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Re: [RC] The Great Santa Fe Trail Horse Race/nothing new - Tx TriggerKim posted:>>>So, while you guys can speculate on what the "inexperienced" are doing to prepare for their lifetime adventure, I know for a fact that one of the "inexperienced" you talk about is probably getting the best advice and information to make this a success.<<< It is not the inexperienced ones like the guy you speak of, or Suzanne who is actively seeking advice that have me a tad concerned. It is the ones who are NOT seeking advice, and might not listen to it even if given. Look how many have entered Tevis over the past years who had never done a previous endurance ride with a casual attitude of "how hard can it be to ride my horse 100 miles?" Just because it seemed like a great adventure. It is nothing more than a gut feeling on my part, after seeing some of the riders who showed up in 2001, and 2004 to do the long XP's. While those two rides were only advertised within pretty much AERC circles, and NOT advertised on TV to the general horse public, and NOT advertised in the way of newspaper articles, we still had some folks show up who just had no idea what kind of undertaking they were getting themselves in to. Most on those two rides had some distance riding background, but a few seemed to have very little. Of course, they were weeded out pretty quick, and we saw the really under prepared head home fairly soon after the starts of those rides. But we had a very exceptional management that really stressed to the riders that they must understand that the care and treatment of their horses was their main responsibility, and to ride accordingly. Hopefully any who are indeed, under prepared with their animals, and don't have a full grasp on what riding 50 miles really is like, will be weeded out by having to do a 50 before the ride, and find that indeed, that was more than they expected. That and if they hold true to having 4 vet checks per day as they say on their web page. Something that normally I'd cringe about as a rider, but think that it might be a good idea, at least for the first few days, until the see what kind of riders all the advertising has attracted. Jonni =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 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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