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Re: [RC] starting 50s vs LD - terre

At 11:56 AM 11/22/2005, you wrote:
Hello Terre,
You are using FBT here. For a year you rode limited distances marking and clearing trail, camped with other horses, rode drag and even had a vet check all without signing your name to an LD ride form but you did all the same things that LD riders do.

Not at all. I didn't ride 25 miles in a day. I didn't "shotgun start" with other horses. Tying ribbons, getting off and cutting branches, roots, etc are NOTHING like LD. Neither is riding at a walk for 2 hours with backcountry horsemen leading a string of mules!

I electrolyted at home on training rides. I rode 7 miles, pulled tack, had lunch, tacked up and rode another 7 miles in the park near where I live. I do this to train. Train for LD or train for endurance, this is sport-specific "training" (as opposed to conditioning). It is common to both sports, but doing it as preparation for the sport is not the same as doing the sport.

In fact it's just the lack of paperwork that lets you say "I start my horses in 50's". Nobody "starts" their horses in 50's. We all "start" by conditioning and working up to 50's thru many various methods all of which include limited distances of some kind.

Well, obviously, we all start with limited distance, but we don't all start with LD. The first can be a 5 mile walk/jog (what we call LSD in the training manuals.....), the other is a specific, legitimate defined sport (LD).

One of the reasons I don't like to start young horses in LD is that too many other people start their young horses in LD. It is so much easier when a young horse is in the company of 'seasoned' horses, rather than witnessing other younghorse foolishness. I've also been at this sport long enough to know what I'm doing; I do think new riders need to start with shorter distance.

But going to LD 'competitions'--especially if you have to pay $100 entry fee!!--is NOT the only way to bring a horse up.

terre


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