Weights

[LRiedel769@aol.com]

Well, after giving Iowa a nice warm winter, El Nino decided to even things up
with the rest of the country, and sent us lotsa snow and high winds (more
snow than we've had all winter).  Couldn't ride so I decided to see what I
could come up with on this discussion about weights.  Groan!!  Wish I'd never
started, since it took almost all day.
  .   This is not "one-rat research" nor is it anecdotal.  I have scores for
40 competitive rides from 1997  with a total of 1168 entries--517 heavyweight
and 651 lightweight.  The scores are arrived at in a fashion very similar to
BC on endurance rides.  In addition the speed is constant (about 6 - 6 1/2
mph) since all horses must complete the course within a 10-minute window.
 The rides vary in distance from 25 miles, up to 50, 75 and   3-day 100s.
Riders start out with a score of 400 per 25-miles, with points deducted for
all the usual factors.
   The average score for Heavyweight riders was 366 points; for Lightweight
riders 374 points, a little over a 2% variance.  Louise Riedel, who is NOT a
statistician.