<% appTitle="Ridecamp Archives" %> Ridecamp: Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage
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  • - Heidi Smith

    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage - Heidi Smith


    > Absolutely, it's wonderful.  Tell me, how many times has she ridden 50
    > or 100 miles at a time?
    
    It's all relative.  For a child who can barely drag her own body around, an
    hour's ride is as significant as a much longer ride would be for a normal
    child.  The point here is that the horseback riding is sufficiently
    physically relaxing for her that it frees her from the constraints of her
    barely useful body.  If a child who can barely function physically can ride
    for an hour and beg for more, why can't a normal child ride for 8 or 12 or
    more hours?
    
    > On the outside, no.  Have you x-rayed them or taken an MRI?
    
    Have YOU?  Just as with our horses, fatigue presages injury.  These kids
    don't even exhibit fatigue for the most part.
    
    > You could anesthitize them and the physical stresses would still be
    > there.  They'd be better off racing up front, they wouldn't be on the
    > horse as many hours.
    
    I disagree--it isn't the hours that cause damage, it's the physical stress
    of the speed.  Same thing with young horses.  There is far more physical
    exertion and tension in being a front runner, even for less hours, than
    there is in just riding along in the pack.
    
    > Contact sports have greater intensity, endurance rides have greater
    > duration.  In the stresses I'm talking about, it's the duration that
    > does the damage.
    
    And it is the intensity that injures.  That's been borne out in many
    disciplines.
    
    > No saddle can compensate for children the size of five and six year
    > olds.
    
    I beg to differ--properly built children's saddles are indeed built to fit
    their bodies.
    
    Heidi
    
    
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    Replies
    Re: [RC] [RC] Very young riders in AERC rides, FASTGraphic
    Re: [RC] [RC] Very young riders in AERC rides, Joe Long
    [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Charles
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Joe Long
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Joe Long
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Heidi Smith
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Joe Long
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Heidi Smith
    Re: [RC] there is no way that young and small a body can ride astride a horse that many hours without damage, Joe Long