Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Mad Science

I've been told by several ride vets that it's the ratio of body mass to
surface area. The determining factor tends not to be the amount of energy
produced by the animal but, it's ability to keep the body cool. A horse being
15 hands tall and weighing 1200 pounds will probably have the same surface
area of a horse 14.2 at 850 pounds. Another factor in the equation is the
type of muscle that predominately composes the horses anatomy. Slow twitch
tend to be long and thin, they contract for a longer period for a greater
distance and produce less heat. Slow twitch muscles, short and thick in
construction, contract more rapidly for a shorter distance, translating to
more cycles needed to cover the same distance of a horse comprised primarily
of slow twitch muscles, this equals more energy burned hence increased heat
which tends to be retained due to the thickness of the muscle itself.

Joe Long wrote:

> On Tue, 16 Jul 2002 21:46:41 -0400, Truman Prevatt
> <tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> >Come back east and look at it. What I see is people are showing up with
> >bigger and bigger horses and going faster and faster on the same
> >courses.  There is also the issue of efficiency. Is a 1000 pound horse
> >carrying 200 pounds more efficient than an 800 pound horse carriying 200
> >pounds.  Where is the knee of the efficiency curve hit. The system has
> >to go non linear at some poin.  Other wise I would really be better off
> >getting a 500 pound pony.
>
> All else being equal, any given horse (of any weight) will be able to
> perform better carrying less weight than carrying more weight.  That's
> why we have weight divisions and count weight carried in BC scoring.
> But the question is one of matching the horse to the rider for the
> best results.  As, all else being equal, there is for any given rider
> weight an optimum horse weight -- either a smaller or a bigger horse
> (again, all else being equal) will perform less well.  Otherwise we'd
> all be better off riding Clydesdales.  The difficulty comes with
> knowing what that horse size is.
>
> >From my experience, I believe that for my 180 pounds with tack a horse
> in the 14.1 -- 14.3 height range weighing about 800 -- 850 pounds is
> about ideal for most endurance rides.  YMMV.
>
> --
>
> Joe Long
> jlong@xxxxxxxx
> http://www.rnbw.com
>
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--
Rob Kalb
Rob's Equine Hoof Care
Phelan CA



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