on pages 46 and 47 there are ride results with 501
horses reported. At $2 per horse drug testing, (that is what I paid last year
for my ride) that is $1002.00 There are still 7 1/2 pages of ride results
listed. So I will guestimate about $4500 per EN of drug testing fees and up to
Aug only 15 horses tested. What is that money being used for?
If there was more testing before Aug. it wasn't
reported and if it was after Aug. I couldn't find it. It seems that more people
from California reported testing (on ridecamp) at their rides but it is the
State that requires that? Is that reported in EN?
On requiring autopsies, I also would want to know.
Legally can we ask for it? Maybe not but can RM refuse entry to a ride for not
complying with the application as it is written? It is an agreement complete
with a liability release and if the rider does not want to sign they don't get
to ride.
Would we need to make it a requirement? Maybe not
if as Heidi has reported, the majority of horses put down had life threatening
injuries (accidents) or things like tumors and aneurisms. And if more horses are
put down for those reasons and not metabolic, maybe we aren't doing such a bad
job, you know, for being cowboys and all.
Tony Benedetti said "In the US, we have always held to the wild
west approach where you can ride any distance if you have a horse to
enter."
This isn't altogether
true,as we do have age requirements for the horses. And besides, even Ray Hunt,
who is an old cowboy, admits to many mistakes in his lifetime to get to where he
is today. The wild west has evolved into a more humane philosophy of horse
training and riding. Endurance riding has certainly come a long, long way and
for the better I might add. And I have to agree with "Rules 'R' Us" ]:)Bob
Morris when he says I believe that the
AERC methodology is the fairest and best system in the world. Bar none.
While we do not have the financial backing of the emirates or the crassness
of some of the Europeans, we have very fair, well controlled competition
unequalled in the world. Our records are non-pareil, as bad as they
are, compared to any other country.
What we do need to know is are we experiencing
problems that are out of our control (the accidents and unforeseen disorders) or
is it something we can learn from and fix? If it is something we can learn from,
who is going to teach us? With all the concern about new riders, rider logs,
qualifying for longer distances, are we suppose to be self taught, or will
someone or some BODy take on the role of teacher or as they call them in the
Montessori school, the director? What does our Education and Safety Committee
think?
