On November 9, 2011, the sport of endurance riding lost a dear friend. Debbie Zanot, longtime endurance rider and ride manager of the much-beloved Elk Valley rides held in Pennsylvania during the late '90s and early 2000s, was a friend and inspiration to so many of us. She is survived by her husband, Gene Zanot, also a longtime endurance rider. May she rest in peace.

The following is an essay Debbie wrote a few years ago, and shared with me. It is poignant and a fitting memorial to the woman we all knew and loved. –Patti Stedman

My dream as a kid was to ride across country, sea to shining sea. Since I am female, life got in the way, you know . . . love and marriages just ate up all those brave adventuresome dreams. When I heard about endurance riding I thought I might be able to see the country on a horse incrementally. What I did not expect was to learn how ignorant I was about horses or how little I knew about myself.

My older sisters were endurance riding in the early '80s but I had a husband then that was not cooperative. By 1987 I got rid of him and my next husband was all for whatever I wanted to do, so I borrowed my sister's spare horse and trained as she taught me what was required.

The first lesson I learned about myself is that I was not very smart about underwear. After 10 miles of trotting and cantering over hill and dale my underwear had crawled and adhered to a place they were never meant to be. I was in agony and my sister informed me if I wanted to be an endurance rider I had to put up and shut up.

Oh no! I could not put up or shut up and I stopped my mighty steed, got my pocket knife out and cut those nasty panties off. Lesson #1: Comfort of the rider is important, get rid of nasty panties.

Sis kept warning me that my borrowed horse would be "different" during a ride, but I thought, "Nah! I totally charmed Rhett." This horse was really my horse now and he was push button. Uh huh! So my next lesson about endurance horses came to fruition on my first ever 50 at the Groundhog Ride in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. It was a multiple event with bike riders, runners and horses.

I was so excited I could not sleep and before dawn -- as I was finally nodding off -- Buck Shrader blasted over his loudspeaker the famous Tarzan call. The camp was awake and bustling, horses were nickering to one another and me, I was captivated by the entire scene. It was still dark as the National Anthem hauntingly echoed over the hills and I stood with hand on heart with goosebumps of excitement, knowing somewhere inside of me that life as I knew it was about to shift.

The runners padded by like spirits and vanished into the morning mist. Next the bikers came by, their wheels making that whispering sound, departing in the dawn's early light.

Next it was the horses' turn to go and I was ready, seated on Rhett in the army saddle that was popular in early endurance riding, my heart beating in my throat and thoughts fluttering through my mind like bats coming out of a cave. It was not quite daylight and we were literally off and running. It was at that moment I again heard my sister's words, "He will be different on a ride."

The first loop was a blur and the mentor my sister had picked for me left me in the dust. I caught up to her at the vet check and decided right then and there I would be leaving her for the rest of the ride.

People lesson: When your competition tells you they are going to ride slow, roll your eyes and say, "That's good, me too." Horse lesson: Horses really are different on a ride.

Rhett picked his own speed and forgot all that bonding and the meaning of "whoa." Second and third loop -- blur blur -- but the fourth loop is engraved in my mind for eternity.

Lesson: Check tack for soundness and make any repairs before the ride and carry extra everything in your trailer. Five miles to go and we were in sixth place (I was told) -- not that I cared, I still had not exhaled since the first loop. I was in full survivor mode. I was proud of the 90° turns I had stayed on and I was damn proud of this horse that never missed any of them or got off balance as I was hanging on his side riding Indian style.

Five miles from the finish as we made one of those hairpin turns my stirrup leather broke and fell, clattering on the road. The competition said, "Aren't you going to get your stirrup?" with the ghost of a smirk on her face.

I said, "What for? It isn't going to do me any good," thinking she just wants to get ahead of me, and Rhett wasn't having any of that stuff, he was "different" in a ride.

I remember as I passed another rider on the dirt road riding jockey style, totally at the mercy of Rhett, screaming, "How far to the finish?"

Lesson: It is easier to ride with no stirrups than with one.

After five miles of slamming my pelvis on the high cantle of that lovely saddle Rhett and I galloped across the finish line in sixth place.

Someone at the awards banquet asked me how I liked my first ride as he squeezed the muscles across my shoulders. Instinctively, I knew better than to scream out in pain and said, "It was wonderful! I can't wait to do another."

That was many moons ago and now you are asking me why do I do it?

In my first endurance ride experience it was the shock and awe that drew me into the sport but as years and horses passed it became much more than a thrill, more like an addiction. What other activity can satisfy:

-- The need to ride more than on weekends

-- Riding on new trails every weekend

-- Meeting fun people of like mind

-- Honing your skills as a horseman

-- Getting physically and mentally fit

-- Becoming part of a great scientific experiment, learning more about horses than you ever dreamed was possible

-- Forming bonds with horses and horsemen that go beyond shallow acquaintances

-- Ridding yourself of selfishness

-- Prioritizing how you spend your time and money

-- Learning who you are and what stuff you are made of, galloping on a wooded trail on a moonless night

-- Learning how to overcome ADD by becoming a ride manager

-- Having the greatest memories to flash before your eyes when you draw that last breath.

Did you ever try having a horsie conversation in a group of non-horse people? Soon your unfortunate dinner partner tries to move away from you or they rudely turn their head to talk to someone else. Has any of your non-horsie relatives said with disgust, "Are horses the only subject you can talk about?"

Have you ever felt out of place at a gathering because your idea of getting dressed up is a newish pair of jeans and your latest T-shirt from a ride? Have you found people cringing as they look at your bad hair and ragged, dirty fingernails and numerous boo-boos in different stages of healing?

If you like to trot and canter out on the trail and you are leading a group of trail riders who want to ride for five hours at a walk and you excuse yourself and tell them you will wait for them at the next turn and when they finally get there they are giving you really dirty looks and you are wondering what the problem is? If you start carrying a flask and calling it snakebite medicine as you plod along with your trail riders you should probably become an endurance rider.

Are you getting the picture?

Conditioning your horse and yourself for competition takes care of the need to ride more than two times a week, gets yourself in shape, and satisfies the need to get out in the woods. Going solo is a necessity for ridding your life of the noise and various trials. It takes care of insanity that tries to intrude and builds confidence and a bond between you and your horse as partners.

However, to teach your horse how to compete sanely with others you do need to find a riding partner and that sometimes can be a challenge.

I think of it as a game. How can I lure a prospective training partner into riding with me? Most trail riders are out unless you see one riding a frustrated Arabian and the other trail riders making nasty jokes about the crazy Ay-rab. You can see the relief in that person's eyes when they see another Ay-rab. You might be able to convince that person that they and their horse have potential they never dreamed possible as you tell them tales of exciting rides and exotic places and wonderful people of like mind and Ay-rabs, lots of Ay-rabs.

If you have exhausted the pool of trail riders for a candidate, get creative. Host an endurance ride and invite new meat to help clear the trails. Put them on your spare Ay-rab and during the long hours sawing, dragging logs, clipping overhanging branches, filling in holes and flipping rattlesnakes off the trail, watch their eyes. Is there a gleam of satisfaction showing? Is the person complaining less how they hurt? Has that person stuck with you for more than a week?

When ride day arrives make sure one of the loops goes by the prospect's house. If you spot the entire family up before dawn waiting for the horses you can be pretty certain you will get a kid or two, or maybe that person that has been clearing trail with you, as a future training partner -- or perhaps get them into the sport. This is ideal since you know they will have to condition their horse. You are never out of the loop in endurance riding. If you can't compete because your horse is lame or you are lame there is always something to do.

I became interested in being a ride manager for several reasons. We wanted to share our corner of heaven on earth with fellow endurance riders, wanted to make a contribution to the sport that has given us much happiness, and of course, my ongoing quest for a prospective training partner.

If you suffer from ADD it is a sure cure. Ride management teaches organizational skills you never dreamed you had. During the bleak sunless winter months you must line all your ducks up in a row, getting all the paperwork ready for your ride. As soon as the ice is off the mountains it is time to do your favorite obsession: ride, ride, ride the trails.

If you are a person who handles surprises well the ride manager job is for you.

If you can rationalize losing money with humor, ride management is for you.

If you want to improve your people skills, you will do so as you recruit faithful friends to volunteer or host a ride, but the most important trait for a ride manager is endurance itself. But if you are a competitor I guarantee you can do it and it will be exciting.

My favorite ride manager surprise was having a great turnout -- horses and trailers and little pup tents all packed tightly in ride camp. All went well during the day with parking everyone, vetting in horses and the part I liked the least, talking in front of a group about the trails. I was standing on the picnic table beneath the canopy when a storm started. Little did we know there were tornados spotted on Doppler radar. The wind suddenly ripped the canopy in half and guests were abandoning ship like rats.

The electricity went out and in the pitch black the wind howled. With flashlight in hand, I watched and prayed (oh yes, faith is a must) as the little pup tents were swaying to and fro, screaming to be freed. I tried not to think in negatives, like freed pup tents, running horses, limbs falling on horses and trailers, etc. Prayer worked.

The next day I wished riders the best out on trail, not knowing the extent of devastation or how far they would get. Prayer worked; all was well. Surprise!

(Endurance people are rarely crabby except before a ride when nerves are high and they just need to ride, but it is always good entertainment if you are the one listening. Plus you can acquire new phrases to use on your mate in the future.)

Endurance riding teaches you not to be selfish. If your horse got pulled pity parties are out because you can always crew. Just grab a bucket and sponge and go help the next person in the vet check. You can be a gofer for the ride manager who is short a hand and looking wild-eyed. You can redirect your disappointment into a positive as you watch the smiling faces of fellow riders.

There are many answers to why we do it. We all have a book in us because endurance riding is an ongoing story. It defines us for life. It is a wild, fun family of people from all walks of life, all ages, and all of us value being diverse individuals.

What other sport can you get to know a person without knowing their name or what they do or where they live by spending hours riding in the dark in a strange land and positively know that person is a wonderful human being without guile that you could trust your life to? What other horse sport do you know of where your horse gets to know you better than your spouse does? Long live endurance riding!

Debbie Zanot completed 2,970 endurance and 30 limited distance miles in 18 years of AERC competition.