From Sept. 6-26, Randy Davisson and his friends had this routine:
Wake up at 4 a.m. to feed their horses.
At 5:30 a.m., drive their horse trailers and campers to the next camp site, approximately 26 miles away.
At 9:30 a.m., start riding horses at a rate of about 4 miles per hour, depending on the terrain and where they were in the ride.
At 6:30 p.m., finish for the day. Set up camp and unharness the horses.
Later that night before bed, relax and enjoy a nice game of euchre.
Such was the routine as Davisson and his longtime friend, Bill Zettel, rode with a group of other people on a 547-mile round trip from Oscoda to Empire, Mich. and then back to Oscoda. Among the cities on the route included South Branch, 4 Mile, Goose Creek, Kalkaska and Garey Lake.
But what made the ride different for Davisson was they rode in a three-horse hitch double cross. ‘It was quite an endeavor,? said Davisson, 72, who lives in Oxford. ‘It was arduous, but we did it to see if we could do it.?
Indeed they did it, using a brand-new Amish-built wagon. Prior to the race, Davisson put 325 miles on the wagon by riding locally in the Oxford area and conditioning the three horses: Chester, Chief and Eli (Eli, 18, is Davisson’s horse). By doing this, the horses not only were conditioned, but got comfortable with heavy car traffic.
Zettel served as the navigator.
‘He knew the roads and the ways around to get across the state,? Davisson said. Because of their wagon, they couldn’t go through single tracks in the woods and needed paths with more width. ‘We had to find places to go around and utilize more roads,? he added.
When horses trot, they do so at around eight mph and when walking, they go about four mph.
‘You really do see the country side,? he said. ‘It’s not a blur like driving through in a car.?
For Davisson, this Michigan roundtrip on double-cross three-horse hitch is sure to get him into Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! again. He’s there already for an amazing feat: he and his horse, full name Eli Whitney, have ridden together in all 50 states, Washington D.C. and in all 10 Canadian provinces and in two territories; their journey was completed in 58 months’from July 2000 to April 2005. What may end up being a second trip into the pages of Guinness was a team effort, although one that was as tiring as it was rewarding.
‘The three horses, Bill and I were all very tired,? Davisson recalled. ‘It’s a good thing I had the horses well-conditioned before the trip. They did really well.?
With this and many other trips now in the books, Davisson now plans to write two books to chronicle his and Eli’s adventures. One book would be a children’s book written from Eli’s perspective. The other book would be written from Davisson’s perspective and would talk about the places he and Eli have ridden.
This recent trip across Michigan was on Davisson’s ‘bucket list?, and he hopes his journey instills in people the urgency to accomplish their dreams and not let things hold them back.
Davisson’s bond with his horse is strong, and perhaps it’s only fitting that his website is www.eliandi.com.