Re: NATRC

[mspirit@webtv.net (Lori Chandler)]

Hi Julie - 

The tied to panel or trailer is for uniformity in stabling & is safe for
the horses if done properly (lead rope long enough so they can get head
down & eat, even lie down, but not so long as to get a leg over).  Since
stabling is judged, you definately learn to keep your stuff out of the
way, padding sharp corners or door handles or anything maybe you
wouldn't think about otherwise until your horse got hurt.

Staying mounted on downhills is part of the staying mounted while
maintaining forward motion rule.  In NATRC your challenge is not in how
fast you can cover the course, but rather how well you can cover
sometimes very difficult terrain.  The stresses would come from climbing
at a walk, mounted or trotting a mandatory couple of miles through sand,
then seeing that your horse is recovering in 10 min. to the prescribed
criteria.

This is also a good way to gauge how your riding is helping or hurting
your horse.  The better you get at this, the better your horse gets at
downhills, then when you ride endurance & you get off to go downhill,
your horse has learned something about balance & collection which will
make it easier on both of you.

Hope this helps,
Lori & Sky
AZ