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[RC] Californios - Bruce Weary DC

Dayna and I returned this week from doing the Californios 100, and I thought I'd share a few details about this fantastic ride. The ride is staged on the Pacific Crest Trail around the Lake Hughes area of southern California. The scenery is staggeringly beautiful, and the course is as tough or tougher than Tevis. That point is constantly debated by those doing the ride. There is certainly more climbing than Tevis, but perhaps better footing. And, although the ride can be as hot or hotter than Tevis, this year the weather Gods smiled on us.
On the way to the ride, I was feeling restless about not knowing whether my Foxtrotter mare really had what it takes to try Tevis, so I asked Dayna how she felt about upgrading to the 100 instead of the 65. God love her, she's always game. So, we threw our hat in the ring, and began preparing crew bags and strategy for the 100 instead, vetted in, and slept soundly before our 3:30 wake up time arrived all too soon.
We took the trail quietly in the cool morning, and immediately climbed 2500 feet to an elevation of 5700, and danced through oak forests and varied terrain on the PCT, for about half the ride. There was plenty of water on the well-marked trail. Our horses were strong all day, and passed the vet checks easily, even with pulse criteria of 56 and CRI's performed at each check. At about the halfway point, the trail changes to good fire road, and there are continual climbs of 800 to 1000 feet as late as 75-85 miles into the ride. Finally, at about 90 miles, you begin the descent back down the mountainside toward basecamp. There is a vet check at 97 miles where we were met by sleepy but dedicated volunteers, and we got a good look at our horses in the lighting provided. They both had the "look of eagles" in their eyes, and ate ravenously. With only three miles to go, my wife's horse (it was his first 100) made it difficult for her to mount up, as if to show her who's boss at 97 miles. We finished at 3:00 am, took care of our horses, thanked them for their efforts, and dropped into bed. Two and a half hours later, we were up and getting ready for the delicious breakfast and awards ceremony. We walked back to our campsite holding our prized awards--coffee mugs--and drove home with a great sense of satisfaction, and a new smugness toward the difficult trail that awaits us at Tevis.
Bring it on. Bruce Weary



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