Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Jonni said:

> Well, Dave would indeed be on the 100 miler list,
> with 13 Tevis finishes. The first Tevis finish in 62,
> the last in 84....maybe he will be adding one this
> year too......
While Dave is on the list of people who have completed a 100 miler, he
would not have been on Karen's list because Karen's list does not
include people who have not completed a 100 miler since 1985 (because
that is as far back as the online database goes and that is where she
got her data).

THIS is one of the reason's that Karen's list isn't a definitive
selection criteria for who to take advice from (and she never presented
it as such).  I merely wished to point out that it would be a mistake
for people to use Karen's list in this way because a) it isn't a list of
everybody who posts to Ridecamp who has finished a 100 miler (e.g. if
Dave Nicholson posted he wouldn't be on the list) and b) there are some
people who have never finished a 100 miler who have good advice to give
anyway....even good advice about how to finish a 100 miler (e.g. Susan
Garlinghouse).

Additionally, Karen made some (at least one I know of) error in
compiling her list.  _I_ post to Ridecamp, _I_ have completed a 100
miler that is in the database (1 1993), and I am not on her list.  So
either she didn't check me (and I don't know who else she may not have
checked) or she can't count. :)

However, I will also say that any advice you were to get from me with
respect to doing a 100 miler would be more likely to come from what I
have learned from the 100 milers that I HAVEN'T completed (of which
there are more than the ones I have).  A few of the things I have
learned from the 100 milers I haven't completed are:

1. Even a horse that goes barefoot all the time, finishes 50 milers
barefoot easily, and has great feet can't do 100 miles in the California
desert barefoot without getting foot sore.

2. EasyBoots don't stay on barefeet very well if you don't glue them on,
and if you intend to count on EasyBoots for hoof protection, you need to
keep an eye on them (or better yet, tie them to your horse's feet) so
that you will notice that one is missing BEFORE having gone 17 miles
without it.

3. Bring cold weather gear to every ride even one in San Diego in June
because it might snow in the middle of the night on the top of Mt.
Laguna, and no matter how good of condition your horse is in, you can't
complete if you have hypothermia.

4. You don't have to leave the vet check at your out time, so if you
have 7 hours to do 10 miles it is okay to spend some of those 7 hours
resting at the vet check BEFORE going out and doing the last 10 miles.

These, among others, are all lessons that I have learned from my
non-completions, not from my completion.  There are lots of things that
can be learned from people who have never completed a 100 mile ride,
especially if the reason that they have never completed is because they
have done something wrong.

Generally speaking, I learn more from my failures than my successes.
Consequently, I am very keen to learn from other people who have failed.
It brings to mind the old maxim: "Every body has some purpose in life,
if only to serve as a bad example."

_I_ can give people LOTS of advice with respect to 100 milers.  My
record of non-completion provides me with a long list of things NOT to
do. My completion rate for 100 milers is about 10%.  I probably know
more than anybody what things not to do. :)

kat
Orange County, Calif.


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Arabians were bred for years primarily as a war horse and those
requirements are similar to what we do today with endurance riding. 
~  Homer Saferwiffle

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