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[RC] LD Racers and other Ride Camp myths and urban legends - Peter HarperI've been reading the recent discussions and I'm
amazed how these discussion take shape with little or
no facts to support them. It is like watching the
show on urban legends were someone knew someone who
had a friend who witnessed such an event. When you
look deeper there is little or no facts to support the
story and they usually have a moral or agenda behind
them.
Myth 1) LD riders ride faster that endurance riders so
we need more rules to slow them down.
I believe Truman posted the results of his study on
this some time ago. If you look at the winning times
of endurance rides compared to limited distance the
winning times for endurance are consistently faster.
This is not to say that at some ride an LD rider could
not post a faster time but the majority of the time
the endurance riders go at a faster pace.
Myth 2) New riders are more likely to over ride their
horse than an experienced rider.
I've made 19 starts this season and have witnessed
four horses that required treatment. All four horses
were ridden by experienced riders.
I'm sure Bruce or someone else from the Horse Welfare
Committee could produce a more extensive study on
this.
Myth 3) Limited distance riders are more likely to
over ride a horse.
Of the four horses I've seen treated this season;
three were in 50 mile rides and one was in a 100 mile
ride. I can't remember the last time I saw an LD
horse requiring treatment.
Myth 4) There has been much discussion and concern
regarding the risk of cowboys and other new riders
participating in the Great Santa Fe Trail Ride. The
great fear was the ride would have a large number of
new riders going out and recklessly riding.
Let the record show that the two horse fatalities and
the one horse requiring treatment were ridden by
experienced AERC members. The newbies performed
better than their more experinced counter parts.
I know a lot of people like to point out the dangers
of Limited Distance riders, new riders, and cowboys
participating in the sport. This is convenient and
usually fits a preconceived agenda but the reality is
much different.
The real risk in the sport is the over confident
experienced rider who pushes too hard or uses poor
judgement. These are the riders we need to be
focusing our attention on if our goal is truly the
welfare of the horse.
Best Regards, Pete
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