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Re: [RC] 20 MT and Little Big Man - Karen Sullivan----- Original Message ----- From: "Joe Long" <jlong@xxxxxxxx> There is no age at which we are completely safe on rides. I'm not some starry-eyed idealist demanding total safety -- life is risk, and to live life well requires greater risks than just surviving. My concern is exposing children to unnecessary risk at a VERY EARLY age. I believe it is our responsibility as the adults running the show to set some standards. I'm in agreement with Joe that a minimum age is NOT unreasonable....Because sure enough, once someone ponies a 3 year old on a 25 mile ride (it's in the AERC records) , some bozo will pony a 2 year old on a ride....I also ask...how many YOUNG kids actively participate in the same venue at the same time with adults in other sports? Given the risks of horseback riding in general, the hazards of the trail and other riders and green horses, again, a minimum age is totally reasonable...... Toddlers are top-heavy with large heads compared to their bodies, bad balance, soft bones, etc. I hardly see how being required to wait for some minimum age is going to ruin some kids life. You proponents of no age requirement keep talking about spoiled kids who play video games all day, but you also keep talking about young kids who will be "so devastated" if they can't ride.....well, that sounds spoiled to me. By all means, bring the kids to the ride; bring their pony or horse and let them do a warm up ride with you, or ride around camp supervised; have them help out and demonstrate some understanding and responsibilty before being thrown into a sport that also has very hard-core adult riders. A very young child on a horse may be on the same trail as the front runners on a 50 on their second loop.....Bring along another parent, older sibling, or babysitter while you are at the ride. And yes, I brought up two kids on horses. Very disappointed with AERC in this matter. Karen =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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