Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Please Reply to: Monica Bennett mbennett_pcr@xxxxxxxxxxx or 
ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
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I just wanted to chime in on Kim?s comments.  This was by far and away the best 
ride I?ve ever ridden.  The trail was amazing.

Having ridden the Sunland ride several times and the Old Warrior?s water hunt 
this year, I was very nervous to bite off a two-day ride by the same ride 
manager in the same trail area.  When Vickie says a ride is tough and you?ll 
need every skill in the book to do it, and don?t you dare come if you aren?t 
really ready, I believe her.  She?s never once over stated her rides and this 
was no different, but what she never says is that she always has what you need 
and is a consummate ride manager who always delivers what counts.

This was a special ride and I?m very thankful to Vickie, her crew and The Duck 
for putting it on.  I sure hope they do it again next year and encourage 
everyone to get it on their ride calendar.  It is not to be missed.

Day 2 was much like day one, but we had the pleasant surprise of having the 
Duck ride with us.  So there were four riders total on Day 2 all completed and 
Dick Fonseca got BC.  (The Duck, Dick, myself and John Parke).

The Duck said all throughout the day and after the ride that you couldn?t find 
a better ride to prepare for Tevis.  He said the conditions were practically 
identical.  Like Day 1, most of the trail was single track, much of it under 
the canopy of enormous Cedars and Pines.  The footing was perfect.  I know that 
is hard to believe for those of you who have done Sunland, but the footing was 
perfect.  The trail was well marked and Vickie had water every 5 to 10 miles.  
We rode about 10 miles of the trail we rode on Saturday, otherwise the rest of 
the way back was a different route and just as scenic.

The trail reminded me a great deal of the Bear Valley ride (though I?ve only 
done the 30 there) and the Mt. Laguna 50.  Beautiful forests and vistas.  On 
Day 1 we crested the mountains and could see the Bouquet Canyon rocks and the 
trails where Hog Wild, The Davenport Dare and the old Little Rock ride are at.  
On Day 2 we could see the ocean from the other side of the mountains.  The wild 
flowers were beautiful and we crossed natural water several times.  Both days 
there was green grass along the trail for the horses to graze.  Though there 
were several climbs, there were also many miles of easy grades and easy 
descents and you could really move out for miles along the soft carpeting of 
the forest trails.  The down hill only had a couple of sections where it was 
steep, most of it was easy grades that made them very easy to trot.  We made 
good time on the second day, finishing around 2:30 just as the heat was really 
kicking in.

I can?t say enough about how incredible of a ride it was and how beautiful and 
amazing the Pacific Coast Trail is.  The trail is meant for point-to-point 
rides, because it begs to be scene and explored.  It is too bad the Duck 
doesn?t have a PCT 5 day XP ride.  That would be something!

Many thanks again to Vickie Greene, what would this sport be without her????

Hopefully we?ll all get the chance to ride this ride next year. 

Monica & Inde



-----Original Message-----
From: kimfue@xxxxxxx [mailto:kimfue@xxxxxxx]
Sent: Sunday, May 02, 2004 8:55 PM
To: So_Cal_Endurance@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [So_Cal_Endurance] Survivor's Trek

    I did the first day of Survivor's Trek and now I am soooooo disappointed
that I was not able to change my schedule and stay for the second day.  This
was absolutely the most spectacular trail I have ridden on in a long time and
I still can't believe that the entire ride was in Los Angeles County.  The
entire ride was held in the forest and we did not have to ride by any houses, on
any pavement, or see the usual park users like mountain bikers, groups of
hikers, etc. Most of the ride was on single track trail.  Rides like this remind
me of why I got hooked on endurance back in the 1980s and why I continue to
compete in this sport when other hobbies and interests have eventually lost my
interest.
    The trail was absolutely the best Tevis training ride I have done and I
didn't even have to trailer 8 hrs.  If there were more 50 mile endurance rides
like this one the Tevis trail would not be such a big deal for horses and for
the riders.
    The ride was really fun and as always the help at Vickie's ride was nice
and helpful.  I really enjoyed the casual atmosphere.  Ride management
provided lots of water on the trail and hay at the vet checks.  I noticed that
riders shared crew and there was lots of support in the checks for those riders
that did not have their own help.
    I want to mention that the horse that came in first place on Saturday is
17 years old and has been competing in endurance since 1992.  I am not
mentioning Freebee and Cherry's accomplishment just as a brag but to encourage 
those
of you who think this type of ride is too hard for yourself and your horse to
go ahead and try.  Freebee is not a one in a million endurance horse
(although I think he is really special)  and if he can complete a ride like 
this at 17
years old your horse probably can with proper management and conditioning.
All the horses looked really good after the first day and three horses went on
to complete Sunday's ride.
    There are so many different types of rides we have the opportunity to
attend in endurance and especially this year, there are so many rides to choose
from in our region.  I really recommend taking a little detour off the usual
endurance path of point chasing, mile collecting, frill rides, and 5 1/2 hour
winning times and go on an adventure like Survivor's Trek.  How many
opportunities come along where you can ride trails in a new area that someone 
has
previously checked out as being rideable, provided water along the route, a vet 
to
check your horse along the way, a beautiful campsite and food at the end of the
trail and have great companionship all along the way?  The cost of the entry
fee is nothing compared with the experience provided.

Kim

===========================================================Many of the 
endurance riders in our top echelons of competition, now and in
the past, exemplify the 'common man' not the hierocracy. It is this
possibility, this chance to come to the fore, that makes endurance
competition of the Aussie/American type so much more desirable to part of
the world.
~  Bob Morris

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