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Home > Archive > Apr 19, 2007

By Katrice Schimbeck
Staff Writer

Leah Secrist and her mom, Cheryl Myres, are endurance horse riders. Secrist rode endurance for the first time five years ago, when she was 12. Myres is a seasoned endurance rider of around 15 years. Together, they participated in the Color Country Pioneer Ride April 13-15, Secrist for the second time.
The Color Country Ride has been around for more than 30 years. This is the only horse endurance ride in Washington County. According to Marion Parker, race manager, the Hurricane Chamber of Commerce originally ran the ride as a one-day event. Seven years ago, Marion Parker and her family took over the ride and changed it to a “pioneer” ride, meaning any ride three days or longer. 
“It (the ride) blossomed the minute we went to a three day,” Parker said. “I had approximately 200 horses cross the trail last year.”
Staged four miles south of Sky Ranch in Hurricane, a 55- and 25-mile ride took place on Friday, and both a 50- and 25-mile ride on Saturday and Sunday. Each course is a different trail.
“This is a big family sport. If somebody’s looking for something to do with the family, this is great,” Parker said. Parker’s daughter, Stacie Devereaux, is the trail master.
“I think its fun to go out and bond with the horses,” Secrist said. “I ride with my mom, so we chat along the way. I like seeing the outdoors, and I don’t know what to expect on this ride, so I’m excited.”
Secrist and Myres belong to the American Endurance Ride Conference with their horses and participated Friday and Saturday. Secrist has a young horse, Chazz, who just completed his first ride.  Chazz is four years old, and can compete only in 25-milers until he turns five. The 25-mile ride is designed as a training ride for horses or for people who are physically unable to compete in the longer rides.
“It’s a good first ride for a horse,” Myres said.
Myres’ and her horse, Sebastian, who is six years old, competed in a 55-mile ride Friday, and the 25-mile ride Saturday with Secrist and Chazz. Both women plan on participating in the 100-Mile Western States Trail Ride, better known as the Tevis Cup, in the summer of 2008. 
A horse can participate in endurance riding for as long as it is healthy. Some riders, like Devereaux, have been riding the same horse for 20 years; most horse owners don’t have their horses that long. She has ridden endurance events since she was 18 and has logged over 10,000 miles on horses.
“It’s a great discipline for horses,” Parker said.
Myres trains her horse just like any endurance athlete. Training and nutrition are vital. There is usually one hard ride every week. Myres usually takes her horse out every other day. One week will see a harder ride and the next an easier one until the horse has worked up to the number of miles in the endurance ride. At rest stops, which are required in the official race, the horse first drinks a lot of water. Then, she gives him electrolytes, in grain or even a paste. Some even give their horses Gatorade. The ride vet, Dave Nicholson, advised in an article that carb-loading is bad for a horse. There are also many different kinds of vitamin supplements or bran mushes and carrots, hay or even beet pulp.
Everyone has their own formula, based on what works for their horse, Myres said.
Good trail riders use different strategies. Ride light, lifting to save a horse’ back and always stay balanced. Going up a steep hill many riders get off and grab their tail to let them “tail” you up. Going downhill, riders dismount and trot down in front of the horse. Downhill is hard on the horses’ front end, and dismounting saves their legs. Myres likes to vary the pace and keep it interesting for the horse, even galloping a little on the flats.
“It’s important to read your horse and see where your horse is at and walk them,” Myres said.
Secrist walks her horse through the rocks. She doesn’t want to take any chance of her horse becoming lame.
You need to know the terrain and elevation. You have to condition and know your horse, Myres said. Some horses never get conditioned to walking in rocks and will always get tender feet. Riders need to know that and pad their feet if necessary.
“It’s a whole conditioning thing with you and your horse,” Myres said.
“This is not a speed event. We want the horses to get through, and their riders, as healthy and as safely as possible,” Parker said.
Every endurance ride is run by a veterinarian. Dave Nicholson is the race judge.
“He puts on a lot of multi-day rides himself out of Alaska, where he’s from, and has a home in Kanab,” Parker said.
There are vet checks along with mandatory rest periods. For this ride, the vet check was at base camp. The 50-mile rides had a one-hour rest and vet check, while the 25-mile had a half-hour rest and vet check. There is also a vet check before and after riding. The horse must trot out 100 feet and then return being sound at the trot, meaning no missteps. If the vet sees one misstep, the horse can be pulled from the ride. Their heart rate needs to remain the same as before the trot. The vet also listens to gut sounds, and makes sure they are good.
“It’s very veterinarian controlled – if that horse is not safe to go on, it doesn’t go on,” Parker said.
The riders and their horses must complete a 25-mile ride in six hours and a 50-mile in 12 hours – including the vet check time. Most riders have no problem and have plenty of time. AERC hopes to make this an Olympic sport, so there are no cash prizes, allowing riders to keep an amateur status. Parker gave out completion awards of T-shirts and an award for first in the 50-mile plus races. There were five divisions: heavy, middle, light, feather and junior. All divisions have to do with weight except for junior, which is five to 16. If a junior has 500 miles, they can apply for senior status.
“It’s teaching them responsibility. For them to get through, it’s up to them and that horse to do it,” Parker said.
The ultimate award for the ride is Best Condition. For each of the longer rides, the top 10 horses were picked for scrutiny, and out of those, the one in best condition after the ride was chosen. Myres has been in that top ten before.
The weather this year was perfect, not too hot and not too cold. Horses and riders ride in any weather conditions.
“Two years ago we had snow,” Parker said.
There were riders from every state in the West at the Color Country Pioneer Ride. Participants camped out at base camp and ate dinner together. Every night, there was a presentation with awards in the rides.
Myres, with Sebastian, and Secrist, with Chazz, both completed their rides, which was their goal.
“You really have to have a bond with your horse,” Secrist said.
“Once you do it, you get addicted to it,” Myres said.

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