Re: Hazards on endurance rides related to horse size

["Glenda R. Snodgrass" <grs@theneteffect.com>]

> I had always been told that a smaller horse has an advantage in rough
> county, and indeed, my 14'2 h gelding is a mountain goat....he can go
> over or through anything you can point him at.  He seems to be faster in
> rough county than alot of the larger horses we ride with.

I'll second that.  Itty Bitty Lakota at 14h runs circles around all the
other horses at my barn on the trails -- but often gets left in the dust
on the straightaway. :) We recently trailered to a friend's barn and rode
with 2 TB mares whose riders kept exclaiming over how "sure-footed" Lakota
is, how he zigged and zagged around the trees, fallen logs, over streams,
etc., where their big TBs were stumbling and rocking from side to side.  
It may be a breed thing too, I dunno, but that compact little body of his 
can go really fast on rough terrain.  And he absolutely LOVES to jump 
logs, stumps, holes, etc. (in spite of the fact that I don't really know 
how to jump myself :) so height doesn't affect that in anyway.  He just 
sails right over anything he can't go around quickly, pops in and out of 
holes and muddy patches, and keeps on going and going and going :)))

Glenda & Lakota (just call me The Energizer Pony)