GOOD FOR YOU!! I am with you..I have top tenned BIG rides..with over 100 entries starting after all the "racers" just by having a well conditioned horse, who is nutritionally sound (huge contribution to good recoveries), who has "been there, done that" and just moves on down the trail. Wasted energy is just that, wasted energy!
Here are some things I MUST do with young horses:
1. Camp with them for 3 or more days-teaches them to EDPP anywhere! Not to mention, you get to work out the "travel bugs" without the stress of a ride.
2. Trailer different places and ride with lots of different horses-poor Fellow never knows where we are going or who he will be riding with! I swear he gets out of the trailer and looks around to see who mom has picked for him to play with today.
3. Ride slow the first year or year and a half. The breeder of my two DR ThunderBask boys said, "Don't leave your horse's legs out there on a training ride"
4. Ride lots of tough terrain and lots of hills. Hal Hall told me when he handed Bogus over to me, "ride up and over every hill and every rock you can find..just do it slow."
5. Ride with groups whenever possible-I remember one ride when Fellow was well into his 6th year. There were 5 or 6 horses trotting on a narrow canyon trail. My friend was behind me and knew it was my first ride like this. She asked if I was OK..I said "NO"...she asked "do you want to stop?"..I said, "NO"....and that was the end of that. That day, I learned I could trust Fellow and I have never looked back. We have run into rattlesnakes (too many to count), bears (he hates those stinky beasts), coyotes, deer, racoons, and way too many loose dogs..he has somehow managed to keep me astride and safe.
I love this thread..! I just got back from a glorious ride with my personal mentor and her fabulous horse, Bogus Thunder!! ( I got to start Bogus when he was 5, so he will always be "one of my boys"). Fellow got to play with the big boys today!!!
Ride, REALLY RIDE!!
Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway. ~ John Wayne
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> From: sturmranch@xxxxxxxx > To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > Subject: Re: [RC] what to say to a newbie > Date: Wed, 28 May 2008 19:44:53 -0700 > > > 3. You can start after everyone leaves and still top ten...passing almost > everybody in the vet checks if you pick the right pace and stick to it. > > > I'm old and didn't get around to trying distance until I was past 60, so I > ride LDs Last year at Limestone Challenge, I had a piece of equipment break > right before the start and all the other 30's were gone when we got to the > start. Keeping at a steady pace, we passed the entire field before the vet > check. In the second half, we took a wrong turn and ended up having to > pass all but four of the group again, finishing 5th and 6th. We never > cantered and never walked, we just trucked on down the trail and had a > marvelous time doing it. > > Nancy > > > =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= > > 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!! > > =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= >
