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We were told that most of her horses have pulse rates in the mid-30s at rest, but at least one of her horses registers at only 28. Apparently a horse's heart can increase the rate at which it pumps by a factor of eight. Rates of 300 have been recorded.
Lari's enthusiasm for endurance riding and her love of her horses is matched only by her boundless energy. Anyone who thinks that endurance riding is for pansies will be in for a ride awakening if they ride out with Lari.
Exceptionally fit, Lari also has wonderful balance on a horse and often rides her beloved Gabriel with no bridle, just a rope round his neck. And I don't mean walking and trotting. Lari put us through some punishing canters up steep tracks. I would never have attempted on a Thorobred.
Lari's endurance Arabs are not seriously worked until they are five, preferably six and then they are hardened to tough trail riding by years of training on the Mendocino Mountains.
What the Martin Pipes of this world have discovered will get horses supremely fit, Lari has been practicing for the past 20 years - the secret lies in the hills. One of America's most experienced endurance riders, and a winner of the Tevis Trail, Lari, 5ft nothing, attractive and a bundle of energy, has perfected a riding holiday like no other.
Lari caters for all abilities of rider, but if you are a competent experienced rider, Lari will mount on one of her pure-bred Arabs or an Orlov Trotter-cross with a proven endurance riding track record.
My mount, Prince Asheem, was nominated to represent America in the World Championships at The Hague. To partner such a supremely fit equine athlete, with legs like iron and a constitution to match, was a rare privilege and one which I shall treasure.
During Lari's trail ride you will get the chance to canter for miles on one of Northern California's beautiful beaches and experience the surge of the endurance horse as he powers u the steepest tracks I have encountered anywhere.
The tall redwood trees provide a canopy that shelters you from the heat of the day and it is hugely forests.
Logging has been the main industry in the Fort Bragg area for decades and so you will have to travel by car further north to see the giant Redwoods, which can span in excess of 50ft in diameter.
Quality Inns
Ricochet Ridge Ranch farm is within walking distance of the chalet-style accommodation of the Cleone Gardens Inn, where an outside hot tub is available. Guests stay here for two nights before moving to the Mendocino Hotel in the elegant little town of Mendocino, where many films have been shot, including the Murder She Wrote series.
We stayed here just one night before traveling further up the coast to De Haven Valley Farm, where again the accommodation is first-class with a superb hot tub perched on the hillside and some splendid cuisine.
At each of our three lodging places an evening's entertainment was provided by local musicians. Our stay at Cleone Gardens Inn featured an evening of classical guitar music by Jeff Schiller, while Susan Archuletta's own piano compositions enthralled us at the Mendocino Hotel. At De Haven Valley Farm, the versatile Franny Leopold rounded off the week's entertainment in style.
Orlov Admirer
Lari Shea is a great admirer of the pure-bred Arabian, consistently the best performers in endurance competitions, and this breed is well represented in the Ricochet Ridge Ranch string. There were several winners of 50 and 100-miles races out on our ride.
But Lari is also a firm believer in the Russian Orlov Trotter and it was the stallion Nature's Ballet, given to Cyrus Eaton by Nikita Khruschev in 1959, which originally brought the breed to Lari's notice.
Persistence should be Lari's middle name because eventually she managed to acquire Nature's Ballet or "Blue" as he was known.
The Russian stallion proved himself an incredibly tough endurance horse and completed the Tevis Cup trail. Lari used Blue as her lead trail horse and in 1983 began using him on her own mares.
Lari had been collecting semen from Blue and transporting it unfrozen to breeders for some time. It had traveled well and kept unfrozen for four days, so it was fortuitous when Nature's Ballet died unexpectedly in 1993 that a year previously, semen for freezing had been collected from him. That was used this spring on four mares, all of whom are in foal.
Some 250 straws were frozen and the straws graded commercial or non-commercial by how many sperm were present in each straw. Usually, two or three straws are used per covering, so Nature's Ballet will be siring endurance horses for the foreseeable future.
Lari's collaborator in acquiring Nature's Ballet was the respected Kerry Ridgway, who is now an holistic vet. He has been a keen endurance rider all his life and has ridden in the Tevis Cup 17 times.
We were fortunate enough to be joined for dinner one evening by this respected vet, who now operates as a chiropractor and prescribes acupuncture, which he carries out himself, as a cure for a multitude of ailments.
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