To: Mounted search and rescue <msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [MSAR] training new horses
Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 10:09:34 -0700
Vince,
My name is Paul Fleming. I ride with Peninsula Mounted Search And
Rescue in Washington State. One of the things we do as part of the
certification process is a ten mile ride. The horse and rider must
complete a ten mile ride in under two hours. We do not require the
horse to carry all the packs, and the terrain is usually pretty flat
and the altitude is around sea level. The point here is to observe
the conditioning of the horse and rider. If this exercise presents a
problem then they need to do some work before progressing into the
mountains. This is a minimal standard that must be passed. It is one
of several evaluation rides a member in training must complete. Hope
this helps.