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Re: [RC] Question re Running up hills-easiest way? - Joe Long

On Fri, 23 Dec 2005 02:25:36 -0800, Diane Trefethen <tref@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

Bill Bentham, an endurance vet and rider, used to say that a horse has only so 
many 
downhill miles in him so don't waste them on conditioning rides.  He meant 
that going 
downhill at speed was extremely stressful to the front legs.  So while it may 
be 
easier to run downhill than up from a cardiovascular or muscle point of view, 
it is 
definitely more stressful on the tendons, ligaments and joints.  

We learned, though, that the idea that a horse has "only so many downhill miles
in him" was incorrect.  It is BECAUSE downhill is more stressful, and downhill
at speed more so, that we need to condition downhill, to toughen the horse's
ability to handle it.  The overriding principle is, never ask a horse to do in
competition what he hasn't been trained and conditioned for at home.

Walking, trotting and cantering downhill are all part of my conditioning
regimen.  Which pace I use on a given downhill depends on many factors,
including the steepness of the hill, the quality of the footing, if the horse is
fresh or tired, and (in competition) our position relative to our competitors.

I don't run full-out downhill, but one time I had no choice.  About a mile from
the finish of a one-day 100-mile ride, we went up a hill and down the other
side.  I raced up as fast as we could run trying to break away from the other
senior rider, but she stayed right with me, so I tried to slow to a trot at the
top.  No way -- Kahlil was a runaway and ran DOWN the other side wide-open.  I
sure was glad I'd trained him downhill that time.

-- 

Joe Long
jlong@xxxxxxxx
http://www.rnbw.com

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Replies
[RC] Question re Running up hills-easiest way?, Ridecamp Guest
Re: [RC] Question re Running up hills-easiest way?, Laney Humphrey
Re: [RC] Question re Running up hills-easiest way?, Diane Trefethen