Ridecamp: [RC] Morgan Springs

Morgan Springs 100
July 27, 2002

When I had first sent in my entry I simply checked off the box for the 50 
miler.  I wasn?t really thinking along the lines of doing the 100.  I had 
ridden Rocky 5 days at Schellbourne in June and had not ridden him at all 
for weeks afterwards.  I started riding him to get ready for the 50. 
Usually I ride him the week before a ride and that?s all when he is doing a 
lot of mileage in a year.  He was being a total fruitloop, levitating and 
snorting at things that he?s seen a bazillion times.  So I started thinking 
about doing the 100 (attitude adjustment?).  The next day I ran thru all 
the reasons in my head.  Why do the 100. Why ?not? do the 100.  I kept 
thinking about how hard it would be, how long I would be out on the 
trail.  How hot it would be. (wunderground showed it was 93 degrees and 52% 
humidity at 9 p.m.).  How the winning times the last couple of years have 
ranged from 15 ½ to 16 ½ hours and once you add I hold times I could see 
that I would be out there for a very long time.  I thought about how Rocky 
has a ride 3 weeks after this that is part of a Triple Crown series, with 
his junior rider and I really wanted him to be in good shape for that 
ride.  So all of these thoughts went thru my head. What to do. Decisions, 
Decisions.

Now it was Wednesday before the ride.  I took Rocky out for his third ride 
this week, thinking that this would give me my answer.  It didn?t take 
long.  Pretty soon everything became clear and made sense.  I didn?t really 
have to think about it, I just knew.  Of course I wanted to do the 
100!!  Then I began to get excited at the prospect.  Not of how long I 
would be on the trail, but the idea that I was going to get to ride my 
horse all day and night!  I thought about how few opportunities I have to 
do 100?s, how I missed entering Tevis because I didn?t think I?d be strong 
enough (broken clavicle/punctured elbow 2 months ago), and remembered the 
really great ride I had on the 100 I did in February on Weaver.  I was 
realizing that I needed to seize the opportunity and not pass it up simply 
because it was going to be a challenge and suddenly I was eager to give it 
a try.  As soon as I got back from riding, I called up Charlene and asked 
her if I could change my entry to the 100.  She said sure and changed my 
entry over the phone.  It was only $20 more than the 50 miler entry -- $100 
for the 100.  What a deal!

So here we go --- 5:30 a.m. start.  There was enough light to see well 
already.  A total of 9 of us started the ride.  When I got to the start I 
was actually a minute or two late and 5 or 6 riders had already left and 
most of them were out of sight.  The goal was to complete the ride so I 
wasn?t too concerned.

Our first loop was going to be 43 miles long with a trot by at 17 and a 
full vet check with a ½ hour hold at 24 miles.  We had to dismount at the 
trot by.  There was a creek there and an opportunity for the horses to 
drink.  I was using a new electrolyte on Rocky for this ride and hoping 
he?d do well, and it did make a difference.  He drank well and peed 3 times 
in the first 43 miles.  Sometimes trying something new at a ride really 
pays off.

Not too far from the 24 mile vet check Tinker?s horse lost his easyboot AND 
shoe along with it.  We stopped and I gave her some Vetwrap to use to put 
it back on with.  It was around there that the 50 milers, who started a 
half an hour behind started to pass us.  We made it the rest of the way to 
the vet check.  I brought Rocky over right away and got his pulse and 
vetted before a line formed.  Dave was crewing for me (he said he?s crew if 
I did the 100, but not if I did the 50--more incentive to do the 100!) and 
had Dorothy with him who was crewing for her husband Dennis on the 50.  It 
was shady from trees so I threw a blanket over Rocky?s butt and while he 
ate I got everything together for the next section of trail.  I pulled the 
foam and easyboot stuff out of my crewbag for Tinker, and when she was done 
vetting we glued a boot onto her horses foot.

The 100?s had a ½ hour hold and the 50?s had an hour hold at this check, so 
now it was just us 100?s back out on the trail again.  On this section of 
trail we end up on a lot of the Pacific Crest Trail.  I remember passing a 
sign that said ?Mexico, 1340 miles?.  The trail is really beautiful to ride 
on.  It?s narrow, and winds around the side of the mountains and 
switchbacks here and there.  Soon we made it down to the river and bridge 
crossing.  We headed into the water so the horses could drink.  I 
electrolyted Rocky again after he drank well, then he ate grass.  I love 
these new electrolytes  he hasn?t spit any out!   Now we just had to ride 
back up the trail and cross the wooden bridge.  Just as Rocky was about to 
step out onto the bridge, he started to go down with me.  For an instant I 
didn?t know what was wrong, then somebody started yelling ?BEES 
BEES?.  They were swarming us and stinging Rocky all over.  He didn?t know 
what to do  I think he was going to try and roll.  I pulled him up then he 
started to get really upset.  I wasn?t sure what he was going to do, so I 
jumped off and pulled the reins over his head and we all made a run for it 
across the bridge.  After that point whenever we had to cross that section 
of trail we went thru the river below and not across the bridge.  I think 
the horse in front of us disturbed the hive.  Better to leave the bees 
alone!  I was stung on my right hand right thru my glove  boy that was a 
gnarly sting and I knew why the horse was so unhappy.  Ouch!! My hand 
swelled up and went numb.  Not a big deal, I still had one good hand.   (ha)

Now we were climbing up on more narrow trail.  Then winding thru more 
forest.  The trail is really fun and a blast to ride.  I remember passing a 
sign that said it was 4.8 more miles back to camp.  You can?t go really 
fast over this trail, since it?s singletrack and winds so much and has 
rocks that can be trippy.  It wasn?t too long tho, before we made it back 
into camp.  At this check, 43 miles  we just had to meet 60 criteria and do 
a trot-by before going out on a 7 mile loop. Then, at 50 miles we were 
going to get an hour hold and vet check.  The horses seemed to do well with 
only having a ½ hour hold in the first 50 miles.  (of course, we know 
enough to let the horses graze and take care of them even if we aren?t 
forced to by additional hold times)  By this point more of the 50 milers 
were catching and passing us.  Dave Rabe voluntarily pulled at the 50 
check.  I don?t know why, but out on the trail he showed me blisters on his 
hands from holding his horse back.  Horse looked great tho.

During the last 7 miles of the first 50, I caught up to the other horses in 
front of us on the 100.  From that point on, four of us rode together the 
rest of the way.  It was nice to get that hour hold.  Rocky pulsed down 
right away to 60 and vetted thru same as earlier-- not a single problem and 
he looked and felt great.  I was feeling pretty good and excited that we 
were already halfway thru.  During this hour hold we foamed on another 
easyboot on Tinker?s horse, and this one stayed on for the remainder of the 
ride (yay).  For this ride, I put easyboots on all 4 of Rocky?s feet the 
morning the ride started.  I used new boots on his fronts and the same hind 
boots he used all 5 days at Fort Schellbourne.  He did the entire ride 
without losing a boot.

Lunch went well. It was really hot and I made sure to keep myself cool as 
well as the horse.  I love long sleeve coolmax shirts.  I wet myself down 
well before heading out for the next loop.  We now were going to go 25 
miles and then have another vet check with an hour hold back in camp.  So 
off we went!  Pretty soon the four of us were all back together again.  I 
was riding with Robert, Ed and Nicole.  Robert tells me that Nicole has 
done the Virginia City 100 fifteen times.  Holy cow!  We ride together 
exchanging stories and having a great time.  Robert had forgotten his water 
bottles so Nicole was sharing her water with him out of her camelback.  I 
got a great picture of that.

We got in to the 75 mile check and again vetted thru in great shape.  I 
kept up the elyting on Rocky and during lunch I put his ice boots on and 
sat down in the shade and ate an ice cream.  This was fun!  I washed all 
the dirt off of me best I could and put my glo-bars on the 
breastcollar.  Then got my flashlight and a light windbreaker and before I 
knew it we were back out on the trail.  One more 25 mile loop and then we 
would be finished!  Two more people pulled who were behind us, leaving six 
in the ride.  Our group of four stayed together.  After a couple of hours 
out on this loop, Ed?s and my horses were both galloping and we were 
laughing and wondering why walk {g}.  It was the greatest feeling - the 
strength of the beast beneath me - he was feeling incredible and I was 
enjoying every moment of it.  We cruised along pretty good so we?d get thru 
most of the singletrack trippy trail before dark, and we did.  As the sun 
set, the horses grabbed bites of grass along the side of the trail every 
chance they could.  The horses knew the trail even in the dark, and they 
all wanted to go.  We were flying.  It was dark.  Oh wait, I already said 
that.  We did the last 25 miles faster than we did that same loop 
earlier!  I felt almost as if a block wall might rise up at any moment and 
go SMACK, since I couldn?t see squat.  At one point, Rocky moved over to 
the right and I wasn?t sure why until I looked to my left and saw a big 
tree lying in the roadway.  Good thing he can see! I just trusted him and 
let him rock.  This was too much fun.

As we got closer to the finish we all decided that racing in to the finish 
wasn?t such a brite idea.  Not only was it dark (the moon wasn?t even up 
yet), but it was downhill on a rocky road that was slippery, with cars and 
rigs parked on it and there were people, dogs and kids- deer too.  So, we 
decided what order to finish and it all worked out quite nicely.  I just 
knew that if Rocky were to take off with me that I might end up in Chester 
(8 miles down the road from camp) before I could get him 
stopped!  Whew!!!  The next riders behind us finished about midnight.  It 
was 10:30 p.m. when we finished.  Renee was at the finish line, so I let 
Rocky trot her out?errrr?.she trotted Rocky out {bg}.  I love that he felt 
so good.  Rocky?s recoveries are always really good, so he vetted thru real 
fast at the finish and I found out that BC judging was going to be at 8:00 
a.m.  Allrighty, we?ll be there!!!

Sleep.  I can never sleep right after finishing a 100.  I?m too wound 
up.  Renee said I was hyper. (thanx!)  I got Rocky cleaned up, iced his 
legs and hand fed him a bunch of carrots.  Then I got cleaned up and 
crawled into bed.  It was sure quiet.  Just changed our trailer ties over 
to the new hi-ties, and boy WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!  It was soooooo quiet.  No 
noise when the horse moved, I had to keep looking outside to make sure he 
was still there.  He was always still there, eating away.  Morning came 
quickly and I was actually happy to get up.  I figured I wouldn?t have a 
lot of chance at getting BC, since I was the lightest rider.  I was just 
excited about the opportunity to get to show, afterall  this was the first 
time Rocky ever top tenned a 100 before!  He looked really good, didn?t 
have a ding or scratch on him and his legs were tight.  I walked him around 
and trotted him to warm him up.  The vet joked not to trot him too much and 
wear him out and I laughed and said ?well, I didn?t wear him out 
yesterday?, and he laughed back.

As it turns out, on top of a really incredible ride I got to have the icing 
on the cake  Rocky DID get Best Condition!!!  The ride had breakfast for 
the riders, and awards.  Everybody got t-shirts for completion awards, and 
certificates.  Since everybody was in the top ten, we also got stoneware 
mugs and Robert got a nice recliner chair for 1st and I got a fold up table 
for BC, and a metal mug.  Nylon bags with the ride logo were given to the 
first finishers in each weight division too.

The ride also had a 50, and they also put on a LD for the first time.  I 
think there were about 12 riders in the 25 and I have no idea how many were 
in the 50 miler.  The 25?s started in the afternoon. That way the vets 
could be at the away check and trot by for the 50 and 100?s in the 
morning.  It seemed to work out well.  The only 25?s we saw were two (I 
won?t name any names <g>) that got directionally challenged, and did a 
little extra loop.  They both finished tho.  Renee from Northern California 
rode her Morab mare Sere in the 25 (Hugh was right, she really is 
beautiful) with her friend Alison who was on a nice chestnut and got High 
Vet Score.

The trail was really well marked, they did a great job with arrows on all 
of the turns.  They put glo-bars out for the riders who were behind us.  In 
places where the water was difficult to reach they left buckets out so we 
could get water for the horses.  Basecamp is just a few miles outside of 
Chester, California up in the pine trees.  It?s not a real large camp but 
enough room so people aren?t crowded.  There are deer everywhere, and 
plenty of grass around camp if you want to let your horse graze.  The ride 
volunteers and veterinarians are all really nice and friendly.  I thought 
that before when I did the 50, so that?s why I went back.  It?s a great 100 
miler, and one of a very few 100?s in the West region.  I look forward to 
doing it again someday.

Happy Trails!
Karen
in NV
& Rocky
http://members.tripod.com/ridephotos/

Morgan Springs pics:
http://www.endurohorse.com/event_pics.asp?1869p1-karen
http://www.endurohorse.com/event_pics.asp?1863p1-karen
http://www.endurohorse.com/event_pics.asp?1863p1-karen2




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