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[RC] New rider educations/Tevis deaths - beth gloverHi Ridecampers; I read and appreciated many of your posts regarding NATRC and CTR. I really liked Jonni's posts. Let me tell you all that when we were at Sunland we went down and up this incredibly steep set of hills, and when we got there, there was a very nice man to stop us, and Jonni was on the uphill side, across the gully. She was not only photographing riders, but controlling the traffic to help..uh..keep us alive. ha ha. It reminded me very much of a NATRC obstacle, or like Cougar Rock at the Tevis. A crowd gathers, you ride up, and go, "uh, oh...why is there a crowd here watching riders." I appreciated her guidance to the riders, especially with the big ole pothole at the bottom, and at the time I thought, "This is very NATRC'y of her". I am aware, through the NATRC magazine, that the AERC convention and the NATRC convention are being held simultaneously in Reno. I think this is brilliant! I think it is a huge opportunity for riders from "the dark side" to come visit those who have seen the light.( "and who might that be", you ask? It could be them or it could us!) Hopefully we will see a lot of people crossing back and forth. There are some superior speakers at the NATRC Convention. Absolute Queens, I tell you. I also think, that wouldn't it be nice, if AERC did encourage people that are new, to give NATRC a try. Let those judges and vets polish them a little. Encourage, not mandate. After riding both ways, I have much to appreciate in both sports. In AERC, I really appreciate the freedom, of not being bothered, just having a quiet day. Of just enjoying the scenery, and trying to finish, riding my own ride. In NATRC, I enjoy the comradery of old friends, recieving a judges card, the scenery, the technical challenges, and occasio nally winning a prize. It will be a cold day in hell when I win a prize in AERC, being the slowest,conservative rider that I am. Not that I care, I like the miles, and every ride is a learning experience. I don't think that a rider should ride like me, but I have learned a lot at NATRC that has been beneficial. It is nice to have two genre's. I would hate to see NATRC, and semi-CTR-endurance, instead of the two options we have now. Having ridden in both sports, I would encourage many of you, who may make decisions, to take advantage of the two options instead of totally reworking the endurance system. As for the Tevis deaths, dear Howard, I respectfully submit to you, that I was there, and one of them was a horse that belonged to a dear friend of mine, who is a super conservative rider, with a lot of experience, not a "newbie", on her 3rd Tevis attempt, and her horse colicked with a stone at 25 miles. He could have colicked at home with the stone. As a matter of fact, another friend of mine, had a horse colick with a stone at a ride, during check in. The ride didn't colick that horse. Maybe he got a little stressed before check in. He had to leave on Friday night to go for surgery. But those damned stones take years to develop. The day they "show up", rolling into their fatal position, is just not anyone's lucky day. I can't tell you how many horses I know in my geographical area that have died from stones. Ask Susan Garlinghouse, she certainly knows. The second horse that I know of from Tevis that died was the marvelous, handsome, Snow Dragon. That horse was gorgeous, and his rider, from what I have heard, is well respected, and certainly not a newbie. In fact that beautiful Stallion had a respectable record as well. He was not a newbie. That was certainly a loss to the breed. It seems that this whole discussion originates from linking New riders with numerous deaths. Some of the other deaths that I have heard of have been from tragic unavoidable falls, and other metabolic issues that happened to champion rider/horse teams. So I think that it is possible that you could say that in many,many cases, Newbies have little to do with deaths, and although educating them is most likely going to have long term benefits, it may do little to change the death rate. yours, Beth Glover Browse styles for all ages, from the latest looks to cozy weekend wear at MSN Shopping. And check out the beauty products! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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