Re: A Tevis Story - short?

[Steve Shaw <sshaw@pacbell.net>]

What a fun time and ride I had at Tevis this year. And what a lucky ride 
it was as the weather and trail was as nice as I have ever seen it in 
spite of El Nino! I was fortunate to ride with a lot of neat people at 
different stages and boy do I have a lot of good material for next 
year's April Fools Joke.

It was great to see Boyd Zonetelli out there taking a group through, 
uncharacteristic of his usual dash to the first or top ten. He is still 
a sly competitor. I also got to ride with Emmett Ross, briefly in from 
Atlanta and the UAE. His group finished strongly in 19th through 21st 
place and showed Mohammed what a real endurance trail and race is like.
Andrea Bianchi on Phil Ottingers's Robin Hood was a constant threat and 
pest but added the novice's perspective to the entire day "Help! Don't 
leave me before the river crossing!!"

But best of all was riding with Sandy Schuller, again. She helped me 
through the tough slow canyons with many stories of past races and 
crashes. She also maintained just the right pace to fit the time and 
conditions. I again assert, anyone who wants to finish well at Tevis 
simply need to trace Sandy's timing and try to set it themselves. I was 
fortunate to be there with her (at just the right pace) when my horse 
Clown smelled the river after the Foresthill Vet Check. Clown finally 
realized where we were and stopped trying to turnaround to go back to 
Robie Equestrian Center in Truckee on each of the many switchbacks. She 
took the directon towards Auburn. It just happened to be on the short 
tough right uphill turn you take at the Ford's Bar section of trail. 
Clown walked so fast up that dirt road that she strutted right past 
Sandy in the lead of our little group on that hill. I remember the rider 
right behind Sandy (I can't remember her name) remark "Hey, no passing!" 
and thinking, yeah right. Clown was 30 yards ahead of them at the top, 
still at a walk. I jumped on and simply held on the rest of the way to 
the Fairgrounds. Clown knew where she wanted to go and how to get there. 
Finally a top ten finish (fourth) where I felt the horse was pulling me 
instead of me pushing them.

What a fun time and fun race. Tevis always gives that.

STeve