RE: [RC] Reply to Suicide Race - Chastain, Shannon L.
This reminds me of my first LD Ride. I was
getting gas at the local station when one of my hubby's friend stop and asked
where I was going, I told him an Endurance race. He was shocked I would go such
a thing to my horse, I on the other hand was confused. So he told me this
story:
A months or so before when he was on his way
to work at the towns water treatment plant he saw a family camping with 4 horses
in an electric fence. He stopped to talk with them he thought the horses
were rescue horses they looked like &hit, they were very thin and he said
there coats were very dull. The owner told them there were endurance horses and
they were on their way back to Texas from Canada. He told them they did 50 miles
races and were always in the top ten and the horse only "lasted" a few years
then they would replace them. To my husbands friend this was abuse, I tried to
explain not everyone had this kind attitude toward their endurance horses and I
plan to ride mine for years even if I only do LD's. But the damage was already
done he condemn the whole sport.
-----Original Message----- From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of
DVeritas@xxxxxxx Sent: Wednesday, May 25, 2005 9:45
AM To: kathleenmarie@xxxxxxxxxxx Cc:
ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: [RC] Reply to Suicide
Race
In a message dated 5/24/2005 6:10:31 P.M. Mountain Daylight Time,
kathleenmarie@xxxxxxxxxxx writes:
We know our sport has
strived to become safer over the years (CRI and fit to continue etc) but to
an outsider it could still look like we are callous to our horses’ welfare
by “pushing them to run 100 miles in a day”.
What sane and well-presented thoughts, Kathleen.
"Rites of Passage" certainly seem a bit more (culturally) important than
winning a buckle.
I am no fan of rodeo, either, but I always wish the riders and animals
well and hope for the best, though I still don't attend them (which is
darned-near sacrilege where I live).
Same for the (so called) "Suicide Race" in Washington.
