Mariposa Ride

[Debbyly@aol.com]

This last weekend I went to the Mariposa ride near Yosemite, California.  This
ride had been put on in the past, but hadn't been done in the last 10 years.
It was my first time.  I am really glad that they had this ride and I hope
that it will happen again.  It was a very very long and very tough sixty
miles.  The trails are spectacularly beautiful and the footing is excellent.
Ride management was great, food was  very good both Friday and Saturday night.
The finishing awards are beautiful brass buckles.  There were no holds at all.
There were two vet checks and riders were free to go as soon as the horse met
criteria (56).  Of course most riders kept their horses at the checks as long
as they felt necessary.  It put more responsibility on the riders.  It worked
fine in this ride, but I think there is a potential for hurting horses.  I
highly recommend this ride, but only if you go with the idea of doing the
equivalent of 70 miles.

Debby