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Got home last night around midnight after travelling for 11 hours
with two horses, a dog, and a dirt bike. We had SO MUCH FUN!!

This is the third year I've been able to ride at DVE and no matter
what you end up doing in terms of which days and which distances,
you have a great time. Even if you aren't able to ride all the days, to
hang out and relax in camp and watch the sunlight on the mountains
is the best way I can think of to spend this time of year.

Woke up at home this morning to pouring rain while the day before
yesterday I was in Ballarat riding in shorts on our "day off".

Those of you who weren't able to make this ride really missed out.
It might not have been easy to get there, but worth the work to do so.

Special kudos to Gary Pegg from northern Oregon who drove 26 hours
on his own with his TWH stud and two dogs - as he put it, arriving at
7pm the night before the ride started wasn't quite what he planned
but he adjusted his rides accordingly and had fun, I think doing LDs
on the first three days and then completing his horse's first 50 on the
last day. Congratulations to them (he's probably still on his way home
at this point).

My husband Patrick and his young TWH/arab, Fergus, also completed
their first ever LD on Day 2 and had so much fun they went again and
did their second LD on Day 4 - I am so proud of both of them - they
finished in great shape.

Also from the proud department was Roo who had been on a five
month vacation after I broke my leg back in June. When the horse I
planned to take to DVE had a minor injury at TG, Roo got put back
into action and despite only having had minimal conditioning, he
completed 50s on Day 1 and Day 4. We weren't the fastest horse
out there (OK, so we came in dead last on Day 4), but he looked great
at the end and seemed to enjoy himself. My broken leg held up better
than expected and, aching aside, I was still able to trot Roo out OK
at the vet checks.

Highlights of the trip included getting to do a distance ride with my
husband - something I wasn't sure would ever happen - trotting side
by side down Panamint Valley, watching the sun rise was brilliant;
watching Fergus take off cantering at the top of the big climb on Day 4
(this after Patrick worried that the climb would take too much out of him);
seeing a herd of about 20 wild burro towards the end of Day 4; and
having Roo canter loose through camp at the end of Day 4, shrieking
to get back to his buddy (I had no idea where our rig was, since it hadn't
arrived yet when we went out on that loop, so I was relying on Roo to
find Fergus for me).

Congratulations to Chris Herron and his mare Impriss Splash, who
turned 5000 miles upon completing Day 2. And to Leslie Spitzer and
JAC Eagle Cap who started this season by completing all four days
(Leslie had never done more than three days in a row, and Eagle
had never done more than two).

I was a little bleary during the awards on the last day, having only just
come in off the trail, but I think ten horses managed to do all four days -
and two of them were gaited. Neat.

The weather was brisk in the mornings, but warmed up nicely to pullover
temps during the day (and shorts temps on Day 3 and 4!). The horses
all seemed to do great in those temperatures - there were only a couple
of pulls each day, mostly for minor lamenesses.

The trails were excellently marked (even if we did all go wrong on Day 1
due to the fact we didn't read our instructions properly), there was tons
of water out there, the views spectacular, the trails fun (Karen's right -
that singletrack up over the Slate Range on Day 4 was such fun!).

Rider entries were down this year, which was a real shame. Diesel was
actually a dollar cheaper (~$2.55) than I paid last year.

I've got a ton of photos that I'll try and get up later today. Happy New Year
to everyone - unlike last year's difficulties, this year is going to be great!

Mark your calendars for DVE next year!



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Lucy Chaplin Trumbull
elsietee AT foothill DOT net
Repotted english person in the Sierra foothills, CA
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