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Re: [RC] the sport? - Merryben1) Make 60 the standard beats per minute of the horse's heart-rate across the board. Consider reducing it to 56. I have not been to a ride in years that did not have 60 as the criteria at ALL vet checks. 2) Make the maximum distance a horse can travel between vet checks 15 miles. No longer. And, actually, make sure via an independent source that the miles listed by the ride manager between loops is accurate. I don't think this is feasible at some rides. What about the XP rides where last year XP riders traveled 63,000, one vet check, no vet cards and NO DEATHS. 3) Have a prerequisite for entering 100 mile rides. I suggest 300 miles of 50's before a horse is allowed to do it's first 100 miler. Good idea but it won't stop the yahoos. 4) Longer hold times at the vet checks; 45 minutes minimum and 1 hour at the half way mark. I also suggest we use 11 hours of ride time (does not include hold time) for the 50 milers and 22 hours of ride time for the 100 milers as the time limit to obtain a completion. That way, if the Ride Vet wants to add more time at the holds it won't affect the rider's available "ride time" on the trail. No opinion either way. 5) All AERC vets most hold a license. It doesn't have to be a license in a state where the ride is held, but, it does have to be a license in one of the 50 available. No unlicensed vets at any AERC rides. I have argued this for years, to no avail. 6) Log books on horses similar to what they're doing in Australia. It holds the rider accountable (they are) and makes our record keeping more accurate. And, it will save the life of a horse or two along the way. I have seen their books and it is not nearly as complicated as it would seem. 7) The Education Committee needs to explain distance traveling while going to a ride and returning home. I know that Stagg has written an article where this topic was mentioned, and it was a good one, but, this needs to be re-emphasized time and time again. We must make sure every rider knows that the distance traveled to a ride along with the distance traveled back home increases the danger of a horse getting into trouble during an endurance event. It is part of the event! If a rider travels out of region to a ride I think we should require them to keep a log book of their travel to the ride. Not for punishment, but, for educational purposes. This form is turned into the Ride Manager prior to the manager accepting their entry. I have another region within 3 hours of my home and I am not going to keep a log of how I get there. Besides, what makes you think the yahoos won't lie about it. Just my own opinion............mb =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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