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[RC] Progress - Bruce WearyHi Truman--I can't really think of anything I do in endurance riding that is based directly on quantitative data. Not saddle selection, electrolyte use, feed type or amount, ride speed, shoeing technique, equitation, vet check strategy, tailing, amount of walking/trotting/cantering..............not a thing. It's pretty much all based on empirical experience. In the world of medicine, or in this case, veterinary science, it's common to make decisions and set policy on inductive and deductive reasoning based on empirical evidence. Rarely do we get to make sweeping decisions based on quantitative data. And when we do, things can still go very badly. Case in point, Vioxx. In fact, it's often empirical observations that direct where research should be heading. It's reasonable to assume that lower recovery criteria and a 30 minute recovery window at the end of a ride will induce slower ride speeds for some riders, as higher pulse rates and longer recovery times are generally indicative of higher work loads. And, we can definitely quantitatively show that harder physical effort causes higher heart rates. And longer recovery times, all other things being equal. So, these recommendations are at least partially based on quantitative data somewhere along the decision process. But, since the "racing" horses are not usually the ones that die, we still find ourselves swimming in the "soup" of how to determine which policies and rules will actually lead to more lives saved. Probably most folks who think our current protective measures are inadequate, harbor a cherished notion of their own that they feel would create more safety. But, when exposed to the light of day, their ideas would be prone to the same uncertainties of the methods that have been tried so far. There are so many variables, that it is very difficult to predict what methods may or may not work---until they are tried. Dr Q =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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