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Re: [RC] Points of View - E.L. Ashbach



Joe Long wrote:

  

    

If the RM sets minimum that is faster than some horses can handle, it
does at best no good at all for that horse: it is too fast -- and at
worst, harms the horse by encouraging the rider to ride that speed.
The point here is that no one, no vet, no ride manager, can set a
speed that is a safe and proper speed for an unknown horse, even on a
given trail on a given day.
When you a set "maximum time allotted" to complete the a given distance ( for a rider who by your assessment has no idea how to pace) the message we send is "don't be too slow".  That's what we have right now.    When you have a "minimum time allowed" for the same rider, the message is "but don't go too fast either."  We give no official message to the new rider to "slow down, this is a ride, not a race."

So what
happens when someone rides at that speed and their horse ends up on
the jugs, and they say "But I just rode the way you told me to?
I'm very sorry, but I still don't understand we're this is coming from...

If we say (as AERC, to a beginner on any distance ride), "You can't ride your horse any faster than _______ today.  That's the max, people.  Go slow out there this time 'til you've grad-ji-ated."  How does that make people ride *faster*?  (Doesn't that make people stupid or unlistening to do the opposite? ;-)  )That seems to me like going to one of Duck's rides and having him deliver the message that "this is a ride, not a race, act accordingly. "

They're gonna watch their watches on the loops, like everyone else.

You know, I'm pretty good at predicting how long it's going to take me
to do a loop -- that I've been over before. Even after 12,000 miles
I'm not so good at predicting how long it's going to take to do a loop
I've never seen before. And you expect rookies to do that? Are you
going to reqire ride managers to post a sign every mile telling riders
how far they have to go, so they can "check their watch" and figure
out if they are going the legal speed?
So how do you think Rookies do it now?  What happens in the absence of knowledge about pacing?


Either they're overconservative
and go too slow ... and maybe end up overtime ... or they come close
to the finish, look at their watch and say "OMIGOD! I'm too early!!
I'll have to stop and wait a half-hour before going into camp!" And
their horse sits out on the trail for a half-hour instead of being in
camp with water, feed and TLC. Some benefit to the horse.

That's your opinion of people you want to have no limits for?  

I'm being realistic. The fact that judging ones speed down the trail
is something most folks need to learn, is a reason AGAINST speed
limits for rookies, not in favor of them. You want to require our
newest and least experienced riders to have to do somehing that takes
most riders a lot of miles to learn.

Yeah, I do, and that thing I want to require them to do is go slow.  :-)

Lisa

                          


Replies
Re: [RC] Points of View, Joe Long