Jonni’s Story

 And here is my friend Jonni’s account of her Tevis ride, wrapping up my week of reminiscence, bitter nostalgia, and current events. (Part 1 concerned the intricacies of her travel to get to California, which I will post if anyone is interested!) She has promised a postscript of “coming home” thoughts which I eagerly await (Jonni’s a good storyteller & a great writer) - now I’ve got to quit goofing around and go load up so I can make my own riding memories!

Tevis 2024, part 2, The ride:

After arriving at the fairgrounds, I got in a couple rides out to No Hands bridge and back, so if we were lucky enough to get that far, he would have seen that last section and hopefully know the way with a tired rider. He had his friend Henry [Gayle’s horse] staying in stall next to him, who he would stay with the night before the ride in camp. We did a ride to the bridge with Pam Reland’s beautiful Shiloh one day. Hondo liked him, and I asked if she would like to ride with us. Hondo could use a friend, and Pam was happy to ride with us, and I’d help her with the timing. Agreement in advance, if it did not work well, we would part ways, no hard feelings. 

Hondo was eating lots, drinking well at the fairgrounds, and looking as ready as he could be. He’s NOT an easy keeper, so I was happy with his enthusiasm for food. I was giving him loose salt in mouth once a day to encourage  extra drinking, and he would get a bucket of water with the “Gallaghers water” powder in it.  Friday morning, we loaded up, and headed to camp. I did high line where he could see Henry, and he was a Happy Hondo. Again, eating lots, drinking well. I held my breath on check in, with that previous lameness hanging in my thoughts. But he moved great, had a 36 pulse, and all A's on his vet card, with exception on B’s on lower quadrants of gut sounds, which is normal. We were good to go. But my mind was giving me many doubts on his fitness, as I had not gotten him out as much as I had wanted,  and my knees, that had been bugging me off and on for months, were really sore. But here  we were, and my gut over all was saying we could do it. 

The next morning, as I mounted up, and his friend Henry left, he did a bit of a jump, fuss, maneuver as I was mounting that startled me, and a few around us, but I stuck on, and we headed to the start with Pam and Shiloh. 

We walked to the official start in the darkness, deep in thought of what the day would bring. He was calm, and I was trying to be. We picked up the trot, and we crossed the official start line, and we were on our way. I always have my legs complain a little at the beginning of a ride as I start trotting. And this is a ride you trot a bunch in the beginning. Up hill, down hill, almost the whole way to the highway 89 crossing, which has the first live feed for those watching on line. I was already thinking about “why am I doing this? This is not fun right now! My legs /knees ache already!”. But I knew it would get better, it always does. This was my 7th time starting the ride, 6th from this camp. I know the timing, I know the speed to go, yet, when we got to the top at High Camp, I was feeling we were a bit behind on time, and I wasn’t sure why. We paused at Watsons monument, looked back over our shoulder to Lake Tahoe, and ahead to the vistas and valleys of the Sierra mountains, and somewhere, down there, was the finish line. I always get emotional at that spot on the trail. The high country was as beautiful as ever, I felt like we were making decent time, but at Lyon Ridge, I was about 15 min. behind where I wanted to be. And this was early in the ride!  Hondo had not been super attentive like I wanted, so I decided to pass on Cougar Rock this year. But I had put Pam up in front of me, and when we got to it, I told her to kick and go, and look up towards the top. Shiloh did spectacular, and I knew she would have some beautiful pictures. I then went around the bypass, and met back up with her.  At Red Star Ridge, we were still 15 min. behind my goal time. I hopped off, checked his pulse myself, let him drink, and went straight to the vet. He needed to be a 60 pulse, and was a 56. We arrived at 10:05, and were thru the vet at 10:12. Pams horse took a bit longer, so we waited. We did talk about it, and she understood if he was slower at other spots, and Hondo was quick, I’d go ahead and leave, as we were pressing time. 

We arrived at Robinson Flat at 11:41am, my goal had been closer to 11:00am. My crew put water on him, stripped his tack, and 3 min. later he was pulsed down in pulse box at 48 (60 was required) and when we got to the vet, his pulse was 44, and a 44 again for his CRI after the trot out. He commented he has only had a couple others that low. I held my breath as my crew trotted him out, and he was perfect! Whew.  After he ate everything in sight, we were off to the next stop, alone, as Pam was a bit behind our time. The road out of Robinsons Flat sucks. Its hard pack, getting warmer out, and Hondo could not see any other horses.  We finally got to the entrance to the Pucker Point trail. We both drank, looked at the time and realized we needed to push to make the 3PM cut off time.  The trail to Pucker Point has a lot of nice footing, straight aways, that have a drop on one side, but wide enough to move out well. So, we cantered those sections. I’d have never thought I’d have to canter on this ride for any reason, but we needed to MOVE. We got to Last Chance at 2:51, we were at vet at 2:58 with pulse of 60, and after he ate a bit, we were gone by 3:10. Now we had the first, and worst canyon ahead of us. The rocks seemed a tad more loose than in the past, and slipping more under the horses feet. Because of my bad knees, I don’t/can’t get off and lead downhill, but he was a rock start all the way down.  We got to the bridge, skipped the river, and went to the nice stream that was running well after you crossed the bridge. He drank, and I sponged him, to cool him down. Then we started the march to the top. We were with one other horse, who we followed awhile, but it kept stopping. I took the lead, and let Hondo set the pace. He marched to the top, and never asked to stop.  Most have heard about the different accidents on the ride. As we were almost to the top, one rider was off to the right in a clearing, with the horse untacked, and a volunteer was sponging the horse.  They were well off the trail. Up ahead, a dark horse was down in the middle of the trail, but it was where we could go around it in the brush. I wished the rider the best, and told her I was sorry her horse was having trouble.  More volunteers were coming down the trail to help out, and we reached the top at Devils Thumb, let Hondo drink, and headed on into the Deadwood Vet check a bit over a mile down the trail. Its usually a crowded vet check, and this year, a good number of horses were already there, cooling down, eating, and some had stripped tack to help cooldown. We arrived at 4:48, just making the 5PM cut off time. I checked his pulse, he was down, and at 4:52 we vetted thru with a pulse of 56. I then took him over to eat some mash and hay which he consumed with much enthusiasm. I rehydrated myself, and we were off to the next canyon. This canyon has more sections you can trot some, which we did. At one point, we passed Kaput spring, where it has made a few puddles in the trail, and he stepped in it, and his back legs sunk up to his hocks. He sprung out of it, thankfully unscathed.  We pushed on, and finally came to Michigan Bluff which is about 63 miles in. I skipped some crowded water troughs at the top of the climb, not wanting to burn up any time waiting to get him into one, and moved on down into the little town, where he had a trough to himself, and a volunteer cooling him down. No vet check here, but a tough one just a mile and a half up the trail. We were still feeling the pressure of being behind my own times I had set, so we did not spend much time there, and headed on to Chicken Hawk. It’s a big wide road, but a constant slight climb. We trotted and walked, and finally arrived at 7:12PM.  I have volunteered at this spot for years, and its quirky. A horse can arrive, meet criteria, then will spike a pulse, and have trouble coming back down. I tell people vet thru as soon as the meet criteria, THEN feed them etc.  My crew was there, and before they did much, I checked pulse, and he was 71, we put some water on him, and he dropped to 56, and we were over at the vet in minutes. I was now feeling so much less doubtful about his chances, as long as he stayed sound. But every trot out, he was looking great! So at 7:25, I was back on the trail, headed to the last canyon, and our 1 hour hold. 

This is the easiest canyon, and we were able to move out a bit more, but we caught up with a few riders, which slowed us down a little bit.  As you come out of the canyon, you go onto a paved road, called Bath Road. They had water troughs there, and he drank well, and we started the final climb up to the Foresthill vet check. With his Poly shoes, I was able to trot on the pavement some, and walked the steepest parts. Its always a welcome sight, to see people lining the road, cheering on all the riders. A local resident runs water hoses out to the road, to help cool the horses. While I mentally wanted to hop off to walk the last part, I stayed on him, stopped at the water spot, had someone hand me a hose, and I cooled him down.  We made our way on into the vet check, and timed in at 8:19pm. They SUGGEST you arrive by 8PM, and horses must be pulsed down by 8:45pm.  We stripped his tack, checked his pulse, and he was down. All the other vet checks during the day, except Robinson Flat, the vet does the pulse. I forgot they had pulse takers here, to check you, before going to the vet, and I got to the vet with a bit of confusion, that I did not have a pulse. Oops. But the vet was kind, took the pulse, which was 56, vetted us thru, and we were now headed over to the trailer for our 2nd 1 hour hold of the day.  We arrived as our friend Gayle was getting ready to leave. I wished him well, and as he rode off into the darkness, I prepped for doing so myself, as Hondo again, ate everything he could. 

NEXT: Into the darkness

Tevis part 3, Into the darkness:

At Foresthill, Hondo ate, and I managed to eat a little something. I had just not been hungry all day.  I got his glow sticks on his breastcollar, and changed to my other helmet that already had a headlamp attached. We changed to a shorter girth, as he had gone down in size a bit (more on that later) and when our hour was almost up, we headed to the timer, and then headed out. 

Its always already dark when I leave Foresthill, and the first part is along the  road, then thru town on the streets, a turn on to California St. and then on to the trail. I was asking those around me if any of the horses had done the ride before. Nope, not a one. Nice to follow a horse that knows the trail. In Fact, not sure any of the riders had done the trail before. I had practiced riding Hondo in the dark once, for a couple miles. He did great, but knew the trail. So, we got in behind some others, to get a feel of how they paced, and how Hondo was doing in the dark. A gal in the front used her headlamp, which does not bother me at all. Also, the fire a couple years ago took out all the trees and the moon was actually shining on the trail, as the trees were gone that used to make it so dark. The trail has a lot of switchbacks. They marked the end of each one with a red glow stick, to signal a turn. That worked well, and we were getting a feel for the trail. After a bit, our group of about 8, stretched in to smaller groups of 2-3. I stayed behind the one with the headlamp awhile, but was starting to feel we needed to pick up the pace a bit. I eventually passed her, and we found ourselves alone for a few miles. I decided to try using the headlamp, and found Hondo moved out better. I think much of that is, when I felt more confident, HE felt more confident. Using headlamps is a big controversy amoung riders, and regions. The key for me is, at a sharp turn, you sort of pan the light on to the turn, showing him where to go. And do NOT look around, and turn off  if we saw others ahead. I think now that Hondo has had so much practice in the dark, the headlamp would not be needed for MY comfort level. Again, this worked for US, and I’m never going to tell someone what to do or not do, unless its affecting my ride. About half way to the Cal2 water stop, I realized I had forgotten to refill my water bottles, and one was missing. I had a little in the one bottle, so I sipped it until I could refill at Cal2. Funny how very thirsty you are, when you realized you do not have much water. We finally got to Cal2, he drank, I drank, and we moved along. No reason to hang out there.  We were now headed to the Francisco’s vet check. A mix of more single track, and roads, Including a few steep/short climbs I had forgotten about.  Hondo started doing these weird grunt noises. Kind of like some horses do when they colic. Concerning, but he was still moving well.  Again, we found ourselves mostly alone, trotting thru the darkness. Finally we could see the welcome lights of the vet check. We arrived at 1:05am, with a cut off of 1:45am.  I was moving a bit slow, and a tad sleepy. I let him grab some food, a drink, and got to the vet and pulsed down to 56 with CRI of 52 at 1:14am. And he was sound! It was time for both of us to recharge a bit.  I parked Hondo at some hay and a mash, and went to find caffeine and something to eat. I was offered a Mtn Dew, which I quickly drank. It was so cold, and so yummy. I then drank 2 small 6 oz cans of Pepsi. Then a piece of pizza. It was 1:40am, and time to get a move on. Here I hooked up with Kirsten and Haily. Hondo always loves to have a friend along. And was happy to follow along. And again, you really do not have time to walk much. Trot, trot, trot…  Haily had a light, and we moved along at a nice steady pace. We picked up a few more riders who were thrilled to follow along with us. By now its pushing 3AM, and we have been riding since 5:15AM.  Finally we reach the river crossing. They have glow sticks like runway lights to ride between as we get to the river, and then they float in the river, to guide us around the best path to take. I had wanted to take Hondo to a local horse pool to swim him once before the ride, but did not have time. I had no idea what he would do as that cold water hit him. He drank a bit at the edge of the river, then we stepped on in it. The shore was a bit steep, and all of a sudden I was wet almost to my knees. A couple of the other horses sort of stopped, so we took the lead, and kept moving, then up the short, but steep climb out of the river. A bit more trail, then we finally reach the road towards the last vet check. This section always seems long, and I really could not remember how far it was to the Lower Quarry vet check. We swapped around who was in front between our group of 3, and the other group of about 4-5 that joined us before the river. I was constantly thinking about how Hondo was feeling. Was he trotting balanced? Any sign of lameness? Was he willing to trot when I asked? This was the last on trail vet check we had to get thru. Long sections of silence, where we are all thinking about our day, and how close we were to finishing. Finally! The lights of Lower Quarry. You ride above the vet check on the trail, then do a sharp turn down, into it. We had a cut off time of 3:30am. My in time was 3:24am  Again, I decided to check pulse, and go straight to the vet. Because many of us were arriving at once, I also did not want to get caught up behind a group vetting at the same time if I could help it. He was pulsed down and vetted at 3:27, with a pulse and CRI of 60/60.  He drank and grabbed some hay, and we were headed out. As I was getting back on him, the rider from Mexico, who brought his own horse up from Mexico was waiting for transport. His very sweet mare had gotten pulled. I was rooting for them to finish. His trip up, included a 21 day quarantine. So many stories on this ride. 

Now we were on the final stretch. It’s a big wide road to the highway 49 crossing. Its bright from the moon, and easy to move out, but also a very hard packed road. So we did not pound them fast. Just kept moving that steady pace.  After we crossed the highway, Hondo had been pre-ridden on the rest of the trail to the finish. He lead much of the way.  When we got to No Hands bridge, I remembered crossing it with Ted in 2019, where he picked up a lovely canter, and the moon reflected on the river. Tonight, I settled with a nice trot across it.  Looking at our timing, and knowing we had just 4 miles to go, Kirsten and I knew we did not need to push fast to finish. The rest of the group moved on, and we did more walking than trotting. We still had the final vet check to get thru.  We chatted some, but I was also reflecting on our day, and how Hondo far exceeded my expectations for the day.  Then, finally, we saw the lights of the finish line peek thru the trees. They are sort of above and to the left, and you go past, turn left and up a little hill and across the line. As I saw the lights I did a “Whoop” and called out “Let’s Go Hon-do!”, with my crew responding back.  I’m not even sure if we picked up a trot!  While its thrilling to cross that finish line, I’m always apprehensive to let my emotions go, until we vet thru and get the “Congratulations” from the vet.  While Hondo took a big drink from the finish line water trough, where so many grand horses have drank over the years, my crew gave me hugs and praise. We then headed from the timed finish line, down the road, across the railroad tracks, and on into the fairgrounds where we took our victory lap and photos as we went under the banner. Kirsten and I turned around after we passed under, and went back under the banner for a photo of us together.  More hugs from friends, and now I could get off and get him untacked, and ready for final vet check. They give us 40 min. from the timed finish at the over look, to vet thru at the end. Its about a 10 min. walk down from the timed finish to the arena. Then the victory lap. So we finished at 5AM. At 5:22am he had tack off, and we were vetting thru.  His final pulse was 48.  A funny note on our final vetting. On all my finishes, Dr. Mike Peralez has done our final vet. So when I came up to wait to vet thru, I was directed to another vet. I told him I was going to wait for Mike. He said I can’t do that. I joked and said “He has always vetted my horses thru at the end”. Then Mike looks up, and is told “She’s wanting to go to you”.  And Mike says” Yes, she has to come to me to vet thru”.  We all laughed. Mike and I both rode NATRC at the same time as junior riders, and I have known him, and his family for decades.  I held my breath as I had my crew trot him out. I of course was really watching the leg he was lame on a couple weeks before the ride and he was as sound and balanced as he could be. His scores on his metabolics were fine. Not outstanding, but fine.  Mike then turned and said the magic word: “Congratulations”.  Now I could get emotional and let some tears leak out.  The horse many would have betted on as one to NOT finish, had proved he was one tough boy, with recoveries that were good to spectacular. He was now a Tevis horse.

I’ll do a part 4 on random thoughts, synopsis and a bit on traveling over 1800 miles each way alone