Re: RC: I'm Buying My First Endurance Horse

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

Look over both of Nancy Loving's books - the one on endurance and the one on
conformation for performance horses.

One of the biggest things is how well you and the horse get along. You are going
to spend many hours with this horse and you really need to be able to get along.
If you like to go and he is timid, then you'll be frustrated. If he is a hard
charger and you don't want to deal with it you will be frustrated - and so will
he. Personality is important. Also consider his ride. Rough horses are harder to
ride than smooth horses.

IMO the big difference between a 50 miler and a 100 miler is metabolic
soundness. The horses that make good 100 mile prospects are the ones that who's
metabolic systems are superior. This you won't be able to tell until you try.

Truman

Carolyn Burgess wrote:

> HELP!  I'm going to look at my first, bought for the purpose, endurance
> horse.  Now, I don't want a hard time about this, but it's not an Arabian,
> she's a Standardbred, which is my all time favorite breed.  I need to know
> what to look for, other than the obvious (straight legs, good standing heart
> rate, good confirmation, etc.).  Let me learn from everyone elses experience
> in what you learned from your endurance horses.  I'm just starting at the
> 25/30 mile distance, I probably won't even do my first 50 until next year,
> and I don't know if I'll ever get to the 100 mile mark, but tell me what to
> look for and the different things to look for in a 50 mile horse and a 100
> mile horse.  I'm going on Saturday morning, so anyone who can response
> tonight, it would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Carolyn Burgess
> carolyn_burgess@hotmail.com
>

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