Oakland Hills and competing too hard....

[Linda Cowles <kadence@ix.netcom.com>]

I'm writing this because of what occurred at Oakland Hills. Dancer's death was
horrible...  more tragic because he was a truly magnificent horse.

I'm not here to judge David's treatment of Dancer... David has to work that one
out himself.

Dancers death spoke to me personally, because I have a wonderful, potentially
very competitive, horse that I love very much. And I love to ride hard! Gavilan
and I fly over the trails... we love to go fast...

My last two top 10's were at fairly large rides (more than 50 horses) where I
claimed that Gav was out of shape and I should be doing the LD... he got all A's
and B's at the vet checks and we loitered at water and stops, ate grass along
the way. We spent 45 minutes over the minimum holds at the last ride, where we
came in 8th.

I ride fast, and if I rode seriously, I'd have the potential to become a hazard
to my horse.

This is about rumors and reputations. It's a reminder to all of us, particularly
elite and top-10 endurance riders who have gifted horses. It's a reminder that
we all have the potential to lose perspective and over-ride our horses. It's a
reminder that the endurance community can help us keep or regain perspective.

I don't know David.

The statistics and vet check criteria indicate that Dave managed Dancer well
during competition, however he has a **very** widespread reputation locally for
over-riding Dancer, and that reputation is based on first hand observations by
many very competitive but conscientious riders. David was competing constantly,
and was well known in this area. Only one person spoke up in his defense...
someone who appears to be a very intimate friend.

There are local legends about Dave and Dancer... negative stories that get
repeated. David doesn't have "enemies"... when he isn't competing, he's said to
be a delightful person to be around... very likable. Everyone is sad for him,
he's said to have been very close to Dancer... "But"...

When we perform at an unusual level, people watch us, talk about us, and report
our behavior to each other. We develop a reputation. Not necessarily a bad
reputation either!!! There are many more riders with "good" reputations than
bad, and many of those "good" riders are very competitive.  When fellow
competitive riders start suggesting you back off, start "reporting" marginal
abuses to each other, it isn't just so that they can cut down the competition...
this sport isn't free from politics, but the politics aren't that sophisticated!

When you are cautioned that you are racing too hard? When rumors of abuse get
back to you? If you don't trust the source, check with someone you know will
give you an honest assessment. The rumors may be right.

Ride statistics and vet cards don't tell the whole story about how hard these
horses are being competed. Some of us aren't capable of making rational
assessments of our horses or our behavior when we are competing. If we go by
just the vet cards, we can kill our horses.

When the original poster wrote in, I knew he was talking about David even though
I don't know Dave and didn't know that he had been at Oakland Hills. Ken Cook
had mentioned that he had competition for first, but I don't recall him saying
who it was.

Dancer did well, race after race; that's a fact. He was a very exceptional
horse.

Dave was affectionate with Dancer. That's a fact.

Dave was seen hitting Dancer on multiple occasions by seasoned and experienced
riders on multiple occasions. Many of us ride with spurs, crops, "progress
strings", rommel's and long reins, and many of us have used them in public. If
the use seems justified, it doesn't even register, does it? When questioned
about laying into Dancer one time, Dave claimed that Dancer was "stubborn". I'm
mentioning it only because I **really** doubt that people go around lying about
that sort of thing. If multiple people saw it happen on multiple occasions? I
assume it occurred.  If it was a simple spank, it wouldn't get circulated so
widely. It would have been ignored... what we see on the trail doesn't stay in
our minds past the next vet check unless it's unusual.

Dave was cautioned to ease up on Dancer many times by competitive, experienced
riders. People actually cautioned David  to back off, or he'd kill Dancer. That
statement is part of David's reputation.  Did he kill Dancer? Not directly, and
not indirectly that we can substantiate. That's David's demon to wrestle, not
ours.

We all need to remember to maintain a good perspective when we compete these
talented performance horses.

The "Facts" can indicate that we are riding within the lines, and if we use just
"Facts" to assess our behavior, we may end up riding our horses too hard,
stressing them to the point where they can't recover if the unexpected happens.

When you are riding hard, remember Dancer...

   - Linda Cowles