Don't disagree with this. Given a particular set of measurements of these
factors, how much weight can a horse carry? The 30% rule is indeed a
generalization that could be refined. But I need numbers. Of course I could
keep adding weight until my horse has a problem, but I would rather learn
from the past.
This issue is probably more important to us backcountry riders than it is
to endurance riders. We don't have a crew with extra gear waiting at a
check point. :-)
Duncan Fletcher
dfletche@gte.net
----------
> From: K S Swigart <katswig@deltanet.com>
> [much supporting argument snipped]
> How a horse is put together, and the composition of the materials (bone,
> muscle, fat, ligaments, etc) is a far better indicator of the weight
> carrying ability of a horse than is its total body weight. Short
> coupling, strong muscles over the loin and along the underline for
> supporting the back, strength and resiliancy in the ligaments of the
> back, and great flexibility in the sacro iliac joint are a number of
> things to look for in a horse that you want to carry weight. In addition
> you want to look at the conformation of the legs, the substance and
density of
> bone, the quality of hoof, the resiliance of the supporting ligaments and
> tendons (especially those of the lower leg i.e. the suspensories and the
> flexor tendons).
> [more snipped]
> kat
> Orange County, Calif.