Whips and Spurs in Endurance

["guest@endurance.net" <guest@endurance.net>]

K S SWIGART   katswig@earthlink.net


Let's get one thing straight here, in the AERC, whips and spurs
are not disallowed.  In FEI, only "spurs are prohibited" (and a
stupid rule if ever I heard one).

And if the AERC ever passes such a rule, I will stop riding
endurance.  I consider spurs to be an absolutely essential 
piece of safety equipment and will not go out on the trail
without them.  As far as I am concerned, a rule prohibiting them
would be as dumb as "helmets are prohibited."

The effect of spurs is to enable the rider to give clear, concise
and deliberate cues to the horse (assuming that the rider knows
how to use them properly).  They are not intended (nor are they
effective) for making a horse go faster (if they did, then
jockeys would wear them in the Kentucky Derby).

The FEI, of course, understands this completely, which is why 
they allow dressage, event, and show jumping riders to use them.
They understand that they are an invaluable tool in getting a
horse to place its foot more precisely where the rider wants it.
Assuming that the rider knows how to use them properly and has
enough control over his lower leg in order to not accidentally
spur the horse (which will have the opposite effect of just 
confusing the horse and making it more likely to ignore the
rider's leg aids).  They also enable the rider to get his "heel" 
on the horse without removing his knee.

Most of the time while going down the trail, the horse is
perfectly capable of figuring out for itself where to put its
feet, and the spurs have little or no use.  However, there have
been plenty of instances where the horse is not paying attention
to where it is putting its feet, or doesn't see something that
the rider sees, or some unexpected disaster occurs and a well
placed and well timed spur will keep the horse (and rider) from
going over the edge.  The consequences of a misstep in dressage
is a low score, the consequences of a misstep in show jumping is
a downed rail, the consequences of a misstep in endurance could
be equally as disasterous as the consequences of a mistep in 
the cross country phase of eventing--injury or death to both 
horse and rider.

The fact that the FEI has passed a rule banning spurs for
endurance riders suggests to me that either a) they are more 
concerned about appearances than they are of the actual safety 
of horses and riders or b) they are of the opinion that endurance
riders are a bunch of intermediate riders who don't know how to 
use spurs properly and therefore should be banned from using them
because they are more likely to use them improperly.

Whips, like spurs, can be used both properly and improperly and
rules banning them would be equally as silly as the one banning
spurs.  And sanctioning organizations (where ever they may be)
are stupidly naive if they think they can stop endurance riders
from over riding and/or abusing their horses by taking away
their whips and/or spurs.  People who are going to over ride or
abuse their horses cannot be stopped by taking away tools that
are valuable riding aids for the rest of the horse riding population.

So far, the AERC understands this, and has refused to pass idiotic
rules about not using whips and spurs.  And they already have 
rules against abusing horses, so riders who abuse their horses
with whips and spurs can be disqualified in the same way that 
riders who abuse their horses without them.

kat
Orange County, Calif.

p.s.  If I had not been wearing spurs when Marla spun around on
and went down on the paved road at Swanton, they would STILL be 
scraping bits and pieces of both me an her off the tarmac.  As it
was, I was able to quickly change her direction of motion, push 
her hindleg underneath her and get her to her feet with the 
single application of the spur on her right side.