Meanwhile Back at the Ranch - Ride Story - Dawn Carrie

by Dawn Carrie

This past weekend hubby Ross and I headed up to the Meanwhile Back at the Ranch ride, which is southwest of Fort Worth, TX. This is one of my favorite rides in Texas due to the variety of trails and the wildflower display. The trails were as fun as ever, although it seemed that the drought had tempered the wildflower display a bit. But my favorite flower at the ride, the purple downy paintbrush, was as showy as ever, so I was pretty happy. :)

I always enjoy the trails at this ride...they're a mix of open pastures, tight woods with fun twisty-turny single track that's a blast when ridden at mach 8 (LOL), and a neat tall rocky "mountain" (ok, remember, this *is* Texas here, so allow me some poetic license ) to add some good terrain to the ride. All on a ranch owned by endurance rider Kim Reeves and husband Ted. There is usually plenty of natural water in streams, plus several cattle tanks and ponds. But this year they had to put water out in one location due to most of the streams being dry. It w as extremely hot this year...Saturday it was in the low 90s, but at least there was a good strong breeze all day to help keep the horses cool. We didn't pass up any chance to soak the horses down, which seemed to help them a lot. The first hot ride of the year took a toll on horses and riders alike, though.

Ross and I arrived around 2 pm and got camp set up for our two ponies. Rae Callaway got there around 3 or 3:30, and Lianne and Sharon arrived about 5 or so. We got all the horses settled in, and vetted everyone through. All of us would be riding, except Sharon, who came along for fun and to serve as our chef extraordinaire. I'm sure we were the only group in camp with a huge Weber grill. We dined on huge, decadent hamburgers, tossed salad, and S'mores Friday night, and gourmet garlic shrimp Saturday night, finished off with chocolate cheesecake brought by Rae. Lose weight at a ride? Not at this rate! LOL

This year the ride would extra special. Ross and his 12 year old Paso Fino gelding Diamante de Zeta would be doing their first 50, and we'd ride together. Lianne was just getting back into 50s, after work and some injuries (hers, not her horse's) had kept her out of riding for a year or so. We were all doing the 50 together. Rae was going to do the LD on her mare.

Lianne and Sharon slept in our trailer, so as to not wake Rae up when we all got up early for the 50. Ross did his usual 3 am feeding of the horses, so they'd have time to eat a good meal before the ride. We got up around 5 or so for the 6:30 start. Double checked on Rae at 6, to make sure she was awake for the LD start at 7:15. The three of us headed for the start, and Sharon wisely went back to sleep.

They had a controlled start this year for some reason...never had one before, and the start of the yellow trail is very innocuous. Oh well. My 7 year old gelding Bear did airs above the ground, cantering in place, etc. as we tried to walk along. Aren't they supposed to learn to conserve energy after doing consecutive days of 50s? He didn't learn anything from doing that last month...in fact, instead of fighting me for the first 15-20 miles of this ride, he pulled my arms off for most of the ride. Once they released the controlled start, we picked up a medium trot across the pastures and up the powerline to the base of the mountain (don't forget, poetic license here!). Ross hopped off to lead Diamante up the short but steep climb, and Lianne did the same for her horse Al, who was the least conditioned of the three horses. I told Bear he was going to have to carry me up, since my knee doesn't do well walking uphill. I offered Bear's tail to Lianne to help her up the hill...so Bear carried me and tailed Lianne. :) We made it to the top, and they mounted back up. We slow trotted and walked the rocky top of the mountain ridge. The views are really great from up there...this is one of my favorite parts of the ride. That's good , because we'd see it three times today. When we got to the steep decent, we all got off and led the horses down, all six of us slipping and sliding in the loose dirt and rocks.

At the bottom we mounted up and continued on at a nice trot, going through some woods on some neat single track. We alternated trotting with short walking breaks. We weren't out to break any speed records, just wanted to make sure everyone completed. All of the horses were doing well. We arrived at the "pens" which have a water tank and a spotter taking numbers. The horses weren't ready to drink yet, but we soaked them down using Lianne's collapsible scoop. We continued on across some pastures, up and down some short rocky hills, and into another patch of woods. This is called the "wild lot" and has lots of very tight, twisty-turny single track...our very fa vorite part of the ride. We normally like doing it at full speed (watch your knees!) but because we didn't want to overdo it on Al and Diamante, we kept it down to a more moderate trot this time. We passed Ted, who serves as a spotter, and continued on through more tight single track. Came out into nice shady woods, and knew we were nearing the end of the first (15 mile) loop. We had a trot by (everyone good), and headed out on the 10-mile red loop. This one went back around a lake, then into part of the "wild lot" again...more single track! Cool...

After leaving the wildlot behind, we headed across more pastures, up the entrance road to within sight of camp (sorry, horses, we're not going back!), and then turned into another pasture. We got to another nice water tank, and the horses drank some, and we soaked them down again. Lianne had been worried about Al, since he usually drinks before now. But he finally started drinking. We'd checked his hydration parameters, and all looked well, so we figured he knew what he needed. Bear was the last of the three to start drinking. But he always starts out so hydrated he's sloshing. I think he peed 5 or 6 times, nice and clear and lots of volume, in the first 25 miles. Once he does start drinking, he guzzles. The horses were taking advantage of the nice green grass that had come up from recent rains. Now up the mountain again...Ross and Lianne led up, with Bear tailing Lianne again. We admired the nice views from the top some more, led down the steep loose descent, and headed off into the woods and toward the pens again. Another chat with the spotter, the horses took advantage of the water tank, and we headed out on the last mile or so to camp and our first hold.

The horses were pulsed down immediately upon coming in. We gave them time to drink a few gallons each, then headed to the P&R box, and then to the vet area. We had about a 5-min wait to vet, as the only remaining vet, Carter, had to take his first pit stop of the day...poor guy!! Apparently a horse had returned to camp without its rider, and the other vet, Dennis, was putting it back together, as it had torn itself to shreds - probably went through a fence or two. This is the only down side to this ride (and is a major one) - there are always only two vets. I'd gladly pay another $5-10 in entry fees, if that's what it takes to hire a third vet. We didn't have a long wait, but I talked to some people who said there were over 30 horses in line earlier in the day, and one vet who was riding that day spent his entire hold helping vet horses through. Not fair to him .

We went back to the trailers for our one hour hold. Al and Diamante chowed down. Bear ate some, but not as well as I'd like. However, this was normal for him, so I was not unduly concerned. He needs to learn to eat better early in the ride instead of gawk or take a nap. Maybe doing all 3 days at the first half of Fort Stanton this summer will teach him something.

We headed back out on the 15 mile yellow loop again. Lianne decided to fall back, as she wanted Al to go slower. We were concerned about her completing, as we were already pacing to finish with little time left. But she was ok with not completing if that happened, and was smart enough to ride her own ride. Ross and I headed out, and Lianne followed a little bit later. Al has major separation anxiety issues. and we could hear him bellowing in the distance behind us.

After the first few miles, we were headed up the powerline ROW to the mountain again. Ross remembered that one of the water tanks on the red loop was only about 200 yards off the yellow loop. So, we turned off on the red loop where it joined the yellow, and headed to the water. The horses drank like camels. A huge koi (goldfish), nearly a foot long, was in the tank. It came up and was picking beet pulp shreds off the horses' muzzles as they drank. After the horses drank and we soaked them down, we backtracked to the intersection with yellow and continued on. Lianne had nearly caught us due to our diversion to water...we waved and continued on.&nbs p; Headed up the mountain for the last time, and down the other end. She caught up to us when we stopped to let the horses graze on some lush grass in the woods before the pens. She rode with us a while, then fell back, caught up, fell back, etc. for the rest of the loop. It was really hot on this loop...thank goodness for the strong wind that helped with evaporative cooling.

We continued on, through the wildlot and single track again, and on to camp. Ross and I got off and led in the last 1/3 mile or so. Lianne had stopped well over a mile out to lead in. We were pulsed down and vetted through by the time she got in. Al was bellowing and spinning circles around Lianne, wanting his buddies. She was worried because he wouldn't pulse down. We looked at each other, and Ross headed over with Diamante to serve as a buddy. Al pu lsed down right away and made it through the P&R and vet check, with Diamante serving as his buddy. I headed back to camp and got stuff ready. Ross finally arrived, and the horses chowed down with gusto, took a short nap, then ate some more. This hold was 45 minutes, but we gave them extra time, since Ross and Diamante had lost part of it while serving as Al's buddy.

One more loop!!! We all three headed out together on the 10-mile blue loop. No mountain on this one...we just went over the saddle in the middle. I have not-so-fond memories of this loop...it was on the blue that my horse Chivas had stepped in a hole hidden in the grass and somersaulted with me in 2002, sending me to the ER with a broken eye socket. But Ted had filled that hole in long ago. Nothing to worry about today. We passed the pens and the spotter for the last time, zipped through some more single track in the wild lot, and headed for the finish line. Bear was still pulling to go faster, but I'd been keeping him slow (or at least trying to) for < SPAN class=correction id="">Diamante's and Al's sake. Diamante and Al were both doing great. We caught up to Pete Harper on his TWH at the start of this loop, and passed him. He'd catch us at water or grass stops, then we'd pull away again, as our horses were trotting faster than his mare wanted to go. He caught us for the last time at a water stop about a mile before the finish. His mare was huffing and puffing pretty good, and w asn't interested in drinking. The heat was taking its toll on everyone.

We started off toward the finish. I'd decided I wanted the turtle award, since Lianne had told me the prize was a massage! As we approached the line, I looked back to see if Pete was anywhere close...I'd wait to cross last if he was. He was a couple hundred yards behind. Ross and Lianne crossed the line, and I sat and waited for Pete to cross, circling behind him. Turtle was mine!!!

We walked into the vet check, and our three horses were down as we came in, but we gave them time to drink a few gallons each, then vetted through. Ross and Diamante had their first 50 miler under their belt, and Lianne and Al had also finished. Ross trotted Bear out for me to give my knee a break...he looked great. Whoo-hoo! And our pacing had been right on...we crossed the line at 6:10 pm, with only 20 minutes left on the clock.

At the awards meeting, Becky said that 66 riders started the 50, and 44 completed...2 out of 3. We were happy that all three in our group made it. Most pulls were metabolic or RO...first hot ride of the year, and it took its toll. She said no horses were treated with fluids, although several were colicky. We saw several pretty droopy horses being walked or else lying down in camp. In the LD, 52 started, and 42 completed. Rae pulled after one loop due to her back hurting. :(

Bear finished the ride looking and feeling great. I had been thinking about trying the 100 at Bluebonnet next month, but this hot ride is making me reconsider...it was pretty rough on me. I'll have to think about it. Maybe I'll get lucky and there will be a cool front. :)

Many thanks to Ted and Kim Reeves for hosting the ride on their ranch again. We had fun. :)

Dawn Carrie, East Texas

Benefits of Equine Breathing for Endurance Riding - Clare Hobsley

Clare Hobsley (Email clare@shiplake.plus.com ) or go to -Website- for additional information on Equine Breathing

The Benefits of Equine Breathing for Endurance Riding

Clare Hobsley, Equine Breathing

As an endurance rider you are probably interested in issues such as reducing the length of the recovery period, dehydration, tying up, keeping your horse calm at the start of races or rides, improving recovery rates from injury and of course improving stamina and endurance.

A new simple and holistic technique addresses all these concerns and is enjoyed by horses. Equine Breathing is based on accepted principles of physiology. You can for example ask your vet about the Bohr effect and how it can be harnessed to increase respiratory efficiency.

It is a surprise to many people that changing the breathing pattern has an immediate and significant effect on blood chemistry and the physiology of the whole organism. But measurements show that over-breathing for as little as one minute can reduce the amount of oxygen in the brain by 40% and this is just one of many effects on the body as a whole.

Over-breathing triggers are common in our horses' lives and there is no biofeedback mechanism to restore normal breathing once chronic over-breathing sets in, so many horses over-breathe. Horses that over-breathe are compromised in terms of their physiological functioning and therefore do not perform at their potential.

If your horse has no chronic ailments or behavioural problems and their breathing is imperceptible at rest then they may not over-breathe, but their breathing pattern could still be improved by training just like any other aspect of training, to enhance physiological functioning.

So how can Equine Breathing be advantageous to endurance riders?

First, Equine Breathing can be used to help horses recover from chronic conditions such as sweet-itch or mud fever.

Second, Equine Breathing can be used to improve fitness.

Third, Equine Breathing can be used for specific purposes like reducing risk of injury and reducing stress on the day of a ride.

The reason Equine Breathing has so many benefits is that over-breathing leads to depletion of the body's carbon dioxide. Contrary to popular wisdom carbon dioxide is far from being a "waste product"; it is one of the body's main regulators.

Carbon dioxide plays essential roles in the take up and availability of oxygen by the body, regulation of the acid / alkaline (pH) balance of body fluids, ability of smooth muscle (eg blood vessels, airways, gut) to relax, and normal functioning of nerve cells. It is also involved in biochemical pathways involving nearly all minerals, vitamins and enzymes and in the biosynthesis of amino acids, carbohydrates and fats.

Low levels of carbon dioxide caused by over-breathing can therefore impact on a huge range of symptoms or poor physiological functioning.

We can look at some of these in relation to endurance riding.

Reducing recovery period (fitness)

Cells need energy to fulfil their allocated function eg movement (muscle) or thinking (brain). Cells burn fats and carbohydrates by combining them with oxygen to provide energy, carbon dioxide and water. This is a sustainable situation that depends on the cell getting enough oxygen and this is dictated by the levels of carbon dioxide, not oxygen as might be expected.

When air is breathed into the lungs, oxygen in the air attaches to the haemoglobin in the blood and is transported to the tissues. Here under the influence of carbon dioxide, oxygen is released from the haemoglobin and becomes available to the cells. A hard working muscle cell produces plenty of carbon dioxide which facilitates this release of oxygen (the Bohr effect) and enables the cell to continue working aerobically in an elegant positive cycle - the harder the cell works the more carbon dioxide is produced and so the more oxygen is made available.

The blood returns to the lungs and carbon dioxide rapidly dissipates into the air in the alveoli making the haemoglobin receptive to the oxygen in the air and oxygen is taken into the body.

If carbon dioxide levels in the tissues are low (due to over-breathing), oxygen remains fixed on the haemoglobin and is unavailable to the cell. In order to obtain energy the cell has to switch to anaerobic (without oxygen) respiration and produces lactic acid rather than carbon dioxide and water, and only 5% of the energy.

The positive cycle based on carbon dioxide is lost and the cells are compromised in their efficiency. Less energy is produced and the by-product, lactic acid, instead of being useful (as are carbon dioxide and water) is acidic and needs to be detoxified using oxygen which increases the oxygen debt. Build up of lactic acid indicates that damage has occurred due to lack of oxygen. This damage is reversible if the body regains normal carbon dioxide levels.

Equine Breathing reduces the volume of air breathed which enables carbon dioxide levels to build back up. The more carbon dioxide is available the longer the cells can keep going on aerobic (oxygen based) respiration rather than having to switch to damaging and less efficient anaerobic respiration. Horses with better breathing (and therefore higher levels of carbon dioxide) will be able to maintain aerobic respiration for longer than horses with poor breathing (lower levels of carbon dioxide) during strenuous exercise and will therefore recover more quickly.

Other factors contribute to increased fitness. Carbon dioxide is a smooth muscle relaxant so at high levels of carbon dioxide the airways and the blood vessels of the circulatory system are able to relax and dilate, allowing efficient distribution of oxygen and nutrients such as glucose. Low levels of carbon dioxide are responsible for constriction of the airways and the blood vessels and consequent starving of the cells of oxygen and nutrients.

Dehydration

A horse that is breathing less volume of air than its competitor will lose less moisture with each breath and will therefore retain its water levels better.

Leading Buteyko specialist and nurse Jill McGowan has run two marathons with her mouth taped so that she could only breathe through her nose. This significantly decreases the amount of air breathed. Despite taking no fluid during the race she had a pee straight afterwards and was not thirsty or dehydrated on either occasion.

I have observed that horses that start Equine Breathing sweat less than their owners expect in given activities.

Tying up

Many of you will have already made the connection that the longer a horse is able to stay off anaerobic respiration, the less lactic acid is produced and the less likely the muscles are to tie up.

Carbon dioxide is the main buffer for maintaining the body fluids at the correct pH level. At low carbon dioxide levels the blood becomes more alkaline; this disrupts the calcium ion balance and increases the likelihood of spasm, fatigue and pain in muscles cells. This effect also increases the likelihood of injury to tendons, ligaments and joints as the muscle is unable to respond appropriately to unexpected jarring and so on.

Stress reduction

Stress is an over-breathing trigger. Horses that become nervous or anxious before a ride will over-breathe. This causes a release of adrenaline and an increase in heart rate. Adrenaline production generates feelings of anxiety and stimulates increased breathing which further decreases carbon dioxide levels.2 As we have seen, maintaining normal carbon dioxide levels is especially important at the start of a ride because performance depends on oxygen and nutrient availability and pH which are all dependant on carbon dioxide.

Reducing the breathing at times of stress breaks the vicious cycle of adrenaline production and depletion of carbon dioxide and enables the horse to calm down. More oxygen and nutrients reach the brain and the horse is able to focus attention calmly on the job in hand.

Horses that have practised regular Equine Breathing will be more likely to quickly pop into the anabolic state (the relaxed, recuperative and healing state as opposed to the adrenalised flight or fight state) because their body will be "expecting" the changes that arise as the carbon dioxide levels start to recover.

Using Equine Breathing

A regular program of Equine Breathing will help your horse to heal any chronic problems and increase carbon dioxide levels towards the normal level. So they will start the ride with a more efficient respiratory system and other physiological benefits such as improved muscle function.

On the day of the ride Equine Breathing can help in specific ways as follows.

Calming horse and rider

Equine Breathing can be used at the start of preparations for the day of the ride, for example in travelling and arriving in new surroundings. Doing Equine Breathing is calming for the rider and of course handling a calm and attentive horse is much less stressful than handling one that is anxious and inattentive.

Competitors find that they have a more enjoyable day at competitions when they have the ability to help keep their horse (and themselves) calm and focused.

Warming up

Equine Breathing can be used to help prepare the muscles. Reducing the breathing builds up carbon dioxide. This enables muscle cells to increase their aerobic respiration, which produces heat and carbon dioxide. The muscle cells are literally warmed up and well prepared to respire and work efficiently in the arduous times ahead.

Recovery period

Equine Breathing can be used to slow down the respiration rate and pulse before vet gates or post-ride vetting.

After the ride it can be used to help the horse's body deal more efficiently, through increased circulation and aerobic respiration etc, with the effects of exertion including any possible strains or injuries.

References

1 A Brief Overview Of The Chemistry Of Respiration And The Breathing Heart Wave Peter M. Litchfield, Ph.D. in California Biofeedback. Vol. 19, No. 1 (Spring 2003)

2 Hyperventilation and Cardiac Symptoms PG Nixon FRCP in International Medicine for the Specialist vol 10 no. 12 1989

This article is for educational purposes only and does not replace veterinary advice or treatment.

Heart of the Hills Ride - Dawn Carrie

2006 Heart of the Hills

by Dawn in East Texas

If you missed this ride in the Texas Hill Country this past weekend, you missed a good one. Not only were the trails fun, well-marked, pretty, and a nice mix of technical sections and places to move out, but the severe weather predicted for the weekend didn't hit till Sunday night. Kudos to ride manager Chirs Godsey, her volunteers, and the vets.

My husband Ross and I headed over Friday morning. I planned to ride the 50 both days on my 7 yr old Arabian gelding Little Bear TC, and Ross planned to ride the LD both days on his 12 yr old Paso Fino gelding Diamante de Zeta. If Diamante did well, Ross planned to try their first 50 at Meanwhile Back at the Ranch next month. But we all know how "plans" go...one has to ride one loop at a time and see how it goes. After all, "Murphy" rides endurance, too!

It was cool and breezy when we arrived around 2:30 Friday afternoon. We set up camp, put hay and beet pulp in front of the horses, and got everything organized while the horses chowed down. At first it looked to be a small ride, but then people started pouring in later in the day, which was nice to see. We waited till the vet line went down, then vetted the horses in uneventfully. Since we're from East Texas (no rocks) and this was a rocky ride, Ross had the Equi-build pour-in pads in all four of Diamante's feet. I had Equi-build in Bear's rear feet, and planned to use Easy Boot Epics on the front. Before it got dark, Ross and I did the Karen Chaton vet wrap trick and then put the Epics on Bear. Didn't want to have to do that in the morning when neither of us were awake! The vet wrap worked great...we didn't have any rubbing. These boots have the old style gaitors, but we had cut off the edges that had rubbed him in the past. Poor Bear...he had bright blue vet wr ap "socks" and red biothane tack...he clashed. Last thing we did before going to bed was to listen to our little NOAA weather radio. It called for a 30% chance of rain on Saturday, high temp of 79, and 50% rain Sat. night. Sunday, 70% chance of thunderstorms, some severe. Oh well, we'll worry about Sunday when it gets here. Saturday doesn't sound too bad.

We got up at 5:30 Saturday morning and I ate my usual breakfast of a boiled egg, yogurt smoothie, and a chocolate Ensure, along with a cup of coffee. It was misting lightly when I went out to tack up. Got Bear tacked up, but when I tried to mount, he was fidgeting and dancing all over...he knew it was game day. Ross held him more or less in one spot and I got on. I checked in with the number taker, then trotted and walked Bear around to warm him up. It was coolish, and misting more heavily now, but not really cold. We would be doing four 12.5 mile loops. We'd have a pulse down and trot out after the first loop, and would have our first hold (1 hour) after the second loop. There would be a 45 min. hold after the 3rd loop. I really prefer rides like this with fewer, but longer, holds. The pulse down/trot out was in camp, so that anyone who wanted to give their horse a hold could do so. And the pulse down requirement would separate any less fit horses tha t were being pulled along by other horses. Nice way to do it.

We headed out on a controlled start at 7 am, going at a walk. Well, that was the intent. Bear was jigging, cantering in place, jogging sideways...sigh...it was going to be one of those days. We went down the entrance road, then turned off down a fenceline. Once we got past a rocky little dropoff that the horses had to step down, trail was opened up, and folks began to move out. Bear's little brain flew out his ear and was gone. He became a raving lunatic, which I knew would happen. After a few hundred yards the trail made a sharp right away from the fence. I went straight for about 40 feet and we practiced our "airs above the ground" while everyone went on and I gave them time to get out of sight. I saw a couple of riders waaayyyy back up the fenceline, but decided to go on. Bear fussed and fumed and threw a hissy fit for about 3/4 mile, then began to settle down and listen to me. He's a delightful horse to ride alone, or in front if we're with others. Rig ht now I'm working on him listening to me and our pacing. Later we'll worry about adding in other horses in front of us. We trotted along, and I kept him down to about an 8-9 mph trot, tops. Whenever we came to an extra rocky section or a steep uphill, or a downhill, we walked. This was not a popular decision with Bear, but he eventually started slowing down on his own when he saw a 'walk spot" coming up. By now the mist had turned into a moderate drizzle that was blowing pretty hard. Still not that bad. Yeah, I was all wet, but I wasn't cold.

We trotted along several miles in the blowing drizzle, and eventually saw the ride photographer in a yellow slicker up on a slope. Bear saw him too and veered away...he could be dangerous. Don't know if he got any good pics or not...forgot to check. Bear peed 4 times on this loop. One thing about the boy...between his good drinking in camp and all the soaked beet pulp, he starts each ride practically sloshing. The trail looped around up and down hills, sometimes following jeep roads on ridgetops, then jumping off to have us pick our way down a slope. This first loop was pretty easy...Chris wisely kept us off the more technical sections while everyone was on fresh, spastic horses. My plan was to do the first loop in about 2 hours. I planned to go slow, since I had hopes of doing both days. I'm generally pretty good at pacing, but next thing I knew, there was camp. I hopped off and led Bear in the last few hundred yards. He was down right away, so we immediately P&Red, 14 minutes sooner than my planned time. I had to admit, *I* needed to pee, so was glad to be back in camp! Bear had been too fidgetty the two times I'd stopped to try and make a pit stop on trail. I'd been worried I'd have trouble getting back on him with my bad knee, so had just held it. We trotted out, got the ok wave, and headed to our trailer. I got my pit stop and an Ensure, Bear got some carrots and peed (again), I elyted him, and we headed back out on the blue loop after about 10-15 minutes. It was still blowing drizzle.

The blue loop is the most difficult, mostly due to a long section of very steep, rocky fenceline (a mile or so) that is downhill. It's right near the start. I led Bear down a couple of the steepest sections, but he was being a pill, so I stayed on for the rest. We finally got down that section, then came to a very pretty creek that had a little water in it. This creek has a sheer rocky bluff above it, and is really nice. After a water stop, we headed up the worst climb of the ride...a straight up, gravelly bulldozer trail. Bear powered up it and we trotted off on some nice trail. We came to some new trail Chris and Co. had found. It was very rocky and ledgy and technical, and very pretty. I liked it. We picked our way through it, then hit a road and trotted back to camp. No Bear, that's not the end of the loop...we keep going through camp. I finally got him out of camp and on we went. Back down to the front of the ranch, then back north up over some rocky ridges and through some valleys. We passed some deer stands (this privately owned cattle ranch is also a hunting lease), and then down along the east fenceline. We were riding through typical Texas Hill Country vegetation...Ashe Juniper (locally called "cedar") on the ridges and slopes, oaks on the slopes and in the ravines, various shrubs (agarita, etc.) scattered among the junipers and oaks, and several specis of hardwoods in the ravines along the creeks (most of which were dry now). There were several species of hardy native bunchgrasses that the horses really liked munching. Oh, and did I mention that there are rocks? We don't have those in East Texas. We arrived back in camp a couple minutes after 11. Bear drank well and pulsed down immediately, and vetted through in great shape. The drizzle had let up quite a bit, although it was still cloudy and breezy. He had hay, beet pulp, and alfalfa to choose from, and a big tub of water...wha t more could a horse want? Me, I had to pee again , then grabbed a yogurt smoothie and went over to see what time Ross had gone out on his second loop of the LD. Turned out he had left about 10 minutes before I came in. I went back and grazed my way through the fridge and cupboards (another Ensure, more yogurt, a grilled sausage, a granola bar...I was hungry). Gave Bear some carrots, and I mixed up some Gookinade (elyte drink for me). Refilled my camelbak, and sat down for a few minutes before our out time.

We headed out a few minutes late...no big deal, I'm in no hurry. This loop would also pass back through camp. We headed back down the entrance road to the front of the ranch. Most of it was downhill on hard gravel road, so we just walked, then moved out at a trot when we got to the level ground. In no time, maybe 30 minutes, we'd done this short keyhole and were coming back to camp on the same road the blue trail had used. Bear knew where he was...surely *this* time the idiot woman would stay in camp. Nope, made him continue on past our trailer and keep going. I asked the number taker if I was last (wanting turtle!). She said no, there was at least one or more riders who had not even gone out on the keyhole yet. Bummer. Thought I might need a tow truck to get Bear out of camp this time. LOL But we made it, and after sulking for about 1/2 mile, he shook it off and perked up. He really does like going down the trail, he just has trouble leavi ng "home." This loop went to the far north end of the ranch to the separate pasture where the cattle were sequestered for the ride weekend. We had to open and close gates when entering and leaving this section. Not long before entering the cattle pasture I caught up to Carol Kight and Debbie Quinn. I tried to ease up and let them go on ahead, but my calm horse was gone and the lunatic was back. I fussed with him part of the way through the cattle pasture, then pulled up and let them go on. The airs above the ground began again. We were spending more time in the air than an Olympic ski jumper. Ok, enough of that...I turned him around and headed back up the trail the way we'd come for a bit, then turned back around and continued on. That worked...they'd gotten far enough ahead that I didn't catch them the rest of the loop. Once we left the cattle pasture, it was only a couple of miles back to camp. I nearly caught up to Carol and Debbie...we all P&Red about the same time. Bear was down right away again. He again vetted through well.

Ross and Diamante were back at the trailer...they'd completed the LD in great shape, in spite of Diamante being a fire-breathing maniac. Ross made me a turkey sandwich, and Bear dove into the hay and beet pulp for most of our 45 minute hold. The hold passed quickly. Ross elyted Bear for me, I waited a few extra minutes to give Debbie and Carol time to get ahead of me, then headed out for our last loop. This loop would follow part of the nasty steep downhill fenceline the blue loop had used, and would also include the steep bulldozer trail up out of the creek. We got those nasties out of the way early in the loop, and the rest seemed to pass quickly. We stopped for some grass breaks, as Bear was now very hungry, and continued our pattern of walking the downhills and steep uphills, which we had been doing all day. I ended up catching Carol and Debbie, and after chatting a bit, I went on ahead of them. No need to try for turtle now, since there were people still behind me. ; And it was easier to pass them than try to stay far enough behind them to ensure that Bear forgot about them. We entered the cattle pasture again, but only briefly this time. I caught up to Kim Reeves on her QH mare Stubby and Debbie Stewart. We talked a bit, and I ended up going on pass them for the same reason. The last loop always seems to go quickly, and this one was no exception. Almost before I knew it, we were on the road leading to the finish line. We crossed the line at a blistering walk at 5:22 pm, for a ride time of 8:37 (if my math is right). Bear again pulsed down right away, and vetted through in great shape as Ross trotted him out for me. Vet Carter Hounsel made my day when he told his vet secretary, "That's what you want to see...see how good he looks?" Back to the trailer, food and drink for Bear, pee break for me.

On day 1, 34 started the 50, and 28 completed. We ended up 20th, I think. There were 44 in the LD, and 38 completed. Ross and Diamante were right in the middle...19th. Chris treated everyone to a delicious BBQ brisket dinner. I'm bad...I don't remember who won the 50 or got BC the first day.

Day 2...

Having completed the first day, and with Bear looking so good, I figured we'd definitely go on day 2, if he still looked good in the morning. I toyed with dropping down to the LD, being paranoid of overdoing it with him. But then I realized that if we finished the LD and he still had plenty of gas left, I'd be kicking myself for not entering the 50. And besides...I could pull him from the 50 at any point if I decided he was too tired. Ross and Diamante were going to do the LD again.

We listened to the weather radio again...now not much chance of rain over night, 30 or 40% chance Sunday, and the severe stuff due to hit Sunday night. Nice of it to hold off. Sunday morning we were up at 5:30 again, same breakfast, same light drizzle. I had Ross trot Bear out, and he looked great. I brushed him off, then approached him with the saddle. The look on his face clearly said, "And you intend to put that WHERE?!?" Yep, first time he'd gone out two days in a row. We tacked up, then I took him down to the vets to trot out, as requested for horses going out again the second day. He got a thumbs up from the vet, so we headed to the start. Only 10 riders in the 50 today. It was now heavy drizzle and blowing...where have I seen this before?

We had the same controlled start. This time Bear walked (mostly). When the group started trotting, I again pulled off and let them go on. Two riders (Eron Howell and Donna Murphy) were holding way back, so I went on. The loops and holds were the same as yesterday. Bear felt good, not as much of a lunatic as the day before, but not tired feeling either. We trotted and walked the first loop, trying to go a little slower than the first day. I left an hour and 38 minutes on the table the first day, and planned to use them. He wanted grass, so we took some grazing breaks. We finished the first loop in about 2 hours this day, pulsed down right away, and trotted out. Got a wave from the vet, so we headed back to the trailer for a few minutes. Bear ate while I made a pit stop, drank an Ensure, and ate a snack. I elyted him, and off we went on the blue loop.

We negotiated the nasty downhill section and the steep uphill dozer trail. Bear was still moving out well, and eating grass here and there. Eron and Donna caught up with us on this loop. We rode together very briefly, but then Bear had to pee, and I told them to go on. They were trotting just a bit faster than I wanted Bear to go, and I was going to be very anal about my ride plan in order to complete. We don't have hills in East Texas, and I had never asked Bear for two 50s in a row. This was going to be a big effort for him, and I wanted to ride my own ride without worrying about whether I was slowing someone else down. They went on, Bear fussed a bit, but then settled down. We continued walking the downhills and steep uphills, and taking grass breaks. We made it back to camp and P&Red at 11:38, about 35 min. later than the day before. So far, so good. Bear vetted through ok, but had a B on muscle tone. Hmmm...

He ate like a pig during the hour hold, going back and forth between water, beet pulp, and hay. We stayed a few extra minutes, then headed out on the orange loop, which had the keyhole back through camp. As we headed down the entrance road, we passed Ross, followed by a couple of other LDers (one of whom's horse was very lame) trotting up the road. Diamante and Bear saw each other, and little love hearts popped out everywhere. LOL Diamante was on a mission, and didn't slow. Bear, however, slowed and tried to turn...I kept him going, and even though he was sulky, he continued on. We stopped at a water tank, he drank well, then we continued on. Since I would have ridden down the entrance road at a walk anyhow, I got off and led him down. We got to the bottom, I hopped back on, and we finished the rest of the keyhole. As we passed through camp, Ross and Diamante were at the trailer, and the two horses called to each other. I finally got Bear out of camp, and w e finished the orange loop, P&Ring at about 3:15. Bear again vetted through fine, and his muscle tone had improved to an A (same vet). Going slower and more walking on this loop may have helped.

Wow...one more loop...we might make it!!! Bear again ate well. Ross had finished 9th in the LD and stood for BC just to get the vet score on Diamante, who looked like he hadn't done a thing all weekend. He's definitely ready for a 50. After our 45 minute hold, we headed out. Or rather, tried to. We got as far as the timer table, and Bear could hear Diamante calling, and refused to go farther. I had to hop off and lead him out of camp. Once out, however, he headed off down the trail. We had 3 hours to do 12.5 miles. I planned to use most of it...Bear was getting tired. We eased along, jogging and slow trotting some sections, walking lots, and taking lots of grass breaks. We did the steep rocky downhill, with me leading Bear the whole way. Then we came to that long, steep uphill dozer trail. Bear had carried my butt up that thing 3 times this weekend, and he was now getting tired. It kills my knee to climb hills. I won dered if he'd tail me...he'd never done that. I hopped off, pointed him at the hill, and clucked at him...he started walking, I grabbed his tail, and walked along, still clucking. He was confused, but kept going...I gradually exerted more and more pressure on his tail. As he started up the hill, I let him start pulling me. He looked back a few times, but then just put his head down and powered up the hill, pulling me along. Good boy!!! We made it to the top in great shape.

We eased along the rest of the loop. Lots of grass breaks and walking. Next think I knew, we were at the steep rocky downhill road leading to the finish line road. I got off and led him down it, then started leading him up the finish line road. My knee started giving out, so I got back on and rode at a walk up the road. We'd made it. He again pulsed down right away. Final vet check...he felt good...would he pass? YES! He trotted out great, although tired, and looked good. My flatland horse had done 100 miles in two days in the rugged Texas Hill Country. I was proud of him!

Day 2, 9 out of 10 50s completed. Four were two-day horses...Hank Copeland won the 50 on Bearcat, a two-day horse, and got BC. Kim Reeves and Debbie Stewart also rode their horses both days. I don't know the stats on the LD, but Ross said that about 20 started. Diamante, doing his second day, received second highest vet score, second only to the LD BC horse. Ross was very proud of him. A 50 is definitely in the works for them at Meanwhile next month, if nothing happens to Diamante between now and then.

It was a great ride...the weather held off (Sunday's drizzle quit mid-morning, and it was nice the rest of the day). Severe weather (severe thunderstorms with rain, hail, and possible tornadoes) was on the way for Sunday night, however, so we pulled out around 9 pm, getting hom at 2 am. We hated hauling the horses that soon after the ride, especially Bear, but figured it was better than leaving them out in the storms. About 1 1/2 hours after we left, the radio said that there was a tornado warning for the county where camp was and the adjacent county, so we figured we'd made the right choice.

Looking forward to the next ride...Meanwhile Back at the Ranch, April 15!

Dawn in East Texas

1987 European Championshiop - USA Gold -Trail Blazer -Chef D'Equipe Report - Lee Wittle

by Lee Wittle, 1987

"To Finish Is To Win", has been the motto of all endurance riders throughout the years and brought to the USA Endurance Team, the Gold Medals and the title Champions of Europe.

August 1, the European Continental Open Championships were held in Marloffstein, Germany. The USA entered 4 riders, all as team members, and won the Gold Medal in team competition. The team consisted of Sun Walt/Mike Marino (9th), BayMar/Tom Sites (16th), Miss Lexa/Viki Varley (NF), Cher Habu/Jeannie Waldron (8th). The experience of some of the horses and riders was limited, but these horses were solid finishers. Also, there were no "bullets". A very good group for team competition.

Historically, there has only been 1 International Ride in which 3 teams finished 3 horses. The scoring for team results is the time of the 1st 3 horses ahead of all teams finishing less than 3. It was determined prior to the ride that the team would ride conservatively, concentrating on completition rather than placing.

The race began at 5 AM with a mass start in darkness and for the first 88 Km, the pace was the same for all USA ridrs at 8.3 mph. The lead horses were about 1 hour ahead, leading team horses about 45 minutes ahead. At this point in team competition, Great Britian held a 67 minute lead, France 55 minutes, Spain was about 11 and Belguim was 90 minutes behind.

The reflection in thought of a past event can never fully encompass the full spectacle of the actual extravanganza.

Reliving a moment of time like the recent European Championship in Marloffstein, West Germany, is something hard to explain unless you can imagine the biggest grin and good time of your life, and you wake up the next day and the grin's still there.

Dancing on the tables at the Bavarian Beer Fest in Marloffstein will rate as one of the all time adventures of my life. It was like a cemented face of laughter was implanted into my persona. This was a good time. I mean, they played trombones with their toes!

For the first time International or National FEI competitor who hasn't gone thru the travail of getting a FEI passport, becoming an International Amateur, getting the proper innoculations, blood tests, Coggins test within 30 days, making sure you were a member of the proper organizations ( AERC and AHSA) all at a frantic express mail pace, the rest was a piece of cake. My friends- the cake, as well as the air was very, very good.

Hearing your National Anthem played for- of all reasons!- the fact you were a consistant mediocre finisher who adhered to the credo "to finish is to win", was and is a most humbling experience i will never forget.

Jet lag lugged us into their rainy camp on a lazy Sunday afternoon before the next Saturday's
ride. Immediately, we were met with courtesy and helpful assistance from Florian Smithaus, and his Father, Hans. Experienced of the Trail, they led us to the barn and fields to show us the facilities available for the horses, who were to arrive the next day. We were the vanguard- Larry, Michael and myself.
by Lee Wittle, 1987

"To Finish Is To Win", has been the motto of all endurance riders throughout the years and brought to the USA Endurance Team, the Gold Medals and the title Champions of Europe.

August 1, the European Continental Open Championships were held in Marloffstein, Germany. The USA entered 4 riders, all as team members, and won the Gold Medal in team competition. The team consisted of Sun Walt/Mike Marino (9th), BayMar/Tom Sites (16th), Miss Lexa/Viki Varley (NF), Cher Habu/Jeannie Waldron (8th). The experience of some of the horses and riders was limited, but these horses were solid finishers. Also, there were no "bullets". A very good group for team competition.

Historically, there has only been 1 International Ride in which 3 teams finished 3 horses. The scoring for team results is the time of the 1st 3 horses ahead of all teams finishing less than 3. It was determined prior to the ride that the team would ride conservatively, concentrating on completition rather than placing.

The race began at 5 AM with a mass start in darkness and for the first 88 Km, the pace was the same for all USA ridrs at 8.3 mph. The lead horses were about 1 hour ahead, leading team horses about 45 minutes ahead. At this point in team competition, Great Britian held a 67 minute lead, France 55 minutes, Spain was about 11 and Belguim was 90 minutes behind.

Also by this point Miss Lexa had developed some stomach irregularities and slowed down. Tom Sites decided to slow his pace as well. Mike and Jeannie continued at their present pace and rode with Val Long and Jane McGuiness of Great Britian.

Coming into this 88Km stop, France, Great Britian, Spain, and USA had 4 Team Riders in competition. Leaving the stop, France and Belguim had 3, Spain had 1, Great Britian and USA had 4.

At 127 Km. the horses were spread over a greater time distance. The lead rider was 90 minutes ahead. The lead team riders were only 17 minutes ahead of Mike and Jeannie but were up to 3 hours apart. Arriving at this stop the team positions were unchanged, but several horses did not leave. The Team for Great Britian left w/ a 74 minute lead, Belguim was 90 minutes behind USA. Already the "Motto" was begininning to show itself, France Spain, Sweden, Austria, and Germany were down to 2 team competitors.

At this stop USA lost Miss Lexa. She had barely passed her pulse parameter of 64, at the 30 minute point of a 60 minute hold. The Veterinarians were however using the '
"Rigdeway Trot" for data gathering purposes and Miss Lexa elevated to 68 and Viki decided to pull and avoid any possible damage to Lexa in the upcoming mountains and unaccessible trail.

Arriving at 144Km., the team standings were unchanged. This was a Gate/10 minute hold. USA came through clean although spread over 83 minutes. Great Britian lost a second team member, leaving only USA and Belguim with 3 team members. Could we keep all 3 til Sunday morning?

At the finish line, Gaston Mercier/Mao (8) of France won the Individual Gold with a riding time of 12 hours, 12 minutes. Liz Finney/Show Girl (14)of Great Britian won the Individual Silver with a riding time of 12 hours 14 minutes. And in a race for the Bronze, Bernhard Dorsiepen/Drago (18) of Germany beat Denis Pesci/Krempolis (10) of France by 36 seconds in a riding time of 12 hours 17 minutes.

Thruout the entire stay in Marloffstein we were accorded warm, friendly, open hospitality. We saw old friends and met many new ones. It would be nice to go back again.

As with all International FEI Endurance events, the final Vet Check is the morning after. We took care to rest the horses without allowing them to stiffen up. The early morning came with all horses being walked vigorously by crews and riders alike. As we watched all the horses, it became obvious they were in great shape. No doubt the soft footing contributed to the lack of lameness, although the mud had been a concern for muscle pulls. However, all the horses looked better than most had in Rome.

The examinations were done in the horses stall with the veterinarians coming to the horses. This worked very well and avoided a lot of standing arround for everyone. The Trot Out was held outside the barn, in a very orderly and terse fashion. If any additional horses were to be pulled, this would be the time.

The horses were trotted in order of finish. On the cobblestones surrounding the stable they were walked up to the 12 Veterinarian
Judges and presented. They were then jogged down and back about 40 yards each way. The stable lined one side, riders, crew and spectators lined the other side.

One by one the horses passed. They really looked great. One horse was voted on. It did not unanimously pass all the judges. The vote was 10 pass, 2 pull. The USA finished 8,9 and 16. As these horses approached the trot out the thought that was on my mind and I'm sure the minds of many others, "Will all the American horses pass, and the Team Standings remain unchanged?" Will the Champions of Europe not be European?

Sun Walt and Cher Habu passed unaimously. More horses were trotted. Another vote, 8 pass, 4 pull. Now it was time for BayMar. As Larry commented, "I've felt pressure before, but this is unbelievable!" BayMar was jogged.

A little swing to the gate but he "looked good enough to go on". It was not a unanimious pass, so a vote had to be taken. First Judge, No , Second Judge "Can we see him trot again? Head Vet, Not allowed, all horses are judged in the exact same manner. Make your decisions on what you saw."

Begin the vote again. No, No, Yes, Yes, No, Yes, No-At this point my thought was "Gees, I've lost count, what is the vote?."

Seven pass, five pull. BayMar passed.

Throughout the ride each rider had a crew. Jeannie Waldron had her friend Sue Riggs and her husband Robin who also served as Team Veterinarian. Mike Marino had friends Melody Booth-Coull and Paul Ronio. Jeff Benjamin who was touring Europe joined his crew also. Viki had her husband Marky and her sister Athele Evans who came in from Hong Kong to help. Tom Sites had his son Michael and friend Larry Lewis from Kansas whom he'd known from the Great American Horse Race

We were also greatly helped by Mike Robinson and Jeff Cunduff both stationed in Germany with the Army who formed one crew. Mike has returned from Germany four times to compete in the Old Dominion Run. Curtis Hyatt, an American living in Germany and three of his friends, Ellen Reindl, Elke Leinsinger, and Peter Baunann formed 2 other crews. With the help of everyone, Mike Marino's comment, "We were covered like a blanket", was certainly true.

The Awards Ceremony went well, with the USA receiving their Gold Medals, Top Ten Finishers receiving trophies and the Team receiving the German Sterling Silver Plate. The ceremonies were followed by another great party of Bavarian keg beer, song and dance, dancing on the tables, singing German songs with all the riders intermingling.

1. Gaston Mercier France 20.22.54
2. Liz Finney Great Britain 20.24.53
3. Bernhard Dornsiepen Germany 20.27.16
4. Denis Pesce France 20.27.52
5. Magali Chambaud France 20.58.08
6. Dieter Hannes Germany 22.22.07
7. Val Long Great Britian 22.25.37
8. Jeannie Waldron USA 22.25.47
9. Mike Marino USA 22.25.48
10. Paul Bencze Switzerland 22.46.03
11. Joan Allen Great Britian 23.48.08
12. Idalina Graca Portugal 23.48.08
13. Pablo Amando las Heras Spain 00.07.45
14. Leon Feraille Belguim 00.39.06
15. Regine Middeldorf Germany 00.55.41
16. Tom Sites USA 01.28.33
17. Klemens Petersilka Austria 02.57.50
18. Tove Johansson Sweden 02.59.33
19. Jean Luc Marchal Belgium 03.01.15
20.Corinna Wahring Germany 03.01.15
21. Louise Hermelin Sweden 03.01.42
22. Michele Luxen Belgium 04.55.36

Individual Medals

Gold Gaston Mercier France
Silver Liz Finney Great Britian
Bronze Bernard Dornsiepen Germany

Team Medals

Gold USA Champions of Europe
Silver Belgium European Champions
Bronze France

1987 European Championship -Reflections of Marloffstein - Tom Sites

by Tom Sites, 1987

The reflection in thought of a past event can never fully encompass the full spectacle of the actual extravanganza.

Reliving a moment of time like the recent European Championship in Marloffstein, West Germany, is something hard to explain unless you can imagine the biggest grin and good time of your life, and you wake up the next day and the grin's still there.

Dancing on the tables at the Bavarian Beer Fest in Marloffstein will rate as one of the all time adventures of my life. It was like a cemented face of laughter was implanted into my persona. This was a good time. I mean, they played trombones with their toes!

For the first time International or National FEI competitor who hasn't gone thru the travail of getting a FEI passport, becoming an International Amateur, getting the proper innoculations, blood tests, Coggins test within 30 days, making sure you were a member of the proper organizations ( AERC and AHSA) all at a frantic express mail pace, the rest was a piece of cake. My friends- the cake, as well as the air was very, very good.

Hearing your National Anthem played for- of all reasons!- the fact you were a consistant mediocre finisher who adhered to the credo "to finish is to win", was and is a most humbling experience i will never forget.

Jet lag lugged us into their rainy camp on a lazy Sunday afternoon before the next Saturday's
ride. Immediately, we were met with courtesy and helpful assistance from Florian Smithaus, and his Father, Hans. Experienced of the Trail, they led us to the barn and fields to show us the facilities available for the horses, who were to arrive the next day. We were the vanguard- Larry, Michael and myself.

We were met by these tireless heroes who are owed congratulations and adulation for putting on a World Class Ride.

Florian Smithaus: a distance rider himself, always wanting to please and make things right.

Hans Smithaus: Flo's Dad- he was involved in all the behind the scenes, as well as front line duties of over-riding importance.

Jurger Hoepffner: the trail master, a most precise planner and attibutable asset,

Jane Hoonan: ran the command tent with multi-lingual fare that prevented obstacles to develop and confused all as to her nationality with her precision and usage of language.

Herman 'The German' Stricker: not only got us dancing on the tables but winding in and out of this slinky interpolation of fun and good times.

Anna Rosa Grim: the ride secretary. No matter where you go, the ride secreatry's job is unheralded and over-worked. She was a good one.

The weather was perfect for a race with cool temperatures, no humidity and a light mist falling. It was horse blanket weather, while at home the States were basking in 100 degree heat. We would have been able to cope with the heat better than the Europeans. The advantage was theirs.

The course was muddy over most of the route, Record rainfall had been falling for months. We knew we had to watch our step, as it was sloppy and slick at times. There was no rocks to speak of, but tree roots and muck were treacherous enough of an obstacle to warrant close attention to the trail at all times.

The course was like a trip through Germanian lore. Towns and countrysides passed in blur of a surreal scape. Farming techniqies passed down thru the ages made the land utilized to the maximum. They showed their respect for the land by that most obvious of man's presence- litter - there was none.

I was convinced I was going to finish this ride and rode a frantic first part and slowed down for the longest hills I have ever seen, which was the second part. Death would have had to manifest itself to have stopped me from finishing.

At 1:28 AM , we did. It was exilirating, for we knew we were the first to finish a three member team. All we had to do was trot out the next day. We did what we came to do.

The race itself was intense. High drama unfolding throughout the day. I am convinced we had the best organization and direction of energy of all the people there. We or our horses weren't, to my impression, any more superior to other horses or riders. We had a game plan and followed it and had the best Crews I could ever imagine assembled.

We were ecstatic. The Germans were stunned. At 50 miles, Herman said the Germans were falling out like popcorn. They finished a 2 member team. It is always the host country's opportunity to win. They didn't.

The Italians were unattended en masse. Something about rules. They didn't show up.

France won the Individual Gold, but only finished a 2 member team.

Great Britian- the one I'd have picked to win team gold- only finished a 2 member team.

The Spanis blew out- finished 1 0f 5. But watch out-they have a most competitive spirit. They'll do better next time.

Iran showed up and rode a little bit.

Belgium- what a story for the team silver. They started only 3 riders and finished 3. At 4:50 am when their last rider completed, tears of joy and pride were abundant and freely flowing. I was glad for them.

Austria sent a team and smoked long cigars and did OK.

Portugal sent the highest stepper from the table top dancing party, Idalina Graca, to ride a fine sire to the tune. "I had to eat her dust." A small story- at the Fest, bravado had taken hold of me and i told her the next day, "She would eat my dust." She, never hearing this before before was amused at American slang and countered it with, "Was I who would eat her dust." Well, I ate HER dust and was glad it rained a lot so there was more mud than dust.

The Swiss and the Swedes were there as well bringing good horsemen from all of Europe. They are most serious at this sport.

France, Great Britian and Germany all had the capabilities to outshine the USA, but whether it was riding strategies or just bad luck on their part, we got the team gold and they will have to reflect upon what went wrong. Next time it may not be the same outcome, as they are all good horsemen and tough competitors.

Lee Wittle: Chef D'Equipe. Precise, knowledgeable and a joy to ride under his direction. His goal to finish all riders and provide team orientation were given his best.

Robin Waldron: Team Veterinarian. There when questions needed to be answered and medical strategies needed to be discussed and analyzed.

Jeff Benjamin: Farriar, his expertise gave us feelings of confidence that our wheels would keep turning.

# 40 Mike Marino riding Sun Walt, a District Attorney freshly elected who came to ride and did.

# 41 Tom Sites riding BayMar. I was glad my son could share the joy.

#42 Viki Varley riding Miss Lexa. Unfortunately didn't finish but gave it a real good shot.

#43 Jeannie Waldron rode Brombe or Cher Habu as the Europeans know her. She gave us our credibility.

The Crew Members

Melody Booth-Coull: She has paid her dues as a rider and crew member. We were fortunate to have her along.

Paul Rodino knew his German and got us out of some binds.

Larry Lewis another distance rider from Kansas we were fortunate to have. I, the most because he helped me. Thanks Larry, I'll never forget your enthusiam and support.

Michael Sites had the experience of a lifetime. I was glad to share it with you, Michael.

Athale Evans: Vikis sister came from Hong Kong to assist half a world away..

Mark Varley: Always a cheer and joy to be arround. Ready to assist at all times.

Sue Riggs had a heart w/out limits and a spirit w/out bounds.

Curtis Hyatt showed up to help because he is an American living in Germany. He knew the trail and brought friends.

The turquoise finger and silver handed lady-Thanks for the coffee and all your help and encouragement. Your hands are a work of art.

Mike Robertson and friend- We knew we were all right when the Special Forces showed up. The USA was represented very well. It was not just us 4 riders. We had good support and dang good support. THANKS!!!

And where does Matthew Mackay-Smith fit in? He was on the veterinary control and sharing his wide area of expertise w/ other cultures. The President of AERC had to be impartial but we all knew where his allegiance lay.

Last year in Rome at the World Championships, even tho we came in 1, 2, and 14 with a BC, we only got the Team Silver. This year there were 8, 9, and 16 place finishers for the Team Gold. There can't be any better example ever of a team win.

"To finish is to win" can never be said any clearer.

I was honored beyond any expectations I ever comprehended to be a part of this team. It will always be one of my greatest honors in all of life to be associated with such a group of people who came back to America as the Champions of Europe.

Thanks Lee, Jeannie, Mike, Viki, Robin and all the support we received from the CREW. We couldn't have done it without you.

Thank you.

tom sites

My First 100 - Laura Yost

by Laura Yost

I have been reading the discussions about the number of people attempting 100 milers and thought I would share my experience with my first 100 miler. First off, I will start by saying if I can do it anyone can. I have 4 kids 3,5,7,and 10 years old. My husband is not a horse person (until just recently, yeh! he got tired of being left behind on the weekend of my rides) and our schedules only permit 1 official ride a month. We have been away to undergrad, med school, and then residency for 11 years. When we moved home my father-in-law had been riding endurance and just asked if I would help him condition one of his horses when his wife was unable, "of course"!! I said. I had missed not riding while in school and having babies. I had the chance to ride a 25 miler with my in-laws... I was still nursing my youngest so when I left him I still needed to pump. This made for a interesting two days, me in the backc seat of the car pumping while they were arguing over directions. The horse I was riding had already been ridden in some rides so he was savy to what was going on around him, it was me who needed to learn everything. I had a great ride and was hooked.

I rode in a few more 25's until I had saved up enough money for my own horse. I still cont. to ride in 25's because I needed that time to feel comfortable with how everything flowed and worked. My goal soon became a 50 miler for my second season. I rode 3-4 times a week in our mountains,I would sneak out at 5am before anyone was awake and then try to get in the house to make breakfast before kids woke up. I tried not to ever put any stress on my husband. He was busy starting up his own practice and I knew he really did not understand the addiction and amazing feeling of floating up and down the mountains as the sun comes out to greet you.

My next season I did 50's and loved them. My horse was well and for my 3rd season I had a goal of finally attemping a 100. No one in my family that rides was prepared or simply had the desire yet to ride 100 miles. The ride I picked out was the Arabian nights ride and I was extremely nervous. I would be riding by myself, some of my family volunteered to crew for me. (I have never had a crew before!!) My husband, at this point had his own horse and would try a 50 while I rode the 100, the kids were left with my mom who was just hoping I would come back alive!!

The ride would have both FEI and AERC riders and I soon learned how many top riders were there to really compete for the top slots. At the dinner before ride meeting I was looking around and noticing all of these great riders and I turned to my husband and said do you know who they are?.. or who that is?... and then told him I thought I just needed to go back to the truck and vomit.. I was so nervous!! He just laughed and said "no I do not know who any of these people are and your FINE, you are here to ride your own ride, just chill out!! I felt completely out of my element, I mean what was I doing here riding with these great, amazing riders... I was just there to finish and hopfully not get pulled and have wasted my families time for coming up to help me!!

I was set that I just wanted to finish alive and most important with a healthy horse. I did not care how long it took me or how bad it hurt, I needed this... I needed to prove to myself that Noble and I could do this. Everyone told me that I would need someone to ride with and that it is very mental for the horse as well.

I was set that I would not let my guy waste his energy in the first half so I really held him back,( he loves to go and be in front) SO needless to say the first 40 miles were me holding Noble back so that we would have enough energy to finish, we took walking breaks, we stopped to drink, I was like a very protective mother, I did not want anything to go wrong and hurt Noble in anyway. Everything went very smooth, I forced my self to eat and drink and my guy did the same. I cannot express what it feels like to ride in the middle of the desert with nothing except stars and your best friend for company and security. We finished with all A's in about 17 hours. Yes sometimes it was uncomfortable, yes the rattle snake in the sagebrush at 11 pm was a eye opener, and I was tired, BUT I have never done anything so much fun as this in my life!! It was worth every ache, and every second of mental fatigue I had experienced. I proved to myself that I could do this, I worked hard for this, and my horse proved he was everything I already knew he was.... Wonderful, loyal, and beautiful.

I learned a lot about my abilites, my endurance and would and will do it again as many times as I can!!

Two more things I learned, I need to let my guy move out at a comfortable pace while it is cool in the morning, I really held him back because I worried he would wear out (not the case, my hand and back were very tired!!) and not all horses need a buddy at the end, some do some do not, my guy was just fine and actually did better on his own at his own speed. I am a mother of busy kids, a wife of a busy husband, I work part time,but if I can do it anyone can!! It was the best time of my life and I tell you what... Crewing looked much harder than what I got to do!

DVE 2005 - Karen Chaton

Karen Chaton

We lucked out and were able to get down to the start of the ride
between a break in storms. The roads were clear and the weather was
nice on the way down and after we got to Valley Wells. When we got
there camp was still not very full and there were plenty of open
spots left. We pulled in towards the back and parked. I had let the
horses out once on the trip down and cleaned all of the mud off of
their feet. Now they had to finish drying out. It took me awhile to
scrape all the rest of the mud off of them. I was really looking
forward to the ride and excited that the weather was looking to be a
whole lot nicer than it was the year before.

I entered my young horse Zenos for the first day of the ride. He's 7
and has done a few rides this last year. We started out in the
morning riding with Dave Rabe, and a junior -- one of Kayla's cousins
named Patrick Freeman, he is 15 and this was his first multiday
ride. We had a nice start down the road with good footing, across
the highway and then up into the foothills. It wasn't long before we
heard people behind us yelling 'loose horse'. We turned and could
see a horse running loose towards us. Dave Rabe went over to try and
catch the horse, he had the reins and then the horse spun around and
got away from him. He got off when the horse stopped and almost had
it caught when it took off again. He got back on and took off after
the horse. Patrick was wondering what to do since his sponsor left
him and I told him don't worry we were both sponsoring him so you can
keep going with me and Dave will catch up with us after he catches
the loose horse, which he did.

The loop was really nice, we had lots of good footing mixed in with a
bit of rocks and some up and downs and dips, washes and trail mixed
with roads. I hadn't done a very good job of getting the cables
tight enough on Zenos' Epics, and by 11 miles I had to get off three
times to adjust them. He was good about it, and while frustrating at
the time it was good experience for him to have to learn to stop and
stand still while groups of horses trotted on by. Our first vetcheck
was at about 12 or 13 miles back in camp where we had a half an hour
hold. We vetted thru with no problems and went back over to the
Laksos' trailer (Patrick's grandparents) and spent our vetcheck there
letting the horses eat while I got Zenos' boots all straightened
out. We left Valley Wells and now were going point to point over to
Ballarat http://www.ghosttown.info/ca/ballarat/ and http://www.desertusa.com/mag99/apr/stories/ballarat.html where the
next vetcheck was, and then after that onto the finish at Indian
Wells. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, not too warm and not
cold. We were taking turns letting all of the horses lead or
follow. This was the first time on a ride that I had let Zenos lead,
and he definitely was comfortable being in the front, and also is
happy to be in the back (unlike Chief, lol).

The vetcheck at Ballarat was nice, we vetted thru and husband Dave
was there with stuff for myself and Patrick, as well as Dave Rabe and
Becky and Sue. Mike showed up on his m/c and we all hung out and let
the horses eat and had fun. We fed Patrick a pbj sandwich and gave
him a frapaccino which perked him up and pretty soon we were off to
do the next few miles into the finish. The horses were all doing
well and I was really pleased with Zenos' attitude, I had wanted to
ride him on this point to point day to see how he'd do going and
going away from where he started in the morning. He had never been
to Indian Ranch before, but he seemed very happy to keep going, love
having that kind of an attitude in a horse! We were trotting along
and all of a sudden I heard a little click sound and my foot was
hanging on one side -- my stirrup had fallen off!!! I stopped Z and
Patrick pointed out where my stirrup was back there on the ground,
lol. Got off and went back and got it, turned out the screws had
come undone and ooops, it came off! I was able to fix it and ride.

Indian Ranch is located in the Saline Valley, which gets its name in
part because they mined salt from there. Also, I found this on the
web: "Indians maintained a very successful ranch from the late
1800's up to about 1950 when a tragedy occured that led to the
abandonment of the property. The tragedy involved the murder of a 22
year old caretaker for a mining company by 13 and 15 year old members
of the ranch. The mining company had diverted the water flow that the
ranch depended on."

The next day came fairly fast, and before I knew it we were getting
ready to head out. I alternated my horses and rode Chief on this
day. Patrick was riding a different horse this time, Qwest (the same
horse Kayla finished 1st on the last day with) and Dave was riding
Lightning again. We rode back to Ballarat and had a trot by on the
way there and then headed up the big mountain. This is a really big
climb up, several thousand feet, and the footing is not the greatest
so it's a tough day on the horses, especially any horses that aren't
in condition. Luckily it wasn't freezing cold like in some
years. We took our time going up alternating walking with
trotting. The horses were drinking well as there was a lot of water.
Chief was trying to eat anything brown that he could find, but it was
pretty slim pickings thru there. We got up to the top and Sparrow's
son was there with water for us. The views were so incredible! for
the last two years on this ride we haven't been up to the very top,
only partway up, and last year not up at all so it was nice to get up
there again and get to look over Death Valley on such a beautiful day!

The climbing isn't over yet once we get to the top, we still had to
go up a little bit more, then down, then more up, and then down and
down and down. Dave Rabe did most of it on foot, and Patrick
alternated trying to be on foot and on his horse. He wasn't having
much luck with his horse behaving, poor kid was having to deal with a
horse that wanted to jig or trot, anything but walk. On the way down
we passed up the Ribley's -- Robert was helping Melissa walk, as her
horse had fallen with her and she was not looking too good. She made
it tho, and went on to finish the ride and I think all 4 days.

Chief was getting into his fast walk that he does, over 5 mph, so I
just stayed on knowing I can't really walk myself any faster than 4
or 4.4, especially over rocks. I kept looking back and making sure I
could still see Patrick, as he kept falling back farther and
farther. Dave was back there on foot too. We finally made it back
down into Ballarat for the vet check. I know my horse was starving
and was on a mission to get there! We went to the water, and then I
got Chief's pulse first, then Qwest got his. We went over to where
husband Dave was parked with John and they had all of our stuff for
us. Dave handed Patrick and I a pbj sandwich and frapaccinos and
whatever else we wanted. I had realized after a few minutes that
Dave Rabe hadn't come over and was still at the water, I asked why
was he still there and they said his horse hadn't come down
yet. Darn! He had led on foot the last 11 miles we'd gone, but his
horse was not having a good day and they pulled. Patrick and I both
perked up again for the last part and headed out back to the
finish. We had an hour hold here, and the horses had eaten the
entire time we were there. They really needed to eat and were quite
perky on the way in. We finished by dark, so we had a couple of
hours to spare anyway. I was still riding fairly conservatively, yet
still a little faster than usual because I am alternating horses. I
know that Chief could go considerably faster but the ride season is
just starting and I don't want to have him get too beat up going
faster than he needs to go on some of that crappy footing. There
were some horse that finished this day that looked worse than the
footing did this day, so going faster might get me done sooner but it
isn't always the best choice for the horse to do that, even if he can.

The third day was Zenos' turn again. He had been a good boy in camp
and had eaten well and rolled quite a bit in the soft white sandy
stuff there. We were moving camp this day, riding to Panamint
Springs, so I had everything packed up and led the horse off while
Dave left with the rig to go to the next camp before the start so he
would be gone before the horses started. I walked over to wait for
Patrick to be ready and Z reached thru their corral panels and pulled
a pan of feed over and helped himself. lol I think he's got the
makings to be a halfway decent endurance horse!! It was time to go,
so we started out. Dave Rabe was still packing his rig up so it
could be moved, and was riding his other horse Holy. We went ahead
knowing he would catch us and that he was better off starting out
alone on Holy who can be a handful.

The weather was still quite wonderful. I've been riding Zenos in a
s-hack and he does so well in it. I can't get over how calm and laid
back he is already. We take turns leading or following or going side
by side, and move out everywhere we can move out. A lot of times our
average speed drops below 5 mph, but we can't do a lot about that
because of the rocky footing. We only had one vetcheck this day,
about 31.5 miles into the ride. I had done a better job this day of
adjusting the cables on Z's boots, and only had to get off one time
all day to make an adjustment. We had a half an hour hold at the
check on this day. The horses ate the entire time and pretty soon we
were off again. Just as we were leaving, Dave Rabe made it into the
check with Holy dragging him in ;). We were able to pick up the pace
in the next few miles and did a fair amount of cantering. Again, it
was a point to point day and I was elated to see how much Z was
wanting to go, not knowing where he was going or caring that where
he'd come from was the opposite direction that we were
headed. Yay! We did zip along fairly fast the rest of the way in
and finished at 3 o'clock. I had time to give him a bath, which was
nice as I washed tons of that white fine sandy stuff out of his long
winter coat. Everytime he'd shake a cloud of white dust would come
off of him, so I was sure glad to have him clean. I just kept
changing his fleece blankets out under his other blanket until he was dry.

The fourth day always seems to come by too fast. I hate when the
rides start and then seem to end just like that. I know Patrick was
having fun and excited about riding all 4 days, his first
multiday. He was back on the same horse he rode on days 1 and 3, and
Kayla was riding Qwest. She'd finished up in the front on the third
day and gotten BC on Gemmy :), and finished first on Qwest the last
day. We headed out down the road out of Panamint Springs and down
the road to begin our long climb up Darwin Grade. I had my New
Years' party hat on Chief. Patrick wasn't ready in time to get his
on. He'd also forgotten his elytes. Turns out he hadn't forgotten
them, he had just packed them on Kayla's saddle is all. hehe.

We walked and trotted up the hill and the horses were doing really
well. Chief can get really competitive with other horses, so Patrick
had to try to keep his horse back and was doing a lot better at
it. We went down, then thru the sandy canyon and then back up on the
semi paved old road to the town of
Darwin. http://members.aol.com/dierdorff/darwin/index.html (about
whether or not it gets windy there, this is on the site: Mojave
Desert residents really do not use a tire chain bolted to a phone
pole as a wind sock. They use a small boat anchor chained to a
boulder because phone poles can sometimes blow away.

We were nearly there when we came up a draw and were hit head on by a
gale force wind. Woohoo!!!! My helmet visor splatted against my
face and I couldn't see squat. We were now heading downhill, I
couldn't see anything and the horse was taking over, which is
probably a good thing. I just hung on and finally was able to regain
my composure and stop from laughing. Not that not being able to see
is funny, but after four days out there you get a little weird. The
horses were all excited and frisky, Chief was wanting to go full
tilt, and I had to work to get him slowed down thru the town of
Darwin. We made it to the end of town where the LD vetcheck is and
water. They told us that they were changing the trail and to follow
the arrows for the LD trail, after having the vets check our
horses. Dave said he wouldn't crew this day for me, as he hates
going up to the top of the mountain and sitting there in the blowing
wind, so John said he'd take my truck and go up. so of course, they
changed the vetcheck so that John and my truck got to drive up there
and back :P. Meanwhile Dave is trying not to laugh too hard....

The next part of the trail was super nice, the LD riders really get
all of the good sections of trail on this ride! We cruised along at
a nice trot for almost this entire next part. Then we looped back up
and over Darwin Grade. We got off to lead down and when we got back
on everything was soaking wet. I guess it had been raining, just
lightly enough to get stuff wet without us really noticing. We
weren't cold though, Dave was wearing shorts and a tank top (and ski
gloves, lol) and until I sat down on my wet saddle cover I was plenty
comfortable with just a windbreaker on. The clouds always make the
colors stand out so well.

With the trail change we were going back to Panamint to basecamp for
our vetcheck and hour hold. This trail change made this day a lot
easier than it normally would be. Patrick got his party hat attached
to his horses head at lunch, so both of our horses were in a party
mood for the last part of the trail. We headed out, we were riding
down alongside the highway for a few miles to a water spot, and then
back again. The storm was coming in and following us. We headed out
and as we went along we could see ahead how the wind was kicking up a
sandstorm ahead and we were riding right into it. Oh boy! My visor
was doing that slap me in the face thing again, so I yanked it
off. It's like driving a car with a hood up when it does that. It
was so windy we were leaning sideways to stay upright and sometimes
when a motorhome went by doing 65 mph, it would suck the wind around
us and blow us over. We were laughing though and having a great
time. Even with a little wind, I'd still rather be there riding than
to not be there riding :). Besides, it was still a hundred times
better than the weather was the entire time the year before, so I'll
take it without complaint! We got down to the water and then turned
and headed back. We saw a big beautiful rainbow across the valley,
and the clouds engulfing Panamint Springs up ahead of us, with all of
the colors in the desert it was a really beautiful scene.

Along the way we saw a tourist stop and get out of his car. His hat
blew off and he took off running after it. He ran and ran and ran,
and there was just no way he was going to catch that hat.

This ride was a lot of fun, as always. Jackie has a lot of
volunteers who help make the world go around, without them we
wouldn't get to do this, thanks to all!!! Turns out that getting
back home again was the biggest challenge of all, lol, tho we made it
home safe and sound, and hope everybody else did too. :) Here are
photos from myself and Sue
Benson: http://aerc.org/Photo_Gallery/DVE05/DEATHVALLEY2005.html

Karen

in NV

Magic's Story - Tom Paleczny

Tom Paleczny

I sat staring at the clouds and was hoping and praying the rain would come during the awards ceremony at the Coates Creek endurance ride July 31st. I wasn't looking forward to being called up in front of the many other riders that competed that day to accept my 6th place ribbon. My emotions were hard to contain and just thinking about the events of the day brought tears to my eyes. I had just completed the 50 mile ride with my horse Magic and when we crossed the finish line and vetted our completion I couldn't help but say a little prayer, do a "high five" in the air and give both my wife Lesley and my horse Magic a big hug of joy and thanks. After all, who would have imagined that he would be completing a grueling 50 mile ride in the heat of August; up some of the most impressive hills Ontario can throw at any endurance rider. All this! Twelve weeks after undergoing near death colic surgery!

When I got him back to the trailer and settled, I sat down and drifted back to that cold day in April when Lesley and I were faced with some very traumatic decisions to make. The day started off terribly as we drove through a blinding snowstorm on our way to compete at the Aprilfest 50 in the Dufferin forest. A few times we were questioning our sanity as to why any human would go to such length to ride 50 miles in this typical Ontario spring weather. The slush on the roads was so bad that it almost pulled you off into the ditch! Arriving at the ride site we were surprised to see so many courageous people preparing themselves and their horses for the ride.

My riding partner Alison Martin and her horse CH Sheylan were ready for pre-vetting so the four of us proceeded to the P&R area. The weather had changed and it actually became tolerable. We vetted through and everything was perfect...straight A's and Mag seemed excited to get going.

As we warmed up prior to the start I couldn't help but notice that Magic was feeling quite full of himself. He felt strong, fit and eager. Our plan for this day was to get through the first few miles without incident and then settle into a nice steady pace that would see us finish in and around six hours. My goal for the season was to prepare Magic for the Old Dominion 100 in Virginia.

The trails were in good shape considering the weather and it didn't take long for the horses to calm down and focus on the trail. The first few miles went by without incident and we settled into a good steady pace. Neither Ali nor I had any great expectation and both would be very happy to just complete the 50 miles. The horses seemed to be quite happy with the pace so we continued through the first loop.

Coming into the vet check, he pulsed down very quickly and vetted through straight A's and it wasn't long before we got back into the routine after the long winter. Alison and Sheylan vetted through and we were into our hold.

Heading back out onto the second of (4) four loops; both horses were running in great shape. We took advantage of the water stops and we timed ourselves at a minimum of six minutes and we made sure the heart rates were below 60 before heading down the trail. The horses didn't really seem that interested in the water and I think that was due to the cold temperature. Most of the time they would stick their heads up to the trough and take a bit of a sip. This was not unusual for Magic as he normally doesn't drink a lot in the first miles of the competition. Coming into the 2nd vet check, everything was great, even the weather was becoming a little nicer; I think I saw a bit of sun trying to break through. As in the first vet check, he pulsed down quickly and Art King vetted us through and again all A's. Ali and Shey came in behind me and vetted through with no problems; both horses looked great.

Back on trail for the third loop we picked up the pace a bit and the horses were fine with this adjustment in speed. I felt that he was being his typical self when he started his old habit of dropping his head down to ground level almost like a hound on a rabbit trail. He had started this early last year and we couldn't figure out what it was, he seemed to be spooking at the ground as we trotted down trail. I didn't pay a lot of attention to this because it was something he had done many times before; uncomfortable to post to but not a problem to worry about. We now know that this was a sign of something that was brewing inside his small intestine.

We came into the third vet check and again everything was fine; both horses vetted A's and they were eating and drinking normally. We headed out on the final loop and decided to maintain the pace from the third loop. The horses still felt great and he was still finding the stamina to spook at logs, down trees, water puddles, you know all those spooky horse monsters. He started dropping his head even more and it was becoming difficult to deal with. I kept checking everything to try and figure out what it was he was doing. Ali rode behind to see if she could identify any problems; but none were visible. Whatever it was it didn't affect his heart rates or attitude. There were no changes from the first loop other than the horses were more settled. The last five miles of the loop we could feel the horses tiring a bit so we slowed the pace and just enjoyed the moment.

Crossing the finish line I gave him his customary pat on the shoulder and whispered to him "good job"! As we walked over to the vetting area, we offered both horses water. He started to drink and he really tanked-up, I didn't think he would stop. After finishing their drink, we proceeded to the P&R area. He pulsed in at 52 and I was quite pleased and felt we did a great job. Art was finished with the horses ahead of us, so I walked over to him for my final vetting. Art vetted him through and found no problems, everything was fine. He trotted out good, his CRI was good 12/12, gut sounds were pluses in all four quadrants. I was very pleased, Magic finished the ride all A's!

I took him to the trailer, and got him un-tacked and settled. At this point there was nothing out of the ordinary; everything was fine. I was almost soaked to the skin so I went in the trailer to have a hot shower and change into some dry cloths. While in the trailer I could hear a horse pawing at the ground. I looked out and saw it was Magic and he had quite the hole started. My first thought was that he wanted to roll so I called out to Steve to get one of the girls to walk and graze him while I finished changing. At this point approximately an hour and a half had gone by since we completed the ride. I went out of the trailer and the girls told me that he wanted to roll and that he was pawing at the ground. Knowing him and how he loves to roll, I chuckled at the young girls holding him and explained - that's just Magic. Lesley has this uncanny ability of picking up on horse's issues and feelings. She immediately went over to him and looked him over - I could tell by the look on her face that something was terribly wrong. He had signs of a serious colic starting!

I had butterflies in my stomach as I walked him around the field while Lesley ran to get Stan and Art. Every time I stopped walking, he would paw the ground and start getting ready to lie down. In my mind I knew something terrible was wrong and I felt almost helpless. It seemed like eternity for Lesley to return with Stan and Art but it was a relief to see them walking towards me. I felt reassured by their presence and my mind started to think clearer as they examined him. The colic signs started to subside a bit and after they checked him it was confirmed that he had either a mild colic starting or some gas and now we were looking for an explanations as to why this might happen. Both Stan and Art felt that it could have been caused for a number of reason's but we felt one of the main reasons could have been the tanking up of cold water at the final vet check.

Luckily, fellow rider Laura Hayes from New York had some banamine in her trailer of which we gave him about three cc's and then continued the walking around the field. He did settle a bit so it was decided to load and head home.

We arrived home at about 9:00 pm and when we took him off the trailer I checked to see if he had past any manure but he hadn't. I took him into his small turn-out yard and as soon as I took off his halter he dropped to the ground, lay on his back and raised his legs in the air and started moaning. I was absolutely horrified when this happened and I knew we were in serious trouble. Lesley went in the house to call the vet and they decided that we would give him another three cc's of banamine and see if he would settle. We brought him into his stall in the barn, gave the banamine and this time it didn't settle him at all. I started walking him around outside and every time we stopped walking he would paw the ground and attempt to lie down.

At 11:30 pm another call was made to our vet and the need became an emergency! Our vet arrived at 12:00 am and upon tubing Mag, the nightmare got worse. When the tube was inserted completely it filled with reflux, we rushed to get an empty pail and the vet put the end of the tube in the pail and to our shock, it completely filled it. The vet had this look on his face and when I looked up at Lesley and she looked back, we knew that he was near death.

Lesley and I needed to make some quick decisions. The vet asked if surgery was an option; without it Magic would have to be put down. It was now 1:30 am when we loaded him and headed for the London Equine Hospital. By now both Lesley and I were running purely on adrenaline. LEH is about a 90 minute drive and I shouldn't admit to this but we pulled into the parking lot in 50 minutes. Thinking back I don't recall stopping at a stop sign or light the entire trip.

The London Equine Hospital staff are quite amazing people. When we pulled into the parking lot to the entrance behind the building, they were waiting with the doors open. I got Magic off the trailer and lead him into the clinic. He was immediately swarmed by the staff and in no time he had needles, bags and monitors hanging from every conceivable location in his stall. Once all the preliminary stuff was completed, he was given another 6 cc's of Banamine and the tube was again inserted into his belly. This time I expected reflux but was not prepared to watch as bucket after bucket was filled to the top. A total of six gallons was drained from his belly and I think even the vet and his assistants were amazed at the amount. An internal examination was next but there were no conclusive findings. One thing that puzzled the attending vet Dr. Kretzshmar was that Magic's pulse rate was very low. His heart rate was never above 50 and even at the worst of his illness it was at 46. Dr. Kretzschmar indicated that this was very unusual as most horses with the same condition are at about 115 - 120 BPM.

As I mentioned earlier the hospital staff are just the best. Everything they did to him they explained in detail why it was being done. When Dr. Kretzshmar had made his diagnosis he approached Lesley and I and his compassion was truly sincere. We were again faced with an agonizing decision. Dr. Kretzshmar explained in great detail the issues that he felt Magic had going on inside him. I don't think I heard a word he said and as he spoke our eyes welled up in tears - my horse was dieing and there was very little to be done to save the horse and companion that brought so much joy and fun into my life. I gasped as he explained that even with surgery, he at best had only a 10% chance of surviving and if he did survive he would be a pasture patient for the balance of his life. The three choices were given, and again he made sure we had everything we needed to make the right decision including the costs involved. He explained a full colic surgery; what it was; what could be the cause of the colic and the cost of that surgery. We asked that with the full colic surgery if they opened him up and things were bad, that he be put down on the table. He explained another option and that was to basically do exploratory surgery (autopsy on a live horse) and the costs involved. The final choice I did not want to hear - terminate Magic's life! I fell to pieces! Dr. Kretzshmar left Lesley and me to discuss the options. Our decision was to go ahead with the exploratory surgery with instructions to terminate his life if there were serious complications.

A funny thing happened when we went back into the clinic. Just when we thought the world was falling in around us, a light shines. He seemed to settle and he hadn't produced any reflux in almost an hour. I actually got a bit of a chuckle out of the staff when I joked that Magic understood what we were talking about earlier. Between Lesley, I and Dr. Kretzshmar, we decided to post pone the surgery and give him some time to see if this little light was actually a sign of recovery. Lesley and I were exhausted on our feet so we decided to head home to try and get some rest!

Sleep did not come, we were both now up over 32 hours. We were exhausted but our eyes would not close. My mind was so full of guilt and I kept trying to figure out what went wrong. I played the days events over and over again in my mind and questioned whether or not I over rode him at the ride. What did I do to cause him so much hurt?

Lesley and I were on pins and needles as we awaited word from the clinic. Every time the phone rang, we would jump. Finally at 9:00 am Dr. Desjardins called and he delivered some very bad news, Magic was no better and when the banamine wore off he would get very uncomfortable. They had him prepared for the exploratory surgery and they were just getting ready to take him into the OR. We decided that we would go ahead with the exploratory surgery but we confirmed with him that if there were any complications they would put him down on the table; he agreed.

I hung up the phone and started to bring Lesley up to speed on the conversation. In my mind I kept thinking; how can I put my companion through the suffering he must be going through? The words came out of my mouth but I did not hear them. I said to Lesley, we should just put him out of his pain and suffering. We knew from the vet that the likely hood that he would recover were slim to none. We both were very quiet for a moment, Lesley didn't have to say a word, and I knew her answer. I picked up the phone and dialed the number to the hospital. My eyes were wet and I must have dialed the wrong number, I wiped them and then tried again. This time I got the hospital and when I asked for Dr. Cote, the receptionist explained that she was in surgery. I told her who I was and why I was calling. She asked me to hold and when she came back to the line she put me through to Dr Desjardins. Before I could say a word to explain our wishes, he told me to hang on for 10 minutes as they had just opened him up.

In exactly 10 minute the call came, I noted a tone of excitement in Dr. Desjardins voice. He explained to me that they found the problem; fixed it; and in less than ten minutes, he was back in recovery and standing! The words were overwhelming and they echoed through my head! Whether it was the lack of sleep, the bad news, the roller coaster ride, I will never know but I could not hold back the excitement that built up inside me. I dropped the phone and fell to my knees; Magic was going to be okay! Or was he?

Just when you see a glimmer of hope in a bad situation all hope is dashed. Magic wasn't getting better. Dr. Cote the attending vet explained to me on Tuesday morning that it sometimes takes up to 48 hours for the electrical impulses to realize that there is no restriction and to start things working again. She told us that in some cases the impulses never come back and is fatal for the horse. It had been 24 hours post surgery and he was still producing reflux. I started to get concerned when at 32 hours nothing had changed. I got on the phone to Stan Alkemade to get his opinion and he felt that we should wait the full 48 hours before getting concerned.

As time past I got that sick feeling in my gut again. How could this be happening? It was now Wednesday morning and with no word from Dr Cote I knew things were no better. On my way to my office in Niagara Falls, I called the clinic to get an update. Dr. Cote sounded grave and I found myself in the terrible situation of making choices. Although Magic was responding earlier that evening, Dr. Cote was very concerned that another two gallons of reflux was expelled and she was asking how much time and money we want to spend if he was getting no better. It hadn't been a full 48 hours so we decided to give it the day and then assess his condition. Dr. Cote was in surgeries all day so another update wouldn't come until 7:30 pm Wednesday evening.

Lesley and I had tickets to Cavalia in Toronto Wednesday evening and there were no words spoken as we drove to the Distillery District of the Toronto Harbour front. Both of us were totally exhausted and now here we were making another tough decision. We arrived in Toronto in good time so we decided to have dinner before going to the show. My cell phone rings a lot as part of my job and every time it rang we both jumped. It was now 7:00 pm and we were counting down the minutes as we sat sipping on a drink. Our food came but trying to eat was hard, we were both so bewildered! The clocks ticked by 7:30 and still no call from Dr. Cote. Finally at 7:45 my phone rang, it was the London Equine Hospital. I froze; I just couldn't take any more bad news! I handed the phone to Lesley and asked if she could please take the call. It was loud in the restaurant so Lesley stepped around the corner. Seconds turned to minutes as I waited for Lesley to return, the suspense was killing me so I got up and went around the corner just as Lesley was hanging up.

I could tell by Lesley's smile that the news was good. The vets had a meeting after Dr. Cote spoke to me in the morning. They decided as a team to withdraw the tube from him and see if he would stop producing the reflux. The electrical impulses would either start to work again or they wouldn't and it would be over. Lesley told me that Dr. Cote told her that Magic had gone a full nine hours without the tube and there had not been any more reflux. He turned the corner to making a complete recovery.

Magic has had this issue coming on for a number of years and it got progressively more severe. Dr. Cote and Dr. Kretzshmar told us that had we not competed at the Aprilfest ride, we would most likely have found him dead in his paddock and that as long as he was moving forward down trail, things would continue to work. They also explained that with the six gallons of reflux in his belly it was lucky it did not rupture. I can't believe that he was trotting down trail with all that reflux sloshing around inside him. Dr. Ketzschmar figured that the reason he was trotting with his head and neck stretched towards the ground indicated that he basically had in human terms "severe heartburn" for a long time! He apparently had a small lesion on the lining of his small intestine that at some point became infected as debris adhered to its surface. Over time the opening of his stomach gradually stretched to enormous proportion as it tried to compensate for the build up of foreign matter. In-turn this caused the small intestine to enlarge and cause the electric impulses that work the system to weaken. Slowly the impulses would weaken to a point where it just shuts down thus the backing up of the system producing reflux.

I heard a little whinny as I came back from my thoughts; it was Magic standing looking at me over his corral line. It was as if he was saying to me - snap out of it and get me some food; I just carried you over fifty miles and there you sit daydreaming! I rose out of my chair and climbed over the line and gave him a hug! Yes, Magic is back! He is truly a survivor and a tough horse with a lot of heart. I will compete with Magic in many more competitions over the next years, but none will have the memories and significance of the day Magic and I completed the Coates Creek Endurance Ride.

Tom Paleczny

Reame's Magiciann