Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Kristen A Fisher wrote:
> What I want to know is, when someone says their horse doesn't like 100s, or
> isn't ready for 100s, or needs rest after 100 - so many people jump in and
> tell them they are wrong.
>
> The only person that knows that horse and is qualified to make a
> determination on what the horse can/can't/should/shouldn't do is its
> owner/rider.
Hi Kristen,

I think you misunderstood Cindy.  She, and others too, knows that a horse 
conditioned well enough to COMPLETE a 24-hr 100 is not a horse that needs 
to be laid off for a month afterwards.  It has nothing to do with the needs 
of the horse and everything to do with the perceptions (and inexperience) 
of the rider.

Similarly, many "newbies" presume that if their horses can't finish an LD 
with virtually perfect scores, their horses aren't ready for a 50.  This is 
a fallacy which will be revealed to the newbies as they progress through 
conditioning and then complete their first 50's.  True some horses are 
destined to never be capable of going more than 25 miles, but many are 
going to get B's and C's whether they go 25, 50 or 100 miles.  And yet 
another group will get BETTER marks at longer distances!

The key in both cases, lay-offs and vet scores, is experience.  Yes, EACH 
horse will have it's unique needs, but MOST horses do fine with just a week 
to ten days off after a 100 before they return to their maintenance 
conditioning schedule and MOST horses will get some B's and C's on their 
vet cards, no matter the distance.


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