Greetings
fellow
horse lovers!

What a thrill for Ricochet Ridge Ranch! The cover of Horse Illustrated Magazine’s July/August issue showcases a dramatic full page photo of Rascal and me cantering on Ten Mile Beach. Shawn Hamilton of CLiX Photography is an internationally reknowned artist whose website specializes in quality equine images.

And Trail Rider Magazine is featuring the last of my 12 articles, this one all about my very favorite equestrian subject: “Endurance Riding 101” in their summer July/August issue. I’m encouraging folks who normally trail ride their horses to try the sport of Endurance Riding. When asked by the interviewer why I ride Endurance, I of course answered “For the absolute FUN of it!” It’s truly a “personal best” sport. Yes, it’s a race in that the first horse to cross the finish line wins first place, but the sport’s motto is: “To Finish is to Win!” And every single horse/rider pair who finishes garners the same award and respect. Most people enter these events not to win anything, but to ride beautiful, well marked trails which you might not know about or ordinarily have permission to ride. There’s also the camaraderie of kindred spirits, camping in a beautiful place and riding with friends. My own kids grew up riding down the endurance trail with cries of “Wait for Mommy!” echoing through the woods. I often take a camera along.

The beauty of endurance riding is that horses usually get better as they get older. Some riders have competed on the same horse for 10 to 20 years. Nearly any size or breed of equine (including mules) can be ridden. I’ve competed on horses ranging from the magnificent 12.2 h.h. Sham (the half-Welsh pony Wonder Horse) to a 16 plus hand Russian Orlov stallion, and I've seen both Fresians and half Percherons be wonderfully successful. Kids from 6 to 97 have fun riding endurance events. Introductory rides can range from 7-15 miles, with American Endurance Ride Conference “Limited Distance“ (or, as I prefer to call it, “Luxury Distance”) rides traveling 25-30 miles.

Blue and Lari going over Cougar Rock on the 1983 Tevis Cup

A 50 mile/one day AERC Endurance ride allows 12 hours to explore beautiful trails, while you get more for your money in all ways if you take the full 24 hours to complete 100 miles in one day! Visit their website for more information.

And speaking of my Russian horses, Russian Times Magazine was kind enough to show photos and a lovely blurb about my decades long connection with trail riding on Russian Orlov and Akhal-Teke horses. Perhaps some of you remember Nature's Ballet... the stallion who changed the lives of my children and me. “Blue” and I completed the 100 Mile Tevis Cup twice, placing 15th and 26th out of nearly 300 entries in the early ’80s, but he had also finished Tevis three times earlier... so he earned five out of five, for 100% completions in an event that normally averages less than 50% finishing the entire 100 miles in one day.

My kids also grew up riding Blue... sometimes six of them at once!

That’s 3 year old Kyala in front, 6 year old Rafferty in back, and four friends in between. Good ol’ Blue!

Elicia Kamberg sort of grew up at Ricochet, first as a teen-aged slave... I mean “volunteer”, and then as a much valued employee, during which time she also caught the endurance bug. Aside from training horses and riders, and conditioning her own horse to win the coveted Best Conditioned Horse Award, Elicia is now the hard-working owner of Hooves and Whiskers, an online tack shop of items she creates and sews herself, as well as comfy underwear for riders, custom made coolers for horses and super toys for cats and dogs.

Have you been dreaming about moving to the Mendocino coast, on top of a mountain so you’re out of the fog and high enough to have incredible ocean views? Perhaps you’d like 23 acres with fenced pastures, three stall barn with hay and tack rooms, a mile from the beach... and, oh yes, a unique redwood home with outdoor hot tub overlooking the Pacific? Harvey is selling Serenity — click to see more. Zhivago and Friendly canter through the pastures on the video, and yes, I have to admit, that's me pretending to get into the hot tub, and meditating under the redwoods.

RIDE WITH US

If you haven't ridden with us a Ricochet Ridge Ranch, or have dreamed of returning, 2014 is filled with wonderful opportunities and ways to do so. Our full-tilt boogie, the Redwood Coast Riding Vacations, are all inclusive, catered with truly wonderful meals. They include lodging at unique Bed & Breakfast Inns and Hotels, riding every day, fine dining with a glass of choice California wines accompanying dinner each evening, live entertainment on Wednesday and Saturday evenings, hot tub spas and massage available just down the road, a party on Friday night, snacks, beverages and a ton of camaraderie. They begin on a Monday at 2:00PM and end after breakfast on Sunday morning. The complete itinerary, with dates, description of accommodations, and other information is found on our website.

In year 2014, the price for the six night vacation remains $2,295 per person, double or triple occupancy, all inclusive. Although our regularly scheduled week-long vacations are during the six summer months, we are happy to arrange custom treks of any duration or full Redwood Coast Riding Vacations at any time during the year. Returning Redwood Coast Riding Vacation clients are welcome to $100 off!

Rascal overlooking the Inn at Newport Ranch

For those of you who want the full experience of the Redwood Coast Riding Vacation's riding itinerary, but would rather explore other options for meals, wine and entertainment, we offer the “Ride & Save Redwood Coast Riding Vacation”. The exact same riding as on regular RCRV, but you'll arrange your own morning & evening meals, lunch one day, wine and entertainment.

On all of our riding vacations, those who are interested can and do learn about the sport of endurance.Friday's ride can include a “mock endurance ride”, where we teach you more about sport horse conditioning and veterinary skills. You'll learn to check your horse's cardiac and respiratory recovery rates, capillary refill, skin response, muscle tone and gut sounds, just as is done at a “vet check” on a competitive trail ride, 3 day event, or endurance ride.During the week, we also discuss how to navigate different terrains, demonstrate other endurance related skills, and highlight many of the different riding strategies used by successful riders in the sport.

We can produce custom, magical riding vacations of any duration, from one or two days up to two weeks, with accommodations ranging upwards from $99.00 - 499.00 per night, with or without breakfast, including if you like the Mendo Wine Tour, and suggestions for ocean or river kayaking, golf, hiking trails, free wine tastings and many other local secrets. Of course, if you are going to be in the area already, but don't have time for a full riding vacation, we also offer Daily Trailrides to the Beach and to the Redwood Forests.

RIDE FOR FREE!

And if none of the above entice you... RIDE FOR FREE! Bring 10 friends, and the 11th rides for free on ANY of our private or group trailrides. RIDE FOR 1/2 PRICE! Bring 5 friends and the 6th person rides for 1/2 price on any private trail ride. Ask around at your stables... surely lots of your riding buddies have always wanted to ride in Mendocino and are just waiting for you to get the ball rolling!

And don't forget to follow us on Facebook, where we post fun horse facts, fabulous photos, and share stories of the RRR family - of which you are an important part!

Y'all come!

Happy trails, Lari

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