BUCKEYE NUTRITION SPONSORS PERFORMANCE PROFILING

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

BUCKEYE NUTRITION kschexnayder@buckeyenutrition.com
BUCKEYE NUTRITION TO SPONSOR PERFORMANCE PROFILING AT THE BILTMORE ENDURANCE RIDE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE					April 24, 2001
Contact: Karen Schexnayder, Marketing Manager			(330) 828-2251 ext. 156
kschexnayder@buckeyenutrition.com


(Dalton, OH)  …………  For over 90 years, Buckeye Nutrition's legacy has been rooted in the tradition of providing quality Equine products and services to our customers.  Continuing with this tradition, Buckeye Nutrition is proud to offer Performance Profiling at the upcoming Biltmore Endurance Ride to be held May 5, 2001 in Asheville, North Carolina.  The performance profiling research is part of Buckeye Nutrition's continuing commitment to research and development in the Equine industry and will be conducted by the research team of Dr. Mike Lindinger and Gayle Ecker.    
The purpose of performance profiling is to more accurately quantify the hydration and electrolyte balance and energy status in order to develop more effective management programs.  Profiling will offer the riders important information on the effectiveness of current supplementation regimes and more effective methods, based on objective results.  Profiling gives "real time" data on a horse during a ride or event, which helps to ensure that riders know what is necessary to keep their horse healthy and performing at its best.  Performance profiling involves taking blood samples, body weights and sometimes sweat samples for analysis of the hydration, electrolyte and energy status of your horse. "So much of the time, we do not have objective information so we have to guess as to what is best for the horse.  The objective testing of the performance profiling gives real-time information on your horse.  It helps remove much of the guesswork and helps pinpoint areas to improve the management of the horse," stated Ms. Ecker.  Reports are given to the riders with recommendations as appropriate to help improve the health and performance of their horses during and after the ride. 


After all the testing is complete, riders will receive feedback with the objective results on their own horse with comparisons to the other horses taking part in the research.  The researchers will sit down with each rider and review their individual horse's results, pointing out areas where can be possible room for improvement.  In addition, each participant will be mailed a customized assessment. 
Buckeye Nutrition began in 1910 as a family-owned business dedicated to manufacturing production livestock feed.  Since our beginnings, we have evolved into a premier supplier of companion animal feeds.  Our nutritional staff is involved in research at several veterinary universities.  Through this research we gain valuable knowledge of what it takes to provide our discriminating customers with the best possible diets for their animals.  "This research project will help to define nutritional parameters that are critical in optimizing performance in horses, which ultimately will improve the health and care of all performance horses", said Dr. Kent N. Thompson, Director of Equine Nutrition.  Our nutritionists conduct a wide variety of nutritional seminars for consumers and veterinary students in our distribution areas. 

Gayle Ecker and Dr. Michael Lindinger have been performing profiling research for many years, including two years at the Race of Champions (ROC) in South Dakota and Utah. They currently have well over 340 endurance horses in their study as well as the treadmill studies and research on three-day eventing horses. They have several published papers in Equine Veterinary Journal, Compendium of Continuing Education and Equine Veterinary Education.