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[RC] "Endurance" riding - Bruce Weary DC

Our sport is so unique in so many ways, and that is part of it's attraction. And it got that way because of it's attributes that were clearly present in the early years, but which are, in some circles, under pressure to change to meet the expectations and desires of it's participants. I looked up the definition of "endure" and came up with this:

  1. To carry on through, despite hardships; undergo: /endure an Arctic
     winter./
  2. To bear with tolerance: /“We seek the truth, and will endure the
     consequences”/ <http://www.answers.com/topic/bear>
  3. To suffer patiently without yielding.

To me, the key ingredient, the reason we do this sport, and the thing that must be maintained and protected as an attractive quality of endurance riding, is the "hardship" or "patient suffering" mentioned above. Our society has become so accommodating to our every comfort and to increasing needs to be recognized in an ever more crowded world, that some of us like to break away from that, and test our mettle against true challenge, and regardless of recognition or rewards. We want to test ourselves *outside our comfort zones* against fatigue (even exhaustion), the elements (extreme heat or cold), rough terrain, etc, all the while juggling the factors involved in caring for our equine partners who are sharing those same challenges at the same time--just because we asked them to. These are experiences that have been largely lost in today's soft society, though they offer much opportunity for fun and personal growth. I have heard it said that our most powerful lessons come from our most painful experiences. The rides I brag about the most are certainly the toughest and most painful ones. And I enjoy those campfire stories told by riders like Julie Suhr and others as they regale us with tales of the days when everyone rode in cowboy boots, western saddles, and had never heard of electrolytes or sunblock.
It is my personal opinion that the challenge in endurance should be a fixed parameter. Mt Everest, for example, is always the same height and basically the same challenge, no matter who is climbing it. No climber asks for it to be shortened so they can make it to the top, nor demands the same or similar recognition for having climbed halfway, because they are physically impaired or life got busy and they didn't have enough time or money to train properly. When life gets in the way (kids, work, financial restrictions, etc.,.) our sport responds by making available a similar and more doable experience--limited distance riding. But, just as there are shorter mountains out there to conquer, no one confuses those shorter mountains with Everest, nor expects similar accolades of having conquered it--until they actually do. And when they do, they will have "suffered hardships patiently," and truly endured at a high level. Each person's personal definition of suffering shouldn't define the challenge of this sport, anymore than our tolerance levels should determine how much recognition we get for any other achievement. Asking for increasing levels of recognition and awards for decreasing levels of challenge tends to water down the core principles of endurance riding, in my mind. The challenge is there in endurance riding, fixed and constant. The 100 mile trail awaits us, licking it's chops. An additional level of challenge presents itself as we pit ourselves against the long and difficult trail, helped or hindered by our own strengths and weaknesses, whatever those may be for each individual. Endurance riding truly allows us to embark on our own personal odyssey, to learn what we are really made of. These are experiences not often found in daily life, and they should be treasured, not modified to be more easily achieved and awarded. Where would be the challenge in that?
Bruce Weary


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