The top ten:
10: Endurance is a work in progress, a blurring of the lines, ever changing, ever challenging.
9: The trail you decide to follow, may not be the journey you take.
8: The horse you have today, may not be the horse you ride tomorrow.
7: Be it ever so humble, there is no place as miserable as the IV tied to your horse trailer.
6: When you think you know it all, you don't know shit (sorry, cover your eyes if you are rated PG).
5: People who ride Endurance are a paradox. They are tough, flexible, smart people, who will hand you the halter off their rack, or the drink from their saddle pack. They will race you for finish, and then let you cross in front. When you stumble, they will lay bare the mistakes they have made, and offer encouragement to toughen you up for the next successful ride.
4: An endurance horse needs to LOVE his job so he'll give it his all.
3: An endurance rider needs to put the horse first, lest he take all and fail.
2: Endurance friends are diamonds in the rough. Each with their unique facets that make them shine.
1: The competition is the individual testing ground of horse & horseman. Endurance is a journey, not an end of the trail, but a constant seeking and renewal, an evolving challenge that changes from one ride, to the next. "To Finish is to Win."
Amen to number 9 and 7!
ReplyDeleteNumber 6 made me laugh. The more I do in this sport, the less sure I am of everything. I find myself preferencing EVERYTHING with a "well, this is what worked for me, but since this is free advice...you know what that is worth!..."
2. I like this one. It seems that endurance attracts people with strong personalities. Sometimes I think the only thing that keeps us even speaking to eachother is the horses and the love of the trail. I think our sport has the COOLEST people. I tell my sisters all the time that if they want to people watch, they should come to one of my rides - endurance attracts the best (and wackiest) in the horse world! (and yes, I'm including myself in the wacky category).
ReplyDeleteI really get a kick out of "wackiest" as they sometimes are your salt of the earth type people.
ReplyDeleteOn lady I ride with could be described as "crusty old broad", but she has a heart that is golden, and you couldn't ask for a better friend. She is a straight forward no nonsense type, with a wealth of distance riding knowledge stuffed in her very sharp mind.
I especially like the sense of humor these people have, but when you think about it, you'd better have a sense of humor when you've spent a year getting a horse ready for a ride and you get pulled, it pours rain, you trip over something or fall off and can't ride, and on and on. The mantra ought to be "get a sense of humor, and get over yourself." But if you can't ride next day, there is always work to do....pulses to be taken, scribing, or just hanging out and whining over our misery.
Thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteA spot on and enlightening list.