Two way radios and endurance rides

["Ed Hauser" <sisufarm@mmmpcc.org>]

I have been following the thread about rules and radios to keep crews and
riders in contact  with some interest.  To me there seems to be a number of
important points relative to this issue:
1.  The FEI rules are not relevant to  ordinary AERC rides.  If they were we
would be running one weight class, and forbidding riders to talk to vets,
etc.
2.  Horse show rules are also not relevant to endurance rides.  Our contests
take many hours as opposed to minutes.  The value of instant information and
advice is much less in an endurance ride.
3.  It is obvious that the initial intent of the rule was to prevent
physical or verbal hazing of a horse and to using fresh horses to encourage
a horse to speed up.  It is ridiculous to believe that crews are prevented
from telling a rider when they meet them at a hold, or on the trail where
other horses are.  Riders can see that for themselves at each hold.
4.  I'm not sure what big advantage one could get from instant updates.
Assuming that one knows where one is at each hold, and perhaps at some
intermediate spots where one's crew met them, position will not change that
much before the next stop.  If the rider(s) of interest are way ahead one is
either not going to catch them, or they are going to fast and will have to
slow down.  The same logic holds from riders gaining on you from behind.
I can think of only one race where updates might have helped me.  I was
running first heavyweight in a 60 this summer.  I left the last check 2
minutes ahead of the second heavy weight.  The first 4 miles were road so I
loped my horse to keep my lead.  At the turn into the woods, I got water
from my rival's crew.  My rival caught me a mile or so into the woods.  If I
had known by radio that he was moving so fast, I might have elected to speed
up and keep my lead.  On the other hand, since the temperature was now about
90, I may have elected to do exactly what I did, and keep pace with him
until we got 3/4 mile from the finish.  Obviously, once we were in sight of
each other all the radios in the world would not have helped either of us.
To make a long story short, Ranger and I won in a horse race.
I would be interested in hearing of actual races where a radio would have
made a big difference to an experienced rider riding a good horse.   Except
where things get close at the very end of a race, I go at my preplanned pace
to finish at my planned time.  With my present horse I often find that since
I go at a very even pace the whole race, I pass a lot of my competition
during the second half of the race.  Instant knowledge of their position
wouldn't change my speed at all.

Ed Hauser
Sisu Farm
1140 37th St.
Hudson, WI 54016
(715) 386-0465
email: sisufarm@mmmpcc.org