My first Rider Option at Montana de Oro (Road to Tevis #114)

On Saturday I chose not to continue after the first big loop at Montana de Oro. It was my first Rider Option. As of this writing, I still do not know exactly why River was not herself, but I do know I did the right thing. Although she was not lame when I vetted out, despite (or amybe because) waiting an hour to vet, she was when we got home Sunday. Hopefully by the time I publish this, my vet will have found a reason. In the meantime, I’ll write about the ride. Despite only having done half, I love MDO. It’s an amazing beautiful and challenging ride!

(Read about my experience with Jazz at the ride last year: The Montana de Oro endurance ride, 2023.)

Jump to:

Some background
Friday: Thank goodness for pre-rides!
Saturday: Loop 1
My first rider option
Pictures I took (including of other riders) in my “free” afternoon
Aftermath
Take home

Some background

Although there was more than one issue going on with River Saturday (cough, mucus, wanting to stop…), her lameness coming out of the trailer Sunday is the most worrisome. I strongly suspect it is an unresolved injury that first appeared at the Cache Creek Ridge ride four weeks previously on May 4th, where she was dead lame (right fore) after 25 miles. Nothing easily detectable, though the vet did not have hoof testers so foot remained a possibility. In that case, she was almost 100% better by the time we got home Saturday evening after a 6.5 hour trailer ride. On Sunday she very slightly favored the right fore. Head bent slightly out, a tiny bit short strided. I found a sore spot behind her right shoulder. By Monday, she was sound and pain-free. My farrier came out early and used hoof testers and helped me do flexion tests.

Above: The place behind River’s right shoulder that waas sore to palpation the day after Cache Creek. An ultrasound revealed nothing.

The week after Cache Creek was the last of the semester. Because River was not lame and I had to go to Bakersfield, I didn’t take her to the vet till the next week, on May 15th. My vet found nothing. We did computerized gait analysis, flexion tests, etc. The computer and our ears detected a very slight, almost imperceptible, irregularity in the left fore on asphalt that disappeared in deep footing.

Left fore? River got a stone bruise in the left foot at the Western Mojave xpride. That cleared up, but then she had a corn in that same foot that showed up at Cuyama Oaks. Also easy to deal with (just had to keep debris out of the hoof). I was paranoid about the corn, but my farrier has tested her hooves not only after Cache Creek Ridge, but also just last week when he reshod her. Zero issues.

Of course, my vet also tested her hooves and found nothing. After a comprehensive exam, he told me to work her hard as soon as I could and bring her back if something showed up.

Above: A taste of River’s lameness exam.

River’s “hard” work out

On May 20th I took River out for a steep ride. I used the same tack I had at the Cache Creek Ridge ride, and I paid close attention to where the saddle was. Several experienced endurance riders on the AERC Facebook page had suggested that the saddle might be riding up and pinching her behind the shoulders when going downhill. (You can read some of the comments on my Cache Creek post here.)

I rode out of our back gate and did one of the steeper training loops, 13.65 miles, 3,704′ total elevation gain, in four hours and ten minutes (3:50 total moving time). We rode up 2,000′ (with ups and downs) in the first four miles. The worst bit climbs just over 1,500′ in 1.9 miles with some grades over 25%. It’s tough (and then you have to come back down).

River did well. She was fresh, full of herself, and very sound. (Watch her cruise down a ranch road!) The saddle did move 2″ back and forth. I hadn’t noticed before because it settles back into place as soon as we are on the flat. What’s more, the wool pad was compressed symmetrically with two spots just behind her shoulder blades. I thought I had found the explanation for the lameness pull at Cache Creek.

Above: Our pre-ride. Donna and Nox led the way most of the time, while River snorted and pranced and kept a close eye on the water.

Friday: Thank goodness for pre-rides!

Not long after I got to the Montana de Oro Hazard Canyon Horse Camp on Friday, my friend Donna and I went for a pre-ride. We were planning to ride together the next day, but things didn’t go as planned, so it was a good thing we decided to head down to the shore. Donna’s horse Nox was really good at the beach; he’d seen it before! River got quite worked up as soon as she saw the ocean in the distance. She was really full of herself as you can tell in this video. I wasn’t surprised… River has been telling me she is fit and feisty for the past few weeks by snorting and (fake) spooking every time I ride.

Donna and I had a nice ride, just 3.5 miles or so at a walk. We had a great time. Both horses felt good, the weather was perfect… We were looking forward to tomorrow!

Tack adjustments

Because I was still sorting out pads and cinches for my McCall saddle, I decided to use my Zaldi. I had used it on River for the first few months, and again in the last few weeks, so I knew it would work. It actually fits very similarly to the McCall, but it’s a fraction of the weight. I could tighten my elastic V-strap dressage girth enough to keep it from moving around as much as the Western saddle does. Because I had done the pre-ride in the McCall, I saddled River up again with the Zaldi and my newly washed Skito pad. I made sure everything fit well, then hopped on for a ride around camp.

Yep, it was mainly training. River had been so exciteable on our pre-ride that I thought she needed a reality check. She was back to her normal calm self after the second saddling!

Vetting in

Unfortunately, the first piece of bad luck (if you don’t count our friend Nina not coming due to worse bad luck) was that Nox was slightly sore on one foreleg. Donna wouldn’t be able to ride with me. River was sound, but for the first time she didn’t get all As at vet-in. B on mucus membranes, Cs on upper gut sounds (both sides). Everything else was an A, and she trotted out very well, but the less than perfect gut had me worried. River always eats and drinks. As usual, she had eaten two flakes of alfalfa in the trailer, and she was only in in 3 hours and 20 minutes! (Yes, she had eaten a full breakfast.) She drank about 1.5 gallons of water when we arrived at camp (also her usual MO).

If you had told me at that point my first rider option was going to happen the next day, I wouldn’t have discarded the possibility. I was already on the alert.

Above: River (left) and Nox enjoying their hay after unloading from the trailer. Happy horses eat and drink well, and these corrals make is easier for them to relax.

Montana de Oro is really an amazing locale!

Still, even now I believe going to MDO was 100% worth it. It’s an incredible experience. The six horse campgrounds have 50 individual corrals (see how nice they are in the above picture). There are water troughs, hoses, manure piles, and even wheelbarrows. There are several firepits, and even a big grill.

As we had last year, Donna (and her husband David) and I stayed in the first campsite, called Madrone (see the image below). We had left early that morning with the intention of parking in the upper campgrounds that are closer to the vet and start. No such luck! They were full. Next year we’re going Thursday. More time to take advantage of the beautiful park, and easier to be close to the vetting area. That said, I do love Madrone, and it’s closer to the beach (and cell service at the top of the road).

By the time Donna and I came back from the vet, David had a fire going. Our neighbors came by to enjoy the warmth. I met lots of interesting new people at this ride (though as usual I’ve forgotten most of the names!) We might not have come in time to park at another campsite, but we still beat the crowd. Rigs kept coming in (and having to do complicated backing) until Ride Meeting.

As she had last year, ride manager Debby Lyon gave an excellent, detailed explanation of the trails. They really are beautiful, and amazingly well-kept. I know a lot of work goes into that, and I truly appreciate it.

Above: A map of the horse camps at Montana de Oro State Park.

Saturday: Loop 1

Preparing for the start

I fed River (Purina Equine Senior Active with rice bran and carrots) at 3:50am. That just happened to be when I woke up and had to pee. I then went back to sleep till five. For her first three rides, River only ate hay. Then she did back-to-back 50s at Cuyama Oaks… since then she devours everything I put in front of her, except mash. That she still eats better at home.

I had yerba mate and lemon basil bread.

After five minutes of hand walking at 5:30, I took River to the trailer to saddle up. She coughed once when I tied her up. She has not been coughing at home, but she seemed ok. Normal low HR (32 bpm), no fever.

This time, I wanted to ride out of camp instead of leading, so I hand walked another five minutes after saddling and before putting her back in the pen to eat and hang out with Nox for ten minutes. Another few minutes leading, then bridle on. I then led her until everyone else had left camp for the start. At 5:55, I led River to the start. I led her back and forth along the road until I saw the forerunners had all left. Then I led her up and mounted. We started down the trail at 6:04.

Above: The full trail map for the first loop.

The first segment

It took us 1:52″ to get to the first vet check, about 11 miles in.

The ride begins following Hazard Canyon road up to the East Boundary Trail. I walked for five minutes, then picked up an easy 6mph trot. River was very well-behaved, even when other riders passed us. We also passed other horses on the uphills. As usual, I tend to go faster uphills than down, mostly because I get off and lead my horses downhill. Of course I do jog with them when possible. But I can’t match the fast trots of horses that are really good downhill, even when mounted!

Above: River is trotting behind me as I jog down the trail. She’s really good about keeping up now, which is why I knew something was wrong when she starting lagging on the long downhill switchback portion of the Oats Peak trail.

East Boundary Trail took us all the way to Islay Creek Rd., which we followed to Reservoir Flats Trail. On Islay Creek Rd, about 4 miles in, I let River stretch out a bit into a 7.5-8.5 mph trot on level stretches, but never for more than a quarter of a mile. She felt good, and wanted to trot on, but she was coughing. For the first five miles or so she coughed at least once every five minutes. After that she only coughed a few times, but I noticed white mucus in her nostrils, so I kept it slow.

River however felt pretty good and asked for more speed the entire time…

The Reservoir Flats trail led us to the New Oats Peak trail that leads up a series of switchbacks. River went up easily and enthusiastically. (She wouldn’t like them at all coming down later!) The trail then doubled back west to Badger Trail, which led us to the first vet check. You can watch a video of me trailing other riders here. River was eager to catch them!

Vet check 1

I hopped off and led River the last quarter mile into the 15-minute hold. She spooked at the photographer, tripped on a rock, and limped for a few strides. I thought there would be a stone in her shoe, but it was a small superficial cut on her inner right cannon bone.

We got to the hold area just behind a group of three riders. Interestingly, as soon as River recognized the hold for what it was. She gave a huge sigh and calmed down. Her pulse dropped from 65 to 55bpm and stayed low till we left. She vetted through with all As and was, if anything, too calm.

It’s been hard for me to get to know River well, because she is so not-hot. If Fantazia were ever as calm as River is on a regular basis, I’d think she was dying and take her to the vet. So it’s difficult to tell when River is too calm. Still, she was weirdly quiet at that hold. She nibbled on some hay and then just stood there. Again I saw mucus in her nose. I resolved to take it easy and rider option if she weren’t feeling better back at camp for our main hold.

Above: River standing quietly and watching others vet through. On the right/bottom, you can see the mucus she had that morning.

The second segment of Loop 2

Despite being very quiet at the hold, River started out the second segment strong. The trail leads down Rattlesnake Flats trail (I hopped off and led her down the switchbacks) to Coon Creek Trail. I love Coon Creek because it has a series of four narrow wooden bridges. Just like Jazz last year, River had no problem with the bridges. She did catch my left stirrup on the rail as we got off the first bridge, but I didn’t hit my head on the tree after the last bridge as I had last year! (Jazz is quite a bit taller!)

Above: Crossing the first bridge! Videos of the others are also on YouTube. (Second, Third, Fourth)

The long climb up and down

We left the Coon Creek Trail to start up the Oats Peak trail. You’re at 285′ when you leave Coon Creek and wind up Oats Peak over 1000′ to 1,364′. (Per my Garmin.) River motored up the hill with no hesitation. She wasn’t coughing anymore, and she seemed her normal self. Her heart rate never went above 140 bpm. I started to think we’d be able to complete the ride.

Above: Riding up Oats Peak Trail through the fog.

At the top of the hill I lost the trail a few times–in my defense, it was foggy! Luckily some riders I had passed on the way up caught up and showed me the way. I dismounted to lead River the long rocky way down. It’s nearly five miles from the top of the Oats Peak trail to wher it flattened out enough for me to get back in the saddle.

About a mile from the top, River started lagging behind me. She didn’t want to trot much at all(I jog where on gentler slopes where it’s not too rocky). Within a few miles, she started hanging back on the reins at the walk and really struggled going back down the switchbacks on the New Oats Peak trail. (No I did not notice any lameness, but it would have been hard to do so on the steep rocky terrain at the walk.)

River was flagging

Something was clearly wrong. No mucus, no coughing, no lameness that I could see, but she was not good. I got back on when it flattened out. River was still reluctant to trot at first, but she perked up when we crossed a creek and headed back towards camp. (River has an excellent sense of direction. Last year Jazz never figured out where Ride Camp was…) I kept her to a walk because I was still worried.

When we crossed Pecho Valley road, I trotted her to make sure she wasn’t lame. She wasn’t, so we headed out on Dune Trail. She still thought she was going home (correctly) so at first I had to make her walk. After about a mile of deep sand though, she started to flag again. I knew I wouldn’t be riding the second loop.

Above: The track from the first vet check through the Oats Peak trail, with annotation!

Some stats

I forgot to restart my Garmin watch for about half a mile after the first vet check, so these are not entirely accurate!

• Distance: 25.5 miles
• Time: 5:47 (Moving time: 5:26). PLus the 15 minute hold and the 4-5 minutes it took me to remember to start my watch.
• Total elevation gain: 4,580′
• Average speed: 4.4 mp (average moving speed: 4.7 mph)
• Average heart rate: 83 bpm (max = 158, when going up the New Oats Peak trail at the beginning. She wanted to charge.)

Above: River ate and drank well after the ride. I knew she wasn’t all right though.

My first rider option

We went very slowly through the sand along Dune Trail. River wanted to eat nonstop and did not want to trot. To be absolutely honest, I was terrified she was dead lame and happy to let her walk. I got off to check her hooves for stones (none) and led her about half the way. Whenever she stopped, she was slow to put down whichever leg was in the air. I thought, oh sh*t, she’s lame on both front legs.

When we got to ride camp, she stuck her head in a trough and drank for several minutes. By the time she was done, her pulse was at 54. The volunteer who pulsed her in said it was the lowest she’d taken all day!

But I knew River was not okay

I knew it didn’t mean anything though. Even though I knew we weren’t riding the second loop, I took River back to the trailer. I wanted her to cool off so that any lameness would show clearly (and hopefully be easily diagnosed by the vet). At Cache Creek Ridge, she had not been lame when we arrived at the hold, but she was 20 minutes later. I thought the same might happen.

It didn’t. River ate and drank well while I removed her tack, curried her, and ate my own lunch. (Two giant P&J on Dave’s Good Seed bread, my favorite!) When I took River to the vet, she felt and looked better than she had since early that morning. Something riled her up right before we got to the vet, so she was snorting and whistling and acting like she hadn’t just acted half dead coming off Oats Peak.

She vetted through fit to continue though I was expecting lameness. She didn’t even look that stiff. (I was still fearing lame on both legs.) The only issue the vet found was silent gut on her upper quadrants and fast gut in the lower. I thought great, she’s going to colic too. Sure, I probably wouldn’t have rider optioned just because of that gut (She’d been eating, drinking, pooping, and peeing normally.) But I knew something wasn’t right.

What I did with my “free” afternoon

I threw a blanket on River and headed to the beach. I wanted to see the vegetation. There was plenty of that, and I even ran into the last few 50-mile riders and got some pictures of them. You can watch a video of Emilee and Amber (I think!) riding through the dunes.

Above: Slideshow of the pictures I took of participants in the 50-mile endurance ride at Montana de Oro.

Above: Many pictures of the amazing vegetation in the dunes at Montana de Oro.

The next day

The next morning I got up, packed, walked River for 5 minutes, and was on the road by 6:15. River had eaten all her hay over night and drank about 6 gallons of water, so I wasn’t worried about her… until I released her in her pasture at home.

She was lame. Not as lame as she had been after 25 miles at Cache Creek Ridge, no head bob, but I could see a regular shortness of stride and hear the dreaded rhythm. I caught her and took her to the deep footing of our outdoor arena… The limp became pronounced and she didn’t want to trot at all.

I gave her 2 grams of bute and resolved to call the vet first thing the next day.

Aftermath

I couldn’t get her in to the vet Monday. The head vet at my clinic retired May 31st (he was the one who saw her earlier). I called another clinic, slightly further away but good vet! They were also full, and not being a client I couldn’t really expect them to fit me in.

I made an appointment for Tuesday at 1pm. When doing our normal stretches Monday morning, I discovered that River felt pain when I stretched her right front leg back by pulled just above the knee. Nothing else hurt, not even the sore spot I had detected after Cache Creek Ridge. I did not trot her.

(Interlude: I drove up to the Woodland Stallion Station to get Fantazia Monday. She’s pregnant! Crossing fingers she stays that way. I’ll give details at the 60-day check if all is well 🙂

At the vet

The good news is that River was still lame enough to block. THat may be in part because when I went to get her, Fantazia didn’t want to let me catch her… I mean, she didn’t want to let me catch herself OR River. So they both ran around like lunatics for five minutes. (I guess Fantazia doesn’t want to go back to Woodland. She’d better not lose the foal.)

The bad news is that we did not reach a conclusive diagnosis. River was just as lame after successive blicking up to the knee. It still hurt to pull the leg back. Nothing else hurt upon palpation. Ultrasound revealed no abnormalities in the muscle or along any of the shoulder bones.

The vet suspects it might be an axillary injury, based on my description of how River fell at Cache Creek and her difficulty coming down steep swtichbacks. However, the pectoral muscles look symmetrical and are not sore to palpation.

What now?

In any case, River will be on stall rest for a month. The vet said I could slowly start her back to work, but I was going to give her the summer off anyway. I’ll probably just slowly increase her paddock size. Hopefully I can get her to my chiropracter soon.

For an update on River’s progress three months later visit What’s going on with my horses?

Take home

It doesn’t matter how slowly and carefully you go with a horse, you can end up hurting it. I have gone slowly with River because of her mind (I want her to stay super calm), not her physical state. As an off-track racing Arabian who came to me sound, I could safely have ridden her much faster from her start in endurance in January. Now I am wondering if I should have trained a bit faster and harder. Would she then have been less predisposed to injury at Cache Creek?

I need something to ride!

I am not at all convinced I should bring River back into training in two months, so I’ve got one pregnant mare and one broken one. I’m not going to ride Fantazia until her 60-day check, and lightly after that.

The best thing would be for me to distract myself with another horse. I will put feelers out. A friend offered me one, but he hasn’t been backed yet, and I’d rather have something more cooked. I may only have 4-6 months to ride the horse, and I can do the most good by riding down the trail. I’m open to any sort of agreement, but it would have to be very specific after my experience with Jazz.

Below you can see some of the amazing scenery at MDO!