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Re: [RC] [RC] [RC] Kids, ponies and distance riding... Get a grip people - Joe LongOn Wed, 15 Dec 2004 00:39:53 EST, OTTOWY@xxxxxxx wrote: ... If you are so worried about underage kids competing, then don't let yours compete! The rest of us parents out there think we know our kids pretty well and know what they are capable of. Alas, some parents are irresponsible. So, we don't allow parents to decide when their child is old enough to drive on the public highways. We don't let parents decide when their child is old enough to buy alcohol. We don't allow parents to decide when their child is old enough to join the Army. There are MANY more examples of minimum age requirements, both by government and by private organizations. Society has long recognized the need for such rules, and that they are not an infringement on parental rights. The bottom line is: it is none of the AERC's busines if parents put very young children on horses at home, take them riding hither and yon, at any age ... but it is VERY MUCH the AERC's business when they bring very young children to compete in an AERC sanctioned event. The AERC has no obligation whatsoever to allow very young children to compete in AERC rides just because their parents may want them to. If the children want to ride then give them the opportunity when they are interested. Want to squash a child's enthusiasm in one step, just tell them they aren't old enough. They will never want to do it again. Sure, that's why no kids want to drive a car at 16, because they were told they weren't old enough at 15. When I was 11 years old I still remember conditioning everyday for nothing! You had to be 12 to ride the Big Horn 100. Don't put any child through that! Watching someone else ride my horse was torture! For nothing? Did you never ride an endurance ride after that? Do you really believe children have to get everything they want, as soon as they want it, or they are being "tortured?" Anyhow, as a mother of four and the person whose encouraged 100's of kids to "Get riding". I think I have the child pretty well down. Age shouldn't be the issue! I encourage kids to ride --when they are old enough! I've sponsored many juniors and loved it. Not all children are capable of riding at the same age, some mature faster (physically and mentally) than others. But IMO, NO five or six year old is old enough to ride endurance rides safely (the fact that a few have gotten away with it -- so far -- doesn't change that). Age IS the issue. The AERC doesn't allow the rider to decide when his horse is old enough to compete, we have minimum age rules for horses in our rides. Why do we do less for children? IMO it is to our shame that we won't extend the same protection for children that we do for our horses. -- Joe Long jlong@xxxxxxxx http://www.rnbw.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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