Re: [RC] [AERCMembersForum] 100 mile rides 50 & 25,30,40 etc. - Barbara McCrary
It isn't just a matter of consensus, it's a
matter of rules. In the AERC rule book it states that an endurance ride is
50 miles or greater, so if it is less than 50 miles, it is not identified or
recognized as an endurance ride.
My #1 pet peeve about
ridecamp is that there seems to be a consensus that if you aren 't doing 50
miles you aren't a "real" rider, how many times have I read that ANYONE can do
25 miles??? That is totally wrong & in my opinion extremely degrading, not
anyone can do 25 miles and esp. do it well! It takes conditioning, time
and patience , to have your horse down around 40 within 4 minutes after
trotting in off of a 25 mile ride........that takes commitment( CTR rules, we
don't have LD's in Ontario) .Plus 5 hours in the saddle is ....5 hours in the
saddle!!!:-)
Chris, Kathleen, next
time you feel like you are not a "real" rider because you are "only" doing 25
miles, go find your vet, riding coach, local dressage queen etc.... and
mention that you ride 12 miles on a "short" training ride, watching their jaws
drop will make you feel better :-) :-) and you realize that because we
are around people that do such long distances our perception of "real" riding
is a bit skewed. :-) :-) Doing a 25
mile ride, two years after knee surgery is real endurance!!!:-):-)
