Welcome to Death Valley - Book Review

Friday April 13 2012

(for those of you who missed it on The Raven's blog)

Artist and writer Janet Morgan, of Art & Adventures kindly sent The Raven her latest children's book, "Welcome to Death Valley!"

The book is near and dear to The Raven's heart, not only because he's hiked and flown around Death Valley National Park, and ridden through parts of it on horseback, but Janet's story is told by Ravenna and Ramón, two Ravens who live in the park and who know all its secrets!

Through observant and clever Raven eyes, Ravenna and Ramón give us a guided tour, from the lowest point in Death Valley, Badwater Basin, the salty playa 282 feet below sea level, to the highest point, Telescope Peak, at 11,043 feet; past Zabriskie Point and Gower Gulch, over the spectacular Sand Dunes, through Desolation Canyon, Mosaic Canyon, and Ubehebe Crater.

The Ravens also share other things not as well known: the secrets of the night life in the sand dunes; the special colors of Death Valley in different light; the geology of the mountains and alluvial fans and valleys and ancient waterfalls and lakes, now dry; and, in one of the hottest and driest places on earth, hidden oases with precious water.

Janet has created art around the world and spent much time exploring Death Valley and visiting with Ravens. Her bright and colorful illustrations demonstrate the beauty of Death Valley that the Ravens live in and see every day.

It's not just a children's book. It's also a Raven book, and it's a collector's work of art!

See Janet's website, or order her book, "Welcome to Death Valley!" at

www.artandadventure.com

Owyhee Tough Sucker Loop 2

Saturday April 7 2012

Here's a video of the second 25 miles of the Owyhee Tough Sucker I endurance ride, along the Oregon Trail, around Wild Horse Butte, and along the Snake River.

Another 50 miles completed for Jose and the Raven - that puts Jose only 100 miles away from 2000 miles!

Go Jose!



More photos and videos on the Tough Sucker ride page on Endurance.net:
http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2012ToughSucker/

Owyhee Tough Sucker Loop 1

Saturday April 7 2012

Here's a video of the first 25 mile loop of the Owyhee Tough Sucker, our first endurance ride of the season, just down the road. A cold breezy morning on fresh horses, and a loop through the desert with the Owyhee mountains to the southwest, and the Snake River to the northeast.

Go Jose!

Tough Sucker I Vet In

Sunday April 8 2012

Time for the first local endurance ride of the season: reuniting with old friends and my heart horse, Jose, and yes I was wearing his vest!

Here's a little movie I put together of the vetting in. In the next day's ride, I wore a helmet cam! Movie of that coming up next.

Catch Up

Thursday April 5 2012

• 4000 mile road trip - wheeeee! Trying to get the kinks out of the legs and butt.

• Coverage of the USA Endurance Team Trial in hot, humid Texas. (See coverage, stories, and photos here.) 

• Dead computer to deal with. Fortunately, I am religious about backing up data because of just such disasters, and I had almost everything backed up!

• Borrowed computer work: writing up ride stories, trying to catch up on email, but I think now for real I am forever in an email Black Hole catch-up-deficit.

• Unpacking the suitcases, packing the horse trailer, getting ready for our local first endurance ride on Saturday, on my ♥ horse Jose (and yes, I'll be wearing his vest!)

USA Team Trial in Pictures

Saturday March 31 2012

Up top, that horse is getting cooled down with ice-water towels. It was a brutally hot day (from my perspective, and from some horses' perspectives!)

That's Christina Kimery on the left, and Darolyn Butler on the right. Darolyn is always so photogenic! Christina finished, but Darolyn was pulled.

John Crandell on his super horse Heraldic. They had some bad luck. Heraldic stepped in a hole with a hind leg and was off for several strides. He cantered out of it, and passed the vet exam when they arrived at basecamp for the next vet check, but John opted to quit. "He doesn't owe me anything. He doesn't have anything to prove," John said.

That's one of my favorite people on the left, Jan Worthington, riding Serloki, and the gal in the middle, Lisanne Dorion, is riding one of my favorite horses, Golden Lightning (Leon), owned by Jan. Jan and Lisanne finished the ride. I should know the rider on the right, but I don't!

Heather Reynolds on Riverwatch. They finished 4th.

Melody Blittersdorf and Synthetic. They finished 10th.

Young Rider McCamey Kimbler and Elliptic finished 19th, and behind her is Japanese rider Kyoko Fukumori who unfortunately got pulled. 

Ellen Olson is having so much fun riding SA Belshazzar, she almost rode out of camp without her helmet! She had to go back and get it. They finished 9th.

Don't know this gal, but loved the picture! Cooling off at a crew stop on trail.

Steve Rojek and Kim Denardis, looking good out on trail... but they got pulled.

Eventual winner Jeremy Reynolds and A Kutt Above on the second loop.

Doug Swingley (4 time Iditarod winner-turned endurance rider) on Stars Aflame. They were pulled.

Lindsay Graham and Monk. They were pulled.

Kelsey Kimbler and Cody Canuck finished 12th.

Golden Lightning trotting out at a vet check.

You couldn't miss Pete's Crew. (Becky Hart and No Repeat - Pete - finished 3rd.)

Speaking of - Becky Hart and No Repeat.

Jennifer Stevens, another Young Rider, finished 14th on one of Meg Sleeper's horses, Syrocco Cadence.

At the vet checks, you let the horses eat whatever they want to eat. Valerie Kanavy's horse Reach for the Gold, ridden by Wendy MacCoubrey, wanted grass.

Jeremy Reynolds and A Kutt Above coming across the finish line first.

More stories to come... though my computer died in Texas. Many more photos are up on Endurance.net:
http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2012USATeamTrial/

Road Trip Interrupted!

Sunday April 1 2012

On the way back home, we had to stop at a hotel with HBO to watch the season 2 premier of Game of Thrones!

Oh yea!