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The first loop was over (thank god), Miguel and Tigre were both good to go.
Farod got a change of clothes (I can't imagine riding that loop in
sea-soaked clothing) and was game for another loop. My mare had pulsed down
quickly, a great improvement over the ride we did 6 weeks earlier, she was
fit, feeling good, eating well, and the rest of the day was looking good.
The 30 minute hold went very quickly, but the horses looked great, ate well,
things were looking up. Leo had come in before Miguel, Farod and I and his
horse Austria had a questionable trot - mandatory recheck. During the hold
they discovered several burs (common in the dunes grass) stuck to her legs
and heels. Plucked them out, and that seemed to solve the problem. She was
good to go, and left around 10 minutes ahead of us.

There were 6 Pavlovsky horses riding in the PAC -  Miguel, Farod, Leo and
me - plus Miguel's gaucho Hugo, and Hugo's son Hugito. Hugo and Hugito were
on fit seasoned horses, and moving along well in front of us. There were
also about 20 Pavlovsky crew people, family, friends, grooms, all fast and
efficient. Working hard when the riders came in, cleaning up, setting up,
for the next round, and then taking serious matte breaks when time
permitted. Argentines take their yerba mate very very seriously. (as serious
as many of us N. Americans take our coffee). It's a somewhat bitter tea
brew, high in caffeine like tea, customarily drunk from a dried hollow
gourd, using a metal stem-like straw. Rich with custom, the sharing of mate
between companions is a serious affair. I thought Argentines were the most
dedicated mate drinkers in S. America until I saw the Uruguayans. They were
rarely seen without a mate cup in hand, leather slings for the thermos of
hot water and yerba over their shoulders. This may explain their winning
performances....

John and Pablo helped crew for me all day. Always there- John (in between
taking photos) and Pablo (in between crewing for the rest of the gang). They
were wonderful. Pablo is the husband of Miguel and Celina's daughter
Carolina. Tall and thin, and a new zest and passion for Endurance. He grew
up with horses, but didn't ride much as an adult until he and Carolina and
their children moved to the same area as Miguel. He started training horses
with Miguel at the country club, and started doing rides and never looked
back. Pablo is the president of Burger King in Argentina. A self-made
success. After his father died, leaving his mother with 7 children to raise,
Pablo's aunt gave him her savings, and sent him to Colorado - to spend a
year in the US in order to learn English (a key to success if you're
Argentine). He arrived speaking no English whatsoever, but being young and
smart and determined, he returned to Argentina fluent and comfortable in the
new language. He started working for  Burger King - starting at the bottom,
and gradually worked his way up to the top, a lot of hard work. But he
doesn't miss a day of riding, up early every morning working the horses with
Miguel.

I asked Pablo during one of the morning training rides if it wasn't hard to
keep such a schedule, up riding every morning before work. No, he said - I
live for this now. Riding has changed my life. Yep :)

We saddled up and headed out for loop 2, a determined Miguel, a relieved me,
and a dry Farod. It was still dark, but a hint of light on the horizon.
(btw, in the southern hemishere, if one faces the equator, the arc of the
sun travels from right to left... just the opposite. That always made me
pause and ponder. They also say that the water in the s. hemisphere toilets
flushes counterclockwise instead of clockwise. I watched a lot of toilets
flush, but never did observe this to my satisfaction...)

We picked up the dirt roads heading towards the neighboring town, a charming
community of gorgeous homes, classy shops, and sand roads. Very beachy and
ritzy. Horses felt great, strong and pulling. I was starting to feel sharp
pain in my shins and had to adjust my balance. I had shorted my stirrups a
notch for the first loop, and was wearing new half chaps. The flexion of the
muscles and tightness of the chaps below my knees was starting to bruise. It
felt like shin splints, and I was a little worried about doing 80 more miles
like this... but oh well, gotta go.

As soon as we hit the first road with good footing we broke into a canter.
Miguel said - 'now we can move out, we have a lot of catching up to do'.
Obviously the 30 minutes we lost on the lead from the early morning
escapades hadn't dimmed his hopes on a win. I felt like it was still best to
stay together, enjoying the speed, but hoping it wasn't too much for my
horse - she wasn't as fit as the others. Farod was still battling his mare,
but we were getting better at quickly moving into formation to hold her
back.

We zoomed through the town streets, enough light to see by now, and dropped
down to the beach again. This was a wonderful stretch - moving fast and
steady, staying at the water's edge where the sand was hardest, hitting the
shallow waves. I can never get enough of this. I caught site of Steve and
Dinah Rojek - looking good, travelling a ways in front of us. We caught up
with Hugo and Hugito just as we left the beach and headed up into the dunes.
It was absolutely gorgeous, the air was misty and thick - trails through
undulating dunes, winding through groves of trees, cresting dunes to see
long stretches of rippled sand dissappear into the fog. One of my favorite
sections of the ride.

Farod was still having a hard time, seemed to be getting desparate, I don't
think he was having any fun, and he couldn't seem to find a rhythm with the
horse. At one point Hugo looked back as Farod made a particularly loud
exclamation, Miguel explained that Farod couldn't control the horse, maybe
the bit wasn't adjusted right. Hugo and Hugito glanced at each other, and in
a second, as if choreographed, while the horses were clipping along, Hugito
slipped off his horse while Hugo grabbed the rains, not missing a beat.
Hugito ran towards us while Hugo ponied his horse. Hugito grabbed Farod's
horse running along beside, looked at the bit, attached the curb chain,
flashed him a quick smile, and before Farod could respond had caught back up
with his own horse and vaulted back into the saddle, as Hugo released the
reins.

Hugito's son, Hugotito, is 2 years old, and I hear stories about him,
already riding on his own, refuses to be led or helped, already lives to
ride. Horsemen.

We left the dunes, still foggy and misty, met the road crew, some water and
encouragement, and then had a long gallop along the highway. A few rigs went
by, but mostly it was just quiet and misty and wonderful galloping along. My
legs were really starting to hurt now, wet from the ocean gallop, tight
chaps, short stirrups, but no real opportunity to make any real adjustments.
(gotta go).  I focused on keeping balanced which seemed to help, but I was
seriously starting to worry...

Back into camp, John and Pablo there to meet me, the horses looked great
again, pulsed down fairly quickly, trotted out fine (I had Pablo trot
Gordita for me, she was a lazy trotter with me, but seemed to do better with
Pablo). Back at the crew area I decided to back off of the pace. My mare was
really feeling strong, and I think she could have kept up the pace
metabolically, but I was worried about her legs. She had only been in
training for 3 months (following a year of rest after the 2003 season) and
the Pinamar course is a tough one - lots and lots of sand. I did not want to
risk any lameness with her.

Miguel left on time and I decided to stay an extra ten minutes, let Gordita
eat some more, and separate her from the others. I never saw Farod again
that day. His horse vetted through, but I think he had had enough. When I
left for the 3rd loop, alone, I had that wonderful feeling - now, it was
'my' ride, I could focus on the horse, on the course, on the day, and not
worry about the others, not worry about the others worrying about me, and
mostly not worry about going too fast - just do our best ride, mile by mile.
The pain in my legs got pretty intense again not long after leaving. I let
the stirrups down a notch, seemed to help, and loosened the strap on the
chaps - better, but still hurting. 65 more miles?

(more later)




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