White Mountain Tango
2 Day Event - Friday & Saturday September 13 & 14, 2024
AERC Sanctioned 50 & 25 Mile Rides (Limited to 30 Rigs)
Entry opens August 5th, 2024. See Entry link below. Sign up by August 13th to receive a T-shirt for 1 day of completion.
(Updated July 31st 2024-Please read!)
Ride Manager: Lancette Koerner, 480-650-3124 Email:Whitemountaintango@gmail.com
Assistant Manager: Ellen Hickey
Control Judge: Mark Anderson, DVM & Max Schmidt, DVM
Thank you for your interest in attending the White Mountain Tango Endurance ride. We look forward to sharing the beautiful White Mountain trails with you. However, there are several entry requirements and limitations so please read the following information thoroughly to determine if this ride is a good fit for you.
This is our 3rd year to offer the White Mountain Tango. Ride management and riders have built a strong working relationship with the forest service to establish the first Endurance ride in the area. We respect the strict requirements of the forest service to mitigate our impact on the land, therefore, we will only accept 30 rigs. Ride sharing is encouraged and appreciated, the fewer rigs to impact the land the better.
Rig/Entry Fee: Every rig must have at least two entries i.g. 1 rider 2 days, 2 riders 1 day each. Your entry fee is $140 each day for either the 50 or 25 mile ride, it includes lunch each day and a farewell breakfast on Sunday. All entrants must pre-register by Tuesday, September 3rd. There is no on site registration. Entry opens Monday, August 5th. Click this link to enter the ride https://form.jotform.com/242106979628063 . Receipt of your entry and payment will be confirmed via email. Entries received after the ride limit has been reached will be put on a waiting list.
Refund/Cancellation Policy: Ride entry cancellations received on or before 5 pm Tuesday September 3rd, will receive a refund less a $25 administration fee. No refunds for cancellations after 5 pm September 3rd, 2024 unless ride management is able to fill your spot.
Camping: Tying your horse to the trailer or using high ties is best but small portable pens are allowed. Electric/wire fences or highlines between trees are NOT permitted. Certified weed free hay or pelletized feed is required no grazing is allowed. US forest service fire restrictions will be followed.
Trail: The majority of the ride is on the White Mountain Trail system, which is built and maintained by Tracks, a nonprofit 501 (c)(3) organization of about 650 volunteers. We are grateful for their dedication and hard work. For more information, to join or make a donation to Tracks go to Trackswhitemountains.org . The trails are multi-use, you may encounter hikers, bikers, equestrians, cattle, vehicles and wildlife. The single track sections of the trail take you through beautiful Ponderosa pine and aspen tree forests and lush meadows. Much of the trail is technical and slow going with some areas of fast forest roads but overall this will not be a fast ride. Plan for a long day on beautiful trails in the mountains. The footing throughout the ride will vary, some sort of hoof protection is strongly recommended. Base camp elevation is 7800 feet. Bring a fit horse. The most difficult loop will have 1933 feet of elevation gain. There are several gates to open and close along the routes, some cowboy and some easy swing/latch. There are also stock ponds. Carrying a collapsible bucket for dipping is highly recommended or hoof boots are likely to be sucked off in the mud. The Kachina Ham Radio club will be at checkpoints along the trail to help with communication should issues arise. We are exceedingly grateful for the volunteer service of these passionate radio operators. Please be sure to thank them for their service as you ride by. The Kachina Amateur Radio Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. For more information or to make a donation go to Kachinaarc.org .
Navigation: Once again, the trail will NOT be marked with ribbons. The routes for the ride are set up in Ride With GPS and the Event link will be sent to all registered riders with the entry email confirmation. All riders are required to use Ride With GPS to navigate the routes. However, if you are accustomed to using a Garmin or other GPS unit you may upload the routes from Ride With GPS into your unit and run them simultaneously. You are still required to use Ride With GPS on your phone and be prepared to share your saved tracks with ride management if requested. Ride with GPS is user friendly and is an amazing tool with a moving map display, voice cues and off course warnings but it is not foolproof. Practice at home and know how to use it. Help is available at Ridewithgps.com via the many well done tutorials and by emailing RWGPS support. Management is also happy to help you but please contact us well before the ride with any questions you have. Do not wait until the last minute. If you are NOT comfortable using Ride With GPS to navigate the routes, this ride is NOT for you. In addition, you must carry a portable charger and the printed maps and cue sheets in case of phone failure. Know how to use the RWGPS “navigate back to start feature” and how to drop a pin in Google maps in case of emergency. If you need help, ask. It is your responsibility to be properly prepared for a mountain ride.
Base Camp Location: This is a primitive campsite among the pine trees in the Apache Sitgreaves National Forest approximately 17 miles northeast of Pinetop-Lakeside, Arizona. Base camp coordinates are 34 8’ 46.3535” N 109 45’ 13.9813” W . The coordinates are for information purposes, DO NOT use for navigation or you will find yourself on an impassable road.
Directions: From Pinetop-Lakeside, take AZ-260 E to the small town of McNary. Turn left (north) on N Cady road. You will travel briefly through the town. The road becomes the Vernon McNary rd #3140. Travel for approximately 8.5 miles to FR 96, turn right (east) then take your first right (south). The road veers to the left and dead ends at the cattle guard. You may park on either side of the road AFTER the bend in the road well before the cattle guard. Look for signs.
Directions: From the junction of Hwy 60 & #3140 in Vernon, head south on Vernon McNary rd #3140 going through the town of Vernon. After about 4 miles the road will turn to dirt as you enter the national forest. Continue for approximately 6 miles to FR 96 turn left (east) then take your first right (south) The road veers to the left and dead ends at the cattle guard. You may park on either side of the road AFTER the bend in the road, well before the cattle guard. Look for signs.
Ride office location: Look for the AZERC flag on the trailer near the cattle guard at the end of the road.
No parking is permitted in the meadow. Ride Management will be in camp by Tuesday, September 10th you are welcome to join us but water will not arrive until Thursday, the official opening of ride camp. Ride camp is limited by total rigs, please NO additional/unentered vehicles.
Cell/Internet service: In our experience, T mobile & AT&T have intermittent cell coverage in base camp and on the trail. Verizon has none. Neither has internet service. You are likely to have service near Hon Dah Casino or in Vernon both are about 10 miles away. Ride management will have Star Link set up and are happy to share IF all goes as planned. We will do our best but there is no guarantee you will have internet or phone service in base camp.
Water, Manure, Trash, Dogs: Water will be hauled in and will arrive Thursday morning. Please help ride management by bringing as much water as possible for you and your horse. You may fill up water for horses at the Hon-Dah RV park just outside of Pinetop. The forest service has given us permission to spread the manure this year instead of hauling it out as we have done for the past two years. This one little thing will make a big difference to us all and is due to the mutually respectful relationship we have developed. We are reaping what we have sown. For past Tango riders, thank you for your part in this! Please haul out your trash. Well behaved dogs are allowed. Please respect others by keeping them on a leash, out of other campsites and the vetting area.
Ride Packet: Once your entry has been processed your ride packet will be sent electronically. The ride packet will include information about using Ride With GPS, the RWGPS Event Link and the PDF files for the maps and cue sheets for each of the ride routes. You will need to print maps & cue sheets prior to leaving home. You also must download the route maps for offline use on your cell phone prior to leaving home. If printing the maps and cue sheets is a hardship, contact Lancette by 5 pm Friday September 6th. A packet will be prepared for you to pick up at check-in/Vet-in.
Check-in/Vet-In Vet-in is on Thursday from 1:00 to 5:00 & Friday for (Saturday’s ride) as time allows.If riding the same horse both days your vet out on day one is your vet in for day 2.
Vet Checks: Currently, all vet checks are in camp. There is a chance this will change so have a crew bag just in case.
Potluck: Thursday at 6:30 this has become a fun AZERC tradition. We hope you will join us. Ride management will provide paper goods, utensils, water & soda. Bring something yummy to share and please bring a serving utensil.
Ride Meeting: Ride meeting will be at 7:00 pm each night. If you are unable to attend for any reason please contact Lancette.
Lunches: Ride management will provide a sandwich, chips, a sweet and a drink to riders and crew on ride days. Please help us plan by indicating on the entry form if you and a crew member would like lunch.
Dinner: You are on your own for dinner but we will have a grill set up for you to use. We will have fire bowls set up to gather around and share stories of the day.
Awards: We will give a daily completion award, first place, best condition and top 10. We may have other awards. If you would like to receive a ride shirt as one of your completion awards we must have your entry form and payment by Tuesday, August 13th. This is the amount of time required to receive the order. If you are unable to get your entry to us by then you will receive a T.B.D. completion award.
Farewell Breakfast: 6:30 Sunday.
Rules and Regulations: The ride will be conducted in accordance with AERC rules. Go to www.aerc.org for the details. It is your responsibility to know the rules. We do not allow ties.
Tentative Schedule of Events:
Thursday September 12th, 2024
8:00 am Base Camp Opens
1:00 to 5:00 Rider Check-In/Vet In
6:30 pm Potluck dinner
7:00 pm Ride Meeting
Friday September 13th, 2024
6:30 am 50 Mile Ride Start
8:00 am 25 Mile Ride Start
1:00 to 5:00 Rider Check-In/Vet-In (between Friday riders)
7:00 Awards/Ride Meeting
Saturday September 14th, 2024
6:30 am 50 Mile Ride Start
8:00 am 25 Mile Ride Start
1:00 to 5:00 Rider Check-In/Vet-In (between Friday riders)
7:00 pm Awards
Sunday September 16th, 2024
6:30 Farewell Breakfast
Please leave a positive impression on the people you encounter on the trail and always LEAVE NO TRACE. Thank you for your participation in this ride, we appreciate your support and look forward to seeing you!
Lancette Koerner & Ellen Hickey