Re: RC: volunteers view

[BMcCrary27@aol.com]

In a message dated 9/28/99 12:50:35 PM Pacific Daylight Time, cms@fluent.com 
writes:

<< 
 Hi - I've spent this entire ride season volunteering at rides (both
 endurance and CTR) because I was temporarily without a competition-ready
 horse, and this has been very educational. I'd like to share some of the
 things I learned, so that they might help other aspiring distance
 riders:
 
 1. Ride managers and vets/judges work very hard, maybe even harder than
 you do out there on the trail. Looking at all those horses is exhausting
 work, and most are tired, hungry, and losing patience by day's end. If
 you feel tempted to complain, use your evaluation form or contact them
 after the ride.
 
 2. If your horse doesn't stand for examination, most vets/judges will be
 very patient with this, having probably been there themselves, but, by
 all means, figure out how to correct it next time. I saw judges at both
 CTR and Endurance rides getting pretty annoyed at riders who's horses
 habitually run them over in examination, year after year.
 
 3. Teach your horse to trot out quietly, on a loose lead, and do large
 circles, or your horse may look lame, even if he isn't.
 
 4. There are lots of poorly shod feet out there. I was amazed at the
 amount of  feet I saw this year that had long toes, low-heels, or were
 seriously overdue for a trim. Many of these horses were being ridden by
 novice riders. I would strongly recommend Nancy Loving's "Go the
 Distance" book to anyone who isn't quite sure how a distance horse
 should be shod. There is a great chapter on shoeing/foot care.
 
 5. Don't leave your horse in camp after a ride and go somewhere without
 telling the vets where you are. At a very tough 50 mile endurance I
 recorded for, three riders with horses in questionable condition went
 out to dinner or somewhere to sleep, and didn't leave word as to their
 whereabouts. All three horses had to be treated later on, and it was
 thanks to the vets who took it upon themselves to be vigilant and check
 on these horses. The owners were irate at having to pay the vet bills
 for unauthorized treatments, and the vets were irate because the owners
 couldn't be found. The vets had some choice words for these folks, and
 their attitudes about their horses, and I don't blame them.
 
 6. If you pull from the ride, tell ride staff IMMEDIATELY upon getting
 into the hold or into camp. At an endurance ride, we waited hours for a
 rider to come in, who had self-pulled, gone back to camp, and loaded the
 horse and went home. Nobody knew. This is in really bad form, even if it
 is 95 degrees and humid.
 
 7. And this is for the ride managers - if at all possible, get
 walkie-talkies, cell phones, CB radios or something so that staff at
 various check points can communicate with each other. I saw a lot of
 time wasted driving around from check to check, trying to get
 information or pass messages to staff further down the trail. There has
 to be a better way.
 
 Happy riding to everyone!
 
  >>

From a ride manager's standpoint, I applaud this post.
Point #5 is interesting and very astute.  Interestingly, we had exactly the 
opposite experience once at a R&T.  The vets went out partying after the 
event and a couple of our horses that we had leassed to runners needed 
treatment.  We couldn't find a vet anywhere, so ended up having to wake, at 3 
AM, a vet who had competed.  We were very embarassed to have to wake him, but 
the horses were colicking and needed treatment.  The vet was very kind and 
considerate.  I also agree with the post, exactly as the writer has stated 
it. 

Point #6 happened to us, the management, at a ride.  We waited for a R&T team 
to come in.  We thought they were very late .. late .. late, then began to 
worry about them. We found out they had self-pulled (using a leased horse) 
and were on a plane heading back home to Utah by the time were heard what 
they had done.  Very bad form indeed.

Point #7 has a solution that still eludes us.  Our rides take place in an 
area that has many moderately high mountains and deep canyons.  Not radios, 
nor cell phones (no signal) can transmit successfully.  We're still working 
on this.

Barbara McCrary


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