Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Another awesome ride, I'm tired and happy :)  Clydea and I rode up  
front together all day, along with Christoph and Crockett. I don't  
think there were a lot of riders starting - it was a pretty scary  
weather forecast, and some folks were done after 2 days, and some had  
to get back and go to work. It was a very mellow start, no speed  
demons in this pack.

We trotted up the road for several miles heading east and then turned  
back up into the canyon. Spectacular scenery! Really - this is a very  
very scenic ride. Lots of single track through the canyon, a few  
burro trails that were just wide enough for the horses. A coating of  
snow over everything. My thought going through that canyon was that  
this alone was worth the drive! We rode back up into the juniper and  
pinyon pine till we joined up with yesterdays canyon trail. Today tho  
we took off to the east after dropping back down. And again we rode  
up, and up, and up - until we got to just about the highest point  
around - we could see into Nevada where the casinos dotted the  
border, across the valley to the little town of Searchlight. Crockett  
was full of tales of the early days of endurance - I guess there used  
to be a ride out of Searchlight back in the late 70's - he had a good  
Bill Stuckey story - lots of endurance history there.  Somebody  
should sit down with him some day and record it all.

So we're up on top, windy but not too bad, and it was just about  
perfect. And you know when it's that good, it will probably change.  
The forecast had been calling for rain after 10am. Sure enough at  
about 10:05 we started feeling some stinging snow/hail. The wind was  
pretty strong out of the south/southeast, a straight on headwind, and  
it was getting hard to see. But we were just coming down off the  
highest point, and had started riding down some of the washes where  
the wind wasn't so strong. Wild burro tracks in the dirt.  We could  
see the storm clouds building and rolling as the storm that was  
blowing in from the west arrived - it was spectacular.  I stayed  
plenty warm though - lots of layers, and we picked up the pace after  
the climb, so I actually got hot.  It was  snowing pretty good when  
we got to the vet check. A 30 minute hold - too cold and windy for  
anything longer - time for the horses to eat, for us to grab  
sandwiches and drinks, and then head back to camp. All four horses  
were really well matched - taking turns leading, and the footing was  
perfect. Dirt/sand roads, firm washes, gradual rolling elevation  
changes with a generally downhill trend.  Wind and snow, but when we  
turned back to the north we had a good tail wind, and the snow  
stopped and the sun even broke through a little.

We kept up a good pace all the way in - perfect footing, cool temps,  
good company. It was a blast. Crockett and Christoph tied for first,  
Clydea and I tied for second. (where has chivalry gone! :) I got  
Jaziret fed and cleaned up and showed for BC, he had a good day today  
and I was thrilled with him - he'll be 18 this year, and feels better  
than ever.  I settled into the LQ as the storm blew in full force -   
rain and wind. It's still raining and blowing, and riders are still  
coming in. I'm glad I rode fast today :)

Steph

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