|
2005 XP
NEWSLETTERS
October,
2005
September,
2005
April, 2005
March Cuyama Letter
2005
March, 2005
January 2005
October XP
Newsletter
Paunsagaunt XP at Bryce
Canyon
I
met with the district ranger at our campsite a week after the ride
and discussed the future plans that the forest service has for the
area. They are concerned with the growing camping areas that
are starting to impinge on the sensitive creek banks. There is a
desire to improve the fishing along Kanab Creek and would like to
cut back on some of our spaces in the second camp. We looked
at the area between the green gate and Sand Pass, just east of our
present camp, and agreed that this would be a good place for a
future camp. There is a good chance that we will camp there this
next fall. This new location will provide for easier clean up and
more privacy. We also discussed a couple of areas of new trail
that we may be able to open up for future years. Karen's photos can
be seen at http://www.xprides.com/Bryce_2005/Bryce2005.html
Virgin Rim-Sunrise Ranch Ride - September 17th and
18th
We
were pleased with the resurrection of this ride. It has been
almost ten years since we used the Virgin Rim Trail and it was a
pleasant experience to find it even better than it was ten years
ago. Even though we have to put up with a few miles of jeep
road to get to the trail, the riders soon forgot about that when
they hit the spectacular vistas along the single track forest trail.
The fall colors are a little late this fall, but there was enough
color to make this ride truly spectacular. We were able to
find a much better camp to start and end from on the banks of Swain
Creek, just off of a paved road and will use that camp in the
future. Our next project in this area will be to research a trail
between the Grandview Trail on the Paunsagaunt and the Virgin Rim
Trail. Take a look at the photos that Karen has put on the web site
at http://sunriseranchrides.com/VIRGINRIM_05/VIRGINRIM_2005.HTML
and make plans to join us next year.
Grand Canyon XP Ride - October 8th-12th
We will
be camping at our favorite location in Dry Park and will do loops
out of that camp. Ann will serve dinners for a nominal fee. As
always, there will be free lunches at the vet stops. Certified weed
free hay will be available for sale at the ride and we would
appreciate knowing how much you will need. We are not in the feed
business and if you are planning on stocking up your home supply
please do so after the ride. If we know in advance, Crockett will
try to bring some extra to the ride and I have some in the barn in
Mt Carmel that I can replace.
It is too cold for the regular
shower trailer, but we may be able to rig one shower at the end of
the ride in the Sundowner trailer. Daytime temperatures have been in
the low seventies and upper sixties during the day. Nighttime lows
have been in the low forties, but can easily slip close to the
freezing level at this time of year. Horses from warmer climates
will appreciate a blanket at night.
We will have our
satellite set up in camp for emergency messages and communications.
Cellular service is practically non existent, although some riders
have been able to receive a good signal by driving some 8-10 miles
from camp.
It sure helps us to have those internet entries,
so that we can make plans for the right number of people and get the
awards and results out on time at the end of each days rides. If you
cant figure out how to make the entry work on the web site, you can
always drop us an e mail message that you are coming and give us the
information that we will need to send results in to
AERC.
Directions:
The
base camp is located at Dry Park, in the North Kaibab National
Forest. You can reach this camp by taking Hwy 67, the Grand
Canyon Parkway, about 27 miles south from Jacobs Lake, Arizona. Turn
right on Forest Road 22 and go about 10 miles to the bottom of the
hill, where you turn left into Dry Park. The camp is about 1 mile
south of Hwy 22. Do not turn into the Dry Park Lookout. This
is a dead end road with no turn around. Dry Park is further down the
road at the bottom of the hill and is a large dry
meadow.
There is a shorter route to camp that involves more
dirt road and a steep hill but is shorter overall. We use this route
to bring all of our rigs to camp. To access this route, go
east out of Fredonia Arizona on US Hwy 89A. Turn south on Forest
Road 22, which is just east of town. This road is paved for about 22
miles, and then turns to improved gravel. After a little more than
18 miles the good road will fork and the left fork heads towards Hwy
67. Take this left fork for 0.8 mile and turn right into the
park.
September XP
Newsletter
Paunsagaunt XP at Bryce
Canyon
We want to thank all of the XP
Riders who took the time to clean up their camps at Bryce.
Although we had more riders this year, the clean up went much better
than last year. The district ranger came by on Wednesday after the
ride and even though we had not removed the 18,000 pounds of garbage
bags, she was impressed with the way that our group has used the
resource. I believe that our actions will go a long way
towards the development of an improved camping area and better
trails.
Two weeks before the ride we had 41 entries for the
Bryce ride and many of them were from very early in the year.
With gas at $3.00 per gallon and a Vesicular Stomatitis outbreak, we
were prepared for a very small ride. In fact, I considered
staying in Alaska and letting Annie and the kids run this one
without me. We were pleasantly surprised to find that we had
our usual great turnout again this year. The overall best
conditioned horse was Mr. Pyro, ridden by Karen Fredrickson.
Fire Mt. RedCloud, ridden by Tracy Cary rode the five days in the
fastest time. Our Canadian friends were unable to join us because of
the VS situation, however, we had riders from Europe and the east
coast who made the trip to experience the great trails of this
area. Ride results and pictures are now on the web
site.
The weather was perfect and although a part of the
Grandview trail was washed out, we were able to ride most of our
regular trails, thanks to the Herculean efforts of Dave Rabe, Joseph
and Paul Alsop. Unfortunately, Paul's horse fell on the second
day and Paul is now recuperating at home with a broken clavicle and
several broken ribs. Paul's wife Bobbie Wong took him home and
was back in the saddle a day later. That put her in a tie for
the XP Hardcore Award with Tammy Robinson, who missed a couple of
days to drive to Phoenix for the delivery of her new grandson.
We do love dedication in our riders and hope that these hardcore
riders will serve as an inspiration for those of you who let floods,
fires and minor tribulations keep you off the trail.
Virgin Rim-Sunrise Ranch Ride
- September 17th and
18th
We have some important news
about the Virgin Rim Ride. We have made a slight change that
everyone should be aware of. Instead of starting at Webster
Flat on Saturday and riding to Harris Flat, then returning on Sunday
to Webster Flat, we are going to do just the opposite. We have
found a much better place to camp with better access in the Harris
Flat area. Our new campsite, where we will meet on Friday
night, is on the east side of Swain Creek, just north of Hwy
14. There is a large grassy flat with a pretty stream running
by it. We will meet there Friday night and ride to Webster
Flat on the spectacular Virgin Rim trail on Saturday morning.
We will camp overnight at Webster Flat and ride back on
Sunday. Webster Flat is about 20 miles west of Swain Creek on
a relatively flat paved highway. There will be people to
shuttle you back to your rig and there will probably be a few who
will shuttle your rig for you. Then there is the old time
standby of just throwing a sleeping bag in the crew truck and
sleeping on the ground at Webster. We really used to do things
like that and it was fun. Certified weed free hay is required
and we will have some available to those in need.
This ride
takes place on the Virgin Rim trail, which is mostly a single-track
trail, running along the south side of Cedar Mountain. The views of
Zion National Park and the Virgin River basin are spectacular.
The leaves are turning color in southern Utah and the present
long-range weather forecast calls for good weather. We should
have our satellite hooked up at the base camp and the cell phones
work fairly well. Our phone number for this ride is 435 689 1632.
Directions:
Start of
Saturday's ride and finish of Sunday ride at Swain Creek near Harris
Flat: Take Hwy 14 east out of Cedar City Utah for 35 miles to
Swain Creek. After coming down the hill and crossing the creek,
start looking for the left turn east of the creek. The turn is
before the bend in the highway. Watch for oncoming cars as you
make the turn. If you are coming from Hwy 89 go west on Hwy 14
for 5.3 miles, go past the turn off for camp and cross Swain
Creek. Turn left into the large snowmobile parking area and
make a U turn. Come back to the east across the creek and turn
left into the camp. The road into camp from Hwy 14 is a easy
turn for eastbound traffic but would be very difficult if not
impossible to make from the westbound lane. Don't do anything
stupid that would jeopardize your life and property.
Finish of Saturday ride and start of Sunday ride at
Webster Flat: From Hwy 89, go 25.5 miles west on Hwy 14 to the
Webster Flat road. Turn left on the good dirt road and go to the
camp. From Cedar City, go 14.9 miles east on Hwy 14 to the
Webster Flat Road and turn right on the dirt road to camp.
Grand Canyon XP Ride - October 8th-12th
The fall
colors seem to be a little late this year, so we may have more color
on the spectacular North Kaibab Plateau. There are no changes
planned for this popular ride on the north rim of the Grand Canyon.
All five days ride out of the same camp, so no crews are
necessary. We will have certified weed free hay available for
those who are unable to find any on the way to the ride. It
sure helps to have some advanced notice of who is going to be there
so that we can get some of the paperwork out of the way. If
you are planning on meals from Annie, please let us know that as
well. Hope to see you all there.
April 2005 XP Newsletter
NEWS
FLASHES:
NO MORE
REPETITIVE LOOPS AT MT CARMEL.
COLD SPRINGS RIDE IS
DEFINITELY AT SCHELLBOURNE AND WILL BE CALLED THE SCHELLBOURNE
RIDE. THE CHANGE WAS APPROVED MONTHS AGO BUT AERC DOESN'T SEEM
ABLE TO GET THE CHANGES ON THE WEB PAGE OR IN ENDURANCE NEWS.
THIS IS NOT A RUMOR, THIS IS FACT. TELL ANYONE WHO IS
INTERESTED THAT THIS IS FACT AND THAT YOU GOT IT DIRECTLY FROM THE
DUCK.
Our thanks to Dave Rabe for coming to Mt Carmel,
after the Color Country Ride and helping us blaze some new
trails. There is now a beautiful new trail through the canyon
on the east of the ride camp. We think you will really like
the improvements. See more under the Mt Carmel section
below.
XP Web
Site
Remember
to refresh your browser before going to the XP Website. We have
talked to several people who are getting old information from the
web site. Your computer stores information from all websites when
you visit them, so that they can open them faster the next time you
go there. You can refresh some browsers by hitting control R
or command R in macs. Somewhere in the menu bar drop downs you
will find an option to refresh.
XP Annual
Awards
We
have talked about it for several years, but we finally got around to
putting together an official XP Annual Awards Program.
THE ED JOHNSON MEMORIAL
AWARD
Presented
to the XP Horseman of the year, Dave Rabe in memory of one of the
finest horseman to ever ride an endurance trail. Dave rode every XP
ride in 2004, including every mile of the Bucklands to Rush Creek
trail for a total of 2310 XP miles.
THE WENDEL ROBIE
MEMORIAL
TROPHY
Presented
to the XP Horse of the Year, Granite Chief, in memory of Wendel
Robie, founder of the Western States Trail Ride and father of the
modern sport of endurance riding. Granite Chief rode 1275 XP
Miles in 2004.
XP Gold Medal Horse and Rider
Teams
The
Gold Medals are awarded to the horse and rider teams that complete
all of the XP Rides. The 2004 Gold Medal winners were
Karen Chaton and Granite Chief
Dawn Folks and KA Black
Gold
Les Carr and Tulip
2004 XP TOP TWENTY
RIDERS
Awarded
to the top twenty XP Riders during a ride season, based on
mileage.
1 Dave
Rabe 2310
2 Karen
Chaton 1275
3 Karen
Fredrickson 1241
4 Laura
Hayes 1230
5 Debbie
Boscoe 1110
6 Laura
Horst 1106
7 Les
Carr 1060
8 Dawn
Folks 1060
9 John
Parke 905
10 Lynn
Heimelreich 895
11 Debra
Martin 876
12 Marci
Cunningham 855
13 Pat
Verheul 837
14 Maureen
Selzler 810
15 Anne
Sands 800
16 Sue
Benson 760
17 Elfta
Hilzman 760
18 Jane
Wilson 735
19 Jane
McGrath 705
20 Michele
Mueller 705
AERC
Convention
Once
again we set up a booth at the convention to display our
awards. Unfortunately the jackets and blanket didn't make it
due to problems with UPS. I guess that is what why people are
saying "Ask not what Brown can do for you, ask what can you do for
Brown". You can send them money and have them delay your
package. I felt somewhat relieved that the AERC jackets were
delayed as well. We did receive them in time for Cuyama and
have given most of them out. If you have not received a jacket and
have one coming, send us an e mail and we will get it to you in the
mail or you can ask us to keep it till you get to the next XP
Ride.
For
the first time in many years, I came away from the convention with
the impression that the organization was moving in a positive
direction. There was a real sense that we are growing up as a sport
and coming to the realization that there is a difference between
riding and racing and that there is a place for both. I sincerely
hope that this BOD and those of the future will put aside their
personal agendas and work for all the many types of distance events
that our sport covers. In my humble opinion, it would be
nice to have endurance rides, races, competitive trail riding and
ride and tie, under an umbrella of an endurance riding.
Combining all of these venues would benefit us all and give us a
much stronger voice in our dealings with the
government.
Cuyama
Oaks XP
The Cuyama ride is over and the results are posted
on the website. If you were there and haven't checked the results,
please do so. Although the weather was blustery and wet during
the week before the ride, we were fortunate to have good weather for
the ride itself. We did change the second day trail to keep
from using the single track that comes off the mountain by Hog Pen
Springs, due to the possibility of ruining the trail with so many
horses. This gave us an opportunity to head down the mountain in
another direction towards some interesting new country that we hope
to use in the future. Although it was boring and uncreative to have
to ride back to the finish on the same trail, it was still a
spectacular ride that offered view of the Sierras and the ocean at
the same time. I mailed out the refunds and adjustments from
the ride last Thursday morning and you should either have them now
or be receiving them shortly. This years system worked well
and allowed us to make all the awards in advance so that we were
able to provide all the awards this year without having to make any
apologies, so look for the same kind of entry and deposit system for
next year.
2006 Cuyama
Plans
As
many of you are aware, we talked about doing a point to point ride
this year from Cuyama to Pozo, but when the AERC BOD threw cold
water on the idea, I gave up. After several years of work,
mostly by Jim Mitchell, we are getting closer to having a point to
point ride in the central coast area of California. This year
I was encouraged to find the recreational officer at the Santa Maria
Forest Service supportive of our events and found that she is
working on a staging area and a new single track trail that will
allow us to ride connect the lower part of the Cuyama River Canyon
to Jim's place in Cuyama. After the ride Jim and I flew over a
potential route that will offer us a chance to do a three day point
to point ride from Hwy 33, near Ventucopa to the lower Cuyama River
Canyon, near Twitchell reservoir. Considerations would be to
incorporate it into the present Cuyama ride, or to make it a
separate event. If done separately, I have considered doing
the present ride on the same weekend in March and then doing the
point to point the following weekend but starting on Friday, so that
the horses would have 3 days to rest in between. But perhaps
that is too close together and it would be better to space them out.
I am open to suggestions.
Mount Carmel
XP
In
addition to the new trail east of the camp, we have opened up a new
trail across the river that opens up new trail on the benches along
the west side of the Virgin River. Several years ago the county made
a sweetheart deal with a landowner in Orderville that resulted in
the closing of a county road which blocked access to a really nice
loop of trail. The state department has now completed work on the
bridges along the highway that will once again let us make use of
this fun trail. Bottom line is that we will finally be able to
make the long promised changes to the Mt Carmel trails that
eliminate the boring repetitive loops around Mt Carmel
Junction. We are also aware of the problems with water last
year and will have more water on the trail this year. We think
you will enjoy the improvements and hope you will be able to join us
this year.
Lost Padres Sunrise Ranch
Ride
Everything
went so well last year that no changes are planned for this ride in
the Los Padres National Forest, near Frazier Park, California.
Karen thinks that we may get more riders than we can handle since so
many rides have been cancelled so you should get an entry in as soon
as possible. This really helps us get the paperwork and awards
in shape before the ride.
Schellbourne
XP
This
five day ride has been moved from Cold Springs back to Schellbourne
where we will be camping at the Schellbourne Ranch, instead of at
the bar. We look forward to an even better ride then we have
had in the past as the new camping area is closer to the mountains
and will be much cooler and waaaaaay more scenic. The new
campsite allows us to cut down on some of the long stretches of
trail out of the trees. We think you will like it.
Virgin Rim
Trail
Some
of you have heard me express my concerns about getting a permit for
this ride, but I have recently contacted the forest service in Cedar
City and all of the problems seem to be resolved. We have used
this trail several times in the past but in one of those years there
was enough rain before the ride that the horses damaged the trail to
the extent that the mountain bikers were inconvenienced by the rough
trail. We have now figured an alternate route that we will be
able to use if it rains to alleviate that concern, so we finally
have a go for the ride. The core of this ride is a 35 mile stretch
of mostly single track trail that runs along the edge of the Virgin
River basin, which is what forms Zion
General XP
Information
We
now have our mobile internet connection hooked up so that we will
have internet access at all of the XP and Sunrise Ranch Rides. Those
of you who need to leave emergency contact information with
relatives, friends or enemies can have messages relayed through
theduck@xprides.com . This new technology will allow us to
receive and respond to riders for any last minute
information.
The MexiCan
Ride
I
can hardly believe that I mention this, but we are considering going
ahead with plans for a Mexico to Canada ride. What else could
you call it but the MexiCan Ride? If you were to go on that
ride it would make you an XP MexiCan. We will use green rider
cards. We will give a case of Corona to the winner.
There are lots of considerations, but we are starting to work on
it. Tentatively looking towards 07 or 08. I bring this up as
there have been offers of help in the past and I would like to talk
to any of you with ideas for the trail. Please send any offers
of help to my brother JJ Duck.
Hasta la vista,
The
Duck
MAKE SURE YOU READ THIS NOTICE
!
March 6, 2005
Greetings
Cuyama Riders.
The entry list is now closed and we
have way more than we can handle. If you received this message
you are in the ride. This means we will be cashing your check.
We have overbooked the ride because we usually get a lot of
cancellations but so far we still have too many riders. There
will be even more people than last year, which is more than the
ranch can handle. You will be packed in like sardines with
dogs, kids and loose horses running all around camp. It will be like
Woodstock with no drugs and no music. There are more people and
horses in this ride than there is water available, so you should
bring water with you to the ride. 10 to 20 gallons per horse
would be nice. It is easy to put a fifty-gallon drum of water in the
corner of your trailer, and then you will have plenty of water and
your horse wont have to adjust to the oily sulfur water in the
Cuyama Valley.
The rains have made the trails treacherous, so
we may have to do 50 loops around Jim's house on an old paved road,
but I know that nothing I could say would deter the obsessed Cuyama
Riders. All the rain has brought out lots of mosquitoes so make sure
your horses have been vaccinated for West Nile Virus. You should
also bring lots of OFF, to protect yourself from the pesky Cuyama
Black Gnats. The rain has raised the level of oil in the wells and
is causing the crude oil to spill into the creeks, which is killing
the wild pigs. They are starting to bloat and stink, so you should
bring some Vicks to put in your noses.
If you have not heard
or read our opinions on the difference between endurance riding and
racing you should take the time to find out right now. This event is
not intended to be a race. It is intended to be a long trail ride
through the California foothills. There will only be one vet and he
will too busy to take care of any sick and injured horses, so the
solution is to take care of your horse and don't get it into
trouble. The award for the fastest time is insignificant and there
will be no glory to "winning" or top ten placing at this ride. Most
riders come here to train their horses and hang out. If you have
other ideas, you will not be happy. We don't like unhappy people, so
you are forewarned. Don't come here thinking this is a typical
California endurance ride. Consider this before you make the final
decision to come.
While you are driving to Cuyama I would
like you to consider what it would be like if all the people who are
going to be at the camp came to your house all at one time. Consider
what the neighbors would think. When you are through laughing,
imagine what it would be like if you had to depend on your neighbors
for permission to get to your house. You would not want to irritate
or offend them would you? Consider that the owners of the Phoenix
Ranch have to drive across their neighbors ranch to get to their
place. Imagine what your neighbors would think if all of the campers
at Cuyama were to drive through their driveway and across their
lawn. Remember that guy who lives down the street that doesn't
really like you and your smelly horses? Imagine what he is
thinking when 100 semi trailers are backed up down the street,
blocking his driveway, just when he is getting ready to drive to the
7-11 for a six pack and the newspaper. Not a pretty site,
eh? Now consider that the Phoenix Ranch, and the
surrounding ranches are normally quiet places, where the owners can
relax and live a lifestyle unbothered by the crowded masses. Can you
imagine what they would think of someone who would bring this dog
and pony show into their midst? I fear for my friend's life if they
ever find out how many campers there really are in this gypsy camp.
It's a good damn thing that we are a long ways off the road and
hidden in the trees. From the time you arrive in the valley,
until the time that you leave, you must keep focused on the fact
that it is a real privilege to attend this ride and visit these
lands and that a single incident will jeopardize this privilege in
the future. Imagine what would happen if this ride were
cancelled because of your actions. You would become the Osama Bin
Ladin of Ride Camp. Give this a lot of thought before you pack up
for the weekend, and act accordingly. If there is any doubt about
your being able to handle yourself, you should save yourself the
trip and the ensuing embarrassment.
Jim is going to allow
people to come in on Thursday, as long as you send us a message
beforehand, so that we know how many people are coming. We now have
full time internet access in camp, so there is no excuse for not
contacting us. We also have two phones to leave messages on. Mine is
775 233 6030 and Ann's is 760 977 1007. Everyone will have to park
in such a way as to keep as much parking open as possible. There
were some real problems with the traffic on the highway last year
and someone is going to cause an accident if the problem continues.
We will post someone at the gate on Friday when we expect most of
the riders to show up, but the gate will be locked with the XP lock,
the remainder of the time. The combination to the XP gate lock is
5555. This gate must be kept closed at all times. If you are
the first one of a group coming through the gate you should open the
gate and pull through it, parking on the right, just past the gate.
Open the gate and let all of the trailers that are coming down the
road get through the gate. They will respect the fact that you
opened the gate for them and will pull in front of your rig to wait
for you. They won't be parking on the grass either, or you will run
up and kick in their door. When all of the trailers are through the
gate be sure to close and lock it. If you are driving down the
highway and see a traffic jam ahead, you should pull off the right
so that others can pass. Do not block traffic. Think about what
you are doing.
Here is the first set of the many rules for
the weekend:
1. Don't block traffic on the Hwy.
2. Keep the gate closed
and locked.
3.
ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY DO NOT DRIVE ON THE GRASS. You must stay
on the ranch road until you get to the Phoenix Ranch.
4. DO
NOT PULL ONTO THE GRASS WHEN YOU COME THROUGH THE GATE. You can
park to the side of the road, so that the trailers behind you can
pass, but do not pull off onto the grass.
5. If you see someone
on the road who might be a local, get out of the way and do
everything you can to stay out of their way. Be pleasant and
courteous.
6. When you get to the Phoenix Ranch (second gate from
the road), park only in the designated places.
7.
Pull as far back as possible. Make use of all of the parking places.
If we find you could have gotten farther back we will ask you to
move. We have a bulldozer available to push your rig farther back if
you have parked incorrectly.
8. Do not fence off a large
pasture for your horses. Only small corrals are permissible. We
prefer you to keep your horse in the trailer and to park your
trailer so close that you will have to crawl out the window to get
out.
9. If you must set up a small corral, do so in such a way
that you take up the least amount of space.
Now, as for
the meals, here is the deal. Annie and Lavon will have the usual
lunches available for everyone. This year they will have a can of
dog food at the lunch table and anyone who is reported to behave
like a dog will get a dog food sandwich. Unfortunately we were
unable to obtain the services of "Frenchy", the world renowned XP
Chef, so Annie and her friends will be doing the dinners. She is
planning on Barbequed Chicken on Friday night. Sundays night's
fare will be prime California beef. There are no mad cows in
California, it's the crazy people you have to worry about.
Monday night will feature Wild Alaskan Salmon, personally caught
from the icy waters of Southeastern Alaska by FW Duck and his
sidekick Friar Herten.. Remember, if God wanted you to be a
vegetarian, He wouldn't have made cows out of meat. Last year there
were people who had reserved dinners, but had to settle for
leftovers, because too many people decided to eat here at the last
minute. Should you decide to partake of these meals, and you haven't
let us know, you had best contact us immediately. Don't come to the
bunkhouse whining and whimpering about how hungry you are, when the
aroma of the barbeque starts wafting through camp, if you haven't
made
reservations.
See
you
soon,
FW
Duck
March, 2005
March 2005 XP
Newsletter
We
sent out a newsletter in January that was way too long, so we are
going to try to do better in the future. If you no longer wish to
receive XP Newsletters, please reply to this message and I will
remove you from the list. This message and future newsletters
can be accessed at
http://www.xprides.com/2005XPNewsletters.asp . I assume that
most of you know that you can click onto any underlined blue text in
this message and that it will take you to a corresponding page on
our web site.
NEWS
FLASH
The Summer XP ride site has been moved
back to Schellbourne !
Same date as Cold Springs but different
location !
We
have eliminated the dust problem at the summer XP base camp. We did
this by moving the ride back to the Schellbourne area in Eastern
Nevada. Herb Stathes, the owner of the ranch at Schellbourne has
offered us the use of a portion of his property for a ride camp. We
will no longer be camping at the Schellbourne bar, but will be at
the original site of the Schellbourne XP Station a few miles east of
the Highway. This will be a great improvement for the ride, as
it eliminates much of the trail that was out of the tree area.
Showers and meals will be available at the campsite. Those who have
whined about the "good old days at Schellbourne" will undoubtedly be
pleased with the move. We hope you will be as excited as we are
about returning. Go to
http://www.xprides.com/RideInformation.html for more
information.
Eastern Mojave Sunrise Ranch
Ride
We
finished up the 2nd annual Eastern Mojave Ride a little over a week
ago and everyone agreed that it was a success. Results are now
posted at www.xprides.com/RideResults.html . Crockett
Dumas and OT Etta won the overall fastest time and the overall best
condition. The BC was an easy choice as Etta won each of the daily
BC's as well. We were fortunate to get through the ride with good
weather, as it has been raining off and on ever since. We thank all
of those who helped make this ride a success, especially the Youngs,
who went to great lengths to make us all feel at
home.
AERC
Convention
We
will have a booth again at the convention in Reno. We should have
all of the jackets and awards there for those of you who have not
picked them up already. Be sure and stop by if you make it to
Reno.
Cuyama Oaks XP
We have sent messages to
everyone who had sent an entry to the Cuyama Ride. If you are
planning on riding Cuyama, it is important that you respond asap.
The message can be viewed at
http://www.xprides.com/Cuyama.html#2005%20Cuyama%20Letter .
We will send out the directions to the camp after we sort
through the entries and send the final confirmations.
General XP
Information
We
now have our mobile internet connection hooked up so that we will
have internet access at all of the XP and Sunrise Ranch Rides. Those
of you who need to leave emergency contact information with
relatives, friends or enemies can have messages relayed through
theduck@xprides.com . This new technology will allow us to
receive and respond to riders for any last minute
information.
The MexiCan
Ride
I
can hardly believe that I mention this, but we are considering going
ahead with plans for a Mexico to Canada ride. What else could
you call it but the MexiCan Ride? If you were to go on that
ride it would make you an XP MexiCan. We will use green rider
cards. We will give a case of Corona to the winner.
There are lots of considerations, but we are starting to work on
it. Tentatively looking towards 07 or 08. I bring this up as
there have been offers of help in the past and I would like to talk
to any of you with ideas for the trail. Please send any offers
of help to my brother JJ Duck.
Hasta la vista,
The
Duck
1-3-05
XP Newsletter
Dear
Friends:
Nicholson Family News:
We
hope you all had a great Holiday Season, as we did, and are looking
forward to joining us in a new riding year. Following the
Grand Canyon ride, last fall, we returned home to Alaska for some
needed R&R. After the ride year, we try to forget about the
rides and catch up on all of the other things that we neglect during
the ride season. This last year was particularly hectic for us, as
we did another big cross country ride. I have promised Annie
that it will be an easier year coming up, without the huge summer
commitment. We hope to be more organized this year and to be able to
devote more time to improving our rides. We returned south for
the Christmas Holidays with the family in Reno and then ended the
year, as usual at Death Valley. Since we have found a relatively dry
hill to park on, we may be here for some time as it looks like we
have a Biblical flood in the making in southern California. If it
keeps this up, we may have to go back to the more temperate climate
of Alaska. At least we have a boat there to get around
in.
2004 XP
Awards
A
great challenge, and a tremendous accomplishment, the XP Gold Medal
Award is given to the same horse and rider team who complete all of
the XP rides in a single year.
Cuyama Oaks 3-day, 155
miles
Mt. Carmel 3-day, 155 miles
Cold Springs 5-day, 250
miles
Bryce Canyon 5-day, 250 miles
Grand Canyon 5-day, 250
miles Total: 1060
Miles
If you want a new goal to aspire to, dare to test your
limits and that of your horse give the Gold Medal XP Series a try in
2005. All Award recipients will receive a specially
embroidered Jacket and Blanket.
Congratulations to our 2004
XP Gold Medal Riders. See their stories at
http://www.xprides.com/2004GOLDMEDAL.html.
They
are:
Les Carr and Tulip
Karen Chaton and Granite Chief
Dawn
Folks and KA Black Gold
And then, there is our very special
XP Rider, Dave Rabe, who although he rarely rides the same horse
through an entire multi day event, he has become a legend throughout
the endurance world. This year he rode every day of every single XP
Ride, including the ride from Virginia City to Rush Creek, Nebraska.
On days that no one else will ride, you can always count on Dave to
be there ready to go. Way to go, Dave.
General XP
News:
We
are working on all of the awards for the 2004 season and will have
them all at the XP booth at the AERC convention. We initiated an
overall awards program for 2004 and will continue with it during the
2005 season. Results for the 2004 ride year can be found on the XP
web site anytime after January 6th. Hopefully all of you are
aware of the deal with the Sunrise Ranch Rides. If not, you can
check them out on at www.sunriseranch.com or at the Sunrise
Ranch link on the XP website. We instituted these rides to try out
new riding areas and ideas that we may not want to include in our XP
Rides. We still get a lot of people who are concerned with
having to pre enter the rides. The only ride that we presently have
a limited entry on is at Cuyama. However, we really appreciate your
sending in an entry for any of the rides you are attending and
indicating whether or not you will be looking for meals. This really
helps us during the ride when time is
short.
XP2004
Karen
is working on a CD for the ride and may have it done by the time we
get to the convention. Becky Hackworth did a slide show that can be
seen on the website or through the link
http://www.xprides.com/2004XP_BeckyH/2004XPPhotos.html .
How much interest is there in having an XP get together during the
convention? There is a Mexican restaurant on the west end of
town that is much cheaper than the hotels or we could try to do
something around the Nugget. Or we could bag it. Interested parties
should let me know. Don't forget to send your photos to Karen.
They need to be in electronic form.
Eastern Mojave
Scenic Ride: Sunrise Ranch Ride February 4th 5th and
6th.
This
ride has been expanded to three days this year and with all of the
desert rain the trails should be in great shape. We will be heading
that way to work on the ride in the near future. The nice
thing about the desert is that we can always ride there, even when
it rains or snows. In fact, the moisture makes those desert
sands a lot firmer and the hard ground a lot
softer.
Cuyama XP Ride: March 26th, 27th and
28th
With
all the rain Cuyama may be greener than ever and the wildflowers
should be spectacular. We haven't gotten around to working the
entries yet, but we are getting close. Rest assured that all of you
who have entries in will be hearing from us before too long. We will
require deposits this year for each day.
Mount
Carmel XP Ride: May 7th, 8th and
9th
No
news. Planning on getting to Kanab to work on a new approach to
camp, so we don't have to keep doing the loops around the
village. Does anyone remember the lady from Alaska that had
the big pick up at the south end of the camp? She never rode any of
the rides and I never had an entry for her but would like to contact
her. ??????
Lost Padres: Sunrise Ranch Ride May 21st
and
22nd
Second
year for great ride north of LA. Still has a limited camping area
but was a great ride. Still looking for new trails in area to expand
it to 3 days sometime in the future. I was going to explore some
this winter but area is all snowed in.
Cold Springs
XP: June 6th through the
10th
The
only thing for sure on the Cold Springs ride is that we will have it
on the days that are scheduled. I am as unhappy with the dust and
dirt as anyone. I have reservations about continuing a five day ride
in the summer at this site. I am working on a ride that I hope will
be a vast improvement. I have held off on sending this newsletter
because I have tried to gather enough information to make a firm
decision, but I am unable to do so with the terrible winter storms.
You can count on the ride dates and you can count on the ride and
campsite on being improved over the last two years.
Paunsagaunt XP at Bryce Canyon: September 1st
through the
5th
Maybe
the new single track trail between lunch and Black Butte will be
open for the second day. We should have a lot more riders for the
second day now that Les has proven that you can ride off the side of
the hill while horses are stampeding on the Blue Fly
Trail.
Virgin Rim Point to Point : Sunrise Ranch
Ride September 17th and
18th
We
reserved the date of the old Outlaw Trail Ride for a ride on the
Virgin Rim Trail. This is a single track trail that runs along the
rim of Zion Canyon. This will be a spectacular scenic ride with
unbelievable fall colors if we are able to pull it together. We have
done the ride in the past, but there are issues with the forest
service that have yet to be resolved. This ride will not take place
if the OT is rescheduled. We have discussed the possibility of
making a long point to point using the first days of OT and
connecting to the Virgin Rim trail by using some of the Paunsagaunt
trail system. We might be able to make it from Teasdale all the way
to Cedar City and by pass the Grand Staircase Monument, which is why
the OT was cancelled in the first place.
Grand Canyon
XP: October 8th through the
12th
We
requested moving the ride a week earlier but this was denied by the
AERC, so we will continue with the same date.
Those who can
spare the time, should consider coming to the Paunsagaunt Ride and
staying in the area through the Virgin Rim and Grand Canyon Rides.
Kane County Utah is located between Bryce Canyon National Park on
the North, Grand Canyon National Park on the south, Zion Canyon
National Park on the west and Lake Powell to the east. On top
of than, most of the county is made up of the Grand Staircase
National Monument. You can find lots to see and do in this
spectacular area. If you choose to stay for all of those rides,
there are several places to leave your horses, should you find
need to return home for a
spell. |
