride. The week and a half before the ride there was an announcement that only 10 riders had entered the 100 at the OD and pitying the ride manager I decided to bump up to the 100 on a whim. After all, I figured I would rather start the 100 with the possibility of stopping if things weren’t going our way rather than finish the 55 with a mule who looked great, and like he could just keep going so I took the plunge and entered the 100. After all, some of the greatest endurance riders advocate that rest is good and Danny was certainly well rested!

Leading up to the ride Bill was having back trouble so I put out a call on Facebook for some crew and Ginne Ritter took the bait. She is a “professional” crew person so I knew I was in good hands and Bill could relax at home and take care of his back. The scene was set and I was committed. I arrived at ride camp a day early so we both could rest and I could have plenty of time to pack my stuff and work out some strategy in my mind. Since Danny is pretty non-reactive to other horses and keeps to his pace I decided that starting near the front of the ride would be a good idea so that later there would be plenty of horses behind me if he lost motivation later in the ride and needed a buddy. The weather report was very favorable with zero chance of rain and temperatures in the high 70s, a rare occurrence at the Old Dominion which if famous for brutally hot temperatures!

I met up with Ginne to get the truck packed with the crew stuff, feed and supplements for Danny and supplies for me. She was looking after Joey, Dr. Vicky’s (one of the ride vets) 7 year old daughter all weekend so Joey joined our team along with Rayna, a lovely young lady who was April and Daniel Johnson’s daughter. Team Danny was set! Joey immediately developed a special relationship with Danny and soon he was following her around like a puppy. She helped graze him and even trotted him out for the vets at check in and several of the vet checks. It was so cute how he looked after her and was so tender.

I awoke the next morning to 40 something degree weather and I had to ride out in a jacket, so unusual for the Old Dominion! The sun was just beginning to rise on the 5:30am start time. 13 horses and one mule started that day and 10 completed the challenge. As planned we started at the front of the pack and settled into a steady pace. After a half mile of road the trail turned off and began climbing right away.

Danny was ears up, bright eyed and very forward but ratable as we climbed and climbed to the ridge top. The trail ascended through hardwood trees, patches of beautiful blooming Mountain Laurel and small open meadows before reaching the spine. On the way up we hooked up with another rider whose horse was similarly paced. Jamie McArdle was trying for her first 100 mile completion after several failed attempts in the past. At one point the view of the early morning sun over the valley below opened up and I took the opportunity to snap a few photos, between the ears, of course!! The trail was rocky with occasional boulders but the footing was passable and we were able to make fairly good time reaching the first vet check at Bird Haven in 2 hours and 55 minutes for the 15.7 mile loop. Danny was setting the pace and was insistent that we walk all the hills but he made up for it on the downhills as he handily trotted down the mountain. Even on the first loop he snatched mouthfuls of grass while he was on the move. Mules are famous for taking good care of themselves and he was proving that right!

Danny’s pulse came down immediately and we were able to vet right through. He looked great! Joey did a great job trotting him out and the onlookers loved it! The vet check was at a private residence called Bird Haven and we were situated on a beautiful grassy lawn with huge shade trees. We would come back to this place late at night for our last vet check before the finish. Here Gina Hagis (my riding buddy from my Virginia home) hooked up with us to be an additional crew person. She had finished the 55 the previous day and did not want to leave her horse alone for too long so she was going to help at the checks that were closer to camp. It was so nice to just sit in the chair for a rest while my handy crew took care of Danny and made sure I had what I needed!

The next loop to Laurel Run vet check was a bit different than usual. A forest fire had gotten started on the side of the mountain and the day before Friday’s ride ride management had to reroute the trail because the Forest Service was bulldozing it for a firebreak. A nightmare for a ride manager but luckily they have a team of motorcycle riders who were able to unmark the original trail and remark the detour all before the next day’s ride!

The detour was going to take the same route that they used for the 2015 National Championships, eliminating the long, endless steep and rocky climb up a trail to the ridge and replacing it with a trail further down, past the fire, that also accessed the ridge. The trail up the mountain (that we would normally have done in reverse) was shorter than the other one but very steep and it was this very trail where I had broken my arm coming off Danny when he spooked back in 2018 on the way down. I could tell that Danny recognized it but he was non-reactive and it gave me peace of mind that our demons were in the past.

We did get a short time on the ridge and were able to enjoy some awesome views before descending down the 5 mile road into Laurel Run Vet Check. The recent drought caused the gravel roads to be as hard as cement and Danny’s metal shoes slipped on the downhills requiring a collected trot and intense concentration to safely navigate. At one point we got off and jogged down the mountain on foot for a good while to give them a break. Danny pulsed right away once again and was looking really good at 32.1 miles. He was getting really hungry and Ginne had a smorgasbord buffet of grain, mash and hay all ready for him and he ate everything in sight! After our 40 minute rest break we set off for our next destination, the Bucktail Vet Check which was another 14+ miles down the trail.

Leaving Laurel Run the trail turns back up the road that we just had come down to reach the ridge again. Jamie’s horse (I forget her name) and Danny thought they were going back to camp so kept up a good march up the road but the long stretch wore on us and the temperatures were rising as by now it was early afternoon. After discovering that Jamie was a fellow musician we passed the time singing songs that we each had written to each other and we laughed our way up the mountain.

After the road climb the next stretch of ridge trail has got to be my favorite as it is a narrow single track lined with flowering Mountain Laurels. It was slow going as we navigated the narrow along the spine of the mountain but the breeze kept us refreshed. The imbedded rock was a challenge but my handy mule navigated it perfectly and Jamie’s horse followed right along. By the time we got to Bucktail (vet check #3) at 46.6 miles we had lost some time, the heat of the day and difficulty of the trail were taking it’s toll but Danny was being his smart self and taking care by insisting on walking up hills and snatching as much grass as he could. The day was heating up more than predicted and was now in the low to mid 80s. It took a little more sponging this time but Danny recovered to the pulse criteria of 64bpm fairly quickly. Danny and I were both feeling good despite the rising temperatures and he was still eating like crazy. The next time we would see our crew would be at Big 92 Vet Check (70.3) which was 23.7 long miles away with a 10 minute hold (Waites Run) and the Little Sluice Hospitality Stop along the way. Leaving Bucktail we hit a section of forest service road that was covered with heavy logging gravel for several miles requiring us to keep to the walk. After a while the footing improved and we were able to keep up a fairly steady pace but it was getting hotter and we spent extra time in the water crossings sponging to keep the animals cool. The roads were very hard which also kept our pace slower than normal to avoid excessive concussion on our mount’s feet. When we came on a more rustic dirt road we put on the steam and even did some cantering to make up a little time. When we got to Waites Run we had a 10 minute hold but only after getting the pulse down to 64bpm. Danny had gotten unexpectedly hot on that last stretch from the warm temperatures, strong sun and faster pace and it took him 10 minutes to recover. He came into the ride a bit overweight and that was hindering his heat dissipation somewhat but he had all As on his vet card so it didn’t worry me much. Jamie graciously waited up for us even though her horse had recovered quickly. By this point we both knew we were in this thing together and it didn’t take words to know we would be riding through the night together.

Glad to be back on the trail again, with the temperatures coming down slightly, we were able to make some time on a nice forest service road before turning onto the infamous Mail Trail, a long, steep and arduous single track trail where you can only manage a slow walk. Up and up we went as the sun started to set. Thinking back on my past Old Dominion rides I remember being much further down the trail by this time so I was getting concerned that we would be pushing the cut off times they had at each vet check. It seemed like forever before we came to the hospitality stop at the bottom of Little Sluice Mountain. I remember trotting all the way down this mountain in years past but with the washing rains we have had the past few years the footing was thick with loose rock and we had to keep to a slower pace. The lone junior rider, Maddie Compton, and her sponsor, Sarah Arthur, passed us on the way down to the hospitality stop. After a short rest and a little feed for the horse/mule we were on our way the 4 miles of gravel road to the Big 92 Vet Check where we would finally meet up with our crews again. By then we would have 70.3 miles behind us and hope of reaching the finish line was more of a reality.

The night was very still and the temperatures still unexpectedly high with humidity and Danny once again took longer to reach the pulse criteria by 12 minutes but was otherwise looking good with all As on his vet card all day and he was still eating ravenously, he was just having a little trouble dissipating heat. I was experiencing my low period as well and my tummy was feeling a little poorly. Ginne had made some of her magic soup, packed with protein, with chicken, nuts and veggies and I was able to sip the broth which started to revive me. That soup was my lifesaver! I rested and rehydrated while Ginne and Rayna took care of Danny. Joey was fast asleep in the pick up truck. With the time that Danny took to pulse down we were dangerously close to our cut off time (the time they need to be pulsed down) for this vet check but we made it by 5 minutes.

Leaving Big 92 they say it’s all downhill but I have to differ!! The hills are more gradual but we were going up none the less. It was mostly gravel road from Big 92 to Laurel Run and by now the daytime temperatures had come down and a slight breeze had started up. Jamie was getting nervous that we would not finish the ride on time but I knew our pace and the nature of the trail that lay ahead and the animals were picking up energy, I was confident that we would certainly make it. We were able to pick up the pace and kept up a good trot on the forest service road but we had been warned that we would have to ride through the forest fire area and that we would hit thick smoke and embers on the side of the trail but other than that it would be safe going. Never the less when we did hit the smoke we had a tense time as it was thick enough that we had difficulty seeing the trail and it was burning our eyes making them tear and we were concerned for the animals. We chose to walk to keep their heavy breathing to a minimum but that caused us to take longer so I don’t know what would have been worse. We endured the smoke for at least a half an hour and also saw embers and flames in the woods. It was a surreal experience for sure!!

When we got to Laurel Run (78.3) for the second time we were happy to discover that we had gained 25 minutes, buying us some more time to make to the finish! Danny had picked up his second wind and was on fire (pun intended!). His pulse was down when he came in and all we had to do was strip his saddle and take him in. All his vet perimeters were As as they has been all day and he looked more than fit to continue. Gina joined us at this check and was a big help trotting out Danny so I could just rest. I had improved too and my tummy was feeling much better. This was only a 30 minute hold as they don’t want the horses standing around for too long in the night air getting stiff. We were back on the trail before we knew it and only had 6 more miles to go. We knew we had this as long as there were no delays along the way. Once again the “all downhill” trail had more uphill than we had expected but we still made good time to the finish line. Just before you get to the gravel road to camp there is a big turkey house. When you smell that smell it is the best smell ever (even though it stinks!!) because you know it is only a half mile to the finish line and you have made it! As we trotted down the gravel road into the rising sun we decided that since we had endured the whole 100 miles together it was only right to tie for the finish. We crossed the finish line together to a small crowd of well wishers at 5:19AM, 23 hours and 19 minutes after starting with 11 minutes to spare! Later Ginne came up to me and said “11 minutes!!!! 11 minutes!!!!!” and I just smiled and said “I know my pace!” To finish is to Win is the endurance motto and we proved that to be true!!!

In order to get a completion your horse/mule must first pass the final vet check. Danny happily did his last trot out and to say he looked like he hadn’t done a thing was nearly an understatement! He did look just fantastic!! I was toast, though, and ready for bed!!! The next day I was sorry that I had not taken the time to stand for the Best Condition examination (award for the best conditioned horse at the end determined by a complete vet examination but also scored on time and weight carried). Since I was at least 4 hours later than the winner I figured we didn’t have a chance but I forgot about the High Vet Score award, which I’m certain he would have surely won! Anyway he got the best mule ever award in my eyes and heart and that’s the important thing!! He came into this ride with minimal conditioning but with a strong constitution, great conformation and a big heart. He dug deep for me, never quit and showed that he is a true athlete! It’s truly an honor to be his partner and I am humbled by him! I’m also thankful for my super crew of Ginne, Gina, Joey and Rayna! They totally rocked it and Danny and I wanted for nothing. It takes a good team for everything to come together and ours was a winner!

People ask me why I love to do 100 mile rides and I have to say it is for the deep connection you gain with your animal and what they can and will happily do for you. Also the challenge of pushing my body and mind to keep old age at bay! It gives me such a deep satisfaction and total respect and awe for the animal as well as human ability. Danny just loves going down the trail, it’s his job and he does it well! Happy trails!!

Nancy Sluys and Jet’s Danny Herlong AKA Danny

Ride Report: Owyhee Tough Sucker 2023 - Tamara Baysinger

TheSweatyEquestrian.com - Full Story

April 3 2023
by Tamara Baysinger

Ledger pranced past the vetting area with arched neck and flagging tail. He was boiling to let loose. I wouldn’t have put it past him to buck. One-rein stops had held him back several times in the last two minutes.

Let’s race!

Storm clouds rose, steely and menacing, from their crouch on the horizon. A tide of dust swirled from stamping hooves. Ledger fussed beneath the stethoscope of a blessedly patient vet, trotted out clean, and was pronounced fit to continue.

Alas, we were at the finish.

Had it not been for the incoming storm, with its plummeting temperature and icy rain, I’d have saddled him back up for a post-LD education in the art and science of You Never Know How Far We’re Going to Go, Buddy.

As it was, I contented myself with the incomplete, but significant, progress we’d made over the day’s 25 miles at Owhyee Tough Sucker.

Signing up for the Limited Distance ride, instead of the 50, was a difficult choice. Ledger has felt strong on our conditioning rides. We’ve put in about 20 miles per week, split into two rides, since early February. If he had ended last season 50-mile fit, I probably would have gone for it. As it was, I decided to err on the safe side.

So, we enjoyed a lazy morning (as race days go) before a 9:00 a.m. start. I had plenty of time for groundwork, which felt largely unnecessary. Ledger didn’t fuss when the 50-milers left, and he remained mellow as LD riders began swirling around the starting line.

I shrugged and hopped on as the front runners hit the trail. We followed, walking on a loose rein. The ribbons led us along a fenceline for a couple hundred feet, then passed through a gate and did a 180 onto a singletrack into the hills. A truck and trailer rattled through the gate right after us, and BAM!

Ledger lost it...

Read more here:
https://thesweatyequestrian.com/ride-report-owyhee-tough-sucker-2023/#comment-311

The last Western Mojave xpride (Road to Tevis #88) - Jessica Black

JessicaEBlack.org - Full Story

by Jessica Black
March 9, 2023

Last Thursday I hurried home from my morning lecture at Bakersfield College so I could load my horses in the trailer and head to what would turn out to be the last Western Mojave xpride. We’d had a week of rain and snow, and Hwy 58 had been closed, but it was open by the time I got home. Everything was muddy. My horses had to slosh through a big mud puddle to get into the trailer. I had to put the truck in 4WD just to pull it out of its current living quarters in our old arena. It would be nice to be in the (comparatively) dry environment of the desert.

Thursday: arrival

I got to ride camp at the Trona Valley Golf course shortly after 4pm. There were not a lot of rigs, so it was easy to park where Jazz and Fantazia would be able to see other horses all the time. (Important because one stays at the trailer while I ride the other!) It was a relatively warm, sunny, and still afternoon. The lack of wind meant I’d be able to light a camp fire and cook my tritip… and besides, too much wind is crazy-making. It can be one of the downsides of the desert, relentless wind. Pre-ride

Right after setting up hay and water, I saddled Jazz and used him to pony Fantazia for a pre-ride. Usually I do it the other way around, but I had ridden Fantazia Sunday. Jazz had not been worked for nearly two weeks. And he’s on the edge of fat whereas Fantazia is far too thin. Jazz is getting a Western saddle on shorter rides, and I used one for the pre-ride. The weight is good exercise and it gives me greater stability when he pulls one of his monster spooks. It’s a challenge to ride a big spook while ponying another horse! The additional weight was especially good because I didn’t have a lot of time to ride...

Read the rest here:
https://jessicaeblack.org/the-last-western-mojave-xpride-road-to-tevis-88/

2023 Twenty Mule Team - Alexandra Collier

http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2023TwentyMuleTeam/

February 21 2023
by Alexandra Collier

A recap of 20 Mule Team 100 for me and Halo (it’s going to be a long one- I either write very little or a lot ): I grew up doing very fast go-go-go training rides with someone who I came to find out later, rode faster than most. Despite the fast training rides, I will mention that the only official endurance ride I went to with her, we came in close to last (37th place) with her very green freshly started 5 year old horse. The long, slow, seemingly endless 9 hours and 41 minutes seemed endless to me as a 13 year old. Still, it didn’t deter me from loving the sport any less. My bum just began to hurt after about 20 miles and I no longer wanted to feel the impact on the saddle when trotting. But this was how it was done— we didn’t canter because it was more comfortable for us; we trotted because it’s what is most methodical for long distance riding. I will say, for the sake of my bum, I have fantasized lightly about what it would be like to canter an entire ride. I also have these strange made up rules, ex: I almost feel “guilty” for cantering because it’s not THE method or I feel like it’s “wrong.” I am never judging anyone else for doing that but the perception of cantering being faster which means as a catch rider, being seen cantering could imply “overriding” someone’s horse. And that’s what I strive not to do. I do care a lot about the horse and what someone thinks/feels about how I am caring for and treating their horse.

That being said, I don’t think I ever knew what Halo was capable of. At Huasna, the vet scored him highly on “Impulsion” (as most do) at the end of his ride and said “that’s a 100 mile horse.” I took it lightly as I have severe trust issues and in the back of my mind I’m like “yeah, I’ll believe it when I see it. Otherwise I believe everyone is just blowing smoke up my arse.” Every opportunity I got with Halo, I rode less rather than more. I chose 25s before 50s, I chose single days before multi-days, I chose 50 miles day 1 & 25 miles day 2, then I chose 2-day multi-day 50s rather than 3-day multi day 50s. You get the picture. Looking back, I think he was always ready for higher mileage and multidays. It’s like this is what he was meant for physically. I don’t regret my conservative gradual approach as I’d rather be safer than not. I aim for middle of the pack and completion. Our delays accumulate from our lagging at the start of rides, out-times leaving camp, and how he behaves at vet checks.

We finished the 20 Mule Team 100, leaving between 6:05-6:10am and coming in almost exactly 21 hours later at 3:05am give or take. We were grooving for the first 25 miles, Halo was content and happy to have his temporary girlfriend Montana Babe with him ridden by Jacqueline Davis. He wasn’t pulling or amped up, just head down ready to work. We arrive at vet check 1, Halo pulsed down immediately, Montana Babe shortly after. We go to vet in and Montana Babe is tight in the hind end. After a second assessment by the vet, we find out we have to continue on without our partners for the day. This was going to occur anyways at the 60 mile mark anyways, but I was bummed it happened so soon. What this means? My day gets a bit more difficult.

Halo is improving with leaving camp alone. At a different ride, we once stood in the same spot for over an hour having words as I pointed him forward, asking him to go that direction and he refused. He said he only wanted to walk backwards towards all of his other friends at camp. After we left Tj & Montana Babe behind, I knew that meant leading Halo out by foot and then mounting him about 1/4 mile out on trail and asking him to go forward. We had much better success than other times so for this I was immensely happy. He moves well alone surprisingly, but our next challenge was what happens when we catch someone? Because with his big trot and how fit he is, we will catch the rider in front of us. Not everyone wants a horse to tag along with them. The problem for us is that once we catch another horse, we haven’t yet tackled moving past another horse in the same direction. We can split from another horse in another direction, but we cannot pass them (yet).

I was mentally prepared not to inconvenience another rider on loop 2 and self-sacrifice or do what I needed to do in order to give another rider space. We soon approached Jerry Wittenauer who coincidentally expressed to me earlier that him and his horse Carlos usually ride alone. I have also witnessed this as I have seen him in passing at Grand Canyon & Fire Mountain— we are usually leap frogging one another. I quickly jumped off and start dragging my horse because I already know the embarrassing scene that was about to occur. I assured Jerry I will gladly be on my way, just please ignore the episode that Halo and I are about to have. Well we didn’t quite tackle that obstacle in full yet as Jerry was very generous and kind to let us ride along with him and Carlos. We finished that 25 mile loop and then the remaining 10 miles back to camp for Jerry and Carlos to complete their 60 miles while Halo and I were to continue on to our remaining 40 miles.

Camp... dreadful camp. This is a huge obstacle for us. I will be honest and say that I really admire the out vet checks rather than the ones back at camp. If it was another horse I was riding, I may feel differently. Halo was big mad after 60 miles. Tired, no. What he wanted was to be soul tied to Carlos, his new buddy horse, for the rest of his life, but it was Carlos & Jerry’s time to complete and turn in for the evening. I handed him over to Tj because you know, she was helping me crew. He wanted to remind the vets of how freely they should give him an A for impulsion.

Even after bringing over his temporary girlfriend, he insisted on going back to the trailer and getting some munchies and settling in. Our vet-in time was delayed about 30 minutes, who really knows but it felt like eternity. I was experiencing some gut-wrenching anxiety, will they allow us to continue? My internal thoughts were—

1. I mean it’s completely understandable if they tell me I cannot continue, I’m ready to take that loss (trying to convince myself I wouldn’t be devastated and envisioning the moment where they break the news- would I cry? Would I pretend it was ok? Would it be okay? Would I be sad/mad of would I be at peace?, playing the scenarios through my head).

2. But on the other hand this is my first 100 and I would really like to finish. I mean this is IT. This is our PLAN. We have worked so hard for this.

3. I mean maybe I’m not deserving of it this time. Maybe this is a lesson. Maybe Halo isn’t cut out for this at all.

Anxiously waiting for the vet check to be over. We got the green light to continue. The pendulum swung our way. I was grateful to say the least.

Headed out on loop 3 for 25 miles, I was ready to walk him out for as long as needed and hop up on his back when I felt the time was right. I saw another rider going out at the same time as me whose horse kind of did the “I don’t want to leave either” dance and her crew helped escort them out down the road. I expressed to this rider that my horse really likes riding with other horses and she said the same for hers. I felt very reassured that I wasn’t being an inconvenience to them. She informed me that she was headed out for the 4th loop of the 100 as I was headed out for the 3rd and we would be along the same trail for quite some time.

I had the pleasure of riding with Susie Kramer for about 7.5/8 miles and we chatted about a variety of endurance topics. It was very nice to have such a kind and personable rider to allow me to tag along with for a good chunk of our 25 mile loop. I kindly warned her that when we split ways, my horse and I may come to a complete stand still and we may be having some words, but please do not worry. This was and is part of our process, we will be just fine. She said it may be the same for her and her horse as well.

We parted ways and wished each other a wonderful end of the ride and a completion to each other. And then it would be Halo and I alone in the dark for the next 17 miles. I turned my light on and we were off. Halo did a side eye for the next hour looking off into the distance believing he would see Susie and her horse and I kept telling him ”There is NO ONE there. Unfortunately it is just you and me. YOU and ME. I’m not sure when you’re going to start wrapping your head around that, but if we are going to keep doing these rides together, you’re going to have to accept that sooner or later. I get you safely back to camp EVERY time.” And yes, these words and phrases get said out loud to him whether he is listening or not.

I came up to a road crossing and was reassured when I heard a familiar voice and realized it was Kaity Cummins waiting for her long time friend Ashley Wingert. She told me they were walking and probably about 30 mins ahead. I was sure at some point we would catch up to them.

We trotted endlessly for quite some time. I was getting super sleepy and my depth perception and peripherals were not doing well. The contrast between my headlight and the darkness of the desert had my eyesight constantly adjusting. I would see a light off in the distance— is it a glow stick marking the trail? Is that a car? Is it far away? I convinced myself it had to be a car and as I came up on it, it was a light overlooking a camp sight. I was wayyy off. At that point, I started wishing for an energy drink or a cup of coffee or some DayQuil to smack me in the face. Finally, I saw what look like a wheel spinning green fluorescent light. Oh no, this is not good. I really am losing it. I knew my depth perception was super skewed and as I kept getting closer, the object didn’t appear to be getting closer. I got that weird angst feeling deep in the pit of my stomach. Is someone messing with me? Oh lord, please brain stop doing this to me. I called out to try to calm myself “Hello?” Please please please someone respond.

No response.

Oh I’m totally screwed. I’ve completely gone bonkers or some clown is going to emerge from the green glowing lights and Halo’s going to spook, I’m going to die. Shoot… I mean yeah we are both going to die. We kept walking and a minute or two or three passed? Whose tracking time anyways? I called out again and with the sound of a woman’s voice my panicking brain was able to peel away the fear and ground itself back to reality to form the silouhette of a black horse ahead. It was Ashley who had responded to my calls. With my delirium, I had lost hope of catching Kaity’s friend and the thought had disappeared from my mind. The rotating green lights I saw were just reflectors on her horses rump rug.

I knew I had no hope of getting Halo to pass Ashley and her mare and at that point, I was too tired for an argument with him. We walked (or jigged) the last 10 miles of loop 3 since Halo is incapable of walking with another horse. #Fearofabandonment

We came into the vet check and vetted immediately after crossing the line. After walking for so long, Halo’s pulse was down. I wasn’t sure where my crew was, but I went back to the trailer to swing the door open “Ayo, you crewing or sleeping?!” I probably seemed bothered but I know it’s difficult for me to alert a crew of my ETA. With the gloves, the jigs, the phone too big for my hands, lack of service, lack of battery, difficult to put back in pocket— I try to only fidget with the GPS because this is most applicable in the moment. Am I lost? In the middle of the desert in the middle of the night? Yeah, GPS most important. Loop 3 was the hardest loop for me mentally— exhaustion hit, we split from another horse, on my own with my GPS, complete darkness & light sensitivity, some hills that seemed to drag at exactly the wrong time.

The 30 minute hold zoomed by. Tj asked if I wanted to lay down and close my eyes, I said no I’m okay. I stared with admiration at the pictures I bought earlier in the day from the photographer to remember why I do this sport. I drank the rest of an energy drink and took some DayQuil to give me the pep in my step to last the final 15 miles.

Before I knew it, we were back on the trail. I thought the other rider we came in with had already gone back out, but it was just us. I was looking forward to Halo and I spending 15 miles alone in the dark for the final loop. This was the final stretch, the final mental and physical push and I needed him and I to do this together- alone. Not because I’m selfish or didn’t want to ride with anyone, but because that’s what him and I needed as a team. We needed to grow together for those remaining 15 miles together.

He lagged for about 9 miles until we made some random right turn shorty after we saw Kaity at another road crossing. He realized we were finally headed back to camp and picked up his pace. I felt like I could exhale a bit. But then I panicked… what if something happened? That ONE time he trips on a rock or something spooks him and he dumps me and leaves me out there. You know, the mind wanders. I almost missed the turn back to camp as we started to descend for the final 4 miles. I passed the turn and my gut alerted me to check my gps. Sure enough we were a few steps past our missed turn. I turned my light off because it was inhibiting my ability to pick out the little details of the purple glow sticks. I panicked for another 3/4 mile convincing myself I was on the wrong trail and my GPS is a liar until I was reassured with another purple glow stick. Man, those last 3 miles really drag. With our light off, I played it safe and we walked. I had forgotten what the footing of this area looked like and was paranoid we would encounter a rock or uneven terrain, as Halo is known to stumble on things. Specifically when he is focused on something like getting back to camp. At this point I was still combatting the reality that Halo and I were really about to cross the finish line of our first 100 mile ride together. My mind was playing those tricks on me, the kind where it’s like pinch me is this real? But instead it was the obsessive staring at the GPS to make sure everything was *precisely* on track. I could not let myself cross that finish line with a DQ for something as minor as getting lost in the last 2 miles. No, no, no. Once we hit the road, we trotted. I had been here many times before, and he had been here a few himself. Once we made our final left turn, we walked. We approached he finish line and I heard Tj, ”Alex is that you?” We crossed the finish line.

Tj took Halo from me. The vets told me my job here was down. Halo pulsed down immediately and he trotted out with a whole lot left in his tank. I heard those words, ”Congratulations on your completion, you came in 10th place.” I am not sure which part shocked me more, the completion or the top 10. As we walked back to the trailer, Halo trotted like he was ready to do another loop. I heard from Tj earlier he was bucking around the arena earlier today and being his usual destructive self. He forgot he had just spent 21 hours carrying me across the high desert.

20 Mule Team was an amazing ride and experience for me and Halo. Thank you to TJ Davis, Jacob Rainer, ride management, the vets, volunteers, all of the other riders that come together to make this ride happen. I remember being a young girl, a teenager, and even early in my 20s and believing completing a 100 mile ride would never happen until I one day had my own horse and even then a 100 miler horse is rare. The idea seemed so far off.

It always seems impossible until it’s done.

Gore/Baylor Photography

2023 Land of the Sun Ride - Kandace Contreras

February 6 2023 by Kandace French Contreras

One of my favorite Endurance Rides and I love Boyd Ranch. It’s such a great venue. I was excited to ride back-to-back 30 mile rides Saturday and Sunday.

Catherine Peterson and I arrived Friday and checked in Yankee, Frosty and Scarlett for Sabrina Liska, who was arriving later. All the horses looked fab and Yankee was his normal rocket. Yankee is barefoot and wears boots on the front but abhors ANYTHING on his back legs for any period of time so he’s bare in the back. (I have a past dislocated hip and helicopter ride to show for it) But he’s worn his rear hooves down to nothing so it was boot the backs or don’t play. I told him he had to deal with it. I applied plenty of Mueller tape, boots and duct tape and felt good about our ride.

Saturday was perfect. All three ponies loved and acted fantastic. Scarlett led the way all day. Yankee was more manageable being behind Scarlett and Frosty was, well, just Frosty ❤️ Always perfect. The terrain was challenging. Lots of rocks and miles of deep sand. The ponies trotted, gaited and cantered along beautifully. Strong and powerful. Yankee wasn’t drinking like I knew he needed but was otherwise a powerhouse. And he was tolerable of the rear boots.

About 4 miles from the finish of the 1st loop, Frosty pulled off one of his front composite shoes. 😬 Bad news since has has very thin soles. But Cathy nurses him through the rocky trail and we got through the 1st loop. All three horses vetted right in and went to the trailer where the ate like monsters! Catherine fit Frosty with a spare boot and off we went for our last loop!

Frosty held his own but Cathy could tell he was tender in the rocks even with a boot. We had the opportunity to canter in the sand but had to ease through the rocks and took our time, averaging about 5.4 mph. We knew it would be close to cut off but we should make it in time. Better a sound horse late than a lame horse on time, we were doing great and still having a great ride on Crocket’s Crested Loop, enjoying our horses, each other and the spectacular scenery.

With only 1 mile left to the finish, with Yankee in the rear, we hopped up a little, sandy embankment when Yankee decided he’d had enough! He launched, bucked hard twice and threw out his back legs in every effort to rid himself of the back boots! Luckily my buds heard the ruckus and pulled up as I was getting my Asshole under control, checking my wet pants, and congratulating myself for not lawn darting. Yankee managed to break all the tape and duct tape on one boot and we were close to the finish so I hopped off, pulled that boot, cut the other boots off, and we were back in business. Free of his torturous constraints, Yankee was on fire and pulled on me all the way back to camp!

We made time with 15 mins to spare, all three equines pulsed down quickly and we all vetted out with healthy, happy horses. ❤️

Doc Anderson expressed some concern over Frosty bruising the foot with the missing shoe if he went out again the next day but we’d already elected to pull him from Sunday’s race. Yankee still looked fantastic but he literally had no rear hoof to spare and had made his feelings about rear boots abundantly clear. So I opted, reluctantly, to pull from Sunday rather than risk laming him. All three horses went back to the trailer and ate and drank like champions. It was a win for us and slight bummer to not go again Sunday. But we counted our many blessings.

The awards and pot luck were a blast that night. We even had a guest speaker, Robert Long! Robert, at 70-year-old became the oldest winner of the Mongol Derby, a endurance race of more than 600 miles across the Mongolian Steppe! I was fascinated and could have talked to him for hours.

The cherry on top was finding out Yankee and I won the coveted “Turtle Award”! I was elated. For me, it wasn’t an award for being the last healthy horse to cross the finish in time, but recognition for persevering, as a team, with my friends, on a tough course, overcoming a lot of challenges, and not giving in. We got it done. 👍

Thank you to all the ride management, volunteers and staff at Land of the Sun and Boyd’s Ranch. You aren’t just putting on a ride. You are making memories.

2023 Hokey Pokey - Maria Phillips

January 30 2023
by Maria Phillips
photo by Harrison Phillips

Now that I have posted the ride photos from the Hokey Pokey, I can finally share my own ride pics and give a run down on my return to distance riding after a 4 year hiatus.

I haven't done a 50 in 6 years and I haven't done a 25 in 4 years. (Primarily due to retiring my 50 mile paso mare and spending years finding two young replacements and then growing afore mentioned replacements.) This past weekend was my very much anticipated return to the sport. It would be my first ride in 4 years, my first ride since my mastectomy and my debilitating Meniere's diagnosis (a balance destroying inner ear disorder that damages hearing and the vestibular system...permanently).

This was also the debut ride for my 7yr old buckskin paso mare Zorra. She was saddle broke at 5 and was lightly ridden up until last summer. She started her long slow distance conditioning in earnest during the worst of the summer heat. We walked and walked and walked. 15 to 30 miles a week walking...All summer. In the fall I was happy with her base level of LSD and started slowly working on her cardio fitness. She was still doing 15-30 miles a week but I carefully started increasing her avg speed. By January we were doing 18-20 mile rides at an avg speed of 5.5 to 6mph. Not setting any speed records but enough to finish within time cut offs. It was then time to start winding down on conditioning and letting her rest before her first 25 on the 28th.

Her rest period also coincide with when I was having my peak Meniere's flare up and spent many days very dizzy or having a complete vestibular melt down and puking in buckets for hours until my heavy hitting medication sedated me enough to sleep through it. I wasn't sure if I'd even be able to race this season at all.

Then the Monday before the ride, I became terribly ill with the world's worst man cold. Two covid tests said I wasn't dying but choking on gallons of head snot combined with my constantly wobbly inner ear was less than ideal. There was absolutely no way I could ride in a race. I was ready to send my husband to the race to shoot it without me and scratch my horse.

But luckily I made a fast recovery by Wed evening. (I attribute this fast healing to my adorable plethora of chicks that arrived in the mail and cheered me immensely).

That left just one day to pack my horse trailer for the trip. I hate packing my trailer, especially on the heels of Near Death By Snot. But my ever loving husband came to the rescue and took the brunt of all the heavy lifting for me.

We both arrived to the ride around 1pm Friday, me in the truck and trailer and my husband in his car. We got parked, Zorra set up on the high tie and tucked in with mash, hay and water and then ran out on trail to find some shoot locations for him. (Thanks again Shelley Scott-Jones for the trail maps and all the help!) After settling on shoot locations it was back to camp for the vet in. Harrison took care of camera duties while I vetted in Zorra. She behaved beautifully for the vets and scored well on her card. The rest of the evening was spent stuffing my horse full of mash, setting things up for the holds the next day and fraternizing with my good buddies Lindsay and Ed. Harrison left to go home to take care of our animals and would return in the morning at 8am.

The next morning all was well at the start. I left about 15 minutes after everyone else on foot leading Zorra who was slightly excited. After about 100 yards I got back on because I'm a hobbit who's not designed for walking. Also, I'm not a peasant. I ride the horse that I pay for.

Zorra was forward but rate-able for the first 4 miles. We got our photos taken and then everything afterwards was smooth sailing on a loose rein. Which was a good thing because it was then that I realized that I had forgotten to zip up my sports bra compression cooker before I mounted up. I was wearing three long sleeve shirts, a fat scarf, a large fluffy jacket and a Hit Air vest. Extricating my boobage and bra zipper from that 6 layer clothing cake was no small task and I was grateful that we had started so late and no one was around to see me rifling and fumbling through half my wardrobe. After that was sorted we did a few more miles and I suddenly became aware that I had made yet another wardrobe mistake. My tried and tested long distance safe pantaloons were no longer safe. They were rapidly becoming a cheese grater. I think this might have been because I was wearing two pairs of riding tights and the additional layers were causing some unanticipated movement in my basement closet. But if any of you remember my story from Yellow Hammer 2016..... Chapstick to the rescue. Zorra was a saint and just maintained her 6mph shuffle while I stuffed the reins in my mouth and slathered what needed to be slathered in a blissful layer of Riding Warehouse brand chapstick.

Eventually after I had sorted myself out, we passed 4 horses in two groups of 2 and she behaved beautifully for that too. We kept going until we sailed through our first loop averaging a steady 6mph speed, nailing our training speed perfectly. Our first hold was also no issue. She wasn't a fan of her elecrolyte tubes but she took them anyways and did a good job of eating her wet mash soup and hay.

Our second loop was the last 10 miles. We did a steady 6mph average again and met some other horses on the two way part of the trail which she also tolerated very well. I had a moment of worry when the first two horses came around a turn at a canter and I thought that she might have a flash back to when the herd of horses charged her. I called out a slightly nervous "Helloooo!" and they immediately dropped to a trot and asked if a trot was ok or if they should walk. Zorra said a trot was fine, thanks for asking.

Thus far I had spent the entire day not drunk, not dizzy, tipsy or off kilter. It was absolutely a wonderful day for both my medical issues and my horse's behavior. I couldn't have asked for either to be better. I felt like a normal human being for once and my green, first time endurance horse was acting like calm cool and collected pro at this endurance thing. It was such a joyous thing to ride in a race and not have my arms pulled off or worry about my horse riding so fast she'd crash headlong into the treatment vet on the way into camp. We arrived back to camp and made it to the final vet check quickly since she pulsed down well. But that is where my perfect day ended. She was all A's except for gait. She was tight behind. I spent the rest of the hold forcefully massaging a buckskin horse butt.... to no avail. She was better but still not "fit to continue".

It was a bummer that my first pull happened at my come back ride after so many set backs and years of preparation. But it's still a win in my book. My new prospect went the distance, she ate, drank, and camped well. She blew me away with how cool headed she was on trail and I had my very first loose rein race. I couldn't be prouder of her...and proud of myself too. It hasn't been a walk in the park with my balance and hearing issues. I struggle with feeling handicapped by these debilitating and unpredictable attacks. But this weekend I was just a normal rider and I was able to go the distance too. So we'll just try again next time. I don't think I did anything "wrong" to cause the tight butt muscles. She was electrolyted well and I'm confident on her fitness level and the pace we rode (we turtled). It might just have been bad luck, or maybe it was more road riding than she was used to, or the cold morning air (she did wear a rump rug for 5 miles). Either way, I'll play around with her elytes a bit and increase her levels of a few key muscle elytes and see where that gets us next time.

I want to give a special thanks to Lindsay and Ed who helped me at the vet checks and did their best to help us earn a completion. They both have been great mentors and friends over the years.

And another special thank you to my husband for being so incredibly supportive in all aspects of my life but especially this expensive, time consuming and exhausting horse hobby of mine. He graciously filled in for me as ride photographer for this ride so I could actually ride. I would not be able to afford to return to competition without his help behind the camera.

And of course one final thank you to all the folks who spared their own time, effort (and probably sanity) to put on this ride. None of us could do it without ya'll!

On winning an endurance ride (Road to Tevis # 83) - Jessica Black

JessicaEBlack.org - Full story

by Jessica Black
January 25, 2023

When I found myself wanting to delve into the doubts and second-guessing that happen when I’m riding in front at the end of my last blog post, I realized I needed to write a separate post on winning an endurance ride. What makes it possible to win? What kinds of things determine whether your horse comes in first, fifth, fifteenth, or twenty-fifth?

When you know your horse can win, if all goes well

Before the second day of the Fire Mountain Pioneer ride, I texted someone who had asked about the ride:

“I do 55 miles with Jazz tomorrow, all out in the desert. If he doesn’t kill me, he could win. He put on quite a spectacle today when we vetted in. Whistling, snorting, rearing, prancing.”

The next day I texted that we had indeed won. The reply?

“Congratulations! When you said you could win yesterday, I figured you probably would.”

My response?

“I knew I had enough horse to win. I had to ride for it though...”

Read more here:
https://jessicaeblack.org/on-winning-an-endurance-ride/

Fire Mountain 3 day ride, January 13/15, 2023 - Nick Warhol

Fire Mountain 3 day ride

January 13/15, 2023 by Nick Warhol

The annual Fire Mountain ride in Ridgecrest, Ca, was a different animal this year. For those of you who know (and love) the desert, you know it can be fickle. Sometimes very fickle. Sometimes REALLY fickle! In the summer, it’s pretty straightforward: it’s just hot. The winter, however, can give you any weather there is. It can range from 70 degrees and sunny in the dead of winter, to, well, like it was for part of the ride week.

California has been blessed/suffering with crazy rain this winter, which is a good thing, and really sucks at the same time. we have had about a foot of rain so far at home this year. I got a break in the rain to drive my dirt bike, Sorsha, and Ines’s horse Rayos down to Ridgecrest on Sunday a week before the ride. It was a beautiful, pleasant, calm drive down. Monday morning did not help as the rain started. It was light to mild, and no wind, so Brian and I spent the day in the side by side marking the trail. We got about 35 miles done, which was good, but we were very wet and very cold for a long time. Tuesday hit with a vengeance! Big wind, pouring rain, and a thunder clap that was so close it shook the big metal cover at the arena enough to scare me. This was not weather to go out and mark trail, so we switched to the truck and tried to do water troughs. That mostly worked until we were driving up a wash/road that had water coming down it. This is not safe! We got most of the water troughs out, but the intense rain and wind pretty much killed the day. It was serious rain: flash-flood caliber rain. The weather broke Tuesday night and the rain slowed down, so we got started again on Wednesday. The first thing we noticed was the rain had of course wiped out the chalk arrows on the ground. 35 miles of arrows gone! Great! We had 70 more miles to mark. We got about 60 done, but the sun was setting as we finished in the freezing cold. Lucky for me “Sandwash” Ali Woodward and her husband Dan came with the dirt bikes to help. They spent Thursday riding and re-chalking the 35 miles we had done before the big rain. I went back out on the bike and finished up the remaining 15 miles or so and checked part of the trail we did on Wednesday. I also had to go put up all the road crossing signs as well as some key trail split signs. I was not able to switch to horse rider until Thursday afternoon when Ines and I went for our pre-ride ride on the horses.

On Friday morning, for day one, the desert was our friend. Perfect weather- low in the low 40s, highs in the high 50s. Bright sun, zero breeze, perfect, wet desert. It was just glorious! The riders who got to ride Friday had a real treat. I rode Sorsha along with Ines on the fifty to sixth place. The conditions were stunning! The Tuesday rain floods had wiped the desert clean, and all the slop had soaked in. The roads with the huge bumps and ruts were as flat as a freeway with perfect footing. You can’t buy footing this good. There was so much water out there that we did not really need a single trough. It was a perfect day with one exception- my lower left leg hurt. It’s one of my same old injuries that I just deal with, but this was different. It hurt a lot while riding, and I could barely get off the horse without collapsing to the ground. When this happens, I usually get off and walk it off, which usually helps, but I could not really walk. I could not trot the horse in the vet checks either. At the end of the fifty I could barely walk. Okay, Okay, my body was telling me something. I limped around that evening and knew I was not riding Saturday to the Pinnacles. I opted to sit it out and help with the ride. Which turned out to be a good thing, sort of. Saturday morning was pretty nice. The forecast called for some light rain in the afternoon, but nothing serious like on Tuesday. The ride was special- it was going to the Trona Pinnacles which has never been done in a ride before. The 25 ended right there and the riders were trailed back, while it was the lunch stop for the 55-mile riders. I went out to the away vet check to help out. All the LD and 55’s came through on their way out, in nice weather and all in good spirits. It was a little breezy, and overcast, and a little cold, but not too bad, and certainly good riding weather. I left around 2 pm to get back to camp so I could go out on the trail backwards in the side by side to hang glow bars on the last 13 miles or so of the trail for the 55s. It was on the way back in the car that it started. The wind picked up, the sky got dark, the temperature dropped, and the rain started. Lightly at first, but then it started coming down. The hard stuff, with about 40 degrees and 30 plus MPH of wind. It was MISERABLE in the side by side as I went backwards on the trail. I was soaked, cold, freezing, but kept thinking about those riders out there. Yeah. I came across the leader, Jessica Black, at about 4pm and it was almost dark. She said she was so ready for this to be over. I could not agree more. Lori Olsen came by in second on Fargo- she said it was hell. They were slogging through water in the desert! Rachael Muira came by next and said it was ugly! The next group was Carolyn Hock and her group of three. All were walking through the slop in the howling, 30 MPH wind with the rain coming down sideways, in 40 degrees, with wind chill factor, by the way, is 18 degrees Fahrenheit! I said hi, how are you, etc, etc, and there was silence. Carolyn said, and I quote, “this is endurance!” You got that right, Carolyn.

I made it back to the vet check just before dark, where I immediately got into Gretchen’s truck and turned on the heater up high. Those riders out there were not getting that luxury! After a while I got out as Ines, Ali, and Vanessa arrived. They were soaked, freezing, and in good spirits, but did not want to hang around. The vets wisely shortened the hold to “Get out of here!” so the horses would not have to stand around in that freezing slop. All of the blankets everyone brought were soaked. We hung around until the last of the riders on the 55 arrived as it was getting dark. We got them through and back into the miserable conditions. It’s a good thing I put up the glow bars! Brian drove the side by side back a while ago, so I happily drove the warm truck back to camp and tried to continue to dry out by the fire, under the big metal awning, in the pouring rain. The riders were trickling in and were really, really glad to be done. I got a call from Lynn Marks, who finished in 11th place, that they were at one intersection that was missing a glow bar and it took them a while to figure it out. I donned the wet jacket and hopped back in to the side by side and went back out there to fix it. Sure enough, there was a turn split that if you went left it was wrong, and the correct way had the glow bar too far down the trail. I missed that one having marked it going backwards. I fixed it and kept going a bit and finally ran into the last group of riders who were just trudging down the river that used to be a road. They thanked me for being out there to help them. I said you guys are the tough ones. The roads were washes with water running down them, and there was standing water everywhere. I finally got turned around and had a hard time seeing due to how hard it was raining. I crossed a wash that crossed the trail that was not there on my way up. This is nuts. I stopped and called Gretchen and Brian and suggested we best cancel the third day. It was insane out here, and we could not guarantee the trail was safe for the next day. The decision was made to cancel day three since the rain was supposed to let up, but it was also supposed to be light all day today. I got back to camp just before the final riders made it in. I don’t remember a hot shower ever feeling that good.

Congratulations to the 20 riders who finished the 55 in some of the worst horse-riding conditions I have ever seen in the desert. The riders had to slog through a mile and a half of an alkali road that went from soft, perfect footing, to paste that the poor horses sunk into. That cost everyone an hour or more. Not one of those guys pulled a rider option out at the last vet check in the miserable conditions. They all soldered on to the finish. I’m listing them all here, and am also sending them each a special “I survived the 2023 Fire Mountain Pinnacles ride from hell!” award. They earned it.

Most everyone enjoyed the new ride, and the reviews were great for the Pinnacles. Until all hell broke loose with the weather for those guys on the 55. The trailering back the horses from the finish worked out well, no one got lost, and my 3-mile section of virgin trail was pretty cool. The Ride With GPS demo/trial worked well on Friday- Ines and I used it and I was quite happy with how it worked. Several people tried it and gave me positive feedback. I’ll continue to support it going forward. Of course it was not very valuable on Saturday. You could not hear the voice cues from the wind. And who in their right mind is going to pull out their phone when they are freezing in the pouring rain? It would be a valuable aid in the event of getting lost.

Also, a special congratulations to Molly Farkas. Can you believe she survived this 55-mile ride from hell to become the newest Century club rider? She’s 80 and her horse is 20. There are no words for this accomplishment. Hat’s off, Molly. You are amazing.

PS: I FINALLY went to the doctor this week and it looks like I have a pretty bad shin splint in my lower left leg. Figures, but I deserve it for being a guy and ignoring it for a couple of years. I’ll be off the horse till spring, but will certainly be at 20 Mule Team helping. It better not rain, or I’ll probably hang out in a hotel!

PSS: While taking the trail down on Sunday I found lots of trail damage, all the chalk arrows were of course gone, and the trail spilt signs were down. I was bummed about having to cancel the night before, but not the day after. There is always next year!

1. Jessica Black
2. Lori Oleson
3. Rachel Miura
4. Mary Becraft
5. Rachell Hamby
6. Carolyn Hock
7. Alyse Yeargen
8. Vanessa Erickson
9. Ali Woodward
10. Ines Hofman-Kanna
11. Lynn Marks
12. Berit Meyer
13. Alex Collier
14. Valerie Jacques
15. Molly Farkas
16. Callie Thornburgh
17. Marci Cunningham
18. Seth Murray
19. Rafe Pery
20. Angela Murray

Lead-Follow @ McDowell 75, Nov 2022 - Ashley Wingert

GoPony.me - Full Story

November 28, 2022 / Ashley Wingert

I can’t think of a better way to wrap up a ride season than how this ride ultimately went. A few weeks ahead, I had waffled back and forth on if I should go for the 75-miler or 100-miler. The impatient part of my brain really wanted to try the 100-miler, but the reasons for doing so were not plentiful, and there were far more reasons to curb my enthusiasm and do the 75-miler. The overriding reason being that Liberty has never done anything longer than a 1-day 50, and we haven’t done any back-to-back rides, and ultimately, my gut was telling me that doubling her distance in one go would be too much. Or if we pulled it off, it might not be pretty…and what I’ve learned with this horse is every time I’ve tried to bite off too much or gotten too ahead of myself, it’s turned around and bitten us.

To that end, I entered the 75, and as the ride approached, I found myself getting really excited about it. Hard to know specifically why, but I felt probably the most excitement for this ride than I have any other ride this season. Probably the biggest question mark and misgiving I had (aside from the general “I hope we don’t find a rock with our name on it, nothing goes wrong, etc” pre-ride worries, since I’ve learned to never ever take it for granted that I’m going to finish a ride) was how the night portion would go.

A couple weeks prior, we had done a mini-clinic on night riding…and she was rather awful once it got dark. Very amped up and jigging (riding our “home” trails and leading a group of riders who were new to riding in the dark, and she thought we could be going a lot faster than the pace we had set), flinging her head around at bit pressure, and legitimately terrified of the glow lights I had put out. Like, stop and stare at the green glowing lights, snort, try to whirl or bolt past them, trembling, shying…it was a side of her I had never seen displayed before. And I kind of ran out of time to do any further practice with the notion. So I was hoping that having significant mileage under her girth on ride day (I anticipated probably being able to make it at least 60 miles or so before I lost the light) would settle her, or at least make her reactions not so dramatic...

Read more here:
https://gopony.me/2022/11/28/ride-story-lead-follow-mcdowell-75-nov-2022/

Second place and Best Condition: Jazz’s first 50 (Road to Tevis 78) - Jessica Black

JessicaEBlack.org - Full Story

by Jessica Black
November 16, 2022

As my brother pointed out, being too busy to ride worked out great. Jazz was second place and best condition at his first 50 this weekend. Unlike his first LD, 30 miles at the Bill Thornburgh ride two weeks prior (read about it here: Jazz’s first LD), this ride tired him out. Hopefully he will now have a more realistic understanding of his job!

Friday’s pre-ride(s)

The horses….

As I had at the Bill Thornburgh ride, I took both Fantazia and Jazz. This is a mixed bag for Jazz. On the one hand, he is no doubt happier at the trailer with company, and it’s nice to pony him for a bit. On the other, he hates being separated, and makes a fuss during vetting and while we ride alone. For Fantazia, it’s torture. She hates being left at the trailer. She expects to do endurance, so she’s anxious, and then she doesn’t. Of course, she would also be unhappy at home without Jazz. And she’d drive my mother crazy whinneying.

I take both in part because I don’t want my parents to stress. But I also do it because I want to be able to ride both of them as soon as Fantazia is fit enough. I want her to learn that going to a ride doesn’t mean competing. I want them both to learn to wait patiently at the trailer. Also, this lets me condition Fantazia away from home...

Read more here:
https://jessicaeblack.org/second-place-and-best-condition-jazzs-first-50/

One Heck of a Halloween Hillbillie - Merri Melde

TheEquestrianVagabond.com - Full Story

November 8 2022

I lean forward, as still as possible in the saddle, talking to my horse as he flies along, telling him what a Good Boy he is, how strong and powerful and phenomenal he is, how lucky I am to have him, how lucky I am that he willingly and happily carries me so swiftly over these trails. One of his ears flicks back to listen to me, then flicks back forward as he rockets forward, devouring the trail, focused on his mission of flying through the desert.

A preface to this story: Hillbillie Willie looooooooooooves DWA Barack, his pasture mate. Barack likes Willie - maybe a little love returned, but Willie loooooooves Barack. They can easily go to rides without each other, but when they go to rides together, things can get complicated if/when they don’t ride together.

I wasn’t sure what Hillbillie Willie and I were going to do at the 3-day Owyhee Halloween ride, the last one of the season. A 50 and some LDs (25 milers)? All LDs? At this ride last year, after Willie finished his 50, he gas colicked and was on IVs till midnight. It scared the bejeezus out of me and I have been forever since paranoid. Over his 5-year endurance career, he’s completed 26 50-mile rides for 1065 miles and never had a metabolic problem until last Halloween, but now I always ride him with a heart monitor and watch him like a hawk from the start to the end of the rides. And always worry...

Read more here:
https://theequestrianvagabond.blogspot.com/2022/11/one-heck-of-halloween-hillbillie.html

2022 Autumn Sun/Distance Nationals 100 - Marlene Moss

by Marlene Moss
October 5 2022

So a little (lot) more detail on our Autumn Sun Pioneer Endurance Rides 100 mile ride - and a pic or two. Stace and I spent the 10 days prior to this competition in Spain, riding horses on the Camino el Cid and I'll do more posts on that soon. We planned our return flights to get home in time to sleep 6 hours, get up, pack the trailer, load Topper and Alamo and head to Gooding ID.

I'd originally planned to ride Hank, but our relationship wasn't good enough for a tough ride (ie one with lots of rocks with my head's name on them!) and then I found out there was a Shagya division for the AHA Distance Nationals. So I signed up Alamo even though when he did that ride 4 years ago I swore I'd never take him back there, even if I went back! The footing is technical and Alamo was a total clutz. Since then he's had lots of chiro (limited hip movement had him collapsed in the shoulders) and hock injections (silly boy decided to have a 3" growth spurt all in his legs at age 7, if I'd known, I wouldn't have been competing him before that) and just before this ride, the vet suggested coffin joint injections. This was definitely getting beyond my comfort zone on whether I should be competing him at all, let alone a 100. But since he's been trying to unweight his hocks making his fronts sore, it really was a necessary thing no matter what, just for his comfort. What a difference!

We also had front pads under his shoes and did pour in pads on his hinds. So lots of things to both help his body and help him connect his body to his brain.

Alamo mostly doesn't care about the trail, he likes to wander, so riding in the dark has been a challenge and he was nervous at the start so we started with Topper in the front. This always causes some tense moments between me and Stace because Topper is hard to control at the start, but I didn't want to loose the end of the ride by energy wastage at the start. Topper got us through a couple groups of riders to our window and then we put Alamo up front.

He did awesome with my headlamp, a first for me and him, even through some cows which normally terrify him. Then we just let the miles roll by.

Most of this was on really nice roads (who says that? ha, when the alternative is rocks!) But they were really nice roads and Alamo has a steady 9-10mph trot when the footing is good.

Very early in the ride Stace noted that his tights with silicone patches were wearing holes in his legs, so we knew there might be some difficulty there. But we rolled into the out check at 36 miles (probably the extra mile came from a change to avoid some of the cows) in pretty good shape. Except for Stace, he was in pain from the hole in his leg and his core was getting a workout trying to protect it.

Alamo was head down eating the entire hold. He loves the oat float we take out (Topper doesn't), either wet or dry even coated in salt. We didn't syringe electrolytes since they both do well without, but I had some just in case. Alamo had excellent gut sounds and had ate and drank at every opportunity.

I know Stace was sore but he was trying very hard to make sure he wasn't the reason I didn't complete another 100! I was 0 for 5. So he sucked it up for the next 25 miles which was very, very technical. We'd been over part of that loop at the start of the 100 the year before, but it was dark so I didn't know how tough it was - although then it was uphill so easier than downhill in the light (when our opinions matter more than the horse's, heehee). So it was a slow loop though the warmest part of the day, but it wasn't really that hot. I never sweated, but poor Alamo already has a winter coat and was a dusty, crusty mess!

I told Stace I would be totally fine if he needed to pull. I had no doubts I could ride Alamo at this ride in the dark, alone if needed. I know he didn't want to pull, but at some point you realize that riding poorly isn't helping you or your horse so he did the right thing.

This worked out because David Lewis and Joslyn Terry had heat issues so were hanging out longer at the hold so we hooked up so there'd be someone to dial 911 if either of them ran into further trouble. David was riding the amazing Alexander Hamilton and they helped us make some pretty good time on the 22 mile loop back to camp even though it was still tough on David.

Alamo took over the lead through twilight and continued without a headlamp since the half moon helped us perfectly. We moved out when we could, but kept it careful over the 3 miles of rocky downhill since David was so quiet I was worried and of course I'm always overly sensitive to Alamo on rocks.

Sadly David was pulled because his horse was a little stressed with the rest of his buddies leaving on the last loop as we came in for our last hold. Jos and I left on the last 16 mile loop. Back up the 3 miles of climb and rocks, then I led down the steeper hills until we got back to trottable surface. By then Jos was really tired. I gave her my last Jolly Rancher and a Hammer Gel and we started swapping stories and entertaining each other and soon she was wide awake (and a bit cold!)

It was a slow loop since what goes up must come down and there were either rock or shadows that looks like rocks, but we trotted where we could and finished with strong horses pulling at 9-10mph when we got back to the good road. I was so thrilled with Alamo, his second attempt, but first completion and he was so competent all day both with footing and taking care of himself metabolically.

No question this is a challenging ride, but it's supposed to be, right?! It's unfortunate we couldn't see the cool hoodoo canyon, but that just wouldn't have worked to get the 100 mile route and not something you'd do in the dark!

We finished and I'm doubly proud that it was Alamo for my first 100 mile completion and that we did it on a ride that I love which proved that we've overcome a lot. Bonus was that we were the only Shagya team so got all the swag! Here's some pics other people took, first two by Merri Melde and one demonstrating while we'll never be on the cover of Endurance News!