Reprinted from Endurance News, October 2010, Ride Managers’ Column, monthly publication of the American Endurance Ride Conference, www.aerc.org, 866-271-2372
Not too long ago, a friend and I were talking about the upcoming WEG ride.
She remarked to me about “the level of horsemanship” it takes to compete at this level, and I must admit that I found myself cocking my head and biting my lip about the (likely unintended) implication in that statement.
Did it mean that FEI riders display a level of horsemanship that exceeds those of us competing at the grassroots level of endurance?
To me, FEI success does not in any way, shape or form equate to superior horsemanship. Clearly the two are not mutually exclusive either.
Lest anyone believe me to be anti-FEI, I have friends I greatly respect who were, or are, or aspire to be FEI-level competitors, both in dressage and endurance, and I do not begrudge them that level of opportunity or competition in the least.
But to me, success in our sport lies more in the horsemanship than in “winning.” And one of the beautiful things about AERC riding is that, as my friend Randy Eiland likes to say, it is a huge umbrella under which we can all enjoy our sport.
To me, success is longevity. It is a horse that, despite its limitations –for I haven’t seen a perfect specimen yet and certainly have never owned one– continues to compete year after year. It is a rider that, despite their inadequacies (I have a laundry list of them) continues to seek to improve, to be a better and more knowledgeable horseperson, to be an outstanding steward for their horse. It is riding within one’s own means, no faster or more often than the horse is capable of, and knowing, on a given bad day, when to say when. It is giving the horse a rest from competition and conditioning, and erring on the side of caution, rather than attempting to eke out one more ride. It is not about the completion rate or the number of Top Tens or Best Conditions, but about the grace with which one competes and cares for their horse.
To me, that is horsemanship. To me, that is success.
So what separates riders competing at the grass roots level from those competing in FEI? Without being an FEI competitor, I think I still have adequate insight to surmise what some of those qualities might be.
One is resources. Not everyone has the financial freedom to obtain a passport for their horse and compete in far-off places to qualify, nor to secure a crew willing to assist in such a daunting endeavor. Not everyone can take the time from work, or a business, or their family or farm to to be gone for the periods of time required to compete. Not everyone has the horse, or the means to obtain a horse, with the physical ability to compete at a high rate of speed over a 100 mile course.
Another is passion. Riders competing at the FEI level have a passion for the sport that goes beyond just AERC’s motto of “to finish is to win.” In FEI, to win is to win, and I don’t think that message should be lost. If your goal is simply to get around the course with all As on your vet card, regardless of time, clearly FEI competition is not in your immediate future. That passion may extend to the desire to compete on the behalf of one’s country, to represent “the best of the best.”
In July, a friend and I took my two horses to Ontario to compete as open riders in the Canadian National Championship 100 Mile Ride. This was an FEI ride, and there were riders from as far away as Texas and competing for nearly a dozen different countries at this ride. We were in a tiny minority there, having traveled a mere four hours, simply wanting to finish the course without a tangible goal with regard to our completion time; most riders were there to achieve a COC (Certificate of Completion; currently 13 hours and 20 minutes).
While I have not completed dozens and dozens of 100 mile rides, I have completed seven, and this was, by far, the easiest 100 mile ride I’ve ridden to date. A forgiving course with a variety of very manageable terrain, well-marked, even at night, cool (but not cold) temperatures and low humidity; I could not have been more tickled with the conditions. Both of my horses completed at around midnight with all As and CRIs in the neighborhood of 52/48 all day long. We kept a pace of 8 – 9 mph all day long, without any significant change in speed until nighttime fell. For us, it was the perfect ride.
And yet all day long we were chided about “getting our money’s worth” from the trail. Not by the veterinary staff or the volunteers, who I think were delighted to see two horses cheerfully competing well within their abilities and with plenty of gas left in the tank, but by other riders, who seemed stymied by our slowness and did not seem to appreciate that a riding time of 15 hours and change was a rather respectable time for a horse completing its first 100 mile ride, and that AERC allows an entire 24 hours for completion.
But we had achieved our goal of “to finish is to win” and I couldn’t have been more proud. For me, it was the culmination of more than one item on my Bucket List.
Only 9 of 21 FEI horses completed that ride, if I recall the numbers correctly from the awards ceremony.
You can draw your own implications, as I have, about what can change when the motto is “to win is to win” rather than “to finish is to win.”
Over an easy course on a lovely day.
Do I think that passion and resources equate to horsemanship? Not even a little bit.
Do I think that passion and resources AND horsemanship make the ideal FEI level competitor? Absolutely.
But it is a fine-line balancing act that I have no desire to attempt to walk.
Happy trails.
–Patti