From: goearth
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2002 3:40 PM
To: Ridecamp
Subject: [RC] Money fer Nothing
Oh, i just love RC. Where we can discuss differances of opinion in a civil manner. Intregrity. civility, Love, empathy, kindness etc...all cost nothing. Horses, tack, shoes, Vets, entry fees, land, fences, trucks, trailers, insurance etc...all cost something. Over time i realize my grant to study the Sexual Lives of Savages probably won't come thru. My poetry will never bring even a return on my pens and paper. Since we live in a capitalistic society and socialism is dead then i have to be pragmatic about the situation. The purists who want to keep $$ out should realize that Flat Track Racing to me injures and kills more horses than endurance ever will. The walking horses look inhumane to me. So this sport Endurance is gonna remain pure? If you can't trust a priest who can you anymore? Howard, how do you figure your Gal Val keeps it up? Does she make a buck how she can? I say go for it...
for if money comes in so should all those intangibles that cost nothing. Thats where AERC and the Vets come in and believe me folks its coming in and you can sit back and cry PURITY or you can shout CONTROL. tom sites
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Tom, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret, just between you and me. She's not really my gal. I just kind of use that phrase, maybe, cause I want to be a poet like yourself. I don't really know how she keeps it up (there is a pun there somewhere, but I won't use it), how she makes a buck or two, and it's not really any of my business. If she makes money from endorsements, I think that is just wonderful. She's earned the right to do so. Why on earth she isn't listed in the AERC Hall of Fame is way beyond me and is one of the few bones I have to pick with our organization. The woman's achievements are incredible. And, if I ever get the chance, I know Budweiser has my name written all over some of their advertisements. Or Coors, or even Red Dog, I'm not that picky. Course, most of ya'll know I'm a dreamer, not a doer, like my gal, Val.
The endurance rides I attend do seem to be pure and ethical, to me anyway, as much as such a thing can be in today's world. Maybe, I'm missing something here, it wouldn't be the first time I've been naive or fooled by appearances. But, I don't see any conflict of interests, no judges or stewards, and no real huge rewards to give any rider the incentive to run their horse into the ground to try and obtain. I know, some folks get carried away with winning, even when there isn't a monetary prize, but I don't see that sort of thing very often. The biggest danger I see is a rider not knowing that the danger of his horse crashing is even there. This is usually due to inexperience, or unawareness of one's horse.
You confuse me, Tom, cause one year you seem to be pro FEI, the next year you're against them. I'm not sure exactly where it is you stand on the issue. My problems with FEI in endurance are, basically, I don't want them at the rides I go to. I don't want to deal with their silly rules and their silly protocol. I refuse to ever obtain a passport for my horse. I know where he was born. I like endurance AERC style, and with a few modifications it might become the most pure sport in the equine world.
Keep it over there, on the other side of the pond. If we need FEI sanctioning at certain rides for our International riders, that's fine, but please don't let them overtake every AERC ride I attend, and eventually, overtake AERC. And, if you do let them bring money into our sport and bring it here in the States, that is exactly what will happen. Everyone will be racing for the gold. Everyone, except me, because I won't be able to bear watching it.
This is where Lisa was wrong when she said she was more concerned with what was happening in her own back yard and not worried about what was happening in other countries. This is a mistake because, what is happening in other countries could very well end up being what happens in our backyard. I know I should not make this comparison, but I will. After 9/11 we really do need to pay attention what is happening over there, cause it does affect over here, sometimes in ways we cannot predict or prevent unless we pay damn close attention.
Even though I am a nobody, I know that it's nobodies like me that make up the majority of our sport, and I'm hoping (even praying on this one) that we can stop this idiocy in it's tracks. Even some of our own International riders are having second thoughts to the stupid crap FEI is doing this year, with the minimum times, the passing of certain drugs (ulcer meds), and some other things they have done that got the attention of top riders who used to be pro FEI. Now, they're having second thoughts, which I am glad to see, and hope they speak out more strongly in the future. There is something very scary in seeing a 7 hour 30 minute ride time in a 100 miler.
When you speak of money in endurance, you are speaking of FEI endurance, because they are the originator of such an absurd idea. I don't call them Foreign Endurance Idiots just for the humor; it goes deeper than that. And, your comparing Flat track racing to endurance is one of the many reasons that I hope the two never ever come close to having anything in common besides the fact they both have horses involved. Wagering and prize money are not what our sport needs. Why on earth does our sport need anything like this? Because fuel prices are so high you think you should be rewarded for your trailering? Why do you think the sport should give you your money back? Does the week-end golfer expect to be paid for the enjoyment of his sport? Why should the week-end endurance rider?
If the top riders need this kind of money to keep things going, then, by all means, put your horse on that jet airplane and fly to UAE, or wherever it is you want, to try and earn the big bucks. Train and push your horse to the point where he has to complete a hundred miles in less than 8 hours so you can get the money and fame and read your name in the paper the next day. But, if something goes wrong, if your horse crashes and dies a horrible death, all for your personal glory and your personal wealth, guess what it is you will be remembered for?
cya,
Howard (I'm done for now; I'll try not to comment on this crap any further even if I have to sit on my fingers (that sounds weird); promise)
