Reasons We Ride

by Linda Benson

We ride horses for many reasons. Some of us like to compete in shows. Some like the kinship and relationship that we develop with our equine partners. For some, training a horse is a thrill.

I haven't been riding much recently, but on a recent camping trip, I hiked with my husband on a gorgeous trail through the northernmost grove of Redwood Trees, in Southwest Oregon. And I realized that the most joy that I have experienced on horseback, and the main reason that I like to ride, is to experience wild places.

Because everyone needs a little wilderness.

Even as a girl with a horse (although I did my share of barrel racing and showing in other classes) my main place to ride was away. Gone for the day, into the mountains, up trails that only my horse and I knew about.

These experiences come out in my writing, too. In my short read called The Summer Cat, fourteen-year-old Hannah rides her mare on the hundreds of acres of forest land behind her house. She has names for trails that she uses, like the Wild Rose Trail. (Have you named the trails that you ride the most? I always did.)

"I pushed her up the Wild Rose trail. We trotted straight up the steep slope which opened onto an amazing view of the valley and the forest and mountains behind our property. Those show horse people never get to see this stuff . . ."

The most fun I ever had horseback was a three-day camping trip with a girlfriend, riding the 100 mile Tevis trail (several weeks prior to competing in the actual race) but doing it in thirds, camping along the way.

Anyway, those are my thoughts for the day. I hope in all of your riding, training, and bonding with your horse, you are able to use that wonderful creature to take you places you might never otherwise see.

Wishing you all a little wilderness.

A Blast From the Past

By Linda Benson

The Tevis Cup, the 100 mile/one day ride through the rugged Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, was recently completed. Held in July or August on a weekend nearest the full moon, I did this ride many years ago, and I always get nostalgic this time of year just thinking about it.

I rode it on my good horse Daniel. Although the vast majority of endurance riders prefer Arabs, Daniel was a half-mustang, half-quarter horse gelding that I had bought as a green broke 8-year-old. He was dark palomino with a lot of dun factor, including a salt-and-pepper mane, a line-back, and even some faint zebra-striping on his legs. I'm sure his coloring, as well as his toughness and surefootedness was inherited from his mustang mother.

The year was 1985 (well of course it was, check out the permed hair.) This was long before everyone had a digital camera, so this a photo of a photo (excuse the poor quality) of Daniel and I going over the iconic Cougar Rock. The trail narrows to a steep climb up a solid granite rock right here, with an insane drop in any direction, and professional photographers are positioned here to take a picture of you and your horse scrambling up the rock. Well of course everyone wants to RIDE up the infamous Cougar Rock (because it makes for such a cool pic) so I wanted to tell you the story of why I'm walking up it (which about half the riders, and anyone with any sense, would do.)

Actually, my girlfriend and I had completed this trail a couple of weeks earlier in three days, riding about 30-35 miles a day, carrying all of our needs on horseback and camping out. We not only had a blast, but Daniel had carried me right up this rock like the trooper that he was. He was sure-footed, I totally trusted him, and he had never refused to go anywhere that I pointed him. Which explains the look on my face in this picture. Do I look determined? No, actually, I was totally pissed at my horse right here, and calling him many names that I cannot print.

After a mad dash out of camp at 5:15 in the morning, and long-trotting up the slopes of Squaw Valley, followed by a narrow trail that winds around and over creeks and timber, there was a bottle-neck of horses at about the 27 mile marker, waiting to climb Cougar Rock. Unlike earlier, when our forward motion carried us right on up, Daniel had time to think about it while we waited our turn. Perhaps he remembered how steep it was, or maybe he knew how many more miles (73) there were on the other side of it. At any rate, when we approached the rock, my darn horse spun around about ten times and refused to go up it.

Now of course anyone with half a brain would have bailed off and just led their horse up, got to the top safely, remounted and proceeded. But no. Puffed up with cowgirl pride, I walloped old Daniel a few good ones, not wanting him to get away with anything. I could hear the titters and sighs of the other riders around me, waiting for their turn, while I took this moment to school my horse. In just a few minutes, Daniel decided to charge up the rock, just like he had brilliantly a couple of weeks ago. With a smug look on my face, I leaned forward and grabbed his mane to help him balance. But when he got about 2/3 of the way up, at the steepest, scariest, most treacherous spot, my horse spun around again, and started back down the rock. Eeecckkk.

With youthful agility that I don't possess today, I jumped off him, amazingly didn't fall, grabbed the reins, and led him on up, narrowly averting a huge disaster captured for all time by the professional photographer sitting above us to our right. At the top of the rock, I jumped back on my horse, and it took about ten minutes (and a lot of bad words) to get my emotions under control. I decided that since we still had so far to go, I could not mentally be mad at my horse for all that time. So I collected myself, with difficulty, and continued. Whatever happened on that rock was in the past, and we had a lot of trail in front of us. And Daniel did perfectly during the entire rest of the ride.

Did we finish the entire 100 miles? Well, yes we did. Did we receive the coveted silver buckle for finishers? To find out, you can read the post I wrote about it right here.

Training for, and riding the Tevis Cup was one of the most exciting times in my life. Endurance riding is a lot of fun, not only because of all the beautiful country you get to see, but because it's really rewarding to get your horse very fit and tough. I totally had a blast doing it, but wanted to share with you the real story behind this picture.

For more about the Tevis, visit their official site right here.

Are any of you endurance riders? Tell us about the rides that you've been on.

Random Joy

by Laura Crum

Lately it seems like at least half my favorite horse blogs are written by endurance riders. I love the descriptions of the rides and all those photos of “ears” in front of striking scenery. And they all seem like such nice people. If I were younger and not so burned out on long hours in the saddle (I spent my 20’s and 30’s mostly on a horse), I’d take up endurance myself, if only for the social aspect. (Even though I’m something of a hermit in real life.)

But I am old and stout and I have paid my dues on many all day rides of various sorts (not endurance), and I like my sedate little two hour trail rides just fine, thank you very much. In fact, despite the fact that what I am doing now (horsewise) seems pretty tame compared to the ranching, roping, cutting, horse packing…etc of my youth, I am having as much or more fun with my horses today than I ever have in my life.

I like the freedom I feel, and the complete absence of anxiety. I like to ride along in a relaxed frame of mind, enjoying the scenery and the company of my son. I love my steady, unflappable little yellow mule, though he is a far cry from the much more athletic horses I competed on those many years ago.

So no endurance for me—though I tell myself that I am sort of a mini-endurance rider—after all we’re all folks who enjoy trail riding, right? I just don’t like trail riding until I’m exhausted (!)

But I do love getting “outside” on my horse, and when weather and life cooperate, I’m out on the trails two or three days a week. Last night I started looking for some photos of myself trail riding to post on the blog—as I always enjoy the photos that others post of themselves out on the trail. I particularly enjoy the “ride photos” showing the intrepid endurance rider and mount cruising through dramatic scenery (like the last set Funder posted links to on her "It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time" blog—breathtaking!). So I tried to find some photos of myself and Sunny out in the hills.

Well, there aren’t that many photos of me it turns out—because I am the one taking the photos, usually. Thus photos of Sunny are mostly of his ears. The most recent photos of myself and my mount that I could find are from last summer and fall. And they are a far cry from elegant “ride photos”. No professional photographer was handy. But anyway…

So here’s Sunny and me and my son and Henry in September—taken when my husband hiked with us. I am busy talking to my husband and paying no attention to what I look like on the horse—so yes, my hand is way too high.

And here’s one taken by my son last summer. Look at Sunny’s mane. Funder and White Horse Pilgrim, I think it rivals Dixie’s and Brena’s.

And yes, I know—no helmet. This was before my conversion to helmet-hood. I do wear the helmet now. And yes, I ride in Ugg boots. Works for me. Note the little flames on Sunny’s breast collar. I would not have chosen these (Aarene and Funder), but my horse Plumber won this breast collar in a roping contest, so of course I have to use it.

Looking at these photos, I realize that they were both taken on one of my favorite rides. This is a logging road that runs through a redwood forest on private land. The property is next door to my uncle’s small horse ranch and we have permission to ride there. It’s an up and back, not a loop, but I have been riding on this road for over thirty years and I know every bend and every tree. The road takes you up to the top of the ridge, and then, unless you get permission to ride on some other private land, you come back down. Going to the top of the ridge and back takes between one and two hours, depending on how fast you go. In my twenties, I would lope the whole way up on Gunner. It was great fun. Now we mostly walk and trot.

Here are a few more photos that show what a pretty little dirt road this is. Below you see my son on Henry and our friend Wally on Twister, headed up the hill. My son is objecting to being photographed—I think he’s been reading too much Calvin and Hobbes (!)

And here I am following Wally and my kid out of the forest and into the big meadow that borders my uncle’s place.

Here’s the ubiquitous ear photo as Sunny and I reach the top of the ridge.

Here’s my favorite photo—even though it is blurry. (I have a hard time taking sharp pictures from my horse’s back.) But you can see my favorite stretch of the road with my kid trotting down it—isn’t it pretty?

We only ride here in the summer and fall—since it is a north slope mostly in shade, it doesn’t dry out in the winter and spring and the ground there is very slick when it is wet. So I haven’t been there since the day my husband took the first photo in this post—which was September, I think. Usually the earliest we can ride there is June, and we’re almost never up there past October.

Its been raining a lot for the last week or two, so I haven’t been out on the trails at all for awhile. But looking at these photos makes me feel happy. I’ve had so much fun riding on this little road through the woods over the years. I look forward to getting back up there this summer.

And, on another joyful note, my 5^th book, Slickrock, is now up on Kindle for 99 cents, This has always been the reader favorite of all my books, and today I’m gonna give it a little plug. Folks, if you like horses and trail riding, you will like this book. It’s the least mystery-like of my novels, so even if mysteries are not your thing, I think you’ll like it. The whole story takes place in the course of a mountain pack trip in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, and its more of an adventure than a mystery. It works just fine as a stand-alone, so even if you’ve got no interest in reading my mystery series, give Slickrock a try for 99 cents (if you read on Kindle). Here is the link.

OK, I’ll quit with the shameless promotion now.