Re: Various thoughts/recent posts

["superpat" <superpat@gateway.net>]

Bless you Nancy. You have said so clearly and kindly and explicitly what I
have been trying to communicate for a long time now. When I first started
riding, I went to shows of all kinds and disciplines and read all I could
get my hands on. Although I loved watching all the pretty horses, it seemed
that the riders would stand around for hours until their class came up. They
then rode their test (about three minutes) and came out to stand around
again. Once I got on my horse, I was having too much fun to alight again in
only a few minutes. That's why I selected endurance riding as my sport of
choice. When you get on, you stay on. For a loooong time. I do this for me.
Not for someone who may applaud or cheer me on, though sometimes a little
encouragement is great. So you can understand my wonderment at all who would
designate themselves as "newbies" or anything else to define their
evolvement with the sport. I just jumped in and did the best that I could
with the information I had or could get my hands or ears on. Didn't even
occur to me to question whether I could ride 25 or 50 miles. Just thought
I'd give it a try. Now 100...maybe I am balking a bit at that, but with the
encouragement of my friends, I think maybe we'll even give it a go. If we
do...great. Hope we enjoy it. If we don't, it will be cause I am not yet
ready to punish myself. (smile). Well anyway, thanks for your comments. I
think I'm going to give this topic a long rest now. Maybe in a year someone
new to this site will give this discussion life again. But for me,  I think
we've beat this horse to death.
----- Original Message -----
From: Nancy Mitts <mitts_n@hotmail.com>
To: <dleblanc@mindspring.com>; <mitts_n@hotmail.com>;
<ridecamp@endurance.net>
Sent: Thursday, November 04, 1999 7:09 AM
Subject: RC: Various thoughts/recent posts


> Boy this thread sure went downhill fast after the next few posts. I's like
> to make one more stab at this 2nd class thing. What I was getting at is
that
> it is a label some people have taken onto themselves, not one that is
given
> them by the sport. The definition of endurance is 50 miles or more. Just
> like bases are a certain distance apart, hoops are a certain height, &
> marathons are 26. something miles long. Legitimate sports have to set
> defining parameters somewhere. No one would claim that 50 miles is a magic
> number that is so much harder that 49, or 45, whatever. Accept it as an
> arbitrary cutoff if you will. Limited distance rides are held in
conjunction
> w/endurance rides as an opportunity for people to participate & learn what
> endurance is about. Yes, you can learn so much, maybe more by watching &
> helping at your first ride. But folks you enjoy sports like endurance are
> pretty much hands on people, not spectators. They'd really rather jump in
&
> try.
> Back to LD. Actually, the idea is if you start someone out at a shorter
> distance that they can successfully complete, they will be encouraged to
> come back & ride again. Maybe they will eventually ride 50's & 100's, or
> not. They're being rewarded for what they have accomplished, even if it
> doesn't fit the definition of Endurance (as this internationally
recognized
> sport is defined). Can you believe it is meant to ENCOURAGE people, NOT
> denigrate them?
> So, if you want to be an endurance rider, you have to ride endurance
> distance. If you choose not to do that, that is your choice. It has
nothing
> to do with class. At a real ridecamp, who can tell (or care) what distance
> you're in? As someone who rides both LD & Endurance (and as a ride
manager)
> these largely self imposed slights are really puzzling.
> I'm leaving for a ride in a few minutes. Do any of you really care what
> distance I'm riding? I really hope not, cause I'm doing what's right for
me,
> right now. And, I know I'll have loads of fun meeting new people, seeing
new
> sights, most of all riding.
> If you can come up with one size fits all answers to your questions you
will
> retire a rich man. The best I can say is observe all the different ways
you
> can, then take what works for you.
> Respectfully intentioned,
> Nancy Mitts
> Central Region
> Headed to the Southeast, REALLY hope I haven't pissed you people off! ;>
>
> >From: David LeBlanc <dleblanc@mindspring.com>
> >To: "Nancy Mitts" <mitts_n@hotmail.com>, ridecamp@endurance.net
> >Subject: RC:   Various thoughts/recent posts
> >Date: Wed, 03 Nov 1999 12:12:38 -0800
> >
> >At 09:00 AM 11/2/99 PST, Nancy Mitts wrote:
> > >The posts over the last couple days have left me with these
impressions:
> > >Why do some people just insist on wearing the terms "Newbie" &/ "LD
> >Rider"
> > >like hair shirts?
> >
> >[snip - essentially, why don't people listen]
> >
> >As a relatively new rider, I think I can answer some of this.
> >
> >First problem is that too much of our 'knowledge' is based on handed down
> >information, and too little of it is based on scientifically valid
> >research.  When I go to ask 3 different experienced riders the same
> >question, I usually come up with 3 very different answers.  How am I to
> >sort out who is right?  It is normally the case that none of the people
can
> >actually support their answer with anything better than "Works for me".
If
> >I'm lucky, 2 of them will agree and then I've got some reassurance that
it
> >might be right.  Something we really need is more research, so that we've
> >got valid answers.
> >
> >As a case in point, last year I'd been riding a 26-year old quarter horse
> >all summer on very strenuous and long trails.  He was extremely fit, and
> >the person who owned the land we were keeping him on (another endurance
> >rider) suggested that Skipper might be OK to do a 25 if I took it easy.
> >Another friend who keeps up with all sorts of reading insisted that I'd
> >kill him.  End result was we came in about the middle of the pack and
> >passed both vet checks with straight A's.  Which of these old-timers
should
> >I listen to?  I can also cite instances where the friend who was worried
> >gave better advice.  I also see "old-timers" putting up with nutso horses
> >I'd never go near.
> >
> >You're also dealing with plain human nature - people usually don't listen
> >very well to unsolicited advice of any kind, and they often don't listen
if
> >you're telling them something they don't want to hear.  Sometimes they
have
> >to learn for themselves.  It is indeed a shame that sometime people and
> >horses get hurt because of this, but there isn't much we can do about it.
> >
> >Something else I think would help would be a change in the rules - why
> >treat anything less than a 50 as second-class?  The reality is that's
where
> >people and horses need to start out.  By setting up the rules so that a
50
> >is the minimum to be a "real endurance rider", we're encouraging people
to
> >go to the longer distances before they are ready.  Denegrating people
doing
> >less than 50 miles is just plain wrong.  Bad for the sport, and bad for
the
> >horses.
> >
> >I've also got a suggestion - encourage a new rider to crew at least once
at
> >a big ride, and set them up where they can watch the horses trotting out.
> >I crewed for Robin Oscar and Jennifer at JD's last year, and got one heck
> >of an education watching who got pulled and who didn't.  I look at it as
a
> >course in lameness 101, too - I'm a _lot_ better at being able to spot
> >lameness now, and I also recognize what a too-tired horse looks like.
> >Robin told me I'd learn more by crewing than by riding, and he was
> >absolutely correct.  When you sit there and watch 100 horses trot out,
see
> >who gets pulled and who doesn't, you get a really good feel for what "fit
> >to continue" means.  Something I want to do sometime to get versed in
> >lameness 102 is to go be a vet helper at a ride.
> >
> >David (not Jennifer)
> >
> >David LeBlanc
> >dleblanc@mindspring.com
> >
> >
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