_I suspected things would pick up in 2012 and boy was I right! I don't think a day has gone by where we haven't been working on some element of the ride, making phone calls, or sending emails! It's good though -- and we're making lots of progress!

I want to send a huge thank you to Mark Terrell of Wild Horses of Nevada Photography. Mark has generously donated a 20 x 30 canvas print for us to raffle off. The beautiful artwork retails at trade shows for $400 so it is truly a prized piece to own. Here is the photo:

It's stunning right? So the plan is: people can make a blanket donation during the ride OR they can purchase raffle tickets for the print. Raffle tickets will be 1 for $5, 6 for $25, 12 for $50, or 24 for $100. We'll draw a winner when the ride is complete. I think offering the print is a great way to generate revenue for the ride and the Wild Horse Preservation League, so again, thank you to Mark!

And another big thank you to Mary Cioffi from Minden. Mary made the first monetary donation to the Nevada Discovery Ride, and her generosity will help us purchase some much needed supplies to get on the trail! Thank you so much Mary!

In other news, we are still working on the first half of the ride route. We've confirmed assistance with park rangers at Cave Lake and the Ward Charcoal Ovens. (Day 2 and 3 respectively). We're very lucky to have the sponsorship of the Nevada Division of Parks, especially since the ADT in Nevada goes through six state parks!

Lots of other planning and funding things in the works, so we'll see what happens in the next few weeks. We're finally expecting a little snow in Reno later this week, so maybe Sage and I will get some real winter riding in!

_After a completely unproductive holiday, 2012 is here and this is the year! 2 years of planning and dreaming, and now the ride is 8 months away! Well we are hitting the ground running -- spending hours pouring over maps and plotting on google earth to make our final route. We've had a preliminary route for the entire ride, now we're just going mile by mile and adjusting. Average day so far is 18 - 21 miles, and to say the terrain is varied is an understatement! Right now I have the whole ride taking 28 days, so a few days shorter than I'd originally thought. Once we get the whole route finalized, I will post the details on the website so everyone can see.

I'm afraid we haven't yet secured any funding to help pay the road crew for their time. That means we'll have to cut back on the frequency of their visits. The plan now is that the food and water drops will be made ahead of me, and I will rendezvous with the road crew every 6th rest day. That's a little scary because it means we just have to hope that the food and water will still be there at the end of each day! The good news is, most of the endpoints are fairly remote (yet accessible) so we should be able to hide supplies.

We will need some volunteers to help make those food and water drops happen! The drops in far eastern Nevada are taken care of, but we'll need help from Carvers to Reno. Volunteering would entail driving out to a very specific location (you'll need GPS) and setting out one small bin of cubes and a water barrel. Some of the drop off locations are easy (Fort Churchill, Gabbs, etc.), others are a little more remote. Please let us know if you can help by dropping off food and water for a day or two... It is very much needed!

Other than that, we still need some supplies. A small two-horse trailer is a must, as is a months worth of weed-free cubes! If you can help with any of those things, please let me know. Lots of smaller things still to buy, but that's what tax refunds are for :)

Since we've yet to see any snow here this winter, Sage and I are trying to take advantage by getting in some longer rides. This week we spotted a large herd of antelope! The snow is bound the fall eventually, and we'll keep riding... just really bundled up!

Hello all! Things seem to be slowing down as the weather gets colder and the holidays loom. Sage and Geo are sufficiently fuzzy in anticipation of winter, and we've already seen a few snowy days at the homestead.

It's hard to believe that 2012 is right around the corner, and along with it the Nevada Discovery Ride! There's still so much planning to do, supplies to acquire, trails to scout, and help to enlist! I suspect next year will be extremely busy right up to the ride.

Since my last update, we are fortunate enough to have Ruff Wear as a sponsor. They will outfit Bella in boots and a pack for our journey, so her paws will be safe and she can help (slightly) lighten the load for Sage -- maybe just carry her own daily rations of food. Now Sage and Bella's paws/hooves are taken care of... what am I going to wear on my feet?! I actually have already started researching different human boot options, that are both good for riding and for hiking.

I've also got a few interviews in the works, and of course, I will post those links as they are available. I'll be sending out a ridiculous amount of press releases after the new year.

Keep spreading the word about the ride -- share our facebook page -- and tell your riding friends. The wild ones need all our help.

Thanks to everyone for sending these in! There are many more photos on our Facebook page!

Today was the Nevada Day Parade! Sage and I rode with the Alliance of Wild Horse Advocates, and carried the Nevada state flag. It was a loooong day and started early. I was at the barn at 6:30 am to feed Sage, and then we got picked up at 7 am to head to Carson City. While we were saddling up the hot air balloons passed very low over us. I was so scared that Sage was going to spook at the sight of them. But he just stared at them curiously and then went back to the hay bag. We rode from the end of the route to the beginning for staging. That was an adventure full of narrow and crowded streets, cars that drove too fast next to us, floats, costumed people, and loud music! Again, I was nervous, but Sage just quietly navigated the chaos.

We got to our staging area and had to wait about two hours to get in the parade because we were entry 153 out of 200! Sage busied himself by nibbling on the hay bales on our float, and we just moseyed around and waited with everyone else. All the entrants went by us, with cars and trucks, floats and marchers, but Sage just took it all in stride. At one point someone pointed out that it looked like he fell asleep!

Finally the moment arrived to step out into the parade. In front were our banner carriers, and then us in the honor guard. Sage and I carried the Nevada flag in the middle, and we were flanked by the American flag, and a Civil War flag (carried by a Buffalo Soldier reenactor!) We were followed by about 16 other riders and horses - all mustangs. When we stepped out onto the main street, I saw miles of road ahead of us lined by thousands of people! I was so scared! I just forced myself to smile and look confident. We walked down Carson Street to cheering and clapping people, and Sage stayed calm and quiet the whole time -- as if this was his millionth parade and not his first!

It was only a mile and a half parade route, but it seemed like it took forever! We passed several announcer stages, and The Nevada Discovery Ride got mentioned by name at every stop!

I am so proud of Sage! I was a nervous wreck imagining the worst, but Sage just took all the chaos in stride. He truly is a testament to mustangs and how capable they are. If I had any worries about how he'd be on the Nevada Discovery Ride, they are definitely gone now. I can't think of anything more stressful on a horse, that tests their training like this parade. Very nervewracking for me, but very fun. I'm so honored we were asked to participate and carry the Nevada flag. I hope we were a good representative of the Silver State!

I guess I've had a burst of inspiration the last two days, because I have been working around the clock! We're on Facebook now, so that we can do small updates consistently for people who aren't coming here to the website on a regular basis. Plus, it's just a great way to get the ride out there to more people.

I've also been busy emailing dozens of mustang trainers and adoption centers around the country, asking their permission to add their link and information to the "Adopt A Mustang" page. I've got quite a list growing now, broken up by state. Ideally, I'd like the have the most complete listing of mustang adoption resources available online! Something that can continue to exist, even after the ride is finished.

And this morning, I've spent the last couple hours researching outdoor, travel, adventure, and horse magazines! So far I've got a list of 35 different publications that I want to send press releases to about the ride. Hopefully, a few will pick up on the story and we'll have an even bigger audience to get thinking about mustangs.

Lately I've been mulling over the wild horse adoption issue, and I really think the East Coast is an untapped market. When I was 18, I was riding at a barn in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. I remember a boarder there had a mustang. I don't remember now where she got him or even if he was born in the wild. I just remember everyone was in awe! We had never even seen a mustang, and here was one that was not only trained, but rideable! At the time, the idea of owning a wild horse was something I couldn't even conceive. I didn't know about the BLM's adoption program. I'd never seen anyone else who owned one. Mustangs seemed like something relegated only to the mythical land of the West!

My point is, I don't know that much has changed since then on the East Coast. Here in Nevada, mustangs are everywhere. I know tons of people who own them. They're for sale on Craigslist, the prison auction is four times a year, they're in parades, they're on the news... they're everywhere! It's not rare or unusual for someone to have a mustang here - the market is saturated with them. But I think mustangs are still a novelty on the East Coast. So maybe that's where the adoption focus should turn. Maybe there's someone in Vermont or South Carolina who would adopt a mustang, but has never had the opportunity! We need to get more mustangs out there where people can see them and what they do. Host some mustang shows and adoption events in places where people will come because they've never seen them before! And short of that, educating people about adoption resources near them. A mustang ranch in Maine?! Crazy, but true! Tennessee too! People need to know about those places, and the BLM's internet adoption program.

I don't know how to spur all that into action. I hope that our ride can do something, especially if our story can get picked up by one of those national magazines. Maybe Sage and I need to head east after our big ride. Then I can be that girl at the barn with the mustang...

~Samantha

You'll notice I added a little slide show to the main page with some of the pictures from last week's photo shoot. I think they turned out really great! Sage is a pro with the flag now, and I am starting to feel very confident about the parade. Although I still don't know what I'm going to wear... Eeep! Better get to the store!

Speaking of things you wear, I'm also excited to announce that Renegade Hoof Boots is now a sponsor of Nevada Discovery Ride! Renegade has a tremendous reputation among the endurance riding community, and they were my first choice in boots for this ride. Even though mustangs are known for their great hooves, this terrain on the ADT is far too varying and challenging to go barefoot. I certainly don't want to shoe just for this ride, so boots are a necessity. We'll be honored to wear Renegades while we cross Nevada!

~Samantha