Cindy, this brings to mind the year on Death Valley
that we rode over Hunters Hill with a couple of feet of snow on the ground
and all the water sources frozen. Some 4-wheelers in Jeeps came down
the trail and we begged for water for the horses. They poured water into a
dishpan and our horses went crazy for it. Sherode Powers was off on foot,
wearing sneakers, and leading his horse up a hill. We asked him if he
needed help and he said he was fine. You came in after dark, shepherding
some junior riders to the finish line. After we finished, Lud had gone out
in his 4WD truck, as far as he could drive, taking horse blankets and hot
chocolate to the late riders. We all finished, and it was a memory of a
lifetime.
I wasn't there, but I heard first hand reports at the time and
I think everyone is accurately describing the reasons for
non-completion. The trail was put together in sections by different
people without an overview of the entire course. It was steep and
rocky. It was very hot. However, that's not what struck me (and
another friend) as I read these answers. What got to me is the lack of
whining and complaining. The graciousness and "cowboy up" attitude of
the stories told by people who did not complete... the difference between
those people and many of our current riders...just screamed out to me.
If the ROC 1987 were held today there would be protests, lawsuits, calls to
ban the ride and ridecamp would be up in arms :) The ROC 1987 became the
stuff of legends...peaks in Utah became 14,000 ft high. I understand
this because I've done the same thing with the 1984 spring XP and every
BigHorn ride I ever rode. I thought that was part of the
adventure. I sure miss people with that attitude. Oh, I know
you're out there, you like-minded folks, but we're a dying breed in this
sport. I saw this great attitude in the stories of this year's Death
Valley ride. They "bragged" about the rocks and the wind and the dust,
trailers stolen and the lack of water. It's become a part of their
endurance legend: to be told, retold, exaggerated and lied about for years to
come. They were proud to have experienced it whether they completed or
not. And, I love them for it!
