Can't say for sure how the horse feels about
it, but just speaking from my human perspective....
Back when I was capable of doing it, a fast
4 hour 50 beat me up pretty bad; I would be both tired and sore from it.
The flip side, the 12 hour 50, is just as bad...you just drag around out there,
do a LOT of walking and sitting in one position. I end up exhausted from
it. The best I feel is when I'm in shape and do a 5-7 hour ride.
Some walking, resting, some cruising along trotting, some cantering, some
stopping to graze, some blasting along and really covering ground. Those
are the rides that I feel the best afterwards.
Barb McGann
-----Original Message----- From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Alison
Farrin Sent: Monday, November 29, 2004 11:15 AM To:
ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: RE: [RC] Riding Too
Slow
I think that the point
has been made, especially with our desert rides, if you ride so slow that your
horse has just the minimum amount of time to eat and rest in the vet checks
and that's all the time he has, that he burns more calories than has time to
take in. Thus, you are actually hurting your horse by being out on the
trail longer for the amount of calories he has time to take in. Just
existing takes more calories than mild exercise, so if the horse does not have
the time to replenish the calories, he's actually losing by going
slow.
This assumes, however,
that you are not going slow because you are stopping on the trail to let the
horse eat!
Alison A. Farrin
-----Original Message----- From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
StephTeeter Sent: Monday, November 29, 2004 10:03
AM To: DVeritas@xxxxxxx; ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject:
RE: [RC] Riding Too Slow
Frank - I've never quite understood the
'going to slow is just as bad' thing. The only circumstances that it might
apply to would be if the saddle/tack doesn't fit well, and every minute in
the saddle contributes to pressure or pain. Or maybe going too slow, for too
long, just plain old wearing out the joints or causing enough small stresses
to equal one big one. The Trilby's and Les's have pretty much proven that a
horse that does slow miles, can usually do a LOT of miles.
It certainly does seem logical - that if
you ride slow, you can ride more often. If you ride fast, you should be more
selective and careful.
Enjoy the snow :)
Steph
-----Original Message----- From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
DVeritas@xxxxxxx Sent: Monday, November 29, 2004 8:54
AM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Riding Too
Slow
I've been
told by my wife, friends and others that sometimes (usually) I
ride too slow.
I've been told that
riding too slow (and still meeting the cutoff times in endurance) can be
just as hard on a horse (physically, emotionally, mentally) as riding too
fast.
Do you suppose that can be true?
And, one last question this
morning, each horse that does this sport has a FIRST RIDE. We pick
that day.
So, with an "apparently"
sound horse, how does one know when it is that horse's LAST RIDE?
(I'm not talking about the (so-called) "exceptional" horses with
"exceptional" riders.) I'm talking about the horses that grind 'em
out. I'd say that in our sport that most horses have their LAST RIDE
due to physical problems associated with the hauling and "hauling" (if you
know what I mean) long before they get "too old".
Just wonderin' on this
frosty frigid morning with eleven inches of snow on the
ground....
