Old Explorers*

October 22 2018

This is what endurance horses do between endurance rides

Riding the Rim Trail, we have a long, scenic view down into the Hart Creek drainage. Between the crumbly cliffs of the rim and the crick is a maze of hills and washes, what looks like an old travertine hot spring hill, and a hidden jumble of bentonite** sculptures, the leftovers from a long-ago eroded lake-bed sediment. I call the sculptures the Dragon's Backbone.

Carol and I hiked there once, from the top down. You've got to find the right ridge to climb down, or else you'll lose your footing and slide…. a very long hide-ripping, tumbling way down. 

Finding the Dragon from the bottom up is a game of hide and seek, because one cliff face looks like another, as does one hill from another, and who knows which hidden box canyon the Dragon hides behind?

We managed to catch just a glimpse of a bentonite outcrop on our regular Hart Crick trail, so we angled off cross country, bush-whacking our way to the hidden treasures. Hillbillie Willie was all for this new exploring adventure with his pal August, going places where (possibly) no horse has gone before.

Around behind a hill, the white monster appeared, growing out of the ground as we picked our way toward it, and Willie's eyes bulged in disbelief and wonder. What magic is this!?

We found names carved on one of the white mushroom rocks, some dating back to November of 18… was that really November of 1918???? Or someone modern but totally confused about the date? There were settlers living on this crick a hundred years and more ago; we ride regularly by one of the homesteads built into a hillside.

We ended up discovering deer trails leading us in a winding path (with some steep climbs!) back up onto the rim.

Willie still loves being an explorer, and he was so fascinated by the secret Dragon's Backbone that he decided he wants to be a geologist in his next life.

*Old Explorers is, by the way, a fabulous older movie, if you can get your hands on it

**Bentonite? I don't know for sure, I'm not a geologist. But Hillbillie Willie will be able to tell you for sure in his next life.

Bandit Springs: Forest Dude

Saturday July 11 2015

He's a Desert Dude, used to wide open spaces and few trees that monsters can hide behind (only small monsters live behind sagebrush).

Bandit Springs last weekend in Oregon was Dudley's first forest endurance adventure. He went with his pasture mate Smokey and his neighbor August. The best part, of course, was the grassy meadow we camped in. Ohhhh, that rich grass smorgasbord reaching to his kneecaps, that he loved to stuff in his mighty mouth at every opportunity!

You can see he's scarfed the tall grass in his immediate reach, and he's plotting how to reach the rest

It was Dudley's first time on a high tie, which I was a bit leery of, since we were camped in such a tasty meadow. Middle of the first night, he was pulling and yanking and squeaking and stretching that high tie so hard, he woke us all up, and Steph took the high tie down and I tied him right to the trailer.

My biggest fear for Dudley at that ride was him getting loose, and getting lost in the forest, and me never seeing him again. Horses have gotten lost before. And guess what happened the second middle of the night, right before our Saturday ride. He got loose! Suspicious noises woke Steph and Carol up (they were sleeping in the horse trailer; I was sleeping in Helen's freight liner.) He was on the other side of our trailer, devouring an entire bucket of beet pulp!

Now my second biggest fear, almost as big as the first, is Dudley getting loose from his trailer and getting into every single bucket of grain in Ridecamp. Fortunately, he was easy for Carol to catch, but who wouldn't be, after a big satisfying bucket of beet pulp, from which he was still licking the crumbs? He had pulled his entire halter off his head, but I think it was from scratching and trying to rub behind his ears, because he was very itchy there. Nevertheless, Carol put his halter on tightly, and I gave him a stern lecture, because he scared the crap out of me (and a hug because I was so glad he wasn't lost), and I went to bed praying he would have no ill effects from a bucket of beet pulp. Needless to say, every time he made any kind of noise (banging his hay net against the trailer, sloshing water while drinking, peeing, or farting) I instantly sat up, wide awake, and looked out to see if he was still tied to the trailer. I didn't get any more sleep before my alarm went off at 5 AM.


Carol and August led Steph and Smokey, me and Dudley, out onto the trails for the 50 mile ride on Saturday. We had a twenty mile loop back to camp and a vet check, then a 30 mile loop, with an out vet check. The previous day we'd gone out on the 10-mile loop for exercise and to get used to the scary forest monsters, like fallen monster trees, scary tree stumps, and a herd of over 50 elk whose bugling squeaking trumpeting calls so alarmed our horses that we all jumped off before they ejected us. The elk herd seemed to want to make our acquaintance, and I left the horses, screened behind trees, and ran out to scare steer the herd away from us. Yes, a person on foot can turn away an entire elk herd that's bearing down on you!

On ride day, our horses weren't scared o' no stinkin' tree stumps or monsters. Or elk, which was fine with all of us, because they might have still been a bit alarming. The horses know the difference between deer or antelope, which they know, and elk, which they do not!

Dudley's other favorite part of the forest ride was the two wild turkey feathers he found, that he had me stick in his bridle. (Dudley always finds things: feathers, neat rocks, deer antlers.).


And his other favorite part of the ride was the vet checks where horses had a treat of oat soup waiting for them!


The other best part of the forest ride was the cool weather and the rain. Everybody I talked to only knew Bandit Springs as hot and dusty. We got lucky this year, the 25th anniversary of Bandit Springs. It was so pleasantly cool in the morning, in the 60's to 70's, and in the afternoon, scary-looking thunderheads built above us and finally blanketed the sky with heavy dark clouds. After the vet check, a delicious rainstorm, with no lightning!, soaked us and turned the trails to slick-snot mud, as we plodded through the dark forest, the pine and fir trees beating with dripping water. My other favorite part of the ride, besides the forest trails, the Ochoco Mountains, riding a big handsome beast, and the rainstorm, was the lovely trill of the hermit thrush which serenaded us all day long.

Always mugging for the camera!

Our horses walked the entire last 12 miles or so, because the mud was so slick. But we finished before the cut-off time, and our horses looked and felt absolutely great afterwards. The six Pickett Crick Musketeers did it again!

oops, not quite a wide-enough angle lens!

And the other best part of the ride was the 25th anniversary handmade ride award necklaces and key chains made with jasper and quartz rocks hand picked by ride manager Janelle and her son Spencer from Doyle Spring on the trail. The Raven had a hard time picking his favorite one.


And the best best part is, Dudley's not just a desert horse anymore. Now he's a Forest Dude!


More stories and pictures from the 25th anniversary of the Bandit Springs ride here!
http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2015BanditSprings/

Meet the Fab Team 100-Mile Fandango Horses

Steve Bradley photo!

It's less than 5 days (!!) till the Owyhee Fandango 100. Time to meet the Fab Team's Fleet Four-legged Fancy Frolicking Steeds.

Jose: The Deep Thinker

Most of you already know my thoughts and feelings about Jose, The Best Horse Ever. Jose is a highly intelligent being. He notices things. I am positive he appreciates the scenery around him. He looks at things, studies them, ruminates about them. Around the house, up the canyon, out on the trail, he discerns things before I do, and he communicates with me. He'll tell me to come open a gate. He'll tell me right where a tick is biting him (like underneath, in the fold of skin by his sheath, or in an armpit). He'll spy a speck of a coyote far in the distance. I swear that when he stops on top of hills on a ride and studies his surroundings, his GPS synapses are firing in his brain, connecting the dots on a complex mental map. 

I talk to him a lot, explain things, because he just might understand everything I say.

Jose's much more competitive than I am on a ride, but he's very controllable. Last year Jose and I did 720 miles together, and that earned my first AERC vest, ever, for 2nd place in the Northwest featherweight division in mileage. 

Last year Jose did his first 5-day ride in a row at the Owyhee Canyonlands. This will be his first 100 miler. If he finishes, he'll hit 2000 miles.

Jose's owned by Steph, but he's my Heart Horse. I didn't plan it that way… it just happened. : )

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Steve Bradley photo!

August: The Turbinator

Point him down the trail, and he's gone, like he's got turbo rockets in those feet! Carol owned this horse once previously, then she sold him. It was a heartbreaker for her, not to mention we almost beat her senseless because she loved that horse. That's her business, buying and selling horses, so she was just doing her job. But, by a twist of fate last year, she came to own him again. They took about a year to really get to know each other again, and now Carol really loves him. August has become a monster on the trail on the five 50-mile rides they've done together over the last year.

Carol hasn't come close to finding his bottom yet. The Fandango will be his first 100 miler. Carol will hit 6000 miles herself if they complete.

And this time we will totally for sure beat her senseless if she ever tries to sell this horse again.

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Finneas: The Opinionator

Finneas, grandson of the Black Stallion, is not short on self-confidence or ego. He has opinions about EVERYTHING, how fast to go, which way to go, who should be in front on trail (him), where the other horses should go (behind him), when to eat (all the time, unless he's trying to get ahead of somebody on trail). When I told Finneas he'd better shape up because he's doing a 100, said, "I'm going to win! I'm the Grandson of the Black Stallion!! What's a 100?" 

He's an easy keeper, so, much to his chagrin, he's had to go on a diet before the Fandango - locked up and fed small rations of hay so he'll lose some weight. He hates diets. He screams like a girl when he sees me coming in the morning with his breakfast hay.

It will be Finneas' first 100 miler, and Connie's first 100 miler.

Steve Bradley photo!

Stay tuned for the Crick Girls' 100-mile adventure in the Owyhee Fandango 100 on Sunday May 27!

Click the link for a video of Jose's next-to-last training ride for the 100.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUMSb3W0fC4

and follow updates of our ride! at:
http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2012Fandango/

The Final Pre-Fandango Shindig

Monday May 15 2012

It's 13 days before the 100-mile Owyhee Fandango, and we gave the boys their final longest and hardest ride of 22 miles. I rode Jose, Carol rode August, and since Connie is still out of town, Judy sub-jockeyed on Finneas. (We all decided Connie needs to bake Judy one of her famous cakes as thanks.)(Which we all get to sample.)

We lit out across country to Regina's place, 11 miles at a smart clip (from 8 to 12 mph), sustained trotting most all the way, minimal climbing and descending, mostly trails and two-track. Jose and I thought it was a bit warm, but I purposely didn't didn't braid his mane, and I purposely did not wear my cool vest yet. 

At Regina's house we sponged the boys off and let them rest and graze, while we ate our lunch and grabbed some cool water from the house (thanks Regina!). Not that we're wimps or anything, but we were grateful for the high cloud cover that snuck over during our lunch break, or else it would have been a lot hotter on the ride home.

After a half hour break, we mounted up and rode the 11 miles back home. 

And that's it. The boys are ready. Between now and the 100-mile ride, we'll take them on two more easy rides of 5-7 miles. We are fortunate to have 200 acres for the horses to move about on, and they do that, up and down the canyon at least once a day. (Well, Finneas is still working on his diet right now; losing weight is the most important thing for him.)

I discovered a few things on this longer ride I need to adjust.

I need to attach a third water bottle holder on my saddle. I DEFINITELY need to freeze my water bottles the night before the 100. Drinking warm water is disgusting and does not quench my thirst. I'll drink much more and stay better hydrated if my water is cold or at least cool.

I definitely need a haircut. Jose will have his mane braided. I definitely need to find cooler tights, and I will be wearing my cool vest. Our horses (and me!) will be wearing a turquoise bead in their manes so we don't get struck by lightning (old Navajo saying; I don't know if it applies to white people and their horses, but I'm doing it just in case!).

I need to get in better shape! I was whooped after our ride and I felt like I'd just done a 50 mile ride. I would have had 78 more to go! If I were a bigger and better man, I'd have gone out in the evening and done a 5-6 mile hike.

But, I'm not and I didn't. I had a nice smoothie and a bowl of popcorn and watched my soap on Hulu, and went to bed early. 

Jose is ready! I'll work on conditioning myself more another day.

Meet the Owyhee Fandango 100-Mile Team

Saturday May 12 2012

3 girls, 3 horses.

Carol gathered a few quick pictures to give you an idea of who we are:

Connie & Finneas

Carol & August

Me & Jose

I'll flesh out the characters in another blog entry.

Connie's gone till next weekend, so right now I'm keeping two horses fit - Jose and Finneas. We also put Finneas on a diet!!!! He needs to lose about 20 pounds before the ride. As Steph pointed out, it's the heat that will affect him most - he doesn't pulse down fast anyway (probably that appy blood in him, plus he's a black horse), and the more fat he carries, the harder it will be to dissipate that heat in his body. Finneas is not fond of dieting. He can scream like a girl horse when he's starving, which, when he's on a diet, is every time he sees me walk by. I tell him it's for his own good, but he does not believe me!

Connie is having some trouble with counting, as, for the last week, she's been thinking we have 20 days to go till the ride, when it's really only 15 days left!

Steph is considering having a teams competition for the ride, and regardless, we three girls on the crick need a team name. For some reason, the "F" team seems to have come up, from some of the emails Flying between us:

Ferociously FABULOUSLY Far-freaking-out FAMOUSLY FIT 'n FABULOUS FEMME FATALES on Flying horses…

and right now Fiiineas is Fabulously Fit and Fabulously Fat (and Fabulously opinionated)

And don't any of you add "funky" and "flatulent"!

Maybe readers will have some better suggestions than "Team F" … how about it? 

Suggestion anybody?

P.S. I wish I could say I did the artwork, but Carol found them online! They fit us each so well, don't you think?

The Big One Hundred

Sunday May 6 2012

Let me preface this by saying, It Was Not My Idea.

I was ready and able to help on the 100-mile day at our upcoming 3 day Owyhee Fandango at the end of May. And I was ready to help crew for Carol and Connie.

Carol hasn't done a 100 since 2007. If she finishes, she'll get her 6000 miles! It will be her horse August's first 100. Connie has never done a 100, nor has her horse Finneas, but they both have the gas and gumption to git 'er done.

Connie and Carol have been sending psyching-up-encouragement emails to each other. Connie has a little good luck present for Carol. I've been sending both of them a few inspirational emails, such as, 

"The Moon Phase on 27 May, 100-mile ride day, will be waxing crescent (36% illuminated), which in this desert will be bright enough so you can see to comfortably pick your nose."

Today, Steph sez, "Why don't you wear the helmet cam, and ride Jose on the hundred with them?"

WHA……..?!?!!?!?!??!?!??!?!?!??!?!

I've been quite content to do 50's on Jose. To some 100-mile gurus, that's not 'real endurance' and I'm a wimp. I'm here to say that I am not a wimp, but you can call me lazy, if you must. To me, 50 miles is just dandy - I get good pleasure and exercise (and sometimes sore) from 50-mile rides (multi-days are my favorites), and I have time to post pictures and report at the end of the day. I haven't done a 100 since 2009. Jose's never done a 100. If Jose completes, he'll get his 2000 miles.  

Oh dear! I was cruising through life all happy and lazy, taking on little challenges like 50 mile rides now and then, with nothing piled on and spilling over my plate to worry about. Now I have a LOT to chew on. Now I must begin a major mind shift. I have to think about things like, how to optimally train Jose? He's fit, having done 2 50's this month, 3 weeks apart, but… now what? a few short rides? a long ride? both? a lot of short rides? Walking? Trotting in sand? Hills? What am I going to eat? I don't like to eat on 100's, but I must. It'll take me weeks to figure out what to eat! I better start cooking many things now, so that I have a variety to choose from! What to pack for the vet checks - some of them will be out-vet checks. In fact 3 out vet checks; 2 of them will be in different places, so I'll have to pack 2 different bags for each hold (and double the goodies in one vet check bag). What to put in the bags for me, and what for Jose?? Jose will need a variety of grain and hay and a change of saddle pads and cinch and grooming brushes and brushing boots and extra horse Easyboots and a blanket in case it's cool or wet or windy, and a variety of food and frozen water and gatorade and Starbucks coffee drinks and a change of clothes and bandaids and Ibuprofen for me… Do we (Jose and I) each need a bag at each vet check, and what, now I have to pack 4 bags?? What about the weather - will it be comfortable, or will it be hot? Too hot? What if it's too hot?? Ohmigod what if there are thunderstorms???? And now I have to look at maps! Now I have to charge lots of batteries for the helmet cam… and decide which vet bags to pack them in and decide on what 8 hours of footage to shoot. And what about that starting time - 5:30 AM!!! I don't like that side of the morning!

Steve Bradley photo!

On the other hand, I'll get to make a special video of a 100-mile ride, of a special place (the Owyhee desert) with Big Things on the horizon, and hopefully not the sunrise 24 hours later! I will discover one hundred new ways to admire the Owyhee desert. I will soon share a new experience with Jose Viola.

And, a big motivator is that I'll now be in on the little prezzies Connie is creating. My prezzie for the three of us will be beads for our horses' manes.

Daily emails have begun flying. Here is Connie's from today:

we are strong , fit , smart gorgeous and ready , and have excellent crew and steeds . 

I may have to shave my legs and paint my nails.

and 

so 21 days and counting? steeds and gals stupendous fabulous ,willing and ready for anything. 

I have 21 days to psyche myself up! Don't know if I'll inform Jose about it yet or not. : ) 

Let the psyching begin!

[If you missed them, videos that I made of our Tough Sucker I ride, and videos Steph made of the Tough Sucker II ride are here on Endurance.net.]

(And, if plans change and I need to help during the 100 miler, instead of ride, it's because I need to help, NOT because I am chicken or wimpy or lazy.)