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[RC] Kathy and Mary's NC experience - Mary HowellPerfect fall weather, spacious basecamp, scenic trails and excellent ride management made this year's NC an incredible experience. This was the 3rd NC I've been able to attend but the first for my longtime friend Kathy Shank from PA. We met at our friend Lynne's place off I-81 to share expenses the rest of the 650+ mile trip and stopped several times to let our horses eat grass, arriving well before dark on Thursday to help crew for friends in the 100. Small fire pits and plenty of lighting kept the atmosphere warm and bright as the first 100's started finishing. We walked in the moonlit darkness to meet Lisa Green and her mare Amana at the finish line. Amana was 1st alternate for the US Team which just left for Malaysia and trotted out as sprightly for her completion exam as if she hadn't done a thing all day, earning compliments from the vets. I took advantage of Lisa's hotel room and shower that night, and spent most of Friday enjoying the 100 mile awards brunch, catching up with friends and visiting the numerous tack vendors. After the vet-in, we stood in line to get our horses' portraits done. Genie's assistant made lots of noise and shook things to get my laid back horse Shiloh's ears to prick up and she finally got a decent shot. We also had Guy the farrier apply Vettec sole guard to our horse's feet to protect again the loose gravel on trail. After dinner with excellent live music (Amy Whelan could be a country music star!) we went to bed early and were awakened after midnight by the sound of light rain. It was still drizzling when I fed at 5:30 but stopped by the time we tacked up. Ride management did a good job or asking everyone to sort themselves according to where they wanted to ride all day, and at 7:30 Bill Wilson led all 114 riders in a controlled start. Within 20 minutes, Kathy and I were hand galloping in a window of space all by ourselves. As usual, I was riding the soft shoulder to try to save my old horse's legs when a dead tree limb caught me just above the crotch and broke with a loud sound. It hurt for a few minutes but luckily I was OK. We're used to the Old Dominion trail's rocks and long hill climbs, so the nearly rock-free NC trail was a delight and we flew along, slowing only for asphalt road crossings. As Shiloh drank deep from a trough coming into the first hold, I was amazed as Valerie Kanavy came up with an offer to help sponge and check Shiloh's heartrate. I first met Valerie in 1998 when she was presented with a Horseman of the Year award from the Virginia Horse Council for her 2nd WEC win. Here she was helping out just like anyone else! During the hold, Jody Buttram asked if I'd be willing to sponsor 14 year old Maggie Becker, who'd lost her original sponsor. I told Maggie's parents I'd be delighted to help. Her horse had done the 1st loop so fast she had to wait 7 minutes until my out time but proved to be a great companion on trail. She, Kathy and I hooked up with Julie Jackson on the 2nd loop, who she set an smart pace - fast wherever possible but slow and careful down the steep switchbacks. None of the climbs lasted long enough to be exhausting, but by the 2nd hold some horses were faring better than others. Despite the cool temps and being clipped, my half QH took 5 minutes longer to pulse than Kathy's horse Dancer, so we told her to "go for it" on the last 13 mile loop back to camp. We were crewing next to Val's horse that ended up winning the 50 and he sure is a nice looking horse! As Maggie and I waited by the out timer and watched the revved up frontrunners with out times near ours, we agreed to keep a steady pace and not worry about being passed. This paid off in the last 5 miles of the ride as we passed several riders whose horses were just walking. Taking a long drink of water after the last long climb, Shiloh let Maggie's horse lead the way the last 1.5 miles. Crossing the finish line, Lisa who was crewing for us said we were just outside top 10 and that Kathy ended up in 5th place as 1st featherweight. Kathy has a demanding job plus is a mother of three, so doesn't get to go to as many rides as I am able to. She had been training and conditioning her talented young horse Dancer for nearly 4 years to get ready for a test such as this and boy did all the hard work pay off. Kathy said she'd never ridden that fast for that long before! I got to watch most of the BC judging and we found out at awards that her horse was 2nd in the BC judging. If only she'd carried a bit more weight! Our original plan was to leave before sundown but having done so well, we decided to stay for awards. Kathy and Teresa (Val's rider in the 50) grabbed much-needed hot showers at the hotel. Meanwhile, after a nap, I took our horses on a long grass-eating stroll. We were all packed up by the start of the awards. After a yummy hot dinner, they must have given out 50 door prizes - including several high dollar items such as saddles - before starting on awards. Lots of applause punctuating winners in the various categories. We finally headed out around 9:30 pm, buying diesel for the jaw-dropping price of $3.19 gallon just before crossing back into Kentucky. Taking turns driving and sleeping in the back seat, we made it back to Lynne's by sunrise and I was home by noon on Sunday. For anyone who hasn't had a chance to go to a championship ride, you'll have an amazing good time even if your goal is just getting around the course. I most enjoyed riding a new trail, seeing horses from all over the country and meeting new friends as well as catching up with old friends. The entry fee is a bit higher but ride management made sure everyone left with a ton of loot...all entries got a bag full of goodies, with embroidered sweatshirts as completion prizes and Top 20 special awards as well as Top 10 awards. I can't wait til the NC comes our way again! - Mary Howell =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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