Navaho Nation: After the dust settles

By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

Enduring temperatures of over 100 degrees, reporter Kathy Helms had to lead Buddy through the bottom of Navajo Canyon after he broke his bridle

WINDOW ROCK ? Tom Robbins said it best in his book, "Still Life With Woodpecker": "It's never too late to have a happy childhood."

Bearing this in mind, I set out for the 10th Annual Navajo Nation Council Ride which left from Navajo Mountain Chapter House on Monday, July 11, with a do-or-die attitude.

I spent Sunday night camping under the stars with my tent-mate and lead wrangler, Stephanie, 11. We oohed and aahed at the clarity of the Milky Way and talked about the fact that stars are actually different colors though distance makes them appear white. Excitement kept us talking way into the night. Also, we were having trouble adjusting to the sound of horses chewing hay and banging on water buckets

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Tevis Trek Goes Hi-Tech

Ride's tone changing from cowboy hats to molded saddles, GPS

By: Gus Thomson, Journal Staff Writer
Sunday, July 24, 2005 4:05 AM PDT

Jogging his horse DWA Sabku into the Foresthill checkpoint of the annual 100-mile Tevis Cup Ride, Christoph Schork, of Moab, Utah, wears high-tech sport clothing and a helmet as opposed to the cowboy attire used in the early years of the 51-year-old ride. Photo by Karina Williams/Auburn Journal

The Tevis 100-mile endurance ride is more than just one rider, one horse these days.

In its 51st year, the ride this weekend is a parade of high-tech equipment far removed from the 1950s and 1960s, when riders in cowboy hats, boots and western shirts spurred their mounts on the trail.

Many of today's horses sport saddles padded with the same shock-absorbing materials runners pound the pavement with in the soles of their shoes. Their horseshoes can be just as much a plastic composite as steel. And for several years now, Tevis horses have been guzzling electrolyte drinks similar to Gatorade, as they make their way from Robie Equestrian Park, south of Truckee, to Auburn.

High in feather-light, injection-molded saddles, riders' cowboy hats have been doffed in favor of lightweight helmets, padded and protective trail-running shoes have replaced cowboy boots, and running tights, shorts and sweat-wicking shirts from the endurance running world have replaced the jeans and pearl-buttoned Western wear of yore.

For many horse-rider teams navigating the twists and turns, ups and down, and heat and cold of the Sierra, a global positioning system and heart-rate monitor are standard equipment. And canteens have given way to plastic bladders with flexible straws strapped to the back of riders.

Pilot Hill's Steve Elliott was on the sidelines during this weekend's Tevis Ride, but as owner of Equine Performance Products he's on the cutting edge of many equestrian innovations. Elliott's working with a design factory in Italy on a new, high-tech saddle and was one of the early champions of GPS and heart-rate monitoring for horses.

"It's like an onboard black box," he said.

Elliott sees opportunities in the future to increase nutrition. Horses, like their human counterparts, are already gulping down glucosamine to strengthen and rebuild cartilage.

But when the starting line is staring a rider in the face and a horse is prancing in the first light of dawn to set out, all the accoutrements of the modern world take second fiddle to some basic tenets.

"It all comes down to good conditioning and luck," Elliott said.

That means some of the high-tech tools are finding some resistance from riders in an event that is steeped in tradition.

Three-time Tevis winner Hal Hall of Auburn, one of the veterans of the Tevis trail, doesn't use GPS but will strap a heart-rate monitor on his horse occasionally.

Like many riders, he's a purist on the trail during the Tevis - riding not only to test his own mettle and the endurance of his horse, but riding against the best equestrians the event has put on the route over five decades.

"I don't want to be regimented by a number," Hall said. "They can't tell us if our horse has a stomach ache or a sore foot."

Hall was trying something new on this year's ride - reflective clothing designed to keep the UV rays off the body.

Two-time champion Potato Richardson of Greenwood distances himself from the GPS crowd, who can track distance, elevations and temperatures with an onboard unit.

"When I go out, I just want to have a good ride," Richardson said. "When someone says 'How far did you go?' I say 'I don't know.' Instead of more gadgets, I want to get to know the horse."

Virginia rider John Crandell III, said he's played with the monitors and GPS systems but would rather be reading a twitch of a horse's ear than a digital read-out.

"When the metal hits the road, I'm a minimalist," Crandell said. "Sometimes the numbers can distract you."

Cool's Erin Klentos, another two-time Tevis winner, said that GPS is a benefit for on remote trails but in and around the Western States, she has no need because she's ridden those trails all her life.

"And I didn't inherit my mother's ability to lose her car in a parking lot," Klentos added.

The Journal's Gus Thomson can be reached at gust@goldcountrymedia.com

Tevis: And the Winner Is??

This year's Tevis Cup field is wide open as riders vie for the coveted Tevis and Haggin Cups Saturday

By: Todd Mordhorst, Journal Sports Editor
Friday, July 22, 2005 9:20 AM PDT

Jeremy Reynolds, last year's Tevis and Haggin Cup winner, poses with his horse CV Eli after winning the Haggin Cup last year. Reynolds returns to defend the Tevis Cup after sharing it with Becky Spencer in a tie for first place. Photo by Ben Furtado/Auburn Journal
Around 250 riders will line up with their horses for the 51st annual Western States Endurance Ride Saturday at Robie Park, near Truckee.

They'll be competing against each other for the coveted Tevis Cup, which goes to the first finisher, and for the Haggin Cup, which goes to the finisher in the top 10 whose mount is judged to be the most fit.

But mostly, the competitors will

be battling the 100 miles of rugged trail and a heat that will no doubt be

unrelenting in the deep canyons Saturday afternoon.

While there are plenty of riders with great credentials and hundreds of great-looking horses, there isn't a clear favorite for Saturday's ride.

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"I never go to win," said Debbie Lyon of San Luis Obispo, who's finished six times. "I'm going to wait and see what kind of day the horse is having. If he's having a really good day and things go right, I wouldn't mind slipping into the bottom of the top 10. That would be really nice, but the goal is to finish with a sound, happy horse."

Many participants at Wednesday's pre-ride barbecue echoed Lyon's sentiments regarding the heat. Riders from this area have had several weeks to adjust to the unusually warm weather.

They may not have a home trail advantage, but it seems that California riders have had a distinct home state advantage in recent Western States Endurance Ride history.

Last year, 19 of the top 20 finishers in the 100-mile ride hailed from California, the lone exception being Ali Kahlfan Abdulla Hamdan Al Jahouri from the United Arab Emirates.

Los Gatos resident Jeremy Reynolds tied for the Tevis Cup last year and took home the Haggin Cup as well. Ride organizers assured there will be no ties this year, or in the future, changing the rules after last year, which was the third tie in the history of the event.

Reynolds is back this year to defend his titles, along with his wife, Heather Reynolds, the 2003 Tevis winner.

Auburn's Becky Spencer, who tied with Reynolds last year, is not entered in this year's ride, but third place finisher Lila Abdul-Rahim is back with her horse, Clancey. Fourth place finisher Gabrielle Mann is also returning with her horse St. Patrick.

Auburn's Hal Hall, a three-time Tevis Cup winner and three-time Haggin Cup winner, will be riding Bogus Thunder after sitting out last year's Tevis ride. Ann Hall, Hal's wife, rode Bogus Thunder to a sixth-place finish last year.

Potato Richardson and Cathy Rohm Richardson, of Greenwood, are back in the Tevis field. Cathy placed ninth last year and she's back on SMR Fifi d'Or for this year's ride.

There are several husband and wife duos in this year's field, including Robert and Melissa Ribley, of Grass Valley. The Ribleys plan on riding together on Saturday.

"I think our horses travel better together," said Melissa, who finished Tevis as a junior rider in 1981 and has since worked as a veterinarian at the event numerous times. "Horses are kind of herd animals and they're used to being in their environment with their stable mates, so I think they'll do well together.

"We're looking forward to the challenge. I think it will be an extra challenge because of the heat, but we enjoy taking on the challenges."

Marcia Smith, a veterinarian from Loomis, was planning on riding a young mare this year, but her horse came up lame recently and she was forced out of the ride. But Smith, who has three Tevis Cups and one Haggin Cup on her resume, knows what it takes to do well at Tevis.

"It will be an interesting race because it's so hot this year," Smith said. "I think tactics will be key. I would probably go fast early, before it gets hot, and then go slower in the middle of the day in the canyons, when I'm afraid it's going to be exceptionally hot. And then I'd plan to go faster at night when it cools off again."

There are several international riders that could be factors in the race for the hardware. Last year, Ali Khalfkan Abdulla Hamdan Al Jahouri, from the United Arab Emirates, rode to an impressive fifth place despite suffering a broken arm along the way.

This year, Ali Al Muhairi, Abdullah Khamis Ali Saeed and Jaber Bittar will represent the UAE. Jacky Laurent, from Tahiti, adds a Caribbean flavor to the field. Peter and Penny Toft, of Australia will also ride and Peter is hoping for continued success after placing fourth in 2003.

"I'm interested in how Peter Toft will do. He's here from Australia with Murdoc (his horse)," Smith said. "They were here two years ago and finished in the top 10 and they're back here together."

Considering the scope of the field and the countless factors involved, predicting a Tevis Cup winner is a crapshoot. There has not been a repeat winner since Chris Knoch in 1994.

Cool resident Michel Bloch held a sizeable lead in last year's race at Michigan Bluff, but his mount came up lame at Foresthill and he was forced to withdraw. Bloch is back on the same horse, Monsieur Joseph, hoping for better fortune this year.

Chuck Mather, of Colfax, served as the Tevis Cup ride committee chairman, helping prepare for this year's event. He's also fit in time for training with his horse Dance on Hallani. The two have finished 12th, sixth and 10th in recent years and Mather is looking forward to Saturday's ride, despite the prospect of a very warm day.

"I guess we'll find out if he's a heat horse," Mather said.

One of the intriguing aspects of the Tevis Cup is the unpredictable nature of the event. As the ride unfolds Saturday, there are always surprises.

"I suspect it's going to be a typical Tevis year in that the early frontrunners might not be the first finishers," Smith said. "The tactics are going to be more important than ever this year."

Tevis: Riders from Far and Wide

By: Andrew DiLuccia,
Auburn Journal

More than a dozen international riders highlight Tevis field

For Madeleine Kirsch, once you've ridden the Tevis Cup, you have to come back for more. Even if that means traveling over five thousand miles to do it.

Kirsch is one of 14 international riders who's traveled the globe to be a part of the field of 250 for Saturday's Tevis Cup Endurance Ride.

The German native, who currently resides in Salzburg, Austria, is competing in her fourth Tevis Cup. She's finished in the top 10 twice, taking seventh in 2003 aboard Desha BL and finishing 10th in 2002 on Desha BL again. Last year, the 35-year-old Web designer took 37th atop Fausto BL.


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Italy: Results of Nakheel Cuore Verde 120km

• Ride Results (PDF)
• Pull List
• Starters List
• Entry List
• Photo Gallery

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Italy: Nakheel sponsors prestigious Cuore Verde Endurance Cup

Nakheel, the Middle East region's premier property developer, has announced that it is the official sponsor of the prestigious 'Cuore Verde Endurance Cup' to be held in Perugia, Italy on July 16, 2005.

The Cup is part of a three day event including a Grand Gala that opened the event on the 14th July, and the "Go to Dubai" conference on 15th July to promote Dubai as an investment destination.

The events was opened by the Endurance Grand Gala on July 14th, held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Minister of Defence, and was attended by over 500 VIPs including executives of top Umbria and Italian companies, and politicians.

The history of the race dates back to 1989 and the 'Nakheel Cuore Verde Endurance Cup 2005' is the country's biggest endurance race of the half-season. There will be around a 100 horses running in the Cup. The UAE team will be represented by Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman Nakheel, who will be riding a horse from Sheikh Mohammed's stable. The race is split into four phases and tracks a distance totalling 120km. The first three phases will be sponsored by one of Nakheel's premier projects (The Palm, The World, and Dubai Waterfront), with the final phase sponsored by Nakheel Corporate.

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Tevis: Getting Ready for the Ride

By: Gus Thomson, Journal Staff Writer
Sunday, July 17, 2005 1:19 AM PDT


(Photo:
Diane Craft, from Monument, Colo., brushes her Arabian horse, Moon, Saturday at the Gold Country Fairgrounds, preparing for the Tevis Cup. Photo by Ben Furtado/Auburn Journal )

Editor's note: This is the first in a series of stories leading up to the 51st annual Tevis Cup ride, which begins Saturday.

One of the toughest endurance tests of man and horse on the planet, the 100-mile Tevis Cup ride, is ready to run from Robie Park, near Truckee, to Auburn on Saturday.


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