Saturday Morning, September 2007.

[Sbeseda@aol.com]

Saturday Morning, September 2007.

	I’ve been riding these races for more than a 
decade now.  Every year the crowds at the start get 
bigger.

	"Geez, get out of my way,"  I mutter under 
my breath.  Another reporter hunting the next 
endurance spectacular story.  Catfish’s hooves are 
so close to his feet I hold my breath, but the reporter 
steps out of our way as we approach the start.  
Sometimes I miss the simple starts of long ago.  
Everybody wants to know everything since they 
started the Endurance Net Event.  Yesterday Catfish 
was my horse, but today they snapped on a neck 
monitor band and now he’s everybody’s horse.  
Nothing is secret.  The neck monitor sends 
respiration, hydration, and gut sounds real time to 
Internet Event site where everybody can see how 
he’s doing in the race.  I guess I should quit 
complaining.  I chose to make this sport my life.

	The reporter we almost walked on steps 
close at the start.  "I heard Catfish is training well.  
How do you think he will do today?"  he asks.
	I can’t help bragging a bit about Catfish.  
"Well, darn, I see him taking the win.  I think we 
could take the Most Efficient Award, too.  Now, 
excuse me, we’re about to race."  I guide Catfish 
slightly away from the reporter to have a brief 
moment of privacy with my horse before the race 
begins.  If such a thing as privacy can be had with all 
the satellite transmitters sending digitized video of 
the start to the Net site.

	The race starts and shortly into it I see the 
first trail marker ahead.  It’s a blue light on top of a 
pole that emerges from a box at its base.  This is the  
first network node which will gather Catfish’s 
numbers from his monitor and send them to the 
Internet public.  I think our fans will be pleased 
when they see how quickly Catfish has moved into 
racing form.  The video and stats will be available 
almost instantly to the Web pages, which I admit, 
modestly, drew the most hits during the World 
Endurance Net Event last May.  Of course, Catfish’s 
biography and my good looks do make a clickable 
package.

	Where’s a blood sugar guy when you need 
one?  I listened to my status pad for Catfish’s vital 
signs as we approach the vet check.  I hope our vet, 
Sam, is watching on his palm top PC so he can be 
ready for us at the Vet Check.  There is good 
information about a horse’s condition these days.  
The monitors send data about each step ahead to the 
vets, as well as to the Internet.  It’s been great for 
the horses.  The whole race is a kind of vet check.  
The actual Vet Check stop is  more of a PR event 
where Internet reporters try to grab a sound bite 
from the riders to add flavor to their digital video 
clips of the stop.  I hope that nice World Event 
reporter that gave me and Catfish all the great press 
last May is here.  I can always use an ego boost.

	The 41st blue trail marker is ahead now.  I 
note Catfish’s efficiency rating is the best it’s ever 
been.  The Most Efficient Award for average heart 
rate over time and distance comes with a big fat 
bonus check.  I’ve already priced a new automated 
saddle pad I want to buy with the money.  This 
saddle pad is having trouble adjusting to gait 
changes.  The new ones can be programmed to 
individual horses.  Now that I see how Catfish’s 
sweet canter is making his efficiency numbers glow, 
I can’t till the award is announced.  I bet those 
couch endurance eventers are in hog heaven.

Well, the race is over.  We won the race, so I should 
be happy.  But I’m kind of irritated because an 
Arabian nag that just started racing this year took 
the Most Efficient Award.  Geez, you’d think the 
judges could add a few points for the way a horse 
IS.  So what if the Arabian’s numbers were just a 
thousandth better than Catfish - Catfish’s got 
enough character to make up for all the impersonal 
data in the world.  Oh well, technology changes 
things.  And there’s always another Endurance Net 
Event.  With the millions of viewers the Internet 
draws, there are more endurance races every year.

    *    *    * 

I wrote this Endurance Net Event story as an 
illustration of how endurance events today could be 
available on the Internet.  Imaging going to 
"Endurance Net  Event" site where you could select 
one of several races to track.  Each race would have 
a course map to be viewed several different ways.  
Views might show elevations, live video of different 
course sites, weather and ground conditions.  The 
sites could have real time racing statistics available 
for each horse and rider.  People around the world 
interested in the sport could follow the races in a 
self-directed way.  

Just sharing a few thoughts about how technology 
changes things.

Scott