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[RC] Sooo... how do you DO this? - Jonni** Can someone tell me what goes on from start to finish on a 25 mile ride?** That can be a long answer. All riders start at the same time. (they say "GO", and some take off right away, some wait for the crowd to clear, then go, but you are on your time, once they say "go", even if you wait 15 min. before leaving. ) You will usually have one (sometimes more) vet checks in a 25, with a mandatory hold time. Varies from ride to ride. Sometimes in camp, sometimes out away from camp. Depends on ride. You can have a "crew" to help you if you wish. Your horse must meet a pulse criteria, before starting your hold at the vet. It also varies, but is usually around 64 - 68 beats per min. I'll let someone else go into more details over all on what happens at a ride. ** I've been told that people "blast" by, unannounced and completely freak out allot of horses... true? ** It can (and does) happen. Usually with the more inexperienced riders. Those who have done this a little while, are usually polite etc., but, you can have impolite riders in both endurance and CTR. (but remember, endurance is a "race", so sometimes newer riders get overly caught up in that "race" mindset.) **Can you really get off and walk *forward* with your horse? ** You can get off and walk the whole 25 miles if you want. **Been told that all that counts is finishing the race, that it doesn't matter how you get to the end... true?** Pretty much. As long as you and your horse do the miles together, and finish together. ** Do you guys really permit any/all kinds of horse *containment* such as stalling, tying, picketing, fencing, etc?** Yep...wait until you learn about the joys of horses running through an electric fence corral, and dragging it through camp in the middle of the night <wink> **Ever anything less than 25 miles?** Some rides are offering "fun" rides of less mileage, but they do not count towards AERC mileage, or awards. Often a good intro to the sport. **Been told that "endurance" riders are terribly competitive, cut throat and rude... true/not true? ** You have good and bad riders in ALL horse sports. **Do breeds besides Arabs do well?** All breeds compete at endurance, just as they do in competitive trail rides. By doing well, do you mean win? Finish? Win year end awards? Yes, all breeds can do all of those, but the sport is still dominated by Arabians as far as those who ride the race to finish first, but there are other breeds who can do so. Year end AERC awards have a huge mix of breeds. Two of the highest mileage horses this year are non-Arabians. One, and Icelandic, the other a Mustang. **How much $$ does a ride cost? ** About the same as a CTR. Around $60 - 80, depending on ride, region etc. **How many hours to do a 25?** You have 6 hours to finish the 25 mile ride. BUT, that includes your vet checks also. So, if they have a 1 hour hold at the vet check, you have 5 hours riding time. If it is only a 30 min. hold, you have 5.5 hours ride time. Again, depends on the ride, as to how many, and how long the holds are. Besides the hold time, the clock is on your time. That includes your potty breaks on trail, stopping for water, and even waiting for your horse to meet the required pulse, before getting checked, and going to the vet. If you get stuck in a line of folks waiting for the vet, or to get a pulse taken, the clock keeps running. A good way to get an intro to the sport, is to attend a ride, and volunteer. Below is the link to the ride calendar for 2005, and also, the link to AERC's web site, which might answer more questions. http://www.aerc.org/ American Endurance Ride Conf. http://www.doublejoy.com/erol/Calendar/rides.asp?gs=aerc&dtSpan=2005&scope=us AERC ride calendar Jonni =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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