{"id":1712,"date":"2005-03-13T16:57:26","date_gmt":"2005-03-13T21:57:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/?p=1712"},"modified":"2014-02-19T07:05:35","modified_gmt":"2014-02-19T12:05:35","slug":"selecting-a-first-hundred","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/selecting-a-first-hundred\/","title":{"rendered":"Selecting A First Hundred"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reprinted from Endurance News, March 2005,\u00a0monthly publication of the American Endurance Ride Conference, www.aerc.org<\/a>, 866-271-2372<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

With the temperature soaring to a balmy 35 degrees, Ned and I enjoyed a wonderful conditioning ride on the snowmobile trails near our property today.<\/p>\n

Winter is a great time to contemplate the ride season.<\/p>\n

Given the advice of my mentors, I\u2019ve decided that I won\u2019t be training or competing harder this season in preparation for our first hundred mile attempt, but I will be carefully selecting the rides I ride before that fateful day. Conditioning and competing smarter, perhaps.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure some folks have picked their first hundreds in a fairly cavalier fashion, but not me. I asked around to see what other riders thought of as ideal first hundreds, and got some great suggestions of rides that might be good for Ned and me.<\/p>\n

Then what factors make a particular hundred mile ride more suitable than another?<\/p>\n

According to Mary Coleman, there is something to be said for a single 100 mile loop. \u201cIt\u2019s easier to be getting closer and closer to base camp with each passing mile than to be dragging the horse away from his \u201chome\u201d for each loop.\u201d<\/p>\n

Julie Suhr recommends a trail that the horse knows. \u201cThe best thing a hundred mile horse has going for him is a trail he knows. If the finish line of a 100 miler happens to be close to his corral and he is going toward home the whole time, you have a jump start on the other contestants.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the Northeast Region hosts the most hundred mile rides in the AERC, none of them are on what Ned or I could call \u201cfamiliar\u201d trails.<\/p>\n

Then there is the issue of footing and terrain that is suitable for your horse.<\/p>\n

One suggestion made for my first hundred was the Old Dominion. This was an easy one to cross out. Ned and I attempted the No Frills 55 in VA last Easter. Within 5 miles of the start, Ned fell down in the rocks, resulting in a laceration in his armpit that later caused us to pull. Ned, bless him, is not a horse destined to be a legendary competitor in rocky terrain. Think how many times he might fall with 100 miles of opportunity!<\/p>\n

Though no boulder climber, Ned does have the ability to move out in easy, big strides when unimpeded. He\u2019s happiest on an open, wide trail with nothing but horizon in front of him. He\u2019s a good hill climber. He tends to be easy to pace in good company with another big-strided, steadily moving horse.<\/p>\n

Speaking of \u201ccompany\u201d, there are a couple of factors to be considered about sharing the hundred mile trail.<\/p>\n

Can your mentor ride with you?<\/p>\n

Mary Coleman and I compared calendars at her annual January Thaw Party and determined that our options are limited due to family reunions, Ned\u2019s foibles, work obligations, etc. Old Dominion? No. (See above.) Pine Tree? No. (Mary\u2019s husband\u2019s family reunion.) Despite the Northeast Region having the most hundred mile options, we\u2019re starting to run low on possibilities. Vermont? Now we\u2019re cooking \u2013 it fits in our schedule. Hallelujah (SC) is also an option, particularly since it is in the fall when the temperatures are likely to be more to Ned\u2019s liking.<\/p>\n

Another factor regarding \u201ccompany\u201d is the likelihood you\u2019ll end up riding alone at night, which I\u2019m told is not the ideal way to go. Hundreds are the one type of endurance ride where a rider several minutes ahead of you into a vet check will wait for you to be cleared to go out, so they\u2019ll have your company on the next leg of the course. (Assuming you\u2019re not a real jerk, I imagine.)<\/p>\n

The more riders entered, the less likelihood you\u2019ll be riding alone in the wee hours of the night. A few folks suggested the Biltmore, NC, ride for that very reason. Lots of riders and a wide variety of completion times, so you are likely to have a riding partner for the duration of the ride. However, given my personality and Ned\u2019s temperament, I\u2019m not sure that the hyped-up atmosphere of an FEI ride is the way to go for our inaugural attempt. Besides, spring is an extremely busy time for my husband\u2019s business, and I\u2019m counting on him to crew for me.<\/p>\n

At the moment, we\u2019re leaning toward the Vermont ride. While it is not a huge 100 in terms of riders, it has the advantage of shared trail with a one hundred mile ultra-run. Ned and I completed the \u201cMoonlight in Vermont\u201d 50 mile ride two years ago, and riding alongside the runners lent to a tremendous sense of camaraderie. Ned even seemed to get a real \u201crush\u201d about passing the runners. (Finally, someone he could outrun!)<\/p>\n

I\u2019m told there are margaritas and beer at the runners\u2019 aid stations, so we can always have a late Happy Hour and hope that the horses can follow the glowsticks. Since Mary doesn\u2019t drink, it should increase the adventure exponentially.<\/p>\n

Sue Greenall and Gang run a wonderful ride, and where else is your ride kicked off by fireworks in the pre-dawn hours?<\/p>\n

Other advantages are the terrain and footing \u2013 lots of wide open gravel and dirt roads, some climbs and descents for variety \u2013 and a single 100 mile loop back to base camp.<\/p>\n

And while it is not exactly \u201cfamiliar\u201d trail, Ned has competed on these trails before. And Ned never forgets a trail!<\/p>\n

My concerns?<\/p>\n

Heat. This ride is in mid-July and it can be hot. Ned is a big-bodied boy, and will need to be heat-acclimated for the ride, and my crew will need to pack a lot of ice. In the meantime, I\u2019ll get all my Catholic relatives praying the rosary for an unseasonably chilly July in New England.<\/p>\n

Concussion. This is a fairly \u201cpoundy\u201d ride. While Ned seems perfectly happy clopping along hard surfaces, the concussion on his feet and front legs concerns me. I\u2019m planning to do some experimenting with Easy Boots over his shoes and Easy Foam for reducing concussion this spring, so we\u2019ll see where that leads. (Probably to an Endurance News article showing photos of me with a chisel in my hand, with a spray of hardened Easy Foam on Ned\u2019s coat.)<\/p>\n

Superstitious at heart, I haven\u2019t actually written the Vermont ride on my calendar.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll just take it one conditioning ride, one competition at a time, and see how we\u2019re feeling as the ride approaches.<\/p>\n

Next article \u2013 Recruiting and Training Your Crew.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reprinted from Endurance News, March 2005,\u00a0monthly publication of the American Endurance Ride Conference, www.aerc.org, 866-271-2372 With the temperature soaring to a balmy 35 degrees, Ned and I enjoyed a wonderful conditioning ride on the snowmobile trails near our property today. Winter is a great time to contemplate the ride season. Given the advice of my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1712\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/enduranceintrospection.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}