Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Crewing Tevis: The Brief Cliffnotes

I'm working on a very detailed, extensive write-up of my experience crewing at Tevis 2009 and the week-long vacation that was centered around it. My computer and I are at odds, though, and it thought it was funny to eat it. Thank goodness for MSWord Document Recovery, but the thought of having lost the three pages already written took the wind out of my sails, and I need to start back up again.

The short version: I had a grand time crewing for Lucy Trumbull and her pone Roo. She was a wonderful rider to crew for, providing very clear directions and a flexible approach (her words: "This is what I would like to happen, but am not really too particular if it doesn't") and Roo was an angel to take care of...cheerfully eating and drinking and not standing on us.

They did get pulled at Chicken Hawk, 64 miles in, when Roo cramped in the hind end. :(

Lucy was still very happy with how they did for their first Tevis, and Roo looked none the worse for the wear. By the next morning, he was cantering around his paddock, eyes sparkling, bossing the other pones around. You'd never know he had just done 64 miles on some of the toughest trail in the country.

Lucy is already talking Tevis 2010. :)

I got a chance to ride the trail from Foresthill to El Dorado Creek (the middle canyon) and back. Pics will be posted in the comprehensive post, but just briefly: I was pleasantly surprised. I'd read the stories and seen the pictures, and was fully expecting the trail to be a lot worse and a lot scarier. I understand that I saw the "easier" parts of the canyons, but I had expected worse. Granted, my perspective was one of a fresh rider and horse, not one who had already gone 46 miles before starting the descent into the canyons, but knowing what the last two climbs are like is encouraging.

I'll keep chipping away at my crewing story, so look for it appearing in the next several days, most likely over several installments, complete with pictures.

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