 |
Re: [RC] LMMR part two - heidiSo...I can't imagine a whole endurance ride of horses going along on a muddy trail....in parts of Calif this would ruin the trail for years..... Again, not being critical here, but curious as to what protocol is in parts of the country that get rain on a more regular basis.... I can't speak for Maggie's part of the country, but can offer the following general comments... 1) Whether this is an issue depends a lot on the soil types. I've worked in areas where horses could go through and make a muddy mess like this and in two weeks, you'd never know anything had gone on there. 2) Erosion is also an issue. If the area is relatively flat, then you are not apt to get erosion from the traffic, hence no issue. If it is steep, it is a whole nuther story. Additionally, horse tracks tend to cup the water, whereas wheeled vehicles cause ruts that REALLY start erosion going--so horse use in such instances is far less of an issue than, say, a bicycle race... 3) Many times the "damage" issue is blown WAY out of proportion by regulatory agencies and is an excuse for them to flex their muscles. In any event, you have to know your area and know how "real" the threat of long-term damage is. In many cases it IS real. But in many other cases, it is negligible. Heidi ============================================================ Of course things aren't perfect, perfect doesn't exist on this earth. Doesn't mean we won't go on trying to get better at what we do. Besides, if everything was perfect today, what would you do tomorrow? Slamming each other doesn't get anything done. ~ Dot Wiggins ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
|