The Quicksilver Fall Classic

Saturday, September 28, 2024. The 52nd annual running of the ride!

about the ride

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The entire ride is held in Harvey Bear Ranch County Park located in the beautiful oak studded rolling hills above Gilroy and San Martin. The Quicksilver Fall Classic is a moderate ride and is a good training for new horses and riders. The terrain consists of good footing with some climbs, dirt roads and some single track. There are beautiful views down to the Santa Clara Valley and down on to Coyote Lake Reservoir. You will likely get a glimpse of our local wildlife, including deer, turkeys, raptors of all types, and even wild pigs!

The trail consists of a single 25 mile loop. The 25 does this loop once, and the 50 does the same loop twice in the same direction. The Fun Ride starts on the main trail, but cuts off in two places to make the shorter distance. There is one out vet check for the 25 and the 50 at about 12 miles into the loop.

We are a passionate group of horse people who LOVE spending hours and hours with our equine partners – this very well could be the sport for you, so come join us at our next event – we welcome any questions you may have!

Ride Description and Rules

Ride Description: The entire ride will be held in Harvey Bear Ranch County Park located in the beautiful oak studded rolling hills above Gilroy and San Martin. The Quicksilver Fall Classic is a moderate ride and would be good training for a new horse and rider. The terrain consists of some good and some rocky footing with some climbs, dirt roads and some single track. There are beautiful views down to the Santa Clara Valley and down on to Coyote Lake Reservoir. You might even get a glimpse of one of our resident bald eagles over the lake! Hoof Protection is highly recommended on all four hooves as there are several stony sections.

Weather: The fall weather can be variable – either hot or mild, so check the weather forecast before you come! We had morning rain in 2023!

Food & Beverages: We plan to have a “Pot Luck” riders meeting on Friday at 6:00 pm. QSER Club will provide plates, utensils, please bring a dish to share! We will have an Awards Banquet on Saturday, just after the last rider comes in. For the Ride, we plan to have bottled water and gatorade in ice chests at the out vet check and at the base camp in-timer tent.

Veterinarian: Our head veterinarian will be Dr. Jeannette Mero, DVM.

Camp: Ride camp will be in a field just beyond the San Martin Avenue main entry to the park, and will be very well marked. It is a large grassy area and is fairly easy to navigate. We will have horse water available, but you will need to bring your own people water. Porta-johns will be brought in for this event. Camp will be open on Friday, September 27th at 9:00 am and close on Sunday, Sept. 29th at 11:00 AM. Depending on how many entries we get, parking may be a little tight. Only small portable corrals will be allowed. We will need to leave camp the way we found it. All hay and manure must be placed into a large dumpster that we will provide. Thanks!

Awards: The awards for the 25 and 50 mile ride will be first place, best condition, junior awards and completion awards. The Fun Ride will have completion awards.

Check In and Vetting: Arriving riders will be handed a rider packet as they drive in. Dialogue for payment adjustments, change in entry information, etc should be handled with the ride secretary on-site. We will maintain a “White Board” with updates on the event schedule and ride announcements.

LIMITED DISTANCE COMPETITORS: For those of you NEW to endurance, and entering your first limited distance (25 miles) ride with us, please know that you do not get your completion time until your horse pulses down to 60 beats per minute after you cross the finish line. We encourage you to ride your horse slowly to the finish, getting off and walking if you are able, so that you have the best chance of having this required pulse when you cross the finish line.

DIRECTIONS: There are three entrances into Harvey Bear County Park. Be sure to come to Bear Ranch on 2049 East San Martin Avenue in San Martin. From Highway 101, take the San Martin Avenue exit and head east for about 2 miles. The park entrance is on your left. Go past the park entrance to the next driveway on the left. There will be ribbons and signs leading you into base camp.

JUNIOR RIDERS: A Junior Rider sixteen (16) years or older may enter the 25 or 50 mile ride without a sponsor (must be 16 years old as of December 1st, in the year of competition). A Junior rider under sixteen (16) years of age on December 1st, in the year of competition, may enter the 25 or 50 mile ride with a sponsor who is entered in the ride and agrees to remain with the Junior Rider throughout the ride. A sponsor is an adult over twenty one (21) years of age. Change in a sponsor must be reported to and approved by Ride Management at a vet checkpoint. The Junior Rider must be within one minute of the sponsor at all times. If you are a Junior Rider and are 14 calendar years or older and have ridden 500 AERC sanctioned miles, you may petition to AERC to ride without a sponsor. A sponsored or unsponsored Junior Rider must wear a safety helmet approved by AHSA, PCA, ANSI or Snell Z 90.4.

REFUND RULES: 1) A full refund will be made if Ride Management is notified by 9:00 PM Weds September 25th. Cancellations after this date will be subject to a $30 fee being withheld from the refund amount.; 2) “No shows” will forfeit the entire entry fee; 3) $15 will be withheld if your horse does not pass the pre-ride vet check.

All entry fees include the California State Drug Testing Fee, AERC Sanctioning Fee, a participation award, routine veterinary examinations before and during the ride. Should a horse require special emergency treatment, payment is the responsibility of the rider and will be handled individually by the attending veterinarian.

RIDE RULES:

• Equines must be at least 60 months old for the 50-mile ride and 48 months old for the 25-mile ride.

• Mares in foal will not be permitted.

• Abuse of the equine or the use of stimulants and/or painkillers is prohibited. All horses are subject to saliva, urine or blood tests. Any horse tested for drugs and found to be POSITIVE will be disqualified. No substances of any type may be injected by needle into the horse during this event - starting at the time your horse is vetted in on Friday afternoon.

• The same horse and rider must pass all vet checks and stay on the marked trail in order to qualify for awards. The responsibility for reporting in and out of vet checks rests with the rider.

• All equines must be presented for pre-ride veterinary inspection beginning at 3:00 pm on Friday. Early morning vet-in will be available – advance notice to the Ride Manager required. Opinions of the veterinarians are final regarding the health of the horse.

• The 50-mile ride must be completed in twelve (12) hours and the 25-mile ride must be completed in six (6) hours.

• Equines must be at the starting line and prepared to begin the ride at the appointed times. Violation of any of these rules will subject the horse and rider to immediate disqualification.

• The 50 and 25 mile rides are sanctioned by AERC and will comply with AERC rules and guidelines (www.aerc.org). The post ride criteria for the 50 mile ride will be explained to you as part of the Friday ride meeting.

• All dogs must be on a leash. The Parks are very strict on this rule.

• Horse riders/owners are responsible for making payments to the veterinarians for any treatments administered.

• This ride usually fills up each year - on-site entries will probably not be possible. We are required to accurately control the number of participants at this event (it governs how many veterinarians we have on-hand)

The 2023 Ride- Information and Results

As luck would have it, we had the first measurable rain of the year on Friday night and into the ride on Saturday morning. It made the weather nice and cool for the horses and riders, but did cause some issues with slippery spots in the trail in a few places in the morning. Some riders had issues with mud balling up in their horses feet. Everyone took it easy in the morning, and the afternoon turned the trail into a perfect, soft, dust free ride. We had sixteen riders start and complete the fun ride. The 25 mile ride had forty six starters and thirty three finishers for a completion rate of 72%. The 50 mile ride had twenty two starters and sixteen finishers for a 73% completion rate. The 25 mile ride was won by Rick Watson, riding QMR Wildfire, with a ride time of 3:39. Best condition went to “Favor the Bold” ridden by Tasha Buker. The 50 mile ride was won by Dennis Tracy, riding Caramija, with a ride time of 7:00. Best Condition was won by “Om El Eshan” ridden by Nina Bomar. Quicksilver club members did well!

Diane Marcel riding Disney 4th place on the 50

Nick Warhol riding Sorsha 6th place on the 50

Lisa Schneider riding Paco 7th place on the 50

Mary Vrendenburg riding Jeconiah 13th place on the 50

Elaine Elbizri riding Bella 7th place on the 25

Lori Oleson riding Legacy Xp 25th place on the 25

Magda Bartilsson riding MB Troy 29th place on the 25

Valorie Reeves riding Great Balls Afire 32nd place on the 25

Click on the buttons below to see the official results for each ride.