![]() |
RE: [RC] Minors in Tevis - Jonni JewellIn reply to Andrew's post, from Roxanne: Jonni ***************************** In response to Andrew Gerhard, please understand that I am not "in charge" of anything regarding the Tevis Cup. I have made a very special effort over the years to make sure the Ride is more friendly to junior riders, and that they receive some special recognition for the accomplishment of completion. It seems like a small thing, but with the issues of pulled sponsors, substitute sponsors, transporting juniors and their horses, locating crews and/or family, making sure pulled juniors and their horses are safe and cared for, everyone who works the ride has added responsibility. I am certain it has been worthwhile in that we have many more juniors attempting the ride now, and a lot more completing it. I do not make the rules. They are reviewed very regularly by the rules committee and the Board of Governors. In fact, with any request or complaint like Courtney's, the Board usually reviews why the rule exists, and makes certain it still fits the purposes of the Foundation and the Ride. That was the case with the age rule for junior riders. Perhaps, since I don't know Courtney, I over-reacted to her attempts to be excused from following the junior rule. However, her posting is not the first communication from her on this matter I have seen. Perhaps I'm reacting to the fact that Courtney is unwilling to accept that the way to realize her dream is to ride with a sponsor, or wait and ride in 2006 by herself. All the other juniors will have to abide by these same rules. It is my personal opinion that following the personal letter she received from the president of the Western States Trail Foundation,her efforts to be excused from the rule are misguided and selfish, and do reflect on her maturity. In a perfect world, we would be able to judge the ability of every person separately and assign them privileges and responsibilities commensurate with their skills. We would have some 10-year-olds out there driving 18-wheelers on the freeway, and some 35-year-olds in school learning to read. Rules, like laws, are an attempt to provide order and predictability to life. They are far from perfect at doing that. Nevertheless, we need them, and to be fair, they must apply to everyone. Roxanne Greene WSTF BOD vgreene@xxxxxxxxxxxxx =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|