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[RC] 100s alive and well - Ridecamp GuestPlease Reply to: sandy bolinger sbolinge@xxxxxxx or ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ========================================== Is it really necessary to go to such drastic means to get more people interested in riding 100 miles??? Has there really been that much of a decline in people doing 100 miles?? Seems to me that the longstanding "special" 100s, such as big horn, old dominion, tevis, swanton and many more...still are going strong..Or am I wrong?? How many 100 mile rides are there in the different regions??? Does someone have the statistics?? Don't you think that alot of riders that might be riding 100s have turned their energies to some of these wonderful multiday rides???? I just really don't see what the problem is here...there are plenty of books...plenty of opportunities to learn how to condition etc for 100 miles...some riders want to and some don't...yet! I know when I was first starting out,,,after finishing 25 miles I would hang out all day at the finish line and watch the 50s come through and hours later the 100s and there was no way in my mind that I would or could EVER do either one. But, just like other posters have writen..the mental image began to form in the back of my mind of accomplishing feats of the longer distances...Preparing yourself and your horse for 100 miles takes a HUGE amount of commitment to the point of obsession. There is no way I would have ever finished 100 mile ride without being 100% committed mentally to doing to entire distance. There is a point in 100 mile distance where a lot of times your horse seems to lose all enthusiasm. If I remember right it happened often around 65 miles.. If the de-elevate idea were to prevail...riders would throw in the towel right about then...thereby missing out on the very best part of the 100 miles. That last 25 miles when your horse gets his enthusiasm back and time stops, and you and your horse enter another dimension that you have to experience to understand...and then all the work and time and committment is worth it many times over. Seems to me 100s are alive and well...need not mess with a truely good thing! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 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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