From John
I like to talk about impressive things that people I know have done and are doing. Here’s a message to me from Diane. I’m her biggest fan east of the Rockies.
“Well it is official. I have received notice from the Western States Trail Foundation that my entry into the Western States 100 Miles in One Day Trail Ride, aka, the Tevis Cup, has been accepted.”
This is August 4th - 100 miles from Robie Park east of Squaw Valley down the Sierras to Auburn, CA.
“Boo is in great shape. Me? Well, not so much so. He’s the equivalent of a 20-25 yr old man while I haven’t seen 20 in darn near a half century. If he doesn’t exercise for a couple of weeks, it’s no big deal. If I don’t ride for a couple of days, I lose enough conditioning that I can really feel it. Although I think we could do well, the truth is that the completion rate runs around 50% of all starters and the rate is LOT lower for first timers like me. Sobering.”
Here is Diane winning the 50-mile race in Santa Cruz CA on Arabian Peekaboo last August and two scenes of the Tevis 100-mile route. (Click to enlarge)
Wow! Congratulations on your acceptance, Diane. That’s quite an accomplishment indeed. Thanks to John for bragging about you because you deserve to be bragged about! Please let us know about your experience.
Be safe and best of luck to you!
Thank you NC, but keep in mind that when it comes to Rowayton Kids, John is a little prejudiced
The truth is that entering Tevis isn’t really all that impressive. COMPLETING Tevis is another matter. To enter, all you need to do is fill out the entry form, come up with the entry fee, be one of the first 220 or so to get your entry in and fulfill one of two qualifications: either have already completed the ride or have 300 miles of sanctioned Endurance competition. Since this is my first attempt, you can guess which qualification I met
You want impressive? How about a woman who this year is riding for her 32nd Tevis completion? She has 3,100 miles doing one of the toughest 100 mile competitions in the world. If you add to that her mother’s 22 completions, you have a mother/daughter combo with 5,300 miles on this trail. That is REALLY impressive
There is usually a website that follows the Tevis, like with the big bicycle races, posting times into vet checks, who got pulled where and why. That way, you can follow your favorite horse and rider and groan in agony when they get pulled, ALL IN REAL TIME – lol! I don’t know the url yet.
Beautiful pictures. Congratulations! I’ll say a prayer for you…lol
I’ll hold you to that
I’ll need every good thought that comes my way.