Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Rider size

On Sat, 07 Sep 2002 08:50:17 -0700, Bette Lamore <woa@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

> ... But my husband does 
>not feel right on a small mount--- feels like it is unfair to the horse 
>and that he looks ridiculous. 

I think that pretty much sums it up ... it's a vanity issue.  We
Americans have been conditioned so much to "bigger is better," and the
Hollywood image of a tall man on a big horse.  Of course, if you look
at the historic photos of working cowboys, Pony Express riders, and
such, you see a *lot* of them with the rider's feet well below the
barrel of the horse!

> ... Without getting into a debate about the direction of 
>endurance, it is simply a trend and one we can watch and learn from. I 
>imagine the THEORY is: the taller the horse, the longer the stride so 
>given that two horse are equal in other criteria, the longer strided 
>horse has the edge. 

But that's just backwards.  That longer stride comes from longer legs.
Longer legs means more leverage (hence more stress) on the bones,
joints and connective tissue (tendons and such).  The horse must also
use more energy to move those longer legs.  No, it's been my
experience over many thousands of miles that, except on a flat easy
trail, the shorter horse has the edge.

The bigger issue is longevity.  A taller, longer-strided horse may be
a world-beater for a season, or two.  But how many of them compete and
win for five years, ten years, or more?

>We need not debate here-- time will tell.

I'd say time has already told, very clearly, to those who will look.

>Now riders have a choice in the matter due to breeders who are trying to 
>fill the need (or demand, if some of you believe people do not have 
>"needs") for a tall horse. Isn't that what America is all about, anyway? 
>Choices? Thank God people who are happy with small Arabians do not have 
>the right to dictate their opinions to others in this country--- just to 
>express them ;-)

I don't know of anyone who wants to dictate what people can breed, buy
or ride.  I will try to inform people who are about to make that
choice.

-- 

Joe Long
jlong@xxxxxxxx
http://www.rnbw.com


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