Re: NOT FLUFF

["Joe Long" <jlong@mti.net>]

On Thu, 12 Mar 1998 15:35:20 -0800, Becky Hackworth
<bechack@flash.net> wrote:

>Joe...when was the last time you took 3 daughters ON an endurance ride, ages
>10, 11 and 13 and got all of you through the ride without killing one of them!

>NOW THAT IS ENDURANCE  Just because we only rode 30 miles that day...

I think y'all are still missing the point.  It may have been
"endurance" something but it was not an endurance "ride."

There are any number of examples we could cite of riding some distance
"x" of less than fifty miles, where the riders or horses endured
extreme hardships.  Hardships caused not by the distance ridden, but
by other factors.  Such as, taking a group of "city slickers" on a
fifteen mile overnight pack trip and having a blizzard hit.

None of them are endurance rides.  By definition an endurance ride is
at least 50 miles in one day.  Personally, I think many 50 mile rides
aren't true tests of endurance -- some fifties are extremely tough,
but some are pretty easy.  On good terrain and weather it takes more
like 60 to 75 miles to really test a horse.  But we had to make a
definition somewhere, and that definition is fifty miles in one day.

Now you could re-define "endurance ride" to a ride of 25 miles or more
in one day -- but to do so would, IMNSHO, make the definition
essentially meaningless.  You might as well define it as 15 miles in
one day, or ten, or whatever someone wants to call it and say they've
ridden an endurance ride.  And make no mistake about it -- if you call
a 25 mile ride an endurance ride today, someone will want to call a
fifteen mile ride an endurance ride tomorrow!  And want their miles
recorded!!!

The bottom line as far as I'm concerned:  if you want to call yourself
an endurance rider, then ride an endurance ride.  Don't ride a short
ride and then say that because of "X" circumstances, that makes  you
an endurance rider.

And if that sounds mean, so be it.  I'm sick and tired of hearing
people wanting to talk the talk without walking the walk.

-- 

Joe Long
jlong@mti.net
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