President's
Message, June, 2000
Maryben reflects on Quicksilver's future.......
Our May meeting was
held at Roundtable Pizza in Almaden and was well
attended. Everyone
had a good time and the club bought the pizza.
However, maybe it is
time to decide what kind of a club we want to have in
the future and where
we want to go. We don't really seem to have much
business to transact
on a month to month basis and maybe that is all right.
If anyone has any
ideas they want to share, let me know.
The June meeting will
be at Bob and Julie Suhr's and will be a potluck.
Julie will let you
know more about that. We are thinking of having the July
meeting at Calero,
doing a barbecue and bringing horses, if you want. We
will be voting on
the bylaws then so it would be nice if as many people as
possible showed up.
More later.
Castlerock and Camp
Far West are coming up and hope to see a lot of
Quicksilver members
there. I am looking forward to Fireworks and hope to
ride Bandit there...We
will see..
Duh,
Maryben
QUICKSILVER
SECRETARY DIANE ENDERLE
returned from the
May meeting with some nice things to report.
In the May 1999 Quicksilver
Quips we printed a report by Jess Ambriz about
his trip with Carla
and a Kiwanis group to Honduras working for Habitat for
Humanity following
Hurricane Mitch. ,.. It was a moving story and aside from
the physical labor
performed, there was obviously friendships developed with
the Hondurans that
transcended country borders, political philosophies and
social and economic
background. Carla and Jess are now going to return to
Honduras and are eager
to have others join them. If you are interested call
Jess at 408-779-0256
to find out what you can do to help. . He also would
be happy to accept
any donations of shovels, hoes, hammers, any tools that
you can spare would
help this group. You can bring them to the June meeting
for collection if
that is convenient.
Diane further reports
that a Quicksilver couple we can be proud of are
Caralee and Alan White.
For years they have traveled to the deep Arizona
canyon where that
Havasupai Indians live in the kind of poverty of which few
of us are familiar.
Alan uses his veterinarian skills to help them em with
their livestock which
includes vaccinations and general health checks. He
has also always tried
to supply them with much needed tack articles. If any
of you have something
that hangs in your barn that you do not need anymore,
bring them to the
June meeting or take hem to Trilby's. Halters, blankets,
bridles, leather
of any sort all can be used to make the Indians lives a
little bit easier.
They have almost nothing. Trilby has guaranteed to get
any donations to the
Whites before their departure later this year. Any
questions, call Alan
or Caralee at 775-782-8731.
JUNE QUICKSILVER MEETING
The Wednesday, June 14, Quicksilver Meeting will be at Bob
and Julie Suhr's home
in Scotts Valley. Hopefully the Santa Cruz Quicksilver
contingent will find
the location convenient and come to the pot luck dinner
along with those “over
the hill.” (geographically speaking).
Bob roasts a mean hot dog and if those with initials from A to M will
bring a salad, casserole
or bread and those from N to Z bring desert there
should be enough for
all. Julie does not know how to make a decent pot of
coffee so if anyone
wants some, they should bring a coffee maker. Drinks
will be provided unless
you have to have something really exotic in which
case bring your own.
If you like to sit, bring a folding chair. And a jacket
is probably a good
idea.
Nancy Twight will present a live demonstration of Building
Confidence in the
Trail Horse. Nancy's talents in this department are well
known. She is not
an adherent of any of the currently popular techniques
but her background
is in traditional training methods she learned as a child
which were based on
gentling rather than
breaking a horse.
She has been training horses since she was 8 years old
To get to Bob's house from where you are, exit Highway 17 at
the
Scotts Valley/Glenwood
Drive/Granite Creek exit. Follow the signs to Glenwood
Drive. (Glenwood Drive
goes off at an angle to the right of the Shell Station
which is sort of across
from the Denny's and Chevron Station) Go up Glenwood
exactly 2 1/2 miles
where you will come upon a kiosk of mailboxes. This is
the entrance to Weston
Road. Turn left on to Weston Road. Look at your
odometer. Come
in exactly 2 1/4 miles on Weston until you see a sign carved
on a redwood log that
says “MARINERA”. Go to the top of the hill. Dinner at
the barn will be followed
by Nancy's demonstration. Then to the house for a
lively meeting. conducted
by Maryben.
It is hoped that many of our new members will attend. this informal
outdoor Quicksilver
get together The bewitching hour is 6:30 pm for those
that are hungry and
7 pm for Nancy's lessons of how to get your horse to
love you and happily
do absolutely anything you want him to do without being
spoiled. (the horse,
not you).
Guests are welcome. js
Congratulations to
Mark Falcone upon his completion of the Boston
marathon
for which we all give
him a hearty pat on the back. Traci, in the meantime,
had a nasty fall when
her horse went over a bank. There were a few minutes
when she just wasn't
“quite there” and a mild concussion seems to have been
short lived.
Yes, she had her helmet on. Otherwise she would probably still
not be “quite there”.
Bill
Evans has been to Nebraska and back, selling the last of his
family's
property in the Hyannis
area. Bill claims he is through with horseshoeing.
There are those
long time admirers of his skills who are having a hard time
dealing with Bill's
decision and hope he may change his mind after the trip
to Nebraska and a
planned sojourn in Hawaii visiting old time friends.
New Quicksilver member
Robert Oram has recently bought 17 1/2
acres in
Freedom (that's right
next to Watsonville) and is busy getting everything in
shape by June 15 when
he will be offering the following:
1. He needs a roommate
to share the home (separate baths), for $600 per
month.
2. He wants to board
up to 15 horses. His large pasture will give your horse
room to run and play
for just $160 a month. Hay provided also. Robert will
be on the premises
most of the time so there will be lots of supervision. For
details, call Robert
at 831-464-7735
Barbara McCrary's 10
year old granddaughter, Katie Webb,
is going to do the
Big Creek Ride and
Tie with her Dad, Steve. Steve says he will run along
side Katie and her
horse to be on the safe side, but maybe Katie sets a
record for the
youngest Ride & Tie contestant. Steve completed the American
River 50 Run so shouldn't
have any problem keeping up
The Arabian Horse World
magazine has donated $6000 worth of free advertising
to the American Endurance
Ride Conference. Their recent issues have had
quite a few endurance
articles and the May issue devotes eight pages to the
subject.
For those who like
to ride in the Santa Cruz area, Fall Creek Park (just 1/2
mile off Highway 9
in the town of Felton) can provide a good three hour
workout. There are
some good climbs and the footing except in a few rutted
place is really excellent.
At the higher elevations, some of the Douglas fir
trees and redwoods
are truly magnificent. At the moment there is some downed
brush and trees where
you have to get off your horse to get under them, but I
am sure these will
be cleared soon. Trailer parking is quite limited so it
is good to get there
early. No fees, and creek water can be found in
several places on
the trail. This is not a high density park and it is very
possible to ride for
hours without seeing another person
Ride & Tie as Produced by Skip Lightfoot and Reported by Maryben.
The umpteenth
annual Lightfoot/Quicksilver [Formerly Browns] Ride and Tie
was held on May 6,
2000. 20 hardy teams started with two of them doing the
short course and three
relay teams. There were a few casualties but
eventually most of
the teams finished the course. The race was won by Tom
Johnson/Bob Spoor
and Bob's horse, Risky. Second went to Chris Turney/Sid
Sullivan riding Chris'
horse Buddy. Third by just a few seconds was the team
of Skip Lightfoot/Jeff
Townsend riding Skip's trusty steed, Raj. Ken Cook's
horse, Rocky came
in a speedy sixth place overall with the first woman/woman
pro am team, consisting
of Lori Reibling and Molly Gleason. Molly rode Rocky
the week before at
the SASO 50 miler. This was her first 50 miler and her
first ride and tie.
The relay team of Cathy Kauer/Diane Enderle and Russ
Tiernan had a bit
of bad luck when Cathy's mare decided Ride and Tie sucked
and refused to go
on. The emergency vet on call was called and she was
checked out and found
to be just fine.
Heather Lightfoot
and her partner, Shannon Findley, would have gotten the
most stylish award
as they had both had their nails done for the prom that
night and were doing
the race in long, long nails. Among some of the other
finishers were Quicksilver
members Dave Fanara/Mary Inman.
There were a
bunch of volunteers from Lightfoot Stables, the able vetting of
Claude Pacheco and
Judy Haulman to do the timing at the finish, so Skip and
Curt were free to
do the race. Heather, Hillorie, Lori, Me, Ken, Jim Greene,
Dionne and many others
were there to help.
The banquet was
held back at Lightfoot Stables with the usual great food and
tons of awards for
everyone. We all had a really great time.
WELCOME TO OUR NEWEST MEMBER
IN 1997 I saw a statement
on the internet endurance forum called Ridecamp.
It was as follows:
Much of the world views horses as a replaceable commodity. I view
them as an irreplaceable
treasure.
It was attributed to
a man by the name of Mike Sofen. I really liked the
philosophy and
I e-mailed Mike and asked him if I had permission to quote
him. He said
sure. I didn't know when I would use it, but I have kept it on
tab in a file for
three years awaiting the proper time. Well, the proper
time has arrived because
Mike, whom I have never met or talked to, has moved
to the Santa Cruz
What's more, he is the newest member of the Quicksilver
Club. So to
Mike, I say, “looking forward to meeting you and welcome to our
club. We like
what you have to say.”
js
Coming
Soon to Your Horse
by Connie Berto. 1 May 2000
CERTIFIED WEED FREE
FEED:
On the 24th of April, 2000, I attended another U.S. Forest Service
meeting in Sacramento
about the planned Certified Weed Free Feed
program(CWFF) for
California. Eleven attended, including seven equestrians.
The other four were
from the Forest Service and the State Dept. of Food and
Agriculture.
There is little doubt that noxious weeds have severely invaded
California and, in
millions of acres, are out of control. Think about yellow
star thistle, leafy
spurge, and spotted knapweed, to name the three worst
offenders. There
are 134 weeds listed on California's "Bad Weed" list.
Yellow star thistle
(YST), for instance, is not only poisonous to horses but
diminishes (even ruins)
the use of public and private land for stock forage
and recreation. There
is a plan for many public land agencies to require
certification in future
whenever forage is brought into their jurisdiction --
not just federal land,
but state and county public recreational lands as
well. This California
regulation could come into effect as early as the year
2003, but most likely
2004.
Just how to control the spread of weeds is the subject of a great debate.
Scientific studies
demonstrating the proportion of the problem caused by
different vectors
have not been done. These vectors include on- and off
road vehicles, heavy
equipment, infested (low-quality) hay distributed to
livestock, infested
hay used for mulching the sides of roads, stream systems,
hikers, pack and saddle
stock, wildlife, and even the wind. There is
abundant anecdotal
evidence that noxious weeds can be moved by any agent that
transports reproductive
plant parts or soil containing viable weed seeds. It
is recognized that
Caltrans is the second largest purchaser of hay in the
state and probably
the single worst offender in spreading YST along side
highways and roads
by its mulching. (Caltrans will no longer use "dry land"
straw and instead
is switching to "wet land" straw, such as rice straw, for
mulching
roadsides.)
Eleven mid- and western states have adopted some form of CWFF for USFS,
BLM, and National
Park Service lands. They are: Washington, Oregon, Idaho,
Nevada, Montana, Wyoming,
Colorado, New Mexico, North and South Dakota,
Nebraska, Kansas,
Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. It's interesting that, although
there is also a federal
noxious weed list, no eastern nor central states have
a CWFF program in
place -- yet.
Toby and Katie Horst, representing Back Country Horsemen of California,
have been working
with the feds on this program for over a year, and they
have done an excellent
job in maintaining the dialogue and voicing concerns
from the equestrian
side. I came into the discussion only last February.
This is what has evolved.
Although horses are
NOT regarded as primary spreaders of noxious weeds (i.e.,
in manure), they are
still being drawn into the web of regulations because
Horses Eat Hay (also
called "forage"). CWFF will not remove established
stands of weeds such
as yellow star thistle, but should slow the spread of
weeds into "clean"
areas. The back country in the High Sierra is of
particular concern.
There simply isn't enough money in agency budgets at
present to aggressively
attack and destroy YST.
Although all types of forage (hay or straw) brought onto public lands
will need to be certified
weed free, this does not include grain, pellets, or
hay cubes. Grain
is already inspected before it is imported into California
or before it is bagged.
The process of manufacturing pellets and cubes
renders weed seeds
non-viable.
So, how about those of us who do not or will not feed pellets and cubes,
or who will not switch
feeds at the last minute in order to ride in federal
lands? Aha,
this is where it gets interesting. The proposal is for the
agricultural commissioner
in each of the 58 counties in California to
inspect hayfields
that are voluntarily entered into the certification program
by the growers.
This hay will be baled by specially colored twine or have a
special tag attached.
Consumers will be expected to show "proof" of
certification if a
ranger comes by and asks for it.
Serious concerns remain. Just how many hay growers will voluntarily
enter this program?
Will certification eventually be mandatory for hay
growers? How much
will it cost them to keep records, buy the twine, and
assume the burden
of eradication programs for their fields? And, for us
consumers, WHERE
will we be able to buy this certified feed? How far must
we drive to find it?
HOW MUCH MORE will it cost us to feed our horses? How
and when will this
requirement for horsemen be mitigated if prices go too
high or the availability
of CWFF is inadequate?
Just how effective has a CWFF program been in the other eleven states?
How much has CWFF
driven up the cost of hay for them? Some other states
require rigs and equipment
to be washed and cleaned before entering USFS
lands.
Is this ahead for us in California too?
We are all concerned about the spread of the worst weeds -- who could be
against weed control!
-- but a lot of horsemen and hay growers still don't
accept the inevitability
of hay field inspection. Since the requirements for
using CWFF will only
apply when riding on participating agency lands, how can
we make this market
big enough to be attractive?
Lots of "unknowns" here, lots of hard feelings that equestrians are
being unfairly pressured,
and a whole lot of skepticism over the program. In
other states consistency
of supply is a problem because CWFF is a niche
market just for use
in federal lands. These "unknowns" are slowing the
process and must be
answered in more detail before these regulations are put
into place.
The next meeting on CWFF in Sacramento is in July, and I'll report back
after the next meeting.
ANIMAL ORDINANCE Santa Clara County
This arrived too late
for the May Quicksilver Quips, but it is interest to
all horse owners.
It is Janice Frazier’s report on the Animal Ordinance
being proposed.
The Board of Supervisor's
meeting which will be sometime after the
Planning Commission
hearing will also be critical.
There is some
concern about this not passing, since it is such a progressive
ordinance that if
there is any opposition to it that it may not be passed.
Please show up and
encourage as many people as you can to do so, particularly
at the San Martin
and Board of Supervisors meeting (which I will send the
info on once I get
it). Unfortunately I will not make the San Martin
meeting but plan on
being at the others. The more people that come and
support it the more
likely to pass, so please pass the word to everyone you
can think of who would
come.
Visit the web site for the complete information:
http://www.sccplanning.org/zoning.htm
but here is the basic bottom line:
Animal Ordinance Revision
Animal Ordinance
A revised draft
of the proposed animal ordinance has been developed and is
now available for
public review. With an emphasis on "best practices," the
significant policy
revisions being developed are as follows:
There will be no specified
limits on numbers of animals applicable to A
(Exclusive Agriculture),
RR (Rural Residential) or AR (Agricultural
Ranchlands)zoning
districts. The numbers of animals allowed HS (Hillside)
districts will be
increased.
In urban residential
districts (R1, R1E and RHS), current regulations provide
for the limited keeping
of certain small animals (e.g. chickens, rabbits).
This will not
change.
Provisions for the
keeping of horses in these districts will be modified and
simplified to allow
one horse per half acre.
Provisions requiring
special setbacks for barns and similar animal
confinement structures
will be replaced by a new provision meant to protect
wells and watercourses,
but would be flexible enough to look at each new
barn on a case-by-case
basis.
In addition to
the policy revisions, County staff and department heads have
been working on organization,
staffing and resource matters to make the more
qualitative regulatory
approach (i.e. good animal-keeping practices as
opposed to numbers)
workable and effective.
Questions? Call Jim Reilly at 299-2521 or Jenny Derry at 299-3273.
Janice Frazier,
Manager Wafer Test and Yield , SSD, Office Bldg. 14-2
225A; Phone tieline
276-4931; external (408) 256-4931 pager (408)
542-6270
RIDE REPORTS
SASO IV AND WASHOE VALLEY
The SASO IV Ride at
the Grant Ranch came off without a hitch on a
particularly gorgeous
spring day. The approximately 47 starters in the 50
miler was narrowed
to 36 by the time the finish line was reached, but the
trails were in perfect
condition and the wildflowers the nicest I have ever
seen. Four Quicksilver
members finished in the Top Ten headed by Lori Oleson
on Flame, who won
the ride last year in 6:53 and was clocked in this year at
6:42, the same
time as the winner, 9 year old Hayley Sullivan. Lori was
followed by new member
Robert Oram and then Linda Cowles, Rick Gomez, Jeff
Luternauer, Pat Verheul,
Gertrud Walker, Julie Suhr, Bob Suhr, Jill
Kilty-Newburn and
Trilby Pederson. There were other Quicksilver members
riding whose luck
did not hold the whole 50 miles.
The twenty-five milers
saw Quicksilver members Elisabet Hiatt, Jennifer
Layman, David
Walker and Dom Freeman all having a good ride.
So Quicksilver was
there in force on horseback, but also helping out. Brain
Reeves spent his day
up by the old line camp where his friendliness sent
everyone up the following
steep hillside feeling good. Maryben was ride
secretary, handling
the paper work with her usual efficiency. Val Weizer and
Judith Ogus spent
the day with stethoscopes in hand P & R’ing the horses as
they came into the
vet checks. Popular head veterinarian, Nancy Elliot,
supported by Craig
Evans, kept the vet checks moving quickly and waiting was
kept to minimum.
Sadly, Mike Mauls horse
was injured at the ride when surprised by a
bicyclist. Mike's
mount spooked and flipped and in so doing, injured one leg
rather severely and
will be laid up for several months. What a blow with the
ride season in full
swing.
In spite of Becky's
pre-ride warning that pigs would come into camp in the
night, several ice
chest were upended and it was learned that pigs can open
power bars which humans
find almost impossible to do. Also, they like yogurt.
The SASO IV is a difficult
ride. It is loaded with hills, but it can be
completed without
pushing too hard. A couple of miles into the ride you
crest the mountains
at the western edge of the park and the
view across the Santa
Clara Valley (some of us that were raised here still
find it difficult
to say Silicon) to the Santa Cruz Mountains in the early
light was very special.
The day was as crystal clear as you can find and the
old fences,
the lake, the weather beaten barns and the cattle on the
hillside transported
you back to earlier times.. js
The WASHOE VALLEY 100
MILER was a qualifying rides for the National
Championship Rides
to be held in New Mexico in August. Quicksilver members
willing to take a
crack at it were Val Weizer and Copper finishing in 5th
place out of the 43
horses that started with Melissa and Robert Ribley, Jill
Newburn and Brian
Reeves racking up nice completions. Brian received the True
Grit award after riding
almost the whole ride by himself. Mike Newburn was
there as a crew
person .
The Washoe Valley
50 Mile Ride saw Dom Freeman riding a Bumgardner horse.
Trilby and Jeff Luternaur
finished nicely too. Becky Hart and Judith Ogus
crewed for their stallion
Copper as he was ridden by a gentleman from the AU.
All the riders were
under the watchful eye of Nancy Elliot who most of us saw
only the week before
at SASO IV According to Val, Nancy was pleased to see
people pull themselves
when sensing a problem. It made her job a lot easier.
Val said it
was a typical Washoe day with some cloud cover and drizzle and
wind developing in
the afternoon. It was a very interesting 100 with 4 World
championship nominated
horses and riders there.
Don't cry for the horses
that God has set free.
A million white horses
forever to be.
Don't cry for the
horses now in God's hand.
As they dance and
they prance in a heavenly band.
They were ours as a
gift, but never to keep.
As they close their
eyes forever to sleep.
Their spirits unbound.
On silver wings they fly.
A million white horses
against the blue sky.
Look up into heaven,
you'll see them above.
The horses we lost,
the horses we loved.
Manes and tails flowing
they gallop through time.
They were never yours
- they were never mine.
Don't cry for the horses.
They'll be back someday.
When our time is gone,
they will show us the way
Do you hear that soft
nicker? Close to your ear?
Don't cry for the
horses. Love the ones that are here.
~Author Unknown~
Published by the Quicksilver
Endurance Riders Inc.
P.O. Box 71, New Almaden,
CA 95042
Julie Suhr, Editor
TEL and FAX 831-335-5933