OK, Karen (Clanin) said I should throw in Cato's two cents! When I
bought Cato as a green-broke six yo, I had problems all through his
LSD with control (none), hollowed out back, high head, constant
arguments and no fun for either of us. After having pulled from two
rides at lunch or before because I could not control him, I took him
(and me) to a dressage trainer for some "boot camp" and it was
wonderful. For those of you in the Sunland/Lakeview Terrace area of So
Cal, Heather Bender-Atwell at Pacific Performance Farms is outstanding.
She rides top level herself, but thought working with an endurance
horse sounded like fun. We did lots and lots of ring work, but also
took it out onto the trail, me on goofy ol' Cato and she on her $100,000
German import Hanoverian! (Apparently some of them do leave the ring on
occasion). After just a few months of dressage work, probably 90% on
the flat and in the arena but hard, balanced work nonetheless, she sent
us out to do the 25 at Sunland to put everything together. I realize a
25 is not a 50 or a 100, but nevertheless, Cato finished in 2:19
carrying a Hwt and all of the ride up and over some very tough terrain,
finished with all A's on his card and still feeling great (me too, for a
change). AND he did it all under control, under himself, paying
attention and smooth as silk, up hill and down dale. He also did
another 350 miles in seven weeks the following spring. I agree with
Tommy that it's hard to ride 50 miles always on the bit, but once they
have the right frame and know what you're asking them to do, they hold
the frame pretty well on their own. If they start to get a little
squirrely, a quick half-halt and a reminder puts them back together.
I don't ride at anything near the level that alot of other riders do and
I would never say "this way is the only way". But I agree with Tommy
that there is some middle ground and this particular middle ground
really worked for me and Cato.
Susan