Hunting in sagebrush is a little like mogul skiing. You stay loose in the saddle, keep your eye on the horizon, and let your lower body just move with your horse. He can pick a better path than you through the dense brush and if you second guess his choice, parting company is a distinct possibility. I have just returned from 5 days of hunting with Red Rock Hounds in Reno, NevAda (emphasis on the A!). It is big hunting:endless sky, huge tracts of land, big horses, big belt buckles and big cowboy hats. Lynn Lloyd's Red Rock Hounds at Ross Creek is about 1 hour north of Reno. She ran out of gas 30 years ago in this valley and as she puts it, "God must have had a reason". She stayed put and has built a wonderful hunt club and facility that the whole valley seems to enjoy. Lynn has the most enrolling personality I have ever met and the proof is in her membership. Not only do some of the local cowboys enjoy hunting with her, Western style, but there are also motocross kids, who fly up the steepest ridges to watch for coyote for her. There are mountain bikers who follow, throwing their bikes over the coops as they ride behind and lots of landowners in their big trucks on the dirt roads below. Some who generously bring water for the hounds in this dusty, dry country. She has welcomed all into her club. I rode with a woman who was Lynn's first student, 30 years ago, and she told me how 5 of them used to take out hounds in the beginning, watching them disappear high into the mountains, learning as they went how to hunt this tough country.It was an awesome 5 days and the best part was riding close to Lynn as she explained her hunting style. She has learned to stay high and listen to the hounds as they follow coyote. I watched them vanish into the sagebrush after quarry and scanning the distances, one can see their movement way ahead and hear their cry. Then she picks her path through the brush and the field gallops for miles. Coyotes run a long way and after two long chases one day, we had the trailers brought around to load tired hounds and tired horses. On some days, from the tops of rocky ridges, you could see for miles around and watch wild horses in the distance and golden eagles hunting on the wind. Excited hounds would burst after long- eared hares, before returning quickly to Lynn's side. She does not scold the hounds but explains to this visitor, that she believes it keeps them enthused and interested in hunting, and as they settle on the right quarry the puppies learn from the steadier hounds.
On Friday evening Red Rock Hounds held their annual Hunt Ball at one of the big casinos in Reno. A "Jeans and Jewels" theme ensured the finest in Western wear! Gentlemen wore their Scarlets over jeans and substituted bolos for a bow-tie. It looked great and the fringed shirts and bejeweled women in their fancy boots made for great people watching. The crowd impressively raised thousands of dollars that evening to help the Red Rock Hound Foundation and, clearly, showed how much Lynn and the hunt is beloved in their community. It was a treat to see an American foxhunting legend in her element and I hope to return many times to enjoy her warm hospitality and watch her hunt these excellent Red Rock hounds.
