Endurance Horse Breedline project

[flemmerl@rcbhsc.wvu.edu (Flemmer, Linda)]

R. M. Raymond wrote:
> 
> I would like to do a research project, but need everyone's input.  I have
> the Arabian Horse Book Shelf CD for pedigrees.
> 
> I will look up all the Arabians/part Arabians used for endurance.
>         1. Registered number and name of horse or of the parent for part breds.
>         2. How many miles (lifetime)

I would add here - "over how many years".  This sounds like a GREAT
project, but I suspect that it would be VERY time consuming. 
Experienced breeders know what bloodlines they prefer, but the less
experienced person (like me) could realy benefit from that type of
resource.

> and average time of rides. This so I know
> if the horse is working hard, (a 5 hour 50) or hardly working (a 5.5 hour
> 25).

I'm afraid that this info may be useless.  The difficulty of the ride is
such a big factor in how long it takes to complete!  We don't have a
"Ride Difficulty Rating", so there isn't a good way to compare apples to
apples.  If a GOOD 100 mile horse does the Old Dominion in the mountains
of VA in 22 hours, that isn't a bad time.  The OD 50 may take 6+ hours
to WIN.  The terrain is horrific in places.  How would that compare to a
flat "race track" 50 that's finished in 2 hours, or a 100 that takes 6
hours?
> 
>         Anything else I should use?

At risk of flames, what was the weight class of the rider for the
majority of those miles.  The HW rider puts more wear & tear on the
horse than a FW, in my opinion.  It may show the strength of the
underlying structure of the horse.  To play devil's advocate, though,
the amount of training certainly plays a huge factor in how well the
horse holds up.  No homework, no mileage!

Lastly, would you want to consider other long distance endeavors into
the horse's mileage, such as being ride & tie mount, mounted
orienteering, CTR above "x" speed (like ECTRA at ~6 mph), etc.?

Linda Flemmer


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