The epic Man Against Horse race takes off next month in Dewey.
Look for race favorites to return for the anniversary event, including four-time winner Kim Abbott with her Arabian horse “Goat,” and runners for whom this race has become a favorite.
The Man Against Horse Race was founded in 1983 when Prescott runner and City Councilmember Gheral Brownlow made a bar bet on Whiskey Row with cowboy and police officer Steve Rafters that he could outrun Rafters’ horse in a race. The original race was from Williams to Perkinsville, and it was a two-day contest, said Race Director Ron Barrett. The race was later moved to its current location, a loop over Mingus Mountain and back to the finish at the Fain Ranch base camp just off Highway 89A.
The rigorous course, designed for experienced runners, horses and their riders, begins at an elevation of 5,200 feet in Dewey at the base of Mingus Mountain, and climbs to the top at 7,700 feet before dropping back down to the finish line. Weather can be brutally hot or frigidly cold. Rain, sleet, hail, snow, wind or a mixture of all five are possible. Depending on the summer monsoons, the trail can be hazardous for both runners and horses.
First horse and rider team or runner to cross the finish line wins the race, but in order to have the overall victory, the runner time must also beat the horse’s time with mandatory vet check times subtracted. While it might seem the horses can always outrun the humans, the runners have bested the riders quite a few times. An exceptional Hopi runner, the late Dennis Poolheco, dominated the race for several years in a row, and runner Nick Coury, who later broke Poolheco’s course record, has also come in faster than the horses more than once.
For those not quite ready for a punishing 50-mile ride or run, Man Against Horse includes a 25-mile race, a half marathon in which runners compete but riders enjoy a day out on their horses, and a popular free Kid’s Race of ¼ mile. A post-race awards banquet also is open to the public for a $15 fee.
The race terrain is difficult and some spills and near misses have occurred. Every effort is made to keep runners, riders and horses safe. Yavapai County Jeep Posse volunteers staff 11 official checkpoints along the trail. Two of those include horse vet holds, where horses must rest for an allotted time and be cleared by a veterinarian to continue. As one race official said in the past, “the humans are on their own.” Race rules include cutoff times to make sure everyone is safely off the mountain by race end.
Along with the Jeep Posse, the race has more than 100 dedicated volunteers who manage a number of tasks including timing, communications, preparing the annual race end banquet and more.
Volunteers also clear and help to maintain the trail in accordance with Forest Service guidelines. “We’ve had different trail crews out there this month checking some areas,” said Barrett. “We’ve had some downed trees, but so far, it’s not too bad. We typically hit it hard after Labor Day.”
The day after the race, volunteers divide into crews and make sure trash is picked up and all flags are off the trails.
Fifty-mile racers will receive a commemorative t-shirt this year that harkens back to the t-shirt design of the first race 40 years ago. Fifty-mile male and female winners, and 50-mile finishers who complete the race in the allotted time, all receive belt buckles, as does the first junior rider across the finish line. Awards also are given in the 25-mile and half-marathon races.
In 2022, race directors created the Steel Cup, a perpetual trophy that is given to the horse finishing in the top 10 and deemed in best condition to continue. The cup is in memory of multiple ride winner Susie Kramer’s horse, Steel, with whom she won the 2021 Man Against Horse and the Top Condition award. Kramer lost Steel to a fall in July 2022 during the 100-mile Tevis Cup ride in the Sierra Nevadas ride. The 25-mile race also awards a Best Condition trophy, which is determined by race veterinarians.
Barrett said race organizers greatly appreciate the Fain Family for use of the base camp for so many years and the Henry Dahlberg Foundation for use of the vital checkpoint area at Mingus Springs Ranch atop the mountain.
The race will again donate to Bethany’s Gait Ranch, a nonprofit dedicated to rescuing horses and serving veterans and first responders who struggle with PTSD through horsemanship, and to the Yavapai County Food Bank, the largest food bank in the county. FBN
By Heidi Dahms Foster, FBN
Find more information about the Man Against Horse Race, visit https://managainsthorse.net/.
Courtesy Photo: Kim Abbott is a four-time winner and multiple placer in the race.
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