Ridecamp: [RC] stop and go...

> This thread brings to thought, how many vets really need to be at a
ride. At the recent Shellbourne XP they had 1.2 vets for 126 horses  on
the first day.....and it all worked out fine.

As a ride manager I wouldn't be caught dead with those odds.  I'd feel
personally responsible if either a horse wasn't able to be treated for
lack of vets...or the ride basically had to grind to a halt because the
only vets were needed to treat horses.  Sometimes even the most
concientious riders have horses tie up.  Can't always be avoided with
good horsemanship.  I WANT vet checks at regular intervals...certainly
not 37 mile gaps.  It's nice to know that if something goes wrong (for
instance when I saw Val's horse cut an artery on a trail last year) that
the vets aren't just waiting at the finish line for legal reasons.  

As for saving money?? For goodness sakes, look somewhere else! Skip the
meal, forget the completion awards, but give me enough competent vets! If
there's anywhere I'm actually willing to turn loose of some money it's in
the area of insuring that my horse will have access to decent vetting.  I
think I'm about the cheapest person I know, but there's a ride I like
that I don't go to because I think the vets in that area are subpar. 
Money's not everything.

As for a stop and go...I like breaking the herd up as early as possible
in a race and have no problem with that.  I would be in favor of it even
if my horse was the one who was held back.  If he recovers slower, I want
him to break off from a faster group. I would be in favor of this *in
addition* to the regular vet checks. It just sounds like here that you're
looking at a loophole to get rid of veterinary control.

Angie

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