Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

 Our sport is so unique in so many ways, and that is part of it's 
attraction. And it got that way because of it's attributes that were 
clearly present in the early years, but which are, in some circles, 
under pressure to change to meet the expectations and desires of it's 
participants. I looked up the definition of "endure" and came up with this:

  1. To carry on through, despite hardships; undergo: /endure an Arctic
     winter./
  2. To bear with tolerance: /“We seek the truth, and will endure the
     consequences”/ <http://www.answers.com/topic/bear>
  3. To suffer patiently without yielding.

To me, the key ingredient, the reason we do this sport, and the thing 
that must be maintained and protected as an attractive quality of 
endurance riding, is the "hardship" or "patient suffering" mentioned 
above. Our society has become so accommodating to our every comfort and 
to increasing needs to be recognized in an ever more crowded world, that 
some of us like to break away from that, and test our mettle against 
true challenge, and regardless of recognition or rewards. We want to 
test ourselves *outside our comfort zones* against fatigue (even 
exhaustion), the elements (extreme heat or cold), rough terrain, etc, 
all the while juggling the factors involved in caring for our equine 
partners who are sharing those same challenges at the same time--just 
because we asked them to. These are experiences that have been largely 
lost in today's soft society, though they offer much opportunity for fun 
and personal growth. I have heard it said that our most powerful lessons 
come from our most painful experiences. The rides I brag about the most 
are certainly the toughest and most painful ones. And I enjoy those 
campfire stories told by riders like Julie Suhr and others as they 
regale us with tales of the days when everyone rode in cowboy boots, 
western saddles, and had never heard of electrolytes or sunblock.
It is my personal opinion that the challenge in endurance should be a 
fixed parameter. Mt Everest, for example, is always the same height and 
basically the same challenge, no matter who is climbing it. No climber 
asks for it to be shortened so they can make it to the top, nor demands 
the same or similar recognition for having climbed halfway, because they 
are physically impaired or life got busy and they didn't have enough 
time or money to train properly. When life gets in the way (kids, work, 
financial restrictions, etc.,.) our sport responds by making available a 
similar and more doable experience--limited distance riding. But, just 
as there are shorter mountains out there to conquer, no one confuses 
those shorter mountains with Everest, nor expects similar accolades of 
having conquered it--until they actually do. And when they do, they will 
have "suffered hardships patiently," and truly endured at a high level. 
Each person's personal definition of suffering shouldn't define the 
challenge of this sport, anymore than our tolerance levels should 
determine how much recognition we get for any other achievement. Asking 
for increasing levels of recognition and awards for decreasing levels of 
challenge tends to water down the core principles of endurance riding, 
in my mind. The challenge is there in endurance riding, fixed and 
constant. The 100 mile trail awaits us, licking it's chops. An 
additional level of challenge presents itself as we pit ourselves 
against the long and difficult trail, helped or hindered by our own 
strengths and weaknesses, whatever those may be for each individual. 
Endurance riding truly allows us to embark on our own personal odyssey, 
to learn what we are really made of. These are experiences not often 
found in daily life, and they should be treasured, not modified to be 
more easily achieved and awarded. Where would be the challenge in that?
Bruce Weary

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