Could you folks who have done endurance rides...

[AliceG]

Could you folks who have done endurance rides post tips for those of us who would like to get started.....

for instance, conditioning, getting horses used to LOTS of other horses, etc.

thanks

[sporthorse]

http://www.seraonline.org/Conditioning.pdf

http://www.aerc.org/New_Members_Page.asp
see if some of your queries are answered and let us know when you are ready for a mentor /contact us at vistalargo@aol.com at that time if you find this is something you are ready for.

[sporthorse]

http://www.seraonline.org/Conditioning.pdf

http://www.aerc.org/New_Members_Page.asp
see if some of your queries are answered and let us know when you are ready for a mentor /contact us at vistalargo@aol.com at that time if you find this is something you are ready for. abou getting horses minds ready that is the easy and fun part. we show up for trail rides like ST>judes fund raisers and foxhunts/hunterpaces and the like where lots of people bring horses,rodeo arenas for team penning,(don't feel bad if your paso out does QHs with cows our horses have been doing this a few centuries longer than QH were a breed).

[CarolU]

Alice, you might start with CTR and then move into Endurance if you really like it. The pace isn't quite so fast and it is a lot easier on you and your horse to get ready for. Around here they hold them together on the same trails, just stagger the start times.

As someone who HAS to stop and take pictures, CTRs make a lot more sense for me. Now...if I just didn't HAVE to camp in a campground, I'd still do them.

I found this site very helpful to get ready for my first CTR:

http://www.natrc4.org/starting.html

[B Hall]

Alice,

Check out Ectra's rider / driver handbook "Introduction to Distance Riding"



http://www.ectra.org/Handbooks/ectraRDhbk%20copy.pdf


Alice I think most of us who do distance riding would rather talk to you about your concerns in a private email. Anything we say to you here could be misunderstood by another reader whose horse/ situation is totally different!

If you want to email me at pasofino@featherhills.com I would be happy to help in any way I can.

Good luck and hope to see ya out there on the trail soon!

Brenda
Feather Hill
www.featherhills.com

[motorgypsy]

Hunter pace rides is a great way to start but really we just read about endurance rides, found one close to us, went to one without our horses and asked questions and just entered one that was fairly close with the idea of pulling after the first loop. Well my mare did so well I just went on and finished. We barely made it within the allotted time but had a great time and learned so much.

We've found that our horses actually enjoy rides with other horses. It's fun to find someone who isn't planning to ride very fast for the first couple of rides so you can take it easy and just enjoy the experience. Find out which rides have easy terrain and do one of them first. Any horse that is trail ridden at a good speed three or four times a week can do an LD on a good surface and level terrain if it's not too hot. I always joke that a fino horse is the easiest to condition because you can do it in a roundpen but it's kind of true that a hotter horse just tends to stay conditioned. I had run my mare in speed events weekly the year before we started doing LS endurance and we rode perhaps 2 miles daily with longer rides probably once a week with other horses. All were done at a pretty good pace.

We did buy a heart monitor to make sure we didn't over work my horse and it was a big help. We didn't need shoes for the the rides we did. We've used a tie line and an electric fence with a solar charger for our horses. The electric is better since one of our geniuses managed to get lose from the tie line. We always take two horses even though we enter only one. We take garbage cans and fill them with water when we arrive so we can easily water our horses. We just pitch a tent. You do want to bring plenty of food for yourself and your horses. The facilities are primitive to say the least. Bug repellent and fly spray are essentials.

People are really nice and helpful. We were advised to hang back at the beginning and always keep an ear out for faster moving horses on the trail and be aware that not everyone has perfect control over his/her horse. This was good advice because for the first couple of rides your horse tends to want to stay with the herd at the beginning and the really well conditioned horses start at a big ground eating trot and I didn't want my mare starting that fast so I'd wait a couple of minutes before letting her begin. Once they've done a couple of rides they aren't quite as hyper about the beginning.

It's really great fun!!! Just go to one and ask questions and watch or even volunteer to help at one. Good luck!!

[Laura S]

Those were very helpful and informative links! Thank you! I like the example they give for the week to week progressive workouts. That helps me alot.

[LynnG]

There was a very good article that went into alot of detail about this subject in the PFHW in 2006, plus others experiences shared.

[AliceG]

Thanks, good links. I have been devouring them!

[sporthorse]

regarding CTR the winning pace may be easier but in endurance you have a lot more time for completion.
I feel because you have more time you cna use endurance to condtition for CTR which is much more rigorous and not as fun (for me)Now that said CTR is the ultimate discipline like dessage and you are tested . There are penatlties for coming in to fast and too slow.
For intsatnce in endurance you have 6 ours to finish 25 miles for paso finos that is a walk in the park.
in endurance you have no one judging you in CTR you do and how your horse or campsite looks so it is much more less stress unless you are a show person already used to all that.
In endurance your horse proves himself with fitness and athletism.Your good riding will prove your horse rider team with good scores from a vet notlike in CTR a vet and a judge or two judges depending on what org.
The vetinarians are a nessesary goodness to keep people from killing thier horses.
IMHO CTR is only when your horse is in top fitness and if you use it for a grade on how you are doing it can help you in endurance.Since CTR is political and subjective and judges(humans)are involved it is harder on paso fino ownwers to be approved unless you have friends that can help already in place/or you have something to prove and a hard way to go is fun for you/They pick on gaited breeds not just paso finos in CTR IMHO.

[Laura S]

Wow, that confuses me! I always thought newbies should start out in CTR because it is less demanding on the horse, then go to endurance as you gain experience.

I have a question about camping out. What do most people do to overnight the horse? Do you use an electric coral, or do you tie? I know the coral would be best for the horse, but I would be afraid of other horses becoming lose and running thru it. Has this ever happened at any of your rides? What do most people do with their horses?

[B Hall]

Laura,

Some people use metal panel type pens and that is really the best case for stallions. Some people do tie and I have done it but the horse can not move around as much so stiffness can be an issue.

I use the step in plastic posts and the white tape electric with a small charger. Everyone but the stallions stays in the fence and I usually don't even turn it on. But practice it at home and see if your horse respects it.

I usually don't have room for panel type pens to travel with me by the time I have horses and feed loaded so the stallions do spend the night tied to the trailer when they go.... and one of them who is an escape artist gets double tied!

a few rides have stalls. Freyburg has stalls so you would not have to worry at that one.

There have been cases where the Arabs spook and the whole herd effect triggers and they run thru the fence. Even one case I know of at the Mustang where they did not find some of the horses for a day or so...

So it is important to know your horse will respect whatever system you use.

If it really concerns you - try the electric fence in an area that comes up against your trailer and then you can tie to the trailer at night if you want to.

CTR vs Endurance is largely a matter of personal preference. If you start in Endurance do not start out even considering racing. If I start a young horse at an endurance ride I start at least a few minutes after the start to avoid the youngster wanting to run with the big dogs when he /she is not conditioned for it and doesn't know what they are getting into.

I agree CTR is harder in that it is judged on many more things. However the strictness of the judging will keep you from going to fast and I look at it as an education for the new rider. There is much more control in place and you will learn things or about things regarding conditioning and loss of it that will never be pointed out to you in the Endurance or LD judging.

I suggest that especially since you are in the North East and ECTRA has a lot more rides in your area then AERC does ... try CTR first as you originally planned. Then later try AERC LD and see what you think.

For a new horse AND a new rider I think that you need to know what CTR will teach you and that after the rider knows how to take care of the horse then you could certain start future horses in either ctr or end as you prefer.

ECTRA doesn't judge your camp site but NATRC rides do judge you on horsemanship which will include your campsite and your riding.

AERC is really looking at "fit to continue" on the horse. So you could be doing a lot of little things wrong or not to the horses best interest and most of the time the AERC judges will not even mention it. But beleive me the ctr judge will! lol

Brenda


Brenda

[Laura S]

Thank you Brenda, that helped put it all into perspective for me. That is probably why I have heard that once you start out in CTR, then go to endurance you will never go back. And I like judges that also try to teach or help with suggestions.

I like your idea of putting the coral next to the trailer so I have the option of tying to the trailer at night if I want. I don't think I ever would have thought to do it that way! :roll: We will be practicing many scenarios in my front yard, lol! Maybe Fryeburg would be a good start where they have stalls!!

[motorgypsy]

We prefer the stepins and 1.5 inch white electric tape and a solar charger. We also do not have room for the panels.

Our mares won't leave each other and are very unlikely to even leave the camp unless chased but if we don't use the electric they have taken down the tape and posts. We've also had to make two chambers for two horses when we took our alpha mare with our endurance mare. We just split the center and they did fine.

We will tie but prefer not to although there are some great pieces of hardware that make it much easier and safer. You want to tie long enough so the horse can lie down but not so long it can get tangled. This is something you may want to do on trail rides to give them practice.

[motorgypsy]

Laura and Alice - as Lindsay mentioned (or was it Ed?) 25 miles in six hours for LD endurance is only a little over 4 miles an hour. A person can walk that fast.

A great deal of success in this sport depends on the disposition and personality of your horse. I know several people who have ridden paso finos in LD endurance who complained that they just couldn't get their horse to slow down and relax. This is extremely important in our breed and probably the main thing other than normal athletic ability that can make your break your paso fino as an endurance mount.

The first two or three rides they may be hyper but after that they should act like an experienced horse should act, tell you when they are tired, drink on the ride and eat and drink on the break and after. They should perform the gait you ask for and slow down when being passed by other horses without getting frantic. And conditioning alone won't teach these things to your horse.

This is why I recommend that you start with Hunter Pace rides. They are shorter but run in a similar manner as far as the trail markings, selecting your own speed, being passed by other horses, going through obstacles and so on. They really get your horse accustomed to the kinds of stimuli you have on an LD endurance ride but they last only 1.5 to 2 hours instead of up to six.

Do a search for Hunter Pace rides in your area. There are many of them all over the country and no you don't have to do any jumps.

[Laura S]

I will look into the hunter pace thing. I know in the past I've seen clinics that were about 15 miles to teach newbies, not sure if it was CTR or endurance. I've been watching the calenders, but 2007 dates aren't posted yet. There are also plenty of organized trail rides up here with lots of horses I could go to, to get her used to being around others. Thank you for all the great suggestions!

[motorgypsy]

Any time we can help just ask away! ;-) ;-)

The good thing about guided trail rides is that it gets your horse used to the woods, critters, rough terrain and being around a lot of horses. What it doesn't get them used to is horses passing them at high speed or teaching them to pass other horses. This is what Hunter Pace is great for. Also guided trail rides don't usually have many obstacles whereas Hunter Pace does. Guided trail rides are frequently longer, sometimes serve lunch and your horse is put on a picket line which is really good. But the wrangler selects the speed of the group on a guided trail ride. On a Hunter Pace you choose you own speed and can stop, get off, eat a snack, do a jump or two if you want to. So you can see the combination of the two is really good preparation. But the best preparation other than doing a lot of riding is just to ask which local LD endurance ride has easy terrain and is well run and just go ahead and enter it! And ENJOY!!

[AliceG]

This month I'm joining the local pleasure trial riding club.....should help my horse get used to having more than one other horse on the ride!

I'm really excited about trying this.

Thanks for all help!

[cowboy ed]

alice, distance riding is not as mysterious or difficult as it may seem. just think about it as an extended trail ride. some CTR organizations have a faster pace than others. SEDRA (southeastern distance riders association) CTR is more rigorous than LD and endurance, due to the time allowed for the course and the short hold time.

it is not difficult to condition most any horse to successfully complete a 25 mile LD ride. as you move into the longer distances, conditioning requirements become a bit more rigorous. all things considered though, it is a lot easier than many people realize. even if you ride a trotting horse! ;-)

[B Hall]

In CTR rides you really don't have to worry much about being passed at a high rate of speed (unless some other rider is out of control on a run away horse) Because the CTR rides are not a race there is no motivation to pass for a better placement. Placements are based on points based on the judges score card which reviews detailed aspects of your horses condition before during and after the ride..... Each CTR sanctioning org is slightly different. NATRC is the slowest pace I have seen in CTR and I beleive they even have a novice group that is slower then their open group.

ECTRA in the north east area typically allows 4:10 to 4:30 for a 25 mile ride. They do have the option to adjust the window for weather or terrain. If you finish to fast you are penalized... if you finish to slow you also loose points but do have an additional 30 mins of penality time in which you can finish and still get credit for a completion. It is true that in an AERC 25 mile LD ride you would have up to 6 hours to complete and pulse down at the vet P&R station. However if you start a green horse at the LD ride you will have the "race" to contend with. Even if you start late and ride slow you will probably still be passed at the canter or faster as often an LD ride is run at the same time as an endurance ride and the two rides often share the same trail so riders in the 50 mile ride will often pass you going one way or the other and probably at a much faster speed then in a ctr ride.

After you read some of the links already posted consider contacting your local ctr group and volunteering at a ride if your horse is not ready to go for 25 miles yet.. Just getting out and watching how the experienced riders organize for their vet checks and holds can really help you when you get to your first ride.



Any group trail ride will get your horse used to passing and being passed.
Riders in ECTRA and even AERC are generally quick to announce they are coming up behind you and ask to pass on the right or left... not that they are REQUIRED to ASK to pass you but almost always they do.

What you really want is a horse that is going to allow you to ride your own ride. Your own pace stopping for water when you want to and not having to chase after the herd and not one that is buddy sour! What are you going to do with two buddy sour horses at the ride if one of them gets pulled and the other doesn't?

Conditioning alone at least a percentage of the time so that your horse will cross any and all trail obstacles alone and in confidence is a must. You will want your horse to slow down and relax even as another passes you and canters away. If you always ride with a buddy or a group you are going to have a very difficult time with this and your horse will not start out ready to run with the front runners in the AERC rides and will end up in trouble if you allow the horse to rely on another horse to get you thru the ride.

[motorgypsy]

Great points.

The reason I suggest you do your first ride with a buddy is because for some people including me the trail markers take a little getting used to. I got seriously lost on my third ride. Some rides are marked really well - others, not quite as well - and when I'm out there enjoying riding horse at a nice fast speed sometimes my attention wanders and I'll go right past a turn marker. You do have to pay attention. If you look down and don't see any hoof prints it's time turn around. This is one reason I didn't like the moonlight ride I went on. We got lost on that one too and I was with three other riders and all three of us missed a marker. We didn't go but perhaps a mile out of the way but if I'd been alone it would have been rather stressful because we were in grass so no hoof prints to follow.

[nmcreel]

I ditto that reponse as I also got lost twice in my first LD ride. We probably did three extra miles. I finally looked down in some soft sand and noticed that there were no horse tracks. We backtracked till we found where I wandered off. It'll be a few years before I try again as my horse is young and my mare is bred, but the next time I'll get a buddy to help me out.

Nancy

[B Hall]

Very true about the markers being better on some rides then others! I think we all have been off trail at some point or another and a lack of tracks is a sure sign! :lol:

Another great way to start is with your first ride being a clinic... Laura mentioned this and since ECTRA has not updated the website with the 07 schedule yet...

Tentatively (Sanctioning pending on some rides)

4/7 The Chesapeake ride usually offers a 15 mile clinic which is run and judged exactly like the ride only open for lots of questions and instruction from the judges. Its in Maryland

6/1-3 in NY they are going to have a 15 mile clinic

In VT on 1/13 there is a ride if you want to go and watch the holds and pick up some pointers... Contact is Janet Mayberry 802-484-9281

here is part of the schedule that is the northern part of the region since its closer to Laura...

Anybody from VA north needing any tentative dates in their area just ask ...

also only listing rides with 25 and 30 mile distances... some additional longer rides are also scheduled...


4/29 in ME Hidden Brook 25 mile
5/4-6 VT VERDA offering distances of 105/65/25 miles
5/5 MA Leverett 25 mile
5/12 VT Verda Brow Bag 25
5/19 MA SPHO of MA Spring Fling 25/35 miles
5/26-27 ME Crooked River 30/60 miles
6/10 VT GMHA 25 mile
6/23 ME Pine Tree 30/50/100 (This one is Endurance)
7/7-8 VT GMHA 25 both days or a 50 is available
7/28-29 ME Fryeburg 25/50 (Great ride - stalls available)
8/11 ME Hot Toddy Hustle 25/50 (endurance )
8/18 MA Be Cool 30
9/8 ME Scribners Mills 25 mile
9/15 NH VERDA 30 mile
9/29 CT Kay Fullerton Memorial 25 mile
9/29 VT HRC Warren Tessier Memorial 30 mile
9/29 ME AHAME Lookout 25 mile
10/20 ME Trails from the Crypt 25 mile


Happy Trails!

[B Hall]

Portable Corral option for your camping over night...


http://www.thunderstormranch.com/