Bighorn (long)

[LuAnn Rod <louie@gomontana.com>]

Hi all, 

Haven't seen any posts on this weekend's Bighorn ride so I thought I'd let you
all know it was another great ride. 

I'm lousy with names and particulars, so someone else will have to report on
all the winners. I do know Kathy Arnold won the 100 and I believe, BC, and
Jody Welsh won the 50. Other than that, it was a small group (I heard 37
total) that rode this classic trail, now in its 29th year, according to ride
manager Cindy Collins.

Held in the Bighorn Mountains, near the small town of Shell, Wyoming, the
Bighorn is best described as gorgeous and tough. I've ridden the 50 three
times now, and am only familiar with half the trail. That 50 takes you across
the dessert and washes for 25 miles, heads up the mountain, and ends in the
mountains at a ski hill. The next 50, I'm told, takes you across more mountain
and then 25 miles down and back to ride camp held this year at the Flitner Ranch.

The trail is mostly two-track and single-track with some cross-country over
sand, grass, rock and boulders. The mountain section I'm familiar with is 14
miles, mostly up, with five canyons to traverse. 

As for the ride this year, we started out at 4 a.m. with a controlled start on
1/2 mile of blacktop to sandy two-track and a steep single-track. At that
point, we were released, although it seemed like the message didn't get
through and many riders stayed bunched up together. I don't usually (ever)
ride with the big dogs and for a moment of two, it was pretty heady stuff to
see the front-runners within eyesight. That didn't last long though as my mare
Rosie, seemed to have this idea that she could win this race. I knew better,
so we slowed it down a bit and finally settled in to a sane frame of mind.
Rosie was in full roaring heat and that didn't help my frame of mind either. I
rode with Anne Kennedy on her mare Dyskrete (also in heat). What fun, but
finally things settled in. We got into the 25 mile check at 7 a.m. and after a
half-hour hold had two horses ready to head into the mountains. 

Coming from mountain conditioning, we knew both horses could handle the
terrain. We slowed it down some, but still passed a few. It is so pretty up
there. The views from the rugged Bighorns is gorgeous. You go from some
desolate sand and sagebrush country to huge pines, mountain springs, deep
shade and exposed hillsides.

In past years it's been hot below and downright cold up top. This year as we
came into the second check it was shirt-sleeve weather. The last two times I
was snowed on. This was a treat. Again, both horses got all A's and we knew we
weren't exactly pushing them. 

But, I had injured an ankle and tendon at a previous ride and it was starting
to act up. The footing got a little iffy on some of the long cross-country
hills, so we slowed it a bit more for our own comfort. 

There were some ribbon problems on the last stretch into the ski area were the
50s finish. We hit a large meadow surrounded by pines. I recognized it from
the year before, but there were no ribbons to be seen. Up top, there was a
gate, and I knew we went through a gate. Whether that was the gate or not, we
didn't know, but couldn't see anyway else to go. As we neared the top and saw
ribbons fluttering on the wire, off to the right, 30 head of elk cows and
calves moved off into the trees. There were also the nibbled off nubs of red
ribbons on the sage brush. Add elk to the cows that eat ribbon.  

It's only a couple more miles into the ski area and just short of 8 hours,
Anne and I crossed the finish line, PRed the horses immediately and completed
with A's.

Celebrating with malts, shakes and root beer floats, with Sandy Bolinger and
Whitney Bass at Dirty Annie's on the way down the mountain, it was a good
time. 

Thanks to ride management and all the volunteers at the Bighorn. Hope to see
you for the 30th annual ride next year.

Louie
Bozeman, Montana


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