Ron’s endurance adventure (Road to Tevis #121)

A few weeks ago I took Ron to the Sesenta Años xpride. We completed the LD on Saturday November 9th. (LD = limited distance. You can read about the difference between LD and endurance and the associated debate here: What is a 40-mile ride.) Ron was fantastic, and I had a great time catching up with my endurance community. It had been a long time since I’d done an LD, and I found myself with a lot of time on my hands. I also found myself with no pain or tiredness, and a lot less hunger than I get during a 50-mile ride! It was a fun weekend for me, but the real star was my newbie horse.

Read my first blog post about Ron: Meet Ron the National Show Horse.

Jump to:

Friday: Getting to ride camp and our pre-ride
Saturday: Ron’s first LD
Take home from Ron’s Endurance Adventure
Ron is for sale

Friday: Getting to ride camp and our pre-ride

Loading up and getting there

Ron’s endurance adventure started when I pulled the truck and trailer up to his paddock. Now, if I were planning to take my mares somewhere, I’d have to lock them in the small paddock first. Otherwise Fantazia will make a run for it as soon as she sees the trailer. (River will follow though she is the boss when it comes to food.) Ron is different. Ron wants to do something all the time. He was waiting at the gate, and watched impatiently as I loaded up feed for the weekend. (View him waiting in this video.)

Above: Ron waited eagerly for me to catch him!

When I took him out, he followed me straight into the trailer. Then he began to paw… that’s the downside of Ron’s eagerness to do stuff NOW. He isn’t good at waiting! Luckily he calms down as soon as the trailer is moving.

The road to ride camp at Rancho San Fernando Rey

We headed south after a stop to fuel and buy ice. My usual route to Rancho San Fernando Rey is down I5 to 126, then north on 101 to 154, aka the Chumash Highway, just north of Santa Barbara. This time I was a bit worried about 126 because of the Mountain Fire, which had been burning in Ventura County. My alternative was to go over 166, through the Cuyama Valley.

leads through Santa Barbara, and many memories!

Before 126 was four-laned, we used to drive through Cuyama every summer (at least) to the Morgan Medallion Classic, the Region VII Morgan Championship. I have fond memories of stopping at the Buckhorn Cafe for pie. (The new Treasure of the Sierra Madre ride included dinner at the Buckhorn last summer!)

However, going through Cuyama is much slower, and the windy roads are harder on the horses. According to Cal Trans and google, 126 was open, so after a quick call to my CHP brother, I stayed on 99 to 5. In fact, although I could see the fire smoldering near Santa Paula, there was little wind and no smoke. We made it to 101 easily. I absolutely love seeing the Pacific for the first time… every single time I drive west to it. Even after living in Arcata CA for four years, where I could see the ocean from my back porch. It’s just not the same when you are only a few miles from the water.

Of course, traffic slowed down through Santa Barbara. It usually does, and it was around noon. I still enjoy driving through. A week spent at the Earl Warren Showgrounds every summer for ten years triggers special Santa Barbara nostalgia for each exit. And then you get to 154 and have to climb up to Paradise Road… where you drop down to the ranch.

Above: Looking at Ride Camp through Ron’s ears. You see it from the other side when looking down from Paradise road.

Ride Camp

The first time I went to the Sesenta Años ride in 2021, I was the second person to arrive after Dave and Annie. Fantazia and I got a cushy spot under the big tree. The second time, in 2022, I also arrived on Thursday, with Fantazia and Jazz. This time I arrived Friday, and there were tons of people there already when I looked down at ride camp from Paradise Road. I love seeing ride camp from the road!

Last time, I drove around (and backed around) for 30 minutes trying to find the perfect spot. I’ve gotten smarter since then. This time I took one look and saw a spot near the water buckets and port-a-potty and parked right there. It turned out to be convenient–Alan and the Hellys were just a few rigs away, and I’d seen the Dubois on the way in (right near my old spot by the Tree). After taking Ron on a short walk and vetting in, I joined friends at Alan’s trailer for late lunch and fun talk. It’s always a pleasure to reconnect with my endurance community, and I hadn’t been at a ride since Montana de Oro in June.

Our pre-ride

Eventually I managed to pull myself away from the entertainment to take Ron on his first-ever pre-ride. He had settled in well at the trailer, and was eating alfalfa as fast as he could. I’d parked so he could see horses at all times, and though it was a bit near the main throughway, it worked for Ron. He really doesn’t get that worked up about things. Yes, it was all new, but he had food and water and trusted me to not abandon him.

I saddled up quickly and we headed out. Ron was excited, but not anxious, and was happy to head out of camp and up the road. I wanted to ride a 3-5 mile loop clockwise around Ride Camp, and was pleased to find a gate open that had always previously been closed. The loop involves some climbing, but is fairly easy. Ron had one moment of fleeting terror when we encountered several deer. (Watch a video of our encounter with deer.) I don’t know if he’s seen many deer. We had not yet encountered them on the trail (at least, not close up), and they don’t come around our house or barn much.

Above: Our pre-ride was beautiful!

Over night at ride camp

After the pre-ride, Ron settled right down. I went back to Alan’s to hang out with friends until the ride meeting at seven. After that, I blanketed Ron and settled into my sleeping bag to read. It was cold enough to make getting out of the bag unappetizing, so I was glad to find that Ron deals well over night hanging from the side of the trailer. He just ate and drank and slept, with occasional neighing to answer other horses.

Saturday: Ron’s first LD

In theory, I could sleep in, because the LD didn’t start till 7:30. Unfortunately, the 50-mile ride started at 6:15, so by 5am people were stirring. Ron woke up, so I did too. I crawled out to feed him. Since I wasn’t sure about leaving him with a lead long enough to reach the ground, I held his feed pan until he finished. I refilled his water (he’d drunk about three gallons over night) and hay net (he’d eaten two giant flakes of alfalfa). Then I went back to bed to try to sleep… that didn’t work out too well. I ended up getting up, making tea, and going out to watch the 50 start.

Above: There were interesting creatures amid the riders of the 50! You can watch my video of the start by clicking here.

Early morning preparations

I found that there really is a lot more time when you start with the LD riders! There really wasn’t much to do. Around 7am I saddled Ron. He wasn’t at all worked up, because even though it was all new, he had no idea what was going on. In fact, he was less anxious than at home, because he had been entertained for the past many hours by a nonstop succession of interesting and novel events.

Above: Left or top, Ron watching the 50-mile horses riding towards the start. Right or bottom, one hour later, Ron is saddled and waiting for me to get the show on the road.

Donna Dubois and I had agreed to ride together as long as it worked out. (You just never know when two horses are going to need to go the same speed over many miles!) Another women who had ridden with Donna the day before joined us. (I am embarrassed to say I have forgotten her name…) We were not going to go fast, and less at the start, so I took my time getting ready. Finally, around 7:20, I untied Ron and led him around for a few minutes before using a handy mounting block to get on. Ron was, as usual a good boy. He stood still, with his head straight up and swiveling back and forth to watch everything, until I asked him to move.

Above: Just after the start of the ride. Ron had had a small meltdown at the very beginning, when an older horse got worked up right next to us. He got over it quickly, but he spent about five miles so excited he felt like bursting!

The start

Although our three horses were walking quietly, a fourth horse (grey, and I recognized the rider but I’ve forgotten who she was) was bouncing around a bit as we walked west out of Ride Camp. That wound Ron up. He had a moment where he was so excited he had to bounced up and down. It only lasted five seconds, and then he was fine, as you can see in the video above. He’s not a jigger! He does however channel the inner park horse (failed parked horse I should say, he’s not built for high stepping).

The truth is, Ron did great at the start for a first timer. Within about five miles he had settled down to only rare attempts at high-stepping. By that time, he was trotting ahead, in the middle, and behind our small “pack” without protest.

Above: Ron is very excited but controlling himself well not long into the ride. After the initial excitement, he was mainly worried about what he was “supposed” to do. He’s a horse that really wants to please, and gets anxious when he’s not sure what he’s supposed to do. After about 15 miles, he’d sorted that out and relaxed.

Water!

One of the best things about the Sesenta Años ride is that there are plenty of water crossings. Now, Ron has learned how to do water entirely by himself–or rather with just me, no equine buddies. (Read about his learning curve here: How to ride your horse through water.) He’s made great progress, but I was thrilled that we would be facing our first competition water in the company of experienced horses. Donna’s horse Indy is a steady, calm horse, so I let Ron follow. And he was so focused on following other horses that he didn’t even notice the water until his feet were wet!

Above: Ron followed into water easily, and then learned he enjoys it.

That was the last time Ron followed another horse into water. Later, even when I held him back to allow another horse to go first, he ended up going on in himself. That was the last time he so much as hesitated. (You can watch Ron decide to go it alone in this video.) After that he plunged in every time, even when the stream was rock and broad.

Above: Ron standing comfortably in water. He got so enthusiastic about getting his feet wet he didn’t want to go out! You can see how much he enjoys it in this video.

Leaving our mini-herd behind to train

A few miles after that first water crossing, Ron and I pulled away from our friends. Interestingly enough, he hadn’t really bonded with those horses. We had been playing leap frog all along. Several times Ron and I had ended up riding with other small groups of rides. We’d always gone back to Donna and Indy and friends, but in the end I decided to leave them behind. When trotting, they went faster than Ron was comfortable with, which made him anxious. When walking, Ron wanted to go a lot faster.

The problem with not riding alone…

is that I can rarely do it for an entire ride. This is especially true with a new horse. The only time I’ve ridden an entire ride with someone was when I rode River with Heidi Helly… I wanted to ride as slowly as possible, and I knew Heidi would keep me honest about that. It worked out wonderfully. Besides those times, I’ve ridden the longest with other people on Fantazia. At the time, she was fit enough to go whatever speed I wished, and too old and experienced for me to teach her much. (Not that I don’t try!) More importantly, the people I was riding with wanted to go the same speed I did.

It’s really difficult to find someone who just happens to walk the same speed you do and trot the same speed you do. Usually, they’re going to be going slower or faster than what is ideal at the moment for your horse. Thus it turned out with Ron. But this this isn’t a bad thing!

Above: Slideshow with pictures of other riders (sometimes in the distance) seen on Rancho San Fernando Rey at the Sesenta Años xpride, Ron’s endurance adventure!

The advantages of riding alone are many…

And they aren’t only explicable by my introversion!

Riding alone allows you to go the speed your horse needs to go. It’s much more difficult to do that in company, partly because riding and talking with other people can distract you from listening to your horse. Mainly, though, it’s because your horse will want to stick with other horses.

Riding alone lets you practice riding with lots of different people. That’s good for the rider (you get to know more people) and good for the horse (s/he doesn’t get too bonded with any other horses). It teaches your horse that there will be other equines about. I think of it as teaching the horse that the trails on an endurance ride are really just one big arena, where we can be sure of running into more horses no matter where we are.

Above: Ron and I passed and were passed by many other riders during the ride. It was excellent training! Ron did not protest leaving others, and he didn’t mind watching them leave him… with one exception!

But a horse can bond with another almost instantaneously!

Ron never bonded with Indy or the other horse we were riding with at first (despite riding over ten miles together). He did not bond with any of the other horses we rode with, even Debby Lyon’s horse, and we rode together for a couple of miles. He did almost immediately bond with Kerrie Tuley’s horse (I want to call him Magnum, but I think his name is Garnet 😉 Kerrie and I rode together for a few miles, and Ron did not want to get too far away from them. Luckily, I was able to distract him at the Demesio Spring water crossing so Kerrie could ride ahead without drama.

When we left the group of horses at the water, Ron immediately wanted to shoot off down the trail after his new friend. He was easily checked though, and we rode many miles alone. Eventually we came upon Debby Lyon leading her horse, who had lost a boot. We rode with them for a few miles, until Andy Botello came up, with the boot. At that point, Debby urged us to go ahead, because we were in danger of being overtime.

I wasn’t worried about that, but I did want to finish the ride alone for training purposes, so Ron and I trotted ahead. Ron was very willing to leave the other two horses behind. I do think that by that time he knew where we were. He’s good at knowing where the trailer (or home) is.

The final miles of Ron’s endurance adventure

We finished the first loop not long after leaving Debby and Andy. Ron did great by himself, and he had pulsed down within minutes at camp. My heart rate monitor had stopped working correctly just a few miles in, so I don’t have any record of his pulse for the ride. That said, I rode conservatively. I never pushed Ron, and he did not even take the bit until well towards the end of the ride.

Above: Ron picks his way carefully but quickly through uneven terrain towards the end of the ride.

One final loop

Because we had not had a proper out hold, we had a short loop after a 30 minute in-camp hold. I had taken my McCall saddle off, and felt too tired to swing it back up. Ron is not short! So I put my very lightweight Zaldi saddle on him and we set off for a short final loop.

Above: Left/top: Ron before we set off on our last loop, with the Zaldi saddle. Right/bottom: Ron and me during the second loop. He still had a lot of energy and looked fantastic! Photo credit: Calla Gold.

Ron finished his first LD in great shape. Even though we went slowly, I discovered at the ride meeting that evening that we had placed 11th out of 25 starters.

Take home from Ron’s Endurance Adventure

Ron was great. He ate and drank well at the trailer. He stood quietly at the trailer expect when other horses neighed. (Then he answered.) He ties well, and is absolutely unafraid of noises or objects coming out of the trailer. (he sticks his head in the window to see what I am doing if I am tossing feed bags around.)

On the ride, he took sips whenever the other horses did, but he didn’t really start drinking until we were three hours and 15 miles in. That’s ok, he showed that he will take care of himself when necessary. He also ate when there was appetizing grass.

Ron was very excited at first, but he settled down rapidly. He never did anything dangerous (he never does). He did not spook much, and none of his spooks were violent. Just a few knee buckles and small swerves.

Ron was great about water. By Demesio Spring, a long and rocky crossing, he was eager to get in the water. He drank well out of natural water (and in troughs).

Ron did great with other horses. It was so nice to be able to ride right next to other horses! (River gets cranky and kicks easily.) He was very happy to ride with others but did fine alone. Other than a brief bonding period with Kerrie’s horse, he never objected to leaving horses behind or letting them draw away.

Most importantly, Ron loved the entire experience.

Above: Ron finally relaxes and takes contact with the bit!

Ron is for sale

He registered name is ROL YOUVE GOT NIRV. He’s 5 years old (05/15/2019). He’s by the American Saddlebred Nutcracker’s Nirvana and out of the Arabian mare Cymply Skarlett.

You might be thinking, if Ron is so great, why is he for sale? He’s not my horse–I am riding him for his owner. She is older, busy, and needs a horse that is happy with less activity.

Your next question is why do I not want him? Well, I already have enough horses! Even if I did not, I wouldn’t keep him as an endurance horse. Ron has a club foot that I wouldn’t trust to hold up over long distances. I might be wrong, and I would encourage you to have a PPE and ask a vet before coming to any conclusions. (I believe PPEs are always a good idea anyway.) But my non-professional take is that Ron needs to stick to LDs or other work.

Ron is very polite from the ground. He has a good foundation for basic ring work, and has done some dressage training but rumor has it he did not love the dressage. (I get it… he likes minimal contact and more freedom of movement that sometimes happens with dressage.)

So what would Ron be happiest doing?

Ron is a “Let’s do something now!” type of horse. He loves attention and he loves new stuff. He needs an experienced and/or brave rider, because he’s still young and gets his confidence from his person. He tries really hard to please, so if the rider is worried, he thinks he’s doing something wrong. He would love an experienced child, who wants to spend lots of time with him. With a good trainer, a kid could do basic equitation (hunt seat and with some more training western), showmanship, and trail (he’d love trail).

Ron would undoubtedly love Working Equitation or Cowboy Dressage. He’s just getting comfortable around cattle, and the working equitation Ease of Handling component is full of STUFF (obstacles, garrocha). (Watch me riding a mare I trained in her first Ease of Handling trial.) Ron would excel at Cowboy Dressage also; he’d love the challenge courts with obstacles!

Ron is a great horse, and he’s just going to get better with age and experience. I’ve got tons of videos of him on my youtube channel (Ron’s playlist), and I will try to get a video of me riding him so you can see him from the side. (Done, working on editing out the weird bits, but you can get an idea here.)

If you are interested, reach out to me here or on Facebook and I can put you in touch with Ron’s owner.