This weekend was the 64th running of the Western States Trail Ride, also know as The Tevis Cup. It is a one day, one hundred mile, point to point endurance ride through the Sierra Nevada Mountains from Tahoe to Auburn, California. It is the hardest and certainly the most prestigious endurance race in the US. Its mystique is far reaching and draws competitors from all over the world. Everyone is brought together by a love of horses and a desire to test themselves against the harsh terrain.I was honored to participate as a member of the crew supporting Lucy Chaplin Trumbull as she piloted Liliana Vess (Lilly), a Mustang, owned by Andrea Maitland.Lucy and Lilly started the ride from Robie Equestrian Park at 5:15 am on Saturday, August, 17. She was carrying a GPS tracker that was supposed to be reporting her location via a live feed webcast. Unfortunately, it malfunctioned. So her crew were left to await her arrival at various checkpoints with bated breath. We had three opportunities to see the pair over the course of the day prior to the finish line: Robinson’s Flat (36 miles), Chicken Hawk (64 miles), and Foresthill (68 miles). Cristina Bel Winemiller, Andrea Maitland, and I worked together at each vet check to attend to the horse and rider’s needs, making sure they were cooled down and fueled up with food and drink.

Following their departure into the darkness at 9:16 pm we moved Andrea’s truck and trailer from Foresthill down to the Gold Country Fairgrounds in Auburn. We set out a smorgasbord of various types of hay, feed, and water concoctions for Lilly, then prepped a few things for the final vet check, and went over our plan. Then, Cristina and I drove to our hotel to catch a few hours of sleep while Andrea did the same in her living quarters.
Cristina woke at 3:15 am in a panic because she’d just received a text message from Lucy saying that she was arriving at LQ. Her exhausted brain interpreted this as ‘Living Quarters’ (the finish) when it actually meant Lower Quarry, a checkpoint at mile 94. After a few minutes of chaos, we realized our mistake and calmly made our way to the fairgrounds, connected with Andrea, and took up our vigil at the finish line.
The actual finish line is not the one you see in most Tevis photos. It is a nondescript two track road about a quarter mile from McCann Stadium. The finish line is solely lit with strings of bulb lights. It’s very dark and subdued to preserve the horses’ night vision. There is a popup tent where volunteers on computers log rider numbers. A small grassy area is set aside for spectators. Everyone speaks in hushed tones so that folks can nap under horse blankets or wrapped up in sleeping bags; that is, until a rider appears out of the woods, the glow sticks on their breastplate and the rhythm of hoofbeats the only giveaway of their presence. Then, everyone jumps to their feet whooping and hollering encouragement and congratulations as they ride under the finish banner.

Lucy and Lilly finished at 4:59 am on Sunday, August 18. They were tired but in remarkably good spirits considering they’d been at it for 23 hours 44 minutes. We escorted them to the stadium, where they took their victory lap and we got to work taking care of Lilly. The morning air was chilly and Lilly’s tired muscles stiffened up while she stood, scarfing down hay, waiting out the required one-hour hold time. Her gait was off during the trot-out at the vet check and she was disqualified. We were all heartbroken! The vet asked us to bring her back for a recheck in one more hour so that he could make sure nothing serious was going on. So, we stayed at the stadium as the sun rose, letting Lilly eat, massaging her muscles, and occasionally walking her.

In hindsight, I find it funny that all day Lucy’s well-being had been just as important as Lilly’s. However, at this point we all naturally focused on the horse. We hadn’t even thought to bring a chair, drink, or food to the stadium for poor, tired Lucy!
Luckily, Lilly’s lameness was nothing serious. Her metabolic parameters were A-okay and Andrea reported her as being bright and happy the next day. A lump was discovered on her hind cannon bone so now Lucy’s best guess is that she must have smacked the leg on a rock and compensated by relying more on the opposite foreleg.

The horse world is small and the endurance community is even smaller. Tevis felt a bit like a family reunion. I was able to reconnect with members of my adoptive Arizona (Zonies) family, meet and cheer on New Jersey (my home state) riders, see riders and horses that I’ve met while attending rides in Idaho and Utah, and even have our horse vetted by Dr. Nick Kohut, who I met last year while volunteering at Vermont 100. I also made lots of new friends, most notably Lucy. She is a wonderful lady with an indomitable spirit. I look forward to crewing for her again in the future.

I’m so thankful for the experience of crewing at Tevis. It taught me a great deal. I will apply these lessons to my own riding and perhaps gain the confidence to eventually try longer distances.
Every horse and rider that gave their all, every volunteer, and every crew member is an inspiration to me. I love and respect all of these folks for their dedication, compassion, and grit. The atmosphere at Tevis is magical. I can’t wait to go back.