Crewin' ain't for sissy's!!! Pine Tree 50 - 2008

Last year I volunteered to crew for a friend for the Moonlight in Vermont ride where endurance riders and runners compete together - a good portion of the ride/run is done at night. It was an experience, to say the least but it got me HOOKED!

So this year I volunteered to crew again - this time for the Pine Tree 50. I learned throughout the weekend that rides vary GREATLY from one to the next. Last year at the MLinVT I drove literally as many miles as my rider rode (50)!!! This year was different in more ways then one!

The morning started off without a hitch, we met up at Sharon's house at 6:45am - got all my stuff loaded into the trailer, Sharon loaded Z and we were off!! We chatted comfortabley about all kinds of random things, unlike last year, I wasn't nearly as worried about "what if I screw up and get lost or cost her time" - my questions this year were more directed towards what to expect in the future when I get to ride myself! We were cruising down Rt 3 when all of a sudden Sharon said she had to stop and check something - ok no biggie......Turns out what she had to check on, could have been disasterous!! Apparently, when she bought her new truck and had the hitch installed, the one installed is different then her old one. You have to lock this one up, well this hadn't been done. By some miracle nothing bad happened before she realized what had happened. WHEW - lesson learned - ALWAYS check the hitch!!

We continued on, and stopped at Knight's in Augusta for fly spray and a gate handle - they didn't have the right one, so Sharon settled for some "cheap toxic" fly spray as she was out of her normal spray and just wanted to have something for just in case. And we were off again! Not far though, as we had arranged to meet one of her friends at the Walmart in Augusta to caravan the rest of the way to the ride. As we were pulling into the parking lot, her friend called to say that she was running late and would just meet us at the ride. She apparently has food allergies and something she'd eaten hadn't agreed with her and she really wasn't feeling well at all. Sharon told her we had a few things to pick up so we'd call when we were done and see where she was and maybe hook up anyway. We went our separate ways in Walmart to get stuff done quickly - worked out pretty well and before long we were back in the truck. Sharon called Traci and she said to go on ahead as she'd had to stop again so was still a ways behind us. So on the road we were again!!

A few miles down the road, Sharon decided she was hungry so we decided to stop at the rest stop and grab something to eat. From prior trips together, she and I both discovered that neither of us is a "breakfast on the road" type of person but it always seems that when we stop it's breakfast time!! Well at this place, Burger King I think, they were serving "breakfast or fish/chicken"....ok then! Sharon ordered a fish sandwich and I SWEAR they took a trip out to sea to catch the damn fish! Took forever for it to finally come out and I don't think she even ate all of it because it was BURNT - BLECK! Anyway, while we were waiting an eternity for the sandwich, Traci called to say that she was almost to that stop so would meet us.

Traci arrived and we headed out again! I don't think we stopped again until we got just a couple miles from camp - we stopped quickly for gas and the scooted on to camp. We got parked, and started getting set up - it was HOT and very humid. There was a lot of discussion about how to get things set up because the trailers were packed in pretty tight and Sharon doesn't want Z close enough to the trailer that he can mess with it, so there was some putting in posts/taking posts out that went on but before long the fence was up and Z was out eatting. We set about getting the rest of the stuff set up - awning out, chairs and coolers and stuff set up etc.

We headed up to fill water buckets and the water tank - while I did that, Sharon went and got her registration packet and all that stuff. We met back at the trailer and just kind of hung out for a little bit and decided to go grab some ice from the local store - Sharon also realized she forgot to bring applesauce to mix Z's electrolyte's into so she needed to pick some up. We hopped into the truck and were about to leave when Sharon thought to throw Z some hay.....she got out and headed for the trailer, stopped and turned around and just looked at me for a minute......OOOOPS - she forgot to pack the hay she'd set out to bring!!! CRAP! On our way out of camp, she stopped the ride manager and explained what happened, he told her to go up to the farm owners house and ask about buying a bale from them. So we headed out to grab the ice and applesauce. The first little store we went to, didn't have ice, applesauce or anything of interest really! We headed for one of the other stores and were able to get both things we needed and headed back for camp. I chilled out at camp while Sharon went on her hay quest. She was successful and came back with a really nice looking bale of this years hay.

We sat and went over my packing list for the truck, the crewing directions and such. I still had notes from last years Vermont ride and used those as a guide point for me. The sky had looked like storms were moving in so rather than wait Sharon headed up to vet in. Z vetted in all A's - no surprise there! It was starting to rain so we scooted back to the trailer, Sharon was going to make herself some dinner and I was just hanging out - while Sharon was cooking, the horses next to us got into a tiff while their owners were putting rain sheets on them - well one bit the other, so the other kicked out at the biter - which in retaliation the biter kicked out at the other one - in the end, one of them got the still plugged in fence tape caught on his leg and a panic started! The fence got pulled down, the daughter was able to get the fence turned off and some others came over to help put the fence back up while the owners held the horses. Sharon had me keep an eye on Z to make sure he didn't start fussing during the commotion. As everything was getting settled back in, the sky's opened up and it started POURING! It also started thundering - Sharon decided she wanted to put Z on the trailer just to be safe. The storm was relatively short lived and we headed up for ride meeting. After the meeting, we headed out with a couple of other ladies to check out the first pit crew stop and the field were the first 2 vet checks would be held. We made a rough plan and headed back to ride camp before the mosquito's carried us off!!

Back at camp, I changed out of my wet shoes/sock/pants and climbed into my sleeping bag. I was exhausted and would have to be up relatively early - official start time was 6am. I called Vince real quick and we chatted for a few minutes and then I was out like a light! I woke up a couple of times in the very wee hours of the morning as there was one horse in camp that was trumpeting like a damn rooster. I'm not sure if one of his buddies was out already competing in the 100 or if he just wanted breakfast but by 5am I dragged myself up and got Z's mane braided for Sharon while she got herself together. We got Z tacked up and she headed out to warm him up while I got the truck packed.

Sharon and I had calculated times the night before, where she was trying to get ready for a 100 mile ride in July at Vermont, she was hoping to do reverse splits (I think is what she called it) - for the first loop she was aiming for 7mph, that first loop was 11.4 miles - so she was hoping for 1 hour 37 minutes from leaving camp to arriving at VC #1. She and Z arrived at VC1 at 7:14am by my watch - putting them in 2 minutes FASTER than the FASTEST speed she wanted to come in at!! We got Z untacked, sponged and ready for the vet check - he received all A's again I believe.

When the hold was over, they headed out again, hoping for a slower pace this loop. Sharon had planned on 8mph this loop - at barely an hour out, they were already back!! WOW! We went thru the routine again, got him pulsed down and vetted thru. While Sharon had a snack, I walked Z and tried to get him to eat something. At the end of this hold, we talked and decided at the pace they were going, they'd beat me to the next fly by stop so I should meet them at PC#3 instead. Sharon and Z headed out and I packed up the truck. I made it to PC 3, and starting having panic attacks - what if I calculated wrong? What if something happened? When the time that I'd calculated started getting close, I was starting to worry but thought maybe she'd gotten him to slow down some. I started chatting with a couple others and they asked who I was crewing for - when I told them, they said "Oh, she lost a shoe and had to boot her horse at the last PC stop"! OH NO!!

When they finally rounded the corner I was so happy to see the two of them in such good spirits!! They stopped quickly for electrolytes and a sip of water and then headed on down the trail!

I headed back to ride camp where the next vet check would be and got everything set up for their arrival. When they came in, we got him untacked, pulsed down and in for his vet check. Sharon also made arrangements to have the ride farrier put another shoe on. We relaxed a bit and then it was time for the final loop. They headed out and I headed back to camp to unload all the supplies as the next and final vet check would be back at ride camp again and we would just go back to the trailer.

Going on our calculations again, I estimated when they should be coming in and when time got closer, I headed for the finish line. The wait seemed like forever, the first few riders were already in, I watched the 4th, 5th and 6th place riders come in. A few more minutes went by and the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th place riders came in! The next 2 horses came in after a while and I was starting to get anxious again, what if something had happened?? Finally, Sharon and Z happily mozied out of the woods and across the field. YAY!

Sharon took Z up for his final check in with the vets and then came back to the trailer to relax a while. Zephyr was all cozey in his pen with some hay, his legs poulticed and wrapped and a nice rain sheet on him - so we just kind of vegged for the afternoon. There was food and awards later in the afternoon and then we headed back to the trailer to veg some more. By 6 I was beat! I changed into nice dry clothes, climbed into my sleeping back and read for a while - trying to warm up and at some point I fell asleep.

Sharon awoke before me Sunday morning and had already started breaking down camp by the time I dragged my sorry butt out of bed! We got camp all taken care of, and got Z loaded while we took the fencing down. With everything all packed up it was time to head for home. The trip home was uneventful and seemed to go by a lot faster then the ride down!!

All in all it was a very very good weekend. BUSY and exhausting, but a good weekend!!