The full moon was still in evidence as riders made their way into the first vet check at the FEI/AERC*** 20 Mule Team Ride on Feb. 3, in Ridegcrest, Calif.

“The ride was wonderful; it was fun,” said Judith Ogus of San Jose, Calif., first in and winner of the AERC 100-mile ride on Mocha Mirah (Dikhada-Mahdames–Kalli Mariah), in a ride time of 12:24. “She felt great all day,” Ogus said of “Maggie.”

The 11-year-old, gray mare, owned by Ogus and Becky Hart, still looked good the next day and won the best condition for her division. Ogus gave her mare an unqualified compliment for an endurance horse. “She was magnificent–she ate like a pig,” she said.

The scenic trail over the Mojave Desert, which started from Ridgecrest, west of Death Valley National Park, afforded views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Ogus, who has more than 7,300 AERC miles amassed since 1990, liked the improvements made to the ride. “I’ve done this ride 10 times and there was a long boring stretch of road,” she said. “Now there is a nice passage through a canyon with a sandy-bottomed riverbed. Maggie cantered the entire way through.”

Christoph Schork, Moab, Utah, riding Oritos Haat Pizaz (Blitzen Of Pico–Pizzazz Of Pico) was second in and first for the FEI division with a ride time of 14:08. Schork, who has ridden more than 14,000 AERC miles since 1988, was a member of the U.S. endurance team at the 2006 World Equestrian Games.

“My horse was strong all day,” said Schork. “I had to hold her back until the last vet check. We were by ourselves after that and she traveled better alone.”

In the morning, he rode 30 miles in only a halter because his mare’s mouth was sore. “I had a good upper body workout in the morning,” he said. “She was so strong that the foreign veterinarian, Dr. Beech, said that her mouth looked sore at Vet Check 2.”

After re-rigging her reins onto her halter, Schork rejoined the ride. “After that, I was in a group of strong horses,” he said ruefully. “I had an interesting ride until I got back to my trailer and put on a hackamore at Vet Check 4.”

Schork’s partner, Dian Woodward, bred Pizaz. “She is a machine,” he said of the mare. “She has a 16 mph trot and tremendous recoveries. Her cardiac recovery index at the best condition judging was 32/32.”

Schork, who has ridden this ride three times in the past, liked the change in the trail. “The ride was a big improvement as they cut out the rocky section,” he said.

His horse management was rewarded when Pizaz received the best condition award for the FEI-100 the next day.

Forty riders started the AERC-sanctioned 100-mile (160 km) ride, while 11 of these competed in the FEI division. Twenty-four riders completed the AERC 100-mile ride, and seven riders completed the FEI-100.


An International Force
Base camp for the ride and Vet Checks 4 and 6 were at the Desert Empire Fairgrounds in Ridgecrest. Before the ride, manager and head veterinarian, Melissa Ribley, cautioned against the gradual long climbs that masked altitude that ascended to 2,500 feet, as well as occasional deep sand that would sap the energy of the horses. She also cautioned riders about the change of 40 miles of the trail, in most cases to eliminate rocky sections.

“The desert is tough,” warned co-manager Robert Ribley. “It can be beautiful one minute and the next blow 80-mile-an-hour winds.”

This was the 26th year of the ride in the desert named for the 20-mule teams that transported the local mineral, borax. The Ribleys have ridden and worked this ride for years and enthusiastically took over management this year with the blessing of past organizer, Jackie Baumgardner.

Four Brits, three of whom now call the United States home, made up a team under the Union Jack for the 100-mile FEI ride. Team Great Britain was recruited, organized and supported by Dom Freeman, of San Jose, Calif., and included Freeman, Emily Matthews from Devon, England, now living in Princeton, N.J., and Pauline Beech from Three Legged Cross in Dorset, England.

Freeman supplied horses for the traveling trio. Beech rode Paris, Matthews’ mount was Marquis de Fad (Fadjurs Prize–Fadjurs Si-Si), and Freeman rode Proud Legacy (Tyx–Destinys Amira). Suzanne Malden, now living in Jamul, Calif., brought her mare, Oleandra (Monarch Ah–Ole Elpaso) for the 65-mile (104 km) ride, but due to an accident in the trailer, she was not able start. “Our goal is to ride and finish all together,” said Freeman.

At the end of the day, that is exactly what they did. The group, competing under the name of “Allied Euro Trash,” came in together after 17 hours in the saddle, finishing fifth, sixth and seventh in the FEI division.

Brazilian veterinarian, Paulo Fasano, who has served as the U.K. off-continent head veterinarian for Freeman since 1999, came from S�o Paulo, Brazil, to guide the team. Fasano works exclusively with a clientele in endurance and has an endurance-training center near S�o Paulo.

Another foreign rider, 19-year-old Maria Hagman-Ericksson, from Sweden, flew in and traveled to the ride with Tracy Kaden, Canutill, Texas. She finished fourth in a ride time of 16:58 on RLF Ruleta, owned by the Kadens. Hagman-Ericksson was on the 2006 Swedish Young Riders team and keeps a stable of six endurance horses.


Surrounded By Beauty
The day went from bitter cold before dawn to sunny and clear but never reached much above the 60-degree mark. Never far off the lead after the 6 a.m. start, Ogus was among the top 10 into the first vet check at the 15-mile mark at 8:03.

Jackrabbits skimmed across the desert terrain in the early dawn as Ogas left sixth back out onto the trail. Joyce Sousa, Hydesville, Calif., riding Gallently, challenged her for position, and Schork was right behind. This section of trail had been changed to eliminate as much of the rocky footing as possible.

“It was absolutely gorgeous,” said front-runner Tracy Kaden, riding Faberge. “It had big rock walls and a great sandy trail.”

It took the riders a little more than an hour to make Vet Check 2, located in a protected sandy valley off the old Garlach Road, west of Ridgecrest. Ogus was not first in, but after the hour hold, she was first out on the trail at 10:16 due to quick recoveries. Sousa was 5 minutes behind her and Schork was 10.

First into Vet Check 3, Sousa was pumped from her ride. “The trail is so horse and rider friendly,” she said. “It was fun coming down the canyon. It is so beautiful!”

Coming out of Vet Check 3 heading toward the 65-mile finish and one-hour hold for the hundreds at 12:40, Sousa was 2 minutes ahead of Ogus. Schork was still trailing by 10 minutes. The leaders took an hour to make the 8 miles of trail and the climb over the pass back to base camp.

Exactly an hour after she arrived at Vet Check 4, Ogus took the lead heading out on the last loop, quickly followed by Sousa and Schork, 10 minutes later. The three followed this pattern for the next 35 miles with one 15-minute hold at Vet Check 5. Ogus maintained a steady pace and arrived at the finish line at 7 p.m., first of the AERC riders, and Schork, the first FEI rider, followed 18 minutes later.

After the best condition judging, foreign veterinary delegate, Dr. Len Beech spoke of “rewarding Schork’s management of his horse over 100 miles.” He noted that he had warned Schork that the bit was rubbing the horse’s mouth at the second vet check. “It’s a great credit to this man that he listened, and he managed his horse,” he said. “That horse’s mouth at the end had improved, and it is even better this morning.”

He further explained his criteria for best condition: “When I look at the horse moving, I am not expecting to see a graceful, athletic animal. I am expecting to see an animal that has recovered over night with a bright eye, no swellings on the legs and no problems.”

The ride also offered a 65-mile ride and a 35-mile ride. Forty-two riders started and 38 riders finished in the 65-mile ride, which was won by Charisse Glenn on Bogart in a ride time of 9:01. “The 65 milers’ horses looked great all day long,” said Ribley.

Twenty-three riders started and all finished the 35-mile ride. The winner was Maria Bychkova riding Gulastras Echo in a ride time of 5:05.

Under the new U.S. Equestrian Federation endurance rankings proposal for team selection, the top 25 riders will be named to the USEF training list, based initially on the rider’s best two performances at FEI rides. The 20 Mule Team ride was the first designated selection trial for earning points for this ranking.


Pamela Burton