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> Maybe this is my inexperience speaking, but in my mind, an
> "easy ride" of hardly more than a trot, over rough, uneven, broken,
> rocky, etc. terrain, would not be considered "easy" by the horse either.
> If he has to watch his footing every step of the way, constantly adjust
> his balance as his feet are on different levels at every step, slips,
> slides & stumbles and has to readjust his balance, wouldn't that be very
> tiring for the horse, even at a slow trot or walk? Doesn't the horse
> have to twist and turn to keep his balance on uneven terrain, just as his
> rider does? Susan, what say you?
>
> Glenda & Lakota
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I'll take a stab at that (even though I'm not Susan)...
I used to pack at a commercial pack station on the east side of the
Sierras for several seasons. The station sat at about an elevation of
6500 ft, and in four hours at a walk (including rest stops), the first
camp could be reached at an elevation of 11'000 feet. Typically, the
camps we would take guests to were another two hours away with another
1000 foot (and twisty) climb. The trails were really rough... couldn't
trot a horse over them if you wanted to in most places. Climbs were
steep on the switchbacks, and at about 9000 feet the trail was only
granite (and not really a trail at all, just scaling across a mountain
;-) ). Only at 10'500 feet to 11'500 did you ever see any flat trail,
trees, or meadows.
Anyway, keeping weight on most of the pack stock (150 horses and mules)
was almost impossible. Each animal brought into the station at the
beginning of the season from pasture was rolly-polly fat, and everyone
received at least one day off a week during the working season. Even on
free-fed alfalfa hay and five pounds of sweet feed per day, almost each
horse dropped weight (body score of 4 typically, showing plenty of ribs
by end of the season). Saddle re-fitting had to be done twice in the
season to accommodate for the loss of width and increase in muscle
tone.
So, even at an "easy" pace of a walk, these horses were really working.
Every horse and mule came into camp wet with sweat (although it was cold
enough in camp to sustain snow). Every horse and mule ate alfalfa or
meadow plants until he could eat no more, but still dropped weight
through the end of the season. The climbs were tough, the trail
extremely rocky (every nose to the ground), footing was slick many times
(ice or wet granite), water crossings were deep and fast, and the guests
were inexperienced at riding. I'm sure many guests wished they packed
extra underwear after riding these trails (giggle).
Regarding the scientific end of things (if that's the best way to put
it), the amount of energy required to preform work is going to be
dependant on many factors. The "climb" of the trail will increase
energy needs, as well as increased speed, increased load (rider and tack
weight), and increased fatigue. A poorly conditioned horse will require
more energy for work than a well conditioned one, which also holds true
for carrying a novice rider versus an experienced one. Colder
temperatures will require more energy, as well as increased difficulties
in terrain (the horse is unbalanced while navigating through rough
trail, which does not allow him to carry weight efficently). Stress
increases energy requirements, as well as the actual distance of trail
to cover. I could go on, and on...
In conclusion, I would define an "easy" ride as one which is easy for
BOTH horse and rider, which would include moderate paces over mostly
level, sound footing, comfortable temperatures, low humidity, plenty of
water, an experienced rider who isn't flopping about, plenty of feed to
graze, few twists and turns, and hey, let's include a Seven-11 or Circle
K at the vet checks for the humans and Pepsi drinkin' horses! Excuse
the sarcasm here, but I don't think rides can be strictly categorized as
"easy" or "hard"... just different levels in between. Personally, I say
"Hand me your most difficult!", but that's because I have a QH cross
mare who's a mountain goat! Just my penny's worth!
Kim (known by packers as "Cookie", and 'Lee, the "mean ol' lead mare")
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