River completed a 50-mile endurance ride on Day 3 of Fire Mountain on January 18th. With new shoes designed to allow her old corn to grow out without pain (and prevent new corns from forming), River finished the ride without lameness. Yes, she was still sensitive. Whenever she caught a rock with her left fore, she felt it. By the end of the ride, I could tell River was a bit tired, grouchy, and ouchy, but she wasn’t lame. Hopefully we have found a solution to her tendency to get sore feet!
Photo credit for the featured image goes to Sam Ortega of Twisted Fate Photography.
Read about River’s first 50 ever, also at Fire Mountain: River’s first endurance ride. Her first LD was also at Fire Mountain: River’s ride to the Trona Pinnacles.
River’s (and my) condition going into the ride
River had gone no further than 11 miles in conditioning rides since November 14th. Since then she had been lame, and we had figured out that her lameness was due to a corn. (Read about how we figured out River’s lameness.) I kept riding, but avoided long concussive trails, focusing instead on short, steep climbs. As a result, River was not in top shape, but she was plenty fit to complete 50 slow miles. I wouldn’t have wanted to go fast anyway, because her corn is still growing out.
Addressing River’s hoof issue
As reported in the post linked above (Update on River), I tried a new farrier. Ultimately, his approach did not work, so I took River back to Ed, who was willing to listen to my suggestions. I really liked the new shoes, and they seem to serve their purpose.
Above: River’s new shoes. Left foot on the left (you can still see the corn). Right foot on the right. The shoes are size 0 Kahn Forge Omnis. They are beveled to speed up breakover with solid heels. I wanted my farrier to size up from the 00 she had been wearing to provide more heel support. I bought the shoes.
The old corn needs to grow out and we need to prevent new corns. Corns are bruising caused by poor shoe fit and/or leaving shoes on too long. Hopefully, using shoes that protect the heels and are set properly combined with regular shoeing will keep River sound.
What about the rider?
Lacking the foresight to bring my own stirrups and leathers (something I will need to do for the Mongol Derby), I had ridden 50 miles the day before with a keeper digging into my shin. (Read about my ride: Catch riding in endurance: Training for the Gaucho & Mongol Derby.) The pain had been excruciating while I was riding, starting around mile 20 on the way to the Pinnacles. However, it had gone away (mostly) after the ride.
I rode River with my custom-made McCall saddle. My shin would not receive further aggravation, so I wasn’t too worried about it.
I have also had issues with my right hip since 2020. A series of stretches and exercises targeting the hip have made it possible for me to ride without pain. (Read my post on Dealing with hip pain associated with horseback-riding to learn about my stretching routine.)
Overall, despite having ridden the 50-mile ride the day before, I was unworried about my own preparedness.
River enjoyed a crazy run through ride camp instead of a pre-ride
I was still tired enough Saturday evening that I did not want to ride. Instead, I lunged River near the trailer for 15 minutes before vetting in. That didn’t do much… she exploded into a bucking and leaping demon after her trot out! So I got my lunge line and took her to the arena for some exercise.
River really wanted to run. She tore around me in both directions making huge circles. After about eight minutes of alternating loping with tucking her butt and shooting off as fast as she could, River kicked a hind leg over the line. I let go. She zoomed out of the arena and towards the trailer.
By the time I got to the parking lot, she’d been captured 😉
Above: It was a beautiful day in the desert!
The Day 3 50-mile ride at Fire Mountain 2026
This was River’s third time at Fire Mountain. (Read about her first–River’s first endurance ride–and second–River’s ride to the Trona Pinnacles.) This means she knows the area and is much more likely to be naughty when headed towards ride camp and drag her feet when headed away.
I did not count on River being calmer just because she’d gotten a chance to run and buck the day before, but she was quite well-behaved before the 6:30am start. I started hand-walking at 6:15 and mounted five minutes before the start. We rode out quietly towards the back of the pack.
Loop 1
River’s good behavior disintegrated when everyone started trotting. She was still much better behaved than her first time at Fire Mountain. Her naughtiness included pulling on me, power trotting, head slinging, and tail tucking, but no bucking, rearing, or otherwise explosive behavior. Once we managed to get a pocket between other riders, she calmed down. She was still very energetic, especially when we turned back towards Ride Camp.
Above: Pictures from Loop 1. It was a gorgeous morning in the desert!
Although I did not let River go as fast as she wanted, we still maintained a good pace. The footing was excellent, and there was little elevation gain.
River ate every time I let her put her head down near filaree, but she did not drink at all. I was not worried–I hadn’t been thirsty either. She drank well when we got back to Ride Camp.
Some stats
I started recording on my Garmin watch at 6:33 (so either I got out a few minutes late, or I forgot to start it). The watch recorded 16 miles in two hours, 37 minutes, with total ascent of 1,867′. Average speed was 6.1 mph (average moving speed = 6.3 mph).
At one point River turned down a convenient wash that led in the direction of ride camp. It took me a while to notice there were no hoof prints, so we may have done an extra 1/4 mile.
River was pulsed down by the time we got to ride camp, and her heart rate was 48bpm at vetting.
Above: River trotting enthusiastically towards the beginning of Loop 1.
Loop 2
After a 30-minute hold, we headed out on the second loop. River was not amused. The trail led mostly south till the halfway point, then turned sharply for home. River was very weak on the way south. She could barely trot and was forced to stop for life-saving sustenance at every large clump of grass. I wondered if I would need to call for a horse trailer and head to the nearest clinic… Then we doubled back and headed north.
River came to life. Amazingly, she started asking to trot at 9 mph. I said no.
She was too weak to drink on the way out and in too much of a hurry to drink on the way in to ride camp. That’s the problem with known trails. Horses can gauge exactly how far they need to wait for water and rest.
More stats
My watch recorded the second loop as 14.23 miles completed in 2.5 hours with a total elevation gain of 1,729′. Our average speed was 5.7 mph (6.0 mph average moving speed). River’s pulse was 44 bpm at vet-in.
Above: Two riders disappearing into the distance as we headed east from ride camp on Loop 3. River was completing unbothered by being left behind on the final loop!
Loop 3
After an hour hold during which River and I ate and drank, we headed back out. River was not amused. She started out at a decent pace, but then we caught up to some horses who were similarly not amused. River decided that, with other equine support, her point of view on the proceedings was clearly correct. For a while we played leapfrog as all three horses tried to go as slowly as possible.
Eventually River and I pulled ahead at an amazing speed of 5mph.
She did speed up when we turned southwest, thus marginally in the direction of ride camp. About three miles from camp, River realized exactly where we were and was suddenly in quite a hurry. This was backwards, and when I tried to keep her under 6mph she started fighting me and slinging her head all over the place. At one point she went sideways off the trail into a bunch of rocks and cacti.
I forced her to walk most of the last 2.5 miles of the loop.
Above: Bird perches decorated with ample poop. Every year the white streaks are bigger. River was quite suspicious of the second one!
Above: A raven talking in the desert was worrisome for River, even though we’ve got plenty of ravens at home!
What about the rider?
About halfway through the last loop, maybe 40 miles in, my left shin started hurting. The day before, when I rode Halle in the 50, the keeper on the stirrup leather had dug into my muscle, resulting in piercing pain. I rode River in my own saddle, so there was nothing rubbing. Unfortunately, my muscle was sufficiently bruised that just using it caused more damage.
To be honest, part of the reason I let River go slowly on the third loop and made her walk the last few miles was that I couldn’t trot any more.
I really need to make sure my gear is perfect well before riding the Mongol Derby 2027.
Last stats
I started recording about a quarter mile down the road. According to my watch, we rode 16.65 miles on Loop 3, in three hours 29 minutes (3:19 moving time), with 1,657′ total ascent. We went very slowly! Average speed = 4.8 mph, average moving speed 5.0 mph.
Since a lot of other riders went very slowly too, we ended up 10th of 20 starters.
Take home
River maintains fitness fairly well, with minimal work. She was plenty ready to complete the 50 miles at a conservative pace. It helped that the terrain was good and there were no steep hills. River’s weirdly low heart rate also helped, I am sure. She was, as usual, well below 60 when we arrived at the hold all three times.
The fact is that I have never ridden River fast enough to stress her metabolic system. If she’s ever sound enough for long enough, we’ll see if I can get her pulse up for extended periods.
River was also quite well-behaved. Yes, she was excited at first, but that’s normal. Importantly, she didn’t try to kick anyone, even when other horses passed at a trot.
She ate well the entire time. It helped that the desert was full of greenery! However, she did not drink much at all outside of ride camp. This despite me elyting her before the start and at each hold.
What about her weak point? (hooves)
River’s corn seems to be growing out without new bruising. She is not sensitive to debris getting in her hooves. When she had a corn last winter, she would start limping every time dirt or sand got packed into her hoof. This time we made it to the finish without coming up lame even with small stones packed into her hooves. (This might explain the ouchiness I noticed.)
She is sensitive to getting a stone in her hoof, stepping on a rock, or knocking her foot into one. Right after we started Loop 3, she started limping. OF COURSE it was the left fore. When I got off and picked her foot up, she had a midsized stone wedged in tightly enough that I had to get my hoof pick out to remove it. Despite my worries that she would be lame afterwards, she trotted out fine when I remounted.
Still, I could tell her left front foot was a bit sore at the end. Every time she caught a rock or even a particularly hard surface, she would pick that foot up too fast. It wasn’t consistent enough for me to worry about lameness, but she’s clearly not 100% yet.
What’s next?
I’ve given River time off, just riding three miles last Sunday. She looks and feels good. I’ll ride a bit more this weekend, and if all goes well, we’ll head to the Eastern Mojave xpride next Friday. Last year we completed the 50 on the second day. We’ll start there this time too. If I have time and River finishes well, we will do the LD on Sunday.
Of course, my shin has to be better (enough) too. I whined my way into a quick appointment at my orthopedic sports medicine specialist’s office, so I know it may not be a good idea to ride 50 miles next weekend. But it won’t kill me if I can bear the pain.
Some pictures!
You can access all of Sam Ortega’s professional pictures here: Twisted Fate Photography Day 3 pics.
Above: Scroll through the slide show to see the beauty of vegetation in a green western Mojave Desert after recent rains.