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RE: RE: [RC] Faster walk - heidiWell, certainly! You can help the more gifted horse to develop
further as well, and end up with a really super walk. One of my
most stellar ride experiences was finishing the last 12 mile
leg of the old Santiam 100 that came up over Cash Mountain (steep
mountainous trail for three miles, steep down jeep road for three
miles, and then six miles of rolling USFS road) on Junior, in the dark
all at a walk, and doing it in 2 hours and 5 minutes. That's a
walk of 5.75 mph, and at the end of a 100-miler, to boot! I can
tell you from sitting and waiting at finish lines for horses to come in
that the average walking speed at that time of night on 100s is 2 to 3
mph.
I never did clock Junior on the flat at a walk when he was
fresh, but he started off with a very good walk "right out of the box"
and work just made it fabulous.
Personally, I think that the walk is the most overlooked gait on most
endurance horses--I want one with a good walk to start with, and I
firmly believe that helping the horse to develop that walk is one of
the most important parts of his preparation for the sport, particularly
if you ever desire to do 100s.
Heidi
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