Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

I sure wish this thread would end.  LD has its place in the AERC.  There are
many reasons to do LD, and if a person is physically incapable of doing more
than an LD, than God love em, do the LDs!  Some people don't have the time
to train for a 50 or a 100, so they choose to do what is best for their
horse, which is an LD.  Because I worked & had children, I didn't feel I
could put the time in to training for a distance longer than 25 or 30 miles.
Now that I have more time, I plan to train more and ride more 50s.   Many
people just enjoy the fact that the LD is done more quickly, they can get
off the horse, take a shower, and be looking good when I drag in (at the end
of the 50s).  A lot of people, like myself, use LD to start a green horse.
We do our year of LDs, then start to do 50s.  I finally have a horse that
can do 50s.  The previous 2 horses were just not cut out for longer
distances, so I did what they were capable of doing - LD.   I also learned a
lot by doing the LDs, so when I did my first 50, I knew what the heck to do
during the vet checks, etc.    My personal goal was to progress to 50s, then
do some multiday rides, and maybe do a 100.   I'm still waiting for those
last 2 goals, but I'm working on it!   I'm having trouble imagining wanting
to do anything for 24 hours, much less be on a horse that long!  However,
since people who do LDs pay their dues, pay the entry fees for the rides,
trailer to the rides, park with the 50s or 100s, then what is the problem?

The argument seems to be whether it is real "endurance" or not.  Angie, the
mentally handicapped girl that you sponsor, do you think an LD is endurance
for her?  Was it endurance for her first horse (I remember reading the great
article on her in Endurance News)?  I thought it was endurance.  Every horse
& every rider has their capabilities.  Of course, everyone knows the more
distance you ride, the more training, conditioning, luck, & knowledge you
must have to successfully complete & compete.  Real endurance can be
measured in so many ways, not just be a set distance of 25, 30, 50, or 100
miles.  To my way of thinking, Donna Winters & Bob are endurance riders.
Donna is fighting cancer, yet continues to train & set goals.  Bob is a
great horse, but just doesn't do as well on 50s.  Donna does what is best
for Bob - LDs.  Should Donna sell Bob & buy another horse that can do the
50s & 100s so she can be a "real" endurance rider?  If Donna loves Bob &
loves to ride him, then why shouldn't she do the distance that will keep him
safe & healthy?  By the way, I still have one of my horses that just didn't
do well on 50s.  He's a cranky son-of-a-buck & no one in their right mind
would buy him.  He's still good to go for trails or LD.  The other horse has
a great home with a little girl who loves her.  I have the option to buy her
back when she gets too old, & I plan on giving her a permanent home with me.

I don't have very much experience or mileage, so if you disagree with me,
that's O.K.  I am proud of the fact that I've never been pulled.  I have
finished in the Top 10 on a few LDs (by accident), in the middle & I've been
dead last - Go Turtle Award!  My horse received a BC on his second LD.  It
wasn't an official AERC BC, since I did not Top 10, but I had the highest
vet scores, so I was very proud of Taz.  Thank you Jackie for selling him to
me & Tammy Robinson for giving an award for taking good care of my horse!
Right now, I'm fighting a problem with Taz that has prevented me from doing
50s on him since September.  He's been with a trainer working on some things
that I can't help him with & we've been back in training for about 2 months.
We are also fighting tender feet from too wet pasture & too dry & rocky
training ground.  We're still trying to train using easy boots.  I plan on
doing the 50 at Bridgeport, but if I think he's not ready, or his feet are
still too tender, I'll do the LD.  It's a long way to drive from Bakersfield
to Bridgeport for only a LD, but it's what is best for my horse!  I refuse
to be embarrassed or to feel "less" if I choose to do an LD.  Again, it
might be what is best for me or for my horse!  When I do his next 50, I want
him to complete, sound & healthy.

Horse abuse & overriding can occur in both the LD & the 50s, so I'm not even
going to argue that point.  Some people show good judgment, some don't, it's
that simple!  There will always be those people out there who "just don't
get it."  Some people choose to educate themselves about endurance, some do
not.  Some people enjoy endurance just for the sake of riding, to some it is
a business to promote themselves or their horses.  We all have our place in
the AERC.

I am proud that the AERC takes a stand on that kind of abuse & that as
members, we can do something about it.  I cringed when I read the latest
protest, but I was thankful the ride manager had the courage to file the
protest.  Now to me, THESE people are not "endurance" riders.  With "To
Finish Is To Win" as our motto & creed, no true "endurance" rider would ever
beat an exhausted horse.  Instead of focusing on distances, we might want to
look at the attitudes & actions for some of these riders.  I would venture a
guess that 99.9% of LD & longer distance riders would not even consider
doing what these people did to that horse.

Wow, this is long...sorry.  I've reread it to try to pinpoint areas that
will make people email mean things about me on Ride Camp.  I don't see
anything, but I'm sure someone will find something I said that will offend
them.

I love AERC & I love to ride.  The distance I ride depends on my abilities,
my horse's abilities, and how beautiful the day is!  The nice thing about
the AERC is that it supports distances for a wide variety of interests and
abilities.  We need to be supportive or each other and not nit-pick about
awards & distances, and what makes "real" endurance.  As I stated before,
there are many ways to measure endurance, and it doesn't start or end simply
with the amount of miles you ride on a given day.

Kathy Garner & Taz



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