Tevis Cup Ride - Still The Granddaddy of Endurance Rides

Photo by Cathy Childs

By Cheryl Childs:

This July will mark the 61st running of the Western States Trail Ride, better know as the Tevis Cup Ride. It is considered the oldest modern day
endurance ride.
 The ride was first organized by Wendell Robie of Auburn, California, who was a  businessman  and devoted rider who rode the Sierra high country, in 1955. Robie and a few friends wanted to prove to people that modern-day horses could cover the rugged trail from Lake Tahoe ( located in the Sierra Mountain range) down to the mining town of Auburn, in the foothills. The ride continued to be held every year thereafter.
 The ride is steeped in history dating back to the 1800’s and the California Gold Rush. The ride was named for Lloyd Tevis by his grandson, Will Tevis, a prominent San Francisco business man and early benefactor of the ride. The
first rider to complete the 100 mile ride whose mount is “ fit to continue” is awarded the Tevis Cup, along with a belt buckle.
  The  Haggin  cup which, is awarded  each year to the  horse among the top ten finishers that is considered to be in the best condition, is named after James Haggin. Haggin and Tevis met in the California gold fields in the early 1850’s. Haggin raised Thoroughbred horses on his ranch is Sacramento.
In 1964 Louis Haggin donated the James Ali Haggin Cup in honor of his
grandfather.
 For the most part the route is  much as it was in 1955 when Robie and his friend made the 100 mile ride in 24 hours, but the years of population growth in the Sierras have affected the trail. There have been certain modifications that had to made in the route.
 The ride originally started at the Tahoe City Community Center, which was literally on the shoreline of  breathtaking Lake Tahoe. Then, in the 1970s the start was moved to Squaw Valley ( ski area)
where it remained for 20 years. In 1990 the start was moved to  Robie Park. To
retain the 100 mile length of the ride a leg of the race had to be changed. There have been some changes throughout the  years due to snow pack or other
weather conditions.
 The historic  Western States Trail is rugged and it’s often said the ride had 19,000 feet of “up” and 22,000 feet of “down” which for the most part is true. Horses and riders scramble up the famous Cougar Rock at the beginning of the ride. About 60% of the ride is single track trail and the rest is graded fire roads. Horses and riders encounter rocky terrain and canyons and cross the river. The heat is a  factor as well for the horses and riders, often times reaching over 100 degrees on sections of the ride. The ride also goes through the small historical town of Foresthill, which is also one of the numerous vet checks throughout the ride. Near the end of the ride they cross the famous “ no hands bridge” over the American River near
Auburn.
 The ride ends at the Fairgrounds in  Auburn. The riders come into the
Fairgrounds in the dark. At first you just hear the hoofbeats in the darkness then the riders appear under the lights of the arena, where they cross the finish line. Sometimes it’s a horse race between two or three horses right to the finish line. It’s a rather emotional
event for the riders, crews and the crowd cheering them on. Both horse and rider are smiling.


Editor’s Note: I had  the pleasure of covering the Tevis Cup in the mid-eighties, for an article, and I can still hear the hoofbeats and see the shadows of the horses and riders scrambling up Cougar