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[RC] One day 100s - k s swigartTruman said: I also would add that most of those who are primarily interested in 100's will end up pursing FEI since that's now the only real goal for those that are goal oriented and are interested in 100's. On the contrary, I am sure there are plenty of people who are (or could be) interested in 100s but have no interest in FEI. I know that _I_ fall into that category. One of the things that was for me and is for many people who ride endurance is to avoid high pressure competition, avoid high cost competition, and to have it be all about just you and your horse. FEI riding is all about the race, it is ridiculously expensive in comparison to regular AERC rides. And if your FEI goal is to qualify/ride in FEI championship riding (doing FEI rides at a regular AERC ride if you aren't pursuing some sort of championship goal is totally pointless, it is just more expensive), Steph has told us that to do so, you don't even get to do it on your own horse. For the duration of the championship the horse "belongs" to USEF, you don't get to make the decisions, final decisions are up to the chef d'equipe and/or the team vet; you don't take care of the horse, you have an entourage of "crew" to do that. So no, I have no intention of pursuing FEI endurance. However, I do have a great deal of interest in doing 100s. In fact, that is pretty much the only interest I have left in endurance. I never really had much interest in LD rides (I have always thought that those can be done easily at home). I have little interest in the one-day 50, it has gotten to the point where those, too, can be done easily at home). I have more interest in the multi-day; however, multi-days are EXPENSIVE, they have higher entry fees (since you have to pay for each day) and for somebody who is self-employed, they have a huge opportunity cost. And not only can I not really afford to be away from work for that long, I don't really want to be away from my other horses for that long either. The one day 100 is the only meaningful challenge left for me. The fact that the PS region (and now the W region) have instituted an awards program geared specifically towards rewarding completion of the one day 100; hopefully, there will be more people who are "goal oriented and are interested in 100's" but like me, have absolutely no interest in FEI, who will consider this program to be a "real goal" so that ride managers will put on one day 100 mile rides so that after I have prepared my horse at home the rides will be there for me to go to, when I can afford it. If I am only going to go to a handful of rides during the year (like most AERC members) because that is all I have the time and money for. I am not going to waste that time and money going to a 50 mile ride. Sign me up for the 100...and I may even get done at the same time I would if I were to go to a 50, as I might not finish :). But since I am not in contention for year end awards (you have to go to more rides than I do for that) and FEI is out of my reach financially even if I DID have an interest in it, the one day 100 is the only "goal" that is left for me that I might realistically be able to achieve without having to spend too much time "on the road." The only one day 50s I have any interest in are those that are on pretty trails that I have never seen before. But that is not because I have any "goals" with respect to such rides, but because it would give me an excuse to go sight-seeing. Contrary to Truman's statement above, the one day 100 is the ONLY "goal" left within reach of the bulk of the AERC membership who are goal oriented but have no interest in racing. kat Orange County, Calif. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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