Re: RC: endurance prospect

[Tivers@aol.com]

In a message dated 2/5/00 9:34:18 PM Pacific Standard Time, 
superpat@gateway.net writes:

<< To the
 extent that the research, training and medical, can help me in strengthening
 and training my horse, I find much value. But in no way do I aspire to even
 taste of the "to win is to win" mentality. >>


Yes, there will be a divergence in the sport coming soon. In fact, it already 
exists. Trail riding is not endurance competition and a trail horse is not an 
endurance athlete. Genuine endurance athletes have special needs and require 
more support during competition--and far more athletic development prior to 
competition. The 50 mile a week, ride when it's convenient, backyard horsey 
girl is not going to do well in future endurance competition. And it will be 
human nature that those left behind will adopt a sanctimonious "horror" at 
the techniques necessary to develop and compete with genuine endurance 
athletes. 

If you want to see this kind of loser posturing at work,  go back and review 
the sports literature of the first half of the 20th century, when it was 
considered bad form to actually train for sporting events.  Read about the 
careers of the great coaches like Arthur Lydiard, who revolutionized athletic 
preparation--they were ostracized when their athletes began to dominate and 
upset the apple cart of polite social "athletic competition".  

Those who take the time and effort to develop superior athletes can expect a 
great deal of carping for the losers. They'll be told that they're being 
cruel to their animals, despite the fact that their athletes cross the finish 
line miles ahead with smiles on their faces while others limp home with 
unprepared basket cases.  I've seen it happen dozens of times in parimutuel 
racing. I'll give you one example:

About 15 years ago a young trainer in Canada developed a TB that won 7 races 
in a row--there wasn't a horse on the track that could come close to him. The 
technique used was interval trainiing. Where most horses would gallop 1 to 1 
1/2 miles a day and deliver a single breeze lasting 36 seconds once a week, 
this horse was galloping six miles a day and would perform interval workouts 
of 4 X 3/4 twice a week, absolutely horrifying the other trainers.

So the losing druids got together in a big crowd one day and in the middle of 
one of Kid Slick's workouts, they stormed the Steward's office and demanded 
the Chief Steward run out and watch this kid trying to kill his 
horse-demanding that he be thrown off the track. The Steward obliged and 
everybody went out and watch the workout, which took more than 45 minutes to 
complete. 

As the kid rode his prancing horse out the gap, the crowd swarmed around him 
and the Steward asked him to explain what he thought he was doing. The 
rider/trainer sat atop his athlete and gave a fifteen minute dissertation on 
exercise physiology and interval training. As he finished, the Steward, who 
luckily was a vet, turned to the crowd and said, "I hope you've learned 
something here."--and walked away. 

Developing winning athletes certainly requires a different mindset than 
harbored in those of the losing persuasion. That mindset represents the 
"edge", and is nothing to be ashamed of. Hard thought, hard work, and a whole 
new set of knowledge is required. It's a huge investment in time and 
effort--all directed toward developing a sound, healthy, superior 
athlete--obviously,  the worst possible result is that the athlete become 
injured and that entire investment is lost. These conditioners must adopt one 
primary rule: Preserve and Enhance. That is, preserve the athlete while 
enhancing his performance. 

You end up, hopefully, with a superb athlete make of solid steel that makes 
the losers' three-legged wonders look like sad caricatures of athletic 
endeavor. And the losers will hate you for the accomplishment. For making 
them look like the rank amateurs they are. They'll pray that your animal 
breaks down and proves their moral superiority--despite a barnfull of 
cripples staring them in the face every morning. 

My advice: ignore them. They're moral and intellectual cowards. Do the right 
thing and never look back. Leave them in their puddle of misery and continue 
to move forward every day. You'll never, ever, reach the limit of what is 
possible in building the superior equine athlete. If you stick with it, it 
five years you'll know more about equine athletic physiology than any 
"expert", including myself. 

I'll happily fight your battles here--I've done it for more than two decades 
and I'm real good at it. You build the athletes and win. All I ask is that, 
as you push the envelope and learn new things, you keep me informed so that i 
can pass this information on to those few others who are struggling along 
behind you, reaping the catcalls and moral outrage of the pack of hyenas 
yapping at their heels. Don't worry about somebody stealing your knowledge 
and catching up--there are plenty of losers to go around. All you have to do 
is stay in front intellectually as your horses stay in front physically. And 
all that means is that you do more, think more, learn more,  tomorrow than 
you did today. 

To win is to win!

ti