--- On Tue, 6/24/08, Bruce Weary DC <bweary@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
From: Bruce Weary DC <bweary@xxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [RC] "Endurance" riding To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Tuesday, June 24, 2008, 10:58 AM
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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