Re: RC: P&R, recoveries

[Teddy Lancaster <Teddy@runningbear.com>]

VERY well said.  It has always been my contention that horses that do not recover quickly are either sick or improperly conditioned.
It has also been my contention that many people take arabians for granted.  Their natural ability makes them easy targets for fast
competition when, in fact, they do NOT have the base to protect them from injury.

I rode an Appaloosa for years.  I beat many an arab.  To achieve this, I rode a great deal of miles in training.  When I got my first
arab, I, too, made the mistake of thinking I had an athlete who did NOT need the same training.  This, I believe, more than any other
factor, is why people think arabs aren't as sound as other breeds.

Simply stated, not enough foundation.

Teddy

PS: Are you a Tom Ivers reader?

MargePiwowarski wrote:

> Lynge asked if AERC has created a single breed sport due to the PR criteria
> in use, she suggested it might favor the Arab.
>
> I don't think so.  We ride off-the-track Standardbreds and they could set
> criteria the Arabs could have trouble passing.  Horses that started jogging
> hundreds of miles, at a very early age (often as yearlings) pulling a light
> cart, build conditioning that lasts a lifetime.  They can be pasture
> ornaments for years but maintain a very low resting heart rate and come
> into condition very easily.  They have very dense bone and remain
> remarkably sound, mile after mile.
>
> Marley is 36 this year.  He raced until mandatory retirement at 14, was an
> Amish wagon horse and was eventually sold into a situation that ended in
> months of starvation that killed hundreds of less-tough animals.  When I
> bought him, I wasn't sure he could stand in the trailer to make it home!
> We taught him at 19 years to carry a saddle and rider, and to gallop and
> jump. He field hunted twice a week, was the fittest horse in the field.  At
> 16.1, 1350 lbs, and 36 years, he is beginning to look "old" but he is
> sound, with a resting heart rate of *16*.  We can pull him out of the
> pasture and do an LD ride tomorrow and he will vet all A's.  While he could
> probably do the same in a 50, I would wanna give him a few weeks of regular
> work before asking.
>
> My little SB has a resting rate of 20, following strenuous exertion, both
> of these guys recover to less than any ride criteria at a few minutes of 15
> mph "jogging".
>
> This is a long way to say that P&R criteria are probably accurate
> reflections of condition, but it takes more miles to get there than some
> people think.  There are horses top-tenning, with thousands of competition
> miles that probably don't equal the over all mileage a racing Standardbred
> has at 8 years, they certainly didn't have the benefit of the
> heart-lung-bone-tendon building exercise beginning as babies.  Some of our
> SBs are quite muscular, most of my fellow Texans assume they are Quarter
> Horses (until they see one pace <G>).
>
> I wouldn't be a bit surprised if most any horse could do competitive
> endurance *if* the rider was willing to put in the time and effort to build
> an adequate LSD base???  Riders of heavier-muscled horses would need to do
> lots of conditioning in the heat and get as good as Angie at sponging,
> those horses will have a harder time dissipating heat.  I have field hunted
> alongside  Belgians, that were conditioned to handle Gulf Coast heat and
> humidity and a day of cross country galloping and jumping; they did just
> fine on days that less well prepared TBs required vet treatment.
>
> Anything is possible, if the rider is willing to accumulate enough wet
> saddle blankets.  I suspect the horses with higher resting rates, who have
> trouble meeting criteria, need more LSD miles.
>
> Marge
>
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Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=