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he he he that's easy - it's called Distance Induced Mental Retardation :-)
There has
>to be a reason, since the temperaments they have been describing for many
>of the horses being ridden certainly do not seem very pleasant, this from
>their own descriptions of the horses, not mine.
I agree - but often those same traits when turned in the right direction
gives you a horse that goes like the Energizer Bunny. It's like you put up
with certain things b/c you know the horse can do what you want. Ever read
stories about the big name jumpers for instance? Horses that have to lead
with a whip cause they are so nasty? Or that have tons of little quirks that
I wouldn't dream of fooling with. But the owners/riders put up with it cause
when it comes down to it, those horses jump the moon and that's what really
matters to those riders.
I know if I weren't doing endurance the Arabian probably would not be my
breed of choice I must admit tho I would always like them. If I weren't
doing endurance I'd probably be doing some lower level eventing and in my
mind they just aren't suited for that - at least not in a competitive sense
(I *know* some do it - but the breed prejudice is hard to get around) and
for the show ring this breed is not large enough for me. So, personally, I
ride one in this sport cause they are well-suited for this sport. That may
or may not be the case for others on the list.
> I just find the trot very hard to take after 16 years of riding
>gaited horses. I see no reason to do so when I can ride gaited horses
>instead.
I think that in many cases a gaited horse is the way to go for the reasons
you stated. We have an older gentleman in the SE that rides a Fox Trotter (I
think it's Charles Long - Truman or Samm or someone may correct me) - as I
see him pass me on the trail (me posting on my Arab that goes down the trail
like a drunken sailor since there are monsters on both sides of a new trail)
<g> sitting there looking like he could drink a cup of coffee while he's
riding I sometimes wonder what happened to my brain :-)).
I think gaited horses can and do compete - just like other more atypical
endurance breeds you have to be aware of limitations (maybe more muscle
mass, handling the heat, etc) and ride them accordingly. Like Wendy said
it's so much easier to do it on Arab - however, some people just have a bug
to do it with another breed (like Samm and her appy or Truman and his walker
<vbg>) and do very well.
I do admire those do it well on other breeds!
Tina | Huntsville, AL
hickst@nichols.com
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