Awesome pic of Ali, Chris. Has she ever been

[Frosty M]

anything but a perfect girl? Can't wait to see pics of her this year when she sheds out.

Thanks for keeping us this nice board and making it so attractive and friendly. That goes for Mary Ann, too. She does her part as well. Good job, you two!

[Mary Ann]

Aww thanks, Frosty! Chris does the lion's share of the work; I just moderate. But this crowd makes it easy. There's a bunch of really good folks here!

[Chrisnstar]

Thanks FrostyM.... I'm quite proud of this girl! She's going to get her test in the real world this year. I plan to start her in CTR. I'm a bit nervous about it... we'll see how well I've trained her to handle different situations.

She's such a love and she's becoming my "go to" horse... She's always ready for a ride. when I walk into the pasture with even a halter, Star is like, "see ya...." but Ali, even if I have a bit and bridle in my hands comes right up to me.

She likes to go riding. She's such an attention hound, it's just another way to get attention from humans, LOL....and I think she's proud of herself for the things she's learned to do.

As for the board, as they say, it's a labor of love. I so appreciate you and everyone who is a member here. Without you all, there would be no board, no matter how many cute smily guys I put up!

And MaryAnn is a great moderator, don't you think?

chris

[Frosty M]

great at- she's a wonderful moderator. I have a really ignorant question about CTR. Is it an actual race? I know you have to meet the limits of the vet checks, but other than that is it a pure speed event? I'm asking because I've ridden in hunter pace events (ten miles and thirty jumps), but they are judged as to how close you can come to the "ideal" time. I think the CTR is different. Also, what does CTR stand for? Is there a website or one of your great articles posted where I can learn more?

Last but not least, I hope you'll be riding in that huge event coming up that you mentioned recently.

[Chrisnstar]

Hi FrostyM...

CTR means "competitive trail ride." It is not a race. It is a judged and timed event. You have to finish the course within a few minutes of the prescribed time and pace... such as 5 mph, 30 miles = 6 hours. If you finsh too fast or too slow, you lose points. you have about a 10 minute window on either side of the ideal time.

It's judged by a veterinarian. Each horse starts out with 100 points. There is a score sheet where the vet and the vet secretary mark all the baseline data. That is acquired at the initial "vet in". The vet really goes over the horse head to tail and back to feet. He/she looks at a lot of metabolic parameters plus lamenes, legs, feet, back, etc., looking for soreness. There also is a "trot out" where the horse is scored on its impulsion, attitude and willingness.

The next day, you do the ride. About halfway, there will be a pulse check and trot out check, then you do the other half. At the end, the vet does a thorough exam again, every horse head to toe.

If any of the ending parameters are not as good as the horse was at the initial vet in, points are assigned for those. Some vets get really picky.. i've seen some deduct down to a quarter of a point. There is a another trot out for lameness, impulsion, attitude, etc.

At the end of the day, the horse who loses the fewest points is the winner in each weight division. Weight divisions are assigned by rider and tack weight. The overall horse in all divisions with the highest score is the grand champion.

You can learn more at the MOTDRA (Middle of the Trail Distance Riders Assoc.) site:
motdra.fws1.com

check out the Q&A pages and info for beginners.

I like to start horses in CTR before endurance because it teaches them to pace themselves.

Hope this helps.

Chris

[Frosty M]

I remember the tips from the old timer being posted when you wrote it. Nothing like the voice of experience. GLHR!