tevis preview

canyons looking toward the Tevis start in Tahoe

Damn, that’s a canyon. And it’s just the first big one for riders!

waiting for our ride under early skies

totally new place, guess I should eat!

thanks for the warning

Went out on Saturday to pre-ride part of our sweep section. (I probably won't be able to take many pictures on the day so I figured I'd let you have a sneak peak!) We didn't start from Dusty Corners like we will Tevis day because it is so hard to get to. We did ride out and back from our endpoint of Deadwood, and tested the radio reception (amazingly good, no phones would work). Down, down, down the canyon of sharp shale rock and dusty dirt (but at least it was pretty shady).

heading down the canyon (Major was the slowest downhill horse so we ate dust)

rider ahead crosses the bridge

cooling/goofing off/not drinking in the river

bridge view

Down to swinging bridge, where Major is pretty brave and just marched across, legs spread a bit wider than usual. After cooling in the river we headed back up, and since I was dismounted I walked across. I felt like a drunken sailor! That thing live us to its name (extra good boy Major)!

Major wins the uphill battle, riders following in a standard-steep section!

"my" section highlighted in yellow

About 1600 feet of climbing in two miles. It felt like straight up! And if you're riding Tevis, do it again in the next canyon, and then two slightly smaller ones, after already riding 45 miles. I really don't want to rescue or help anyone (since I want everyone to be successful!), but that is what we'll be there for if needed.

starting out, they paint a rough outline for us novices

On a Tevis-related note, I randomly remembered to look at a local paint and wine studio, and they were featuring the No Hands bridge painting class! I had wanted to do it since I saw that design a few years ago but I kept forgetting. This time it was two for one so I dragged C along with me. There were only four people in the class (they needed to advertise in Auburn and tie it in with horses!). My painting skills probably would’ve been improved with MUCH more wine, but it was fun nonetheless. I even added a special touch to my painting (and made the flowers orange of course)!

basic, but I had fun!

and a tiny Major runs free across the bridge!

Because it is Tevis season, living in the area or you really can’t avoid it (in town street banners, or stop by the AERC main office or local sponsor EVR feed store for a picture.) It is fun to be around the excitement of Tevis and the manpower and scheduling for a point-to-point 100 miles of wilderness ride is seriously impressive. Big thanks to those crewing and volunteering for this epic event, Again, I'm happy to play a small part in what I hope will be a successful day for my friends and others. Happy and safe trails!