No Frills Ride Report

[Roberta Jo Lieberman <fineprint@erols.com>]

Sixty-nine horses answered the call to the post for the third running of 
the No Frills 50 in Fort Valley, VA, and another 39 started the 25 on a 
perfect Virginia spring day amid sunny skies and a blaze of redbuds in 
the heart of Old Dominion country. Campers awoke on Saturday morning to 
find temperatures just above freezing but warming nicely into the 
mid-sixties by afternoon.
For most, it was the first ride of the year, and many chose to ride it 
as a training ride. I kept Fine Print away from the crowd before 
starting down Hickory Lane on the first loop of 17 miles, which would 
take the field to Edinburg Gap before looping back to Hickory Lane, 
where all three vet checks would be held. We greeted many familiar faces 
along the way, including Judy Van Meter and her durable Diamond Rifazar, 
1997 Northeast Featherweight Champions (this remarkable duo is going for 
their tenth Old Dominion 100 buckle this year!), Joanna Blackmore, and 
Stagg and Cheryl Neuman, recently relocated to the Shenandoah Valley. 
On Easter Sunday, I was blessed to have Joyce Anderson, a TTEAM 
practitioner (and doyene of Cloud Nine saddlepads) in my crewing corner 
and, as it turned out, her magic touch was essential to get us through 
the ride. My mare began to shiver in the hindquarters as soon as we 
stripped the tack (required at all three checks) and Joyce went to work. 
We kept her warm and covered along with the TTouch on the large muscles 
and we vetted through just fine. Joyce gave me her balancing rein, a 
TTEAM innovation that helps horse and rider stay in balance, to use on 
the second loop.
It began to warm up as we headed out for the second loop of 14 miles. We 
were heading for my favorite stretch of the trail--Turkey Pen! This 
serpentine-shaped trail with a canopy of trees on one side and a gentle 
slope on the other is a natural racetrack and a great place to let those 
galloping muscles kick in. So away we went. From there the trail went up 
Scothorn Gap -- stripped of many of its famous rocks by bulldozers 
driven by determined Old Dominion members -- and over Duncan Hollow. 
Donıt worry, there are still PLENTY of rocks left for the season! (New 
ones grow back every year to replace the ones scraped away, Iım sure). 
Fine Print was still keen to run and with the help of the balancing 
rein, I let her move on. We plowed through the rocks and mud and arrived 
at the second vet check (31 miles out) around noon. Fine Print recovered 
quickly but we discovered a slightly sensitive reaction on her right 
front splint bone, which she had ³popped² during the running of last 
fallıs Race of Champions, prompting her withdrawal after the first 50 
miles. Joyce went to work on the splint with some cold water sponge 
circles. We trotted her out to satisfy ourselves that she was sound 
before presenting her to the vets and I was relieved when she trotted 
out sound.We outfitted her with splint boots and I vowed to take it easy 
on the final loop of 18 miles which still lay ahead.
We took it easy over Kennedy Peak and were so relaxed that we took a 
wrong turn at the top and rode along the ridge until I came to a sheer 
rock cliff. Matthew Mackay-Smith (who didnıt ride this year) told me the 
next day that if Iıd gone a little further I would have seen the most 
amazing view in the valley. As it was, I had to dismount and pick my way 
back down the hill. Although it added a couple of miles to the total 
distance and another half hour, it gave me a chance to spent some time 
in the company of LEADFOOT AND GRANNY, the famous ride and tie duo also 
known in some quarters as Lani Newcomb and Kathy Broaddus. In case you 
didnıt know, those two are among the top woman-woman ride-n-tiers in the 
country and certainly the most engaging -- they rode Rio on the Swanton 
Pacific 100 R&T last year, among other accomplishments. Fine Print did 
a double take as she saw their wonderful Anglo-Arab first in front of 
us, then behind, then standing tied to a tree. It was funny. 
Anyway, we finished the ride in good shape and learned that Joy Mahler 
riding her Orion had won in a close race with Debi Gordon and Saizahra. 
And then I heard that Bob Walsh and his little gray rocket ship, 
Houdini, had won BC. This was thrilling news, since Bob has brought that 
horse along slowly and carefully, and now those two are ready for big 
things. Houdini came to Bob as a castoff two-year-old heading for the 
killers and he is now the picture of a classic Egyptian Arabian. And boy 
can he fly. 
I donıt have the full finish report, but I heard that only 15 horses 
were pulled. Other than two horses that ran off in the night (anyone 
hear if theyıve been found?), it was a great weekend. 
Bobbie Lieberman and Fine Print -- dubbed ³Cleopatra² by her friend 
Joyce Anderson for her princesslike attitude  
and George, ex-ride manager turned loyal pit crew -- gearing up his 
21-year-old Saddlebred, Magic, for his first endurance experience at 
Black Horse Gap