Re: RC: Over the Edge

["Truman Prevatt, PhD" <truman.prevatt@netsrq.com>]

Howard,

I have no idea how anyone could get that from your post. I've heard Dane's talk
many times and it is one of the best introductory talks for any endurance ride
and truer words have never been spoken.

The problem with the "edge" is it's always moving. It changes with wether
conditions. Heat impacts some horses more than others. It's changing with terrian
- some horses are more impacted by sandy conditions than others for example. It
changes with distance - some horses are better 50 milers than 100 milers ( that
is able to handle the faster pace better ) and some are better 100 milers than 50
milers.

The edge moves around with conditioning. Too many rides too close together  (or
over conditioning ) moves the edge. Too little conditioning moves the edge.
Conditioning for 7 mph and riding a ride at 12 moves the edge. So the edge is an
elusive concept to pin down, but make no mistake about it, if you go over it you
will not finish in the best case and your horse will crash in the worse case.

The edge is why we need to know our horses, know their strengths and weaknesses,
and know the subtle signs of when you are creeping up on the edge and know how to
bring them back off the edge by changing you management during a ride or knowing
when to just call it a day.

In endurance rides the horse supplies the brawn and the rider the brains. We
riders need to live up to our end of the deal.  But even doing all we can and
using our best judgement  is no guarentee that our buddies will not go over the
edge. I've seen horses start to cramp up two miles out - this is after they
arrive at camp on Friday morning on a 30 minute trailer ride.

The good riders stop call for a vet and there is usually no effect except a ride
back to camp in a trailer. They were at the edge but were brought back down on
the safely.  It can happen to horses that finished strong with all A's - whatever
heck  that really means - and then start to get worse as the night goes on. I've
seen that happen. A horse can go out after a vetting through the first check
riding at a conservative pace with "all A's" and colic on trail. I've seen that
happen.

I think any rider with a couple thousand miles can relate times when they were a
bit too close to the edge - if they are honest with themselves. Endruance is on
one hand a very humbling sport and on the other a very rewarding sport to get
yourself and your horse through the challenge of the day and the trail.

Fun ride this weekend, eh. I particularly enjoyed the raw osyters and keg of beer
after the ride! Kim and Michelle did a great job as usual.

Regards,
Truman

Howard4567@aol.com wrote:

> In a message dated 4/19/01 4:12:14 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
> katswig@earthlink.net writes:
>
> <<And if I were a vet at an endurance ride, giving a briefing to rider before
> they were going to head out on a tough ride, _I_ wouldn't be telling
> endurance riders to push their horses close to the edge.  I would say, "We,
> as endurance riders, more than any other competitive sport, are very careful
> to keep our horses as far from the edge as we possibly can.">>
>
> How the heck did you get the idea that he was saying to push their horses
> close to the edge in those paragraphs I wrote?  That isn't at all what he was
> saying and I don't see how you could read it that way.
>
> It was a friggen warning.  Warning, be careful.  You can push your horse more
> than you may realize and by then, it's too late; he's on an IV.  Maybe it's
> my writing style, but somehow you really misread that.
>
> Sorry to respond to you so late, I've been out of town at a ride.
>
> cya,
> Howard (some things even I don't joke about; this is one)