Steam rising from hot horses/Hot/humid weather.

["guest@endurance.net" <guest@endurance.net>]

Barb Peck bpeck@together.net
Barb Peck
bpeck@together.net


One of the ways the body attempts to rid itself of the heat generated by work
 by evaporation..
if there's enough sweat or water on the body, then it's given off
the body in the form of steam.

And this steam can be seen under the right conditions.

On several occasions, I've been able to walk my horse into my barn
(after hosing him after riding) and see steam,  walk him back out doors
in the sunlight and couldn't see it, back into the barn and I
could.

The only way I know how to be relatively sure I don't over-stress
my big horse on hot days, is to see if his coat starts to dry
off when I let him rest or back off the pace.

If I ride on a humid day for 3 hrs...and  go 15 miles..
I'll want to see him able to cool himself and start to dry
his coat about every hr.  (This works for this horse, and
my intent is not to say it'a needed for every other horse)

Note:
I *do* agree that water should be squeegied off after
being applied in humid weather, and your hand can be used
if you don't have anything else.

In competition, of course, things get even more complicated
because adrenalin may help push a horse for a while.

What do you guys in the South do (i.e. Georgia & Fla. etc.)
to monitor cooling on the hot days you ride?

Barb












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