> Is that the Bridgeport 50miler (or is it 100)? I have been up in the
> Bridgeport area a few times and my interest perked up when I saw
> your description? Do they do more or less the same route each year?
> If so, can you provide any descriptions? I would expect to find it
Well Joe, It's a very nice ride. It's a 50/30. Though Mountainous
(Bridgeport is around 8,000 ft) I rate it as only semi-difficult. (A
lot of that rating comes from my horse being a beach boy and the
altitude is tough to get him used to) The 30 (they call it a 25, but
it's like 28 miles or so as I recall) is fairly easy actually. The only
real climb is the last ten or so miles.
Also I rate it as semi-tough as one of the vets made me go back through
the line at the post ride thereby only just barely making my time limit
because she caught me massaging Rebel's ears while she took Pulse rate.
Sheeze!!!! The P&R people that year weren't too well trained as I got
held back at one of the vet checks by a P&R volunteer for 45 minutes that
thought the respiration rate was supposed to be 4 less then criterion. I
had to ask for a vet to administer the Ridgeway recovery index. Anyway
as he was doing so he asked, "Why are we doing this your horse is
meeting criterion!" AGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!
Don't get me wrong it's one of California's best rides from an enjoyment
standpoint. Jim and Jackie are GREAT PROMOTERS and the camping is
magnificent. Take your swimming trunks there's some good swimming holes
close to camp!
******disclaimer: I don't hate "tree-huggers" just the one who did the
following :) No Politics PLEASE ****************
It's been a few years since I've done this one. I hope to be able to do
it again. Jim and Jackie Baumgartner (sp?) have had to fight off the
dang tree-huggers to keep this one open. 3 years ago (I think) some
neo-conservationist opened a gate leading into Yosemite Parkland and
actually moved some of the ride markers to follow it. True there were
only a few markers leading that way, but myself along with about 20
others followed them off into the wilderness. Kind of ruined our times.
:) The Rebel Prince had never swam in water over his head until then and
was deathly afraid of water before that day. We got caught on one side
of a river and rather then following it back several miles to an easy
forge we swam it. It was a learning experience.
Actually it was a "good thing" in the long run. It took us all out of
contention and we had a heck of a good time out there. We dubbed
ourselves the "Bobs" (because we bobbed off the trail) and had a good
time at the awards dinner that night. We (in our cups) would, with great
hilarity, address each other as "Bob" whenever we saw one another.
Anyway because of immense pressure from a local chapter of the Sierra
Club, actually just a few members of the same, the forest service very
closely monitors this ride. (I know it's a run-on sentence.) Three years
ago they spotted clandestine "watchers" to figure out just what the
ride's impact is on the forest land. They came the following year at the
pre-ride meeting and told us it was accessed as close to ZERO as
possible. Where almost all other traffic did impact the area.
It seems WE DON'T CUT SWITCHBACKS LIKE ALMOST ALL HIKERS DO! Ain't we
AERC folks a considerate lot? :)
Lots of years I couldn't make it as it usually is like a week after
Tevis. Now that my boyhorse is incapable of ever attempting that or
anygthing like it again that's not a problem. The date is different
anyway as I recall. Also a word of caution because of the aforementioned
pressure you better jump on getting an application in. Jackie can only
accept a LIMITED number of applications due to a deal with the Forest
Service. Do it now. Hope you enjoy it. I had hoped to do it as well, but
may have a prior engagement. <sigh>
*-*-Tommy Crockett*tomydore@holonet.net*Dams028@academic.calpoly.edu-*-*
| "there is nothing alive, quite so beautiful as a thoroughbred horse" |
| John Galsworthy |
**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-****-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-*
|=*=*=<Proud Owner-Trainer of "Very Light" Thoroughbred Jump Queen>=*=*|
|=*=*=<<<<<<<---& "The Rebel Prince" Arab AERC competitor--->>>>>>>=*=*|
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* RM 1.3 01282 * If it hugs trees, you're gonna have trouble with it