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From: Terry MacPheat
Email: enduronut@aol.com
Friends;
This weekend I took a break from riding and spent the day assisting the veterinarians at a new ride here in Western Montana. It was a real eye-opener!
In the 10 hours I spent writing notes for the vets,
I had the opportunity to see some of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly parts of our sport. The Good: A ton of people volunteering to help, a couple of vets who were great educators, and many riders who obviously cared a great deal for their four-legged partners. The Bad: Getting sweaty, dusty, sunburned, backachy and bee-hassled. and seeing riders who continue on horses that were borderline, but not hurting enough for the vets to say "You're Out!" The Ugly: The one or two riders who made things unpleasant for many by riding their horses into the ground, then complaining that they'd ridden for nothing, and whose general lack of manners (coming to the vet checks with complaints and questions while there were 10-15 horses waiting to vet thru, then complaining loudly to others about the way things were done when they got short replies) made many irritated and uncomfortable .
And then there's The BEAUTIFUL: The one rider, who, after she finished her completion check, stopped to thank the vet and me for being there when we could have been doing something else! Whoever you were, if you read this, THANK YOU!!!!
Which comes to the topic of this post: Having now been on both sides (RIDING is the EASY part!) of the fence, I vow to make it a point to thank as many volunteers at these events as I can (I usually thank at least one; I vow to do more!). I hope the rest of you will do likewise!
The volunteers may not always know exactly what's going on or have all the answers, but I can honestly say that most of them work their buns off in ways we riders never see, and WITHOUT THEM THERE WOULD BE NO RIDES!
Also, I urge you, if you possibly can, to volunteer for something at at least one ride each season! I found it a tremendously rewarding and educational experiencer! If everyone who rode would volunteer for something at one ride each year, I'm willing to bet both the quality and QUANTITY of rides in all our regions would go up!
Finally, To Darlene, Jeff, Duncan, Bill, Andy and the entire Missoula County Sheriff's Posse: Thanks! You did a great job with a great turnout, handled some difficult situations with grace and patience, and I can't wait to RIDE with you next year!!!!
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