Ridecamp: [RC] nick warhol- tevis 2002 story 3 of 5

nick warhol nickw@xxxxxxxxx
Robinson Flat- you have to see this place on ride day to believe it.  It?s a beehive of activity, to say the least.  The Tevis ride people do an unbelievable job of managing this kind of stuff, the horses flowed into the P&R and vets with lines that were certainly okay for the number of horses.   Some of the vet checks seemed to take a little longer than they might have, but I?d rather make sure the horse is right and wait a couple more minutes.  Judy and Jackie took great care of Holly and me at the check- I just love that.  I got to sit down and eat my egg salad sandwich and many cokes while they toiled over the horses.  It is here you can get your first reports on your friends, as well as hear the start of the stories.  Gary Fend managed to not get lost enough to still be in it, he was riding with his daughter Jamie again this year.  Gary lost his wonderful Mare Cinabar to a tragic pasture accident last year, (she was two for two at Tevis) but his new gelding, Smokey, was doing very well so far, even after falling down in the rocks up in the wilderness.  Becky and Heather Hackworth had pulled at Lyon Ridge already, Quenby was still in it, Dave Rabe has crashed on Cougar Rock, someone has fallen at Elephant trunk and broken their arm, there was a heart attack, all kinds of stories, info, and rumors.  Holly was eating, but not as much as I would have expected, but Redman ate anything she had neglected.  The hour hold goes quickly- Gloria and I headed back out right on time.  It was already getting very warm, much hotter than last year.  We took it pretty easy down the long, rocky downhill Cavanaugh Ridge that leads to the freeway dirt road.  We moved along at a good clip all the way to Dusty Corners for a water stop.  No vet check here this year, it had been moved to Last Chance, about 7 more miles down the trail.   Holly drank, but only nibbled at her food.  We turned down the recently new single track trail that winds along the top of a mountain ridge.  It is very pretty- nice and shady, with most of it trot-able.  There is one turn I have dubbed the ?airplane? turn, because when you ride around that one turn, you can look down into the canyon about two thousand feet.  Gulp.  What a view!  We trotted down into Last Chance and the next check, where once again, Holly was so low on pulse that the vets were shaking their heads.  How about a CRI of 48/44?  I?ll take it.  She finally started eating here, so we let her munch for a while before we started out again, down the first canyon to the swinging bridge.  Rocky, Rocky, Rocky.  I led Holly down on foot, that trail is just beat to death.  The river at the bottom is a welcome site, we went down in and I soaked myself while soaking Holly.  It was really hot- that water felt good.  Holly walked across the wild bridge with no problem, you should have seen Redman, he was looking back and forth, side to side as he walked across the wobbly thing.  We walked up the long, rocky, steep switchback trail to Devil?s thumb.  Boy, it was hot.  The rest stop on top is wonderful, like all the spots on this ride where crews can?t go.  I think it was a troop of boy scouts up here, swarming around the riders like flies, doing whatever they could.  I had a young kid sponging Holy down for ten minutes while she ate.  It?s stuff like this that makes this ride so neat.  I probably drank 20 bottles of water on the ride, and I never filled one myself.  After the horses rested a bit up in the shade, we rode on down to the next vet check at Deadwood.  I got pulled here last year- bad memories.  Holly was perfect, again, pulse like 48.  She was eating now, so we stayed a bit to let her pound down a mash.  Redman had been recovering better and better as the vet checks went on- he really was getting stronger as we went.


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