Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

I did my first 50+ ride at the Biltmore Mountin' Hopes on Sept 22. For the first time in 3 years, I set up a crew area away from trailer and had a real crew. My husband, Dan, as well as his co-worker, Tammy, who lives in Asheville now, agreed to help crew for me. Along with me and my horse in this one tent, I had two friends and their horses, and their crew sharing.

 

First of all, did you know that while YOU and I are on the trail, OUR crews are having a MAJOR B!TCHFEST about how unappreciative we are, how demanding we are, and how rude we are to are them, and how they are idiots for agreeing to be our crew?? It turns out they wait for hours in the crew area, either bored out of the minds (so they start talking to the other crew about how they hate being crew and are never doing it again) or hauling heavy bucket of waters, to the point THEY b!tch about being sore for the next week (hello? who just rode tons of  miles??). Then we come barging into the crew area, demanding the crew to produce beet pulp, electrolytes, AND strip the horse AT THE SAME TIME! Then we comlain (loudly) that they forgot to have ice water, pain killers, and a sandwhich at the tent for us LIKE THEY WERE DIRECTED.Then we tear a&& out of the crew area at the end of the hold with not so much as a genuine Thank You.

 

Second of all, remember my husbands co-worker , Tammy, that I mentioned at the beginning? Ok, it's NEVER good when a member of your crew arrives IN TEARS and then LEAVES after the first hold. Granted, Tammy is not a horse person. She has no experience being around them. But, she was very excited to help out. On her way to basecamp to help crew (she was arriving a little late), she and her husband were driving on the the dirt road, which unfortunately is also the designated trail. I happened to be on this road/trail, just a little in front of them, when I hear quite a commotion. I see Tammy and her husband in a cute convertible with the top down, in the middle of the road (not pulled off to one side like most people would) surrounded on ALL sides by riders. My eyes are drawn to a horse whose butt in backed up to the convertible, almost touching, and the riding screaming to Tammy and her husband, "What the hell is wrong with you!? Do you want your car destroyed!?" I learn later that this pack of riders had overcome Tammy, then a rider further back had zoomed past the group, causing the horses to side step and spook a bit, and Tammy just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, although most people in vehicles will have pulled over to the far side of the road when approaching riders or being passed. After one hold, she was feeling a "bit" overwhelmed by horses everywhere and the intense craziness of it all, and her and her husband left.

 

Just something to think about

 

Christina, Pensacola, FL