Fort Valley and grand plans

["Stephanie Teeter" <steph@endurance.net>]

This was definitely a 'wow' ride! The weather was
incredibile, sunny, in the 60's and 70's. A little
hot for the horses with their winter coats, but
what a treat for the riders and ride management. 
And the scenery was magnificent - the fall colors
were at their peak - red and gold leaves falling
as we rode, and the trails were carpeted in color. 
The course was very tough! A lot of climbs, which
gave us some spectacular views of the Shenandoah
River valley, and the mountains all around - but
the trail was VERY rocky, so the going was very 
slow. By the end of the weekend we started to get
the hang of riding in the rocks (just shut your
eyes) - but were still ultra conservative. After
riding these trails, I think I'd have to say that
the Old Dominion 100 would be a greater challenge
than the Tevis - between the rocks and the heat
and humidity it amazes me that anybody can do the
100 mile course at all! 

Ride management was tremendous! Great dinners after the rides. 
And everything seemed to go very smoothly - cheerful
volunteers, plenty of help at the vet checks. A very
nice ride!

John and I hoped to ride all three days, so 
SLOW was the plan. We finished the
first day in great shape, about 45 minutes before
cut off time - and an hour later than any of the
other riders. It was actually a push to finish
when we did - we were so worried about going too 
fast in the rocks.... I think we could have gone
a little faster! I won a beautiful mosaic of a turtle 
for finishing last. It was a fun day - our first ride 
in the East - and the views and trails were beautiful.  

Day 2 was a little less fun... there was more hard packed road, 
and more ROCKS... and a very challenging climb up and over
Sherman Pass - tough tough trail. John's horse, Sukaro HCC
(aka Squeak) had had an allergic reaction to a Rhino vaccine
right before we left Idaho - he got very very sick and
between that and the trip across country wasn't in his
best form, so I suggested that I ride Squeak and John
ride Santini who is very tough and much fitter. I thought we'd
have a better chance of getting both horses through
all 3 days that way. Well... John had to pull Santini
on the second day - he stiffened up in the hind quarters.
Oops. I rode Squeak alone the last half of the ride,
finished 15 minutes before cut-off time - and won another
beautiful turtle mosaic! I really couldn't have ridden
Squeak any faster... he didn't have the stamina to pull
the hills well, and I was too nervous to go fast on the
rocks. At one point though I figured if we don't move
out on the rocks we'll never make it - so I sort of 
shut my eyes and asked him to move out, and just 
let him pick his way. It actually wasn't
that bad ... once I stopped trying to guide him and
let him do his own thing we did pretty well. 

Day 3 was the same trail as Day 1, but in reverse. I rode
alone again all day, though a little faster (with my new-found
confidence going over the rocks). It was probably the
most enjoyable day - warm, sunny, less worry. Still slow,
but Squeak was feeling strong and happy. Amazingly tough
horse. John took Khruschev out on the nicest loop, and 
I think he enjoyed it more than if he had tried to do
another 50 - more relaxing, more time to enjoy the scenery.
So... all's well that ends well. Of the 24 horses that
started out to do all three days, only 3 finished! Robert
Guidney (?) from New Brunswick, and Debbie (sorry, can't
remember the last name). This was probably as tough a ride
as I've ever done - I have immense respect for the horses
that raced this course! I was very proud of Squeak, he
finished in great form - all A's - and we even galloped
most of the last loop. He felt stronger than when we started.

So ... what the heck are a couple Idahoans doing riding
in Virginia?? Well, in one of my more creative moments
this fall I cooked up a grand plan. I was so pleased
with Khruschev's performance at the Pan American this 
summer (he just never tired) - that I thought maybe I
would nominate for the WEC in France next year. A long
shot, but what the heck, no harm in trying, and the
course is perfect for Khruschev - fairly flat and good
footing - his huge trot and gallop eat up the miles on this type
of course... and I sort of thrive on setting my goals impossibly 
high :) So I need to find out if he can compete in heat and humidity,
which is what will be expected in France in August. Well,
I'll never find out in Idaho. I emailed Truman Prevatt
asking if he knew of a place in Florida where I could
keep some horses for the winter - and sure enough, his
neighbor Darlene Krell, can keep the horses at her place
and even ride them for me. So I'll spend some time in
Florida this winter and spring, training for heat and 
humidity and John and I will be able to do some winter
rides (yes, this is all just a fancy excuse for escaping
the winter in Idaho :) This is one of these plans that
seemed impossible at first, but things just kept working
out. So I'll drop the horses off in Florida and fly
home - then come back to start training after Christmas. 
Wow, still hard to believe. I've never seen an alligator
before. 

Steph


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