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[RC] Man vs. Horse speeds & Shermans Gap at the OD - Ridecamp GuestPlease Reply to: mkornwolf mkornwolf@xxxxxxxxxxxxx or ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ========================================== For those of you who haven't done a ride involving steep ascents and descents, like the infamous Sherman's Gap at the Old Dominion, take my word that you go down steep hills much faster if you dismount and lead your horse. 2 legs are nimbler than 4, I guess. I get off anyway because it makes me feel sick to ride a horse downhill. And I usually get off on long steep uphills because "if your horse can only manage a walk, so should you" (time to feed carrots!) I recall a childhood book (Farmer Boy, Laura Ingalls Wilder) in which she describes how a Native American outran the trotters at a county fair, but the distance would have only been a mile or so. Back to the OD, I had the pleasure of riding all day behind one of the few 5,000 mile horses on the East Coast, Karen Isaac's General Jeb Stuart. Jeb moves down the trail like nothing you've even seen, and he pulled along my Shiloh and Debbie Schultz's horse Buzz up AND down Sherman's before dark. WOW! We didn't think we could go that fast, but having it demonstrated before our eyes was quite an inspiration - she made it seem easy! Since no stories about this year's OD 100 milers made it to Ridecamp thus far, I will laud Stagg Newman who discovered we'd been sent out the wrong way one the 2nd loop. He turned a bunch of us around before we did even more not-counted miles. My guess, based on how far ahead of me they left the hold, is that Stagg and Sue Greenall's horses did at least 6-8 extra miles. So that why he finished (& won) later than "usual" :) Thanks to me, Karen and Debbie and I missed a section of trail on the second loop so all we could try for was a completion, but it was a strangely liberating experience. Having a mini- team of good buddies to ride with made the day fly by. I recommend this approach to anyone trying the OD 100 for the first time - find a few riders going your pace & stick with them even if it means waiting a few extra minute sin the hold. I was feeling queasy all day long and can't imagine doing a ride as arduous as the OD without crew. Amy Johnson drove down from PA to help me and trotted out Shiloh at every check but the 1st. When Shiloh pulled a shoe just a few miles out from the finish, around 1 in the am, my heart sank. He was a bit off on pavement but once the EZ boot was in place, sound on grass. Thanks again Amy for doing that final trot out! Finally, I read with interest "goearth" Tom Sites post about riders coming into a check looking so worried when "this is supposed to be fun." Good point, but it takes A LOT of determination and resolve to make it through a 100 miles, especially the OD. You can't let little stuff get you down. Kudos to everyone who made it! Mary in VA liberating to be out of competition ============================================================ Arabians were bred for years primarily as a war horse and those requirements are similar to what we do today with endurance riding. ~ Homer Saferwiffle ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
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