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[RC] [Guest] trail etiquette - Ridecamp Guest

April Johnson ridecamp_mail@xxxxxxxxxx

----- Original Message -----
From: "Glenda R. Snodgrass" <grs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
<snip>
When two or more people leave the barn together to do a trail ride together,
and at some point during the ride, one of the riders decides this is a great
place to canter (or her horse is acting up so she decides to "kick him up"
to teach him a lesson) so she suddenly just takes off.  (It invariably
happens when I'm adjusting a stirrup or putting on my chapstick or something
like that <g>.)
<snip>
* - When riding in a group, do not change speed or gait without first
warning the others in the group of your intention.
----- End of Original Message -----

I kinda agree, but I go the other direction. I put up with the speed changes
and try pay attention if I'm in a group. If I need the other riders to be
aware of something I do, I tell them. "Hey, I'm tying my boot, please don't
take off since I'm not ready." That tends to work well.

One thing I did at Liberty Run. I was following Jamie and Kim. We had been
walking for a few minutes, so I took the opportunity to pull out one of my
liters of drink. Since the liter bottles just fit snugly in my cantle bag, I
have to be walking or stopped to get these bottles back in the water bottle
spots. Well, I didn't quite get the bottle in right when the horses ahead
started trotting. So I pull the bottle back out and trotted along, holding
the bottle (and swigging from it frequently...got lighter!) until we started
walking again. By that time, the bottle was empty and I put it back without
incident.

Granted, that's not a dangerous situation, but if I had just called ahead
and asked them to walk for one more minute, I'd have gotten my bottle back
in. Or even told them before they started trotting.

But I did learn, boarding at a trail-riding barn and occasionally taking out
rides myself, pay attention to the string in back and warn them all of speed
changes. But that was for the paying customers. If the barn boarders/workers
got together for a trail ride, we pretty much all did what we wanted unless
somebody spoke up and said they were doing something or were training the
horse they were riding. Course we usually knew stuff like that cause we all
knew each other and the horses fairly well.

April
Nashville, TN



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