After that 30 miles could I have elevated to a 50? no, because I rode my horse for the 30. Not a 50. However, I realize how much slower I could have gone and still finished a slow 50. I think when you're just starting out it's a matter of how long you as a rider can be up there, and how long as a horse does your horse want you up there? With more conditioning and some longer, slower rides, the 50s I want to do next year should come along okay.
This is one of the smartest things I have read that has come out of this discussion. It really does make sense not to increase speed and distance at the same time. One of the best pieces of advice that was given to me by experienced 100 mile riders when I started in this sport and indicated that I wanted to try Tevis as my first 100 mile ride was this. I was told to make sure that my horse could finish x number of 50 mile rides during the ride season and most importantly, make sure I was riding the last one or two 50s at 100 mile pace and not worry about Top Ten or where I placed in those last 50s before Tevis. For someone who was new to the sport, really didn't understand conditioning, peaking, etc. this advice was a great help, made sense, and didn't scare me from trying a 100 mile ride.
I think if a horse can finish a 30 mile ride at a moderate pace and looks good at the end, moving up to a 50 is the next step if that is your choice. Because the horse is an unknown after the 30 mile mark, I would definitely ride the first half of the ride at a slower pace then the horse is accustomed to going. You can always adjust your speed as the ride goes on if the horse is handling the added distance with ease or if he is getting tired. The main thing is to save enough horse for that unknown distance that the horse has never gone.
