Endurance Riding

There is something about crossing the finish line just as the sun is setting. Being blinded by the vibrant orange and red filling the sky, and then squinting as your eyes adjust to the dusk. Galloping across the field, just a 1/2 mile from your destination, the chill of night caressing your cheeks…. Just as […]

It has been four days since my horse Asali and I crossed the finish line of our first 100-mile endurance ride. The magnitude of that feat is finally settling with me. It has taken me a few days to wrap my mind around the 20-some odd hours I spent in the desert with my horse. […]

Lake Sonoma By Jakob Gregory My mom and I went to Lake Sonoma for an endurance ride. We rode thirty miles. The ride started at 8:30 in the morning. It was cold, so we wore our jackets. At the start of the ride, our horses were crazy. They just wanted to run! Asali, my mom’s […]

The Tevis Cup served as this turning point for me. I disappeared for awhile following the ride. I found myself lost in a lot of reflection. I did a lot of soul searching. What I thought would be the end of a two year journey became the rest of my life. That historic trail through […]

For two and a half years, my life has been consumed by the Tevis Cup. From our first 25 mile ride to the 75 miler we completed one month before Tevis, to the personal cross-training I’ve done, the time away from family and friends, the vacations missed because it interrupted our competition schedule, the money […]

A few days before the Lake Almanor Hustle, I was having a lot of anxiety about Tevis. I am not sure what exactly triggered all of my fear. My guess is that it was a combination of things, coupled with “one of those days.” I had a pretty good pity party for myself before I […]

This was my third consecutive year at the Cache Creek Ridge Ride. It was Jakob’s second. Although Jakob wanted to ride the 50 this year, I wanted a relaxing, casual ride. So I signed us up for the 25-mile limited distance and was looking forward to an easy ride. Jakob and I had anything but […]

Cuyama By Jakob Gregory My family and I went to Cuyama for an endurance ride with our horses. My mom and I rode thirty miles on the first day. We got to ride with the cows! It was very fun. The second day, I took a break and my mom rode fifty miles with her […]

Part 1: Does That Count as Falling Off? We arrived at ride camp in Georgetown, CA just before noon. After getting camp set up, eating some lunch, and having Dianna (our hoof trimmer, fellow endurance rider, and camp neighbor) trim our horses, we decided to set out for our pre-ride. Jakob and I both decided […]

Well, my birthday couldn’t happen without a bang. The day before, while I was celebrating the last day of being 29 on the 29th, we had a pretty decent storm, which left enough snow on top of the barn roof to cause the panels to sag a little. In a panic, after only 3 hours […]