City Slickers Go Country 2010 Endurance Ride moves from Shelby Farms, to Blackwater Creek Ranch By Tommy Brannon Endurance riders from all over the south converged in the cool, sunny weather at Blackwater Creek Ranch for the City Slickers 25- and 50-mile competitive Endurance rides on April 10. This was an American Endurance Ride Conference (ARCA) and a South Eastern Riders Association (SERA) sanctioned ride, conducted by the Shelby Farm Equestrian Alliance (SFEA). For all its past years, this event was held at Shelby Farms Park in Memphis, TN - thus named the City Slickers ride. It is unique to have a riding location large enough to conduct a 50-mile ride inside a city park. The move to the country was a concession only for this year. The Shelby Farms Equestrian Alliance plans to return the event to Shelby Farms in the future. However, the Blackwater Creek location was nearly perfect, with rolling hills and very rideable terrain. Endurance riders normally camp out with their horses on the grounds of the event, both the night before and after the ride. There is a lot of camaraderie among endurance riders. They help each other out a lot and cheer each other on. There were many local competitors who usually only do endurance riding once or twice a year; they usually compete in combined training events and/or ride to hounds. The preferred breed of horse for endurance riding is an Arabian or Arabian cross. They have high intelligence, lots of stamina, surefootedness, and plenty of heart. Other breeds posses many of these qualities. However the Arabian has one big advantage: their heart rates drop from a high rate to a rest rate much more rapidly than, for example, a Thoroughbred, and at the vet check this is very important. But Arabians are not the only breed used in endurance riding. There were plenty of Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds at the City Slickers Endurance Ride. The ride start is definitely a sight to see. All of the riders start together and are required to stay behind a pace horse and rider, trotting for some distance; then competitors can move out at their desired speed. Strategy is part of the game: some like to get out front and some like to hold back for a while; some like to ride in a group, horses are herding animals, after all; and some prefer to be out on their own. Most were observed riding in groups of two or three. The horses have to be in top condition. A training regimen consists of approximately a 15-mile ride two to four times a week. Electrolytes are given, starting 2 days before the competition. The competition is done in stages and the horse must pass a vet check at the end of each stage. The horses are jogged for soundness, weighed, and heart rates are checked. The rider and tack are also weighed. The Veterinarians for the event were Otis Schmitt and Jennifer Dunlap. Awards given for the top ten fastest times to complete the course, and the horses with the best conditioning. This is definitely a family sport. Children as young eight compete, as well as parents and grandparents. Savannah Klein, a veteran endurance rider at age 10, rode her horse Snowy’s Sugar Ice in the 25-mile competition. A father-daughter team, Bud Davidson and Tina Cochran from Vina, Alabama, competed in the 50-mile ride. A little good-natured family banter could be heard on the course. “She’s my little girl and I don’t want to show her up.” “Come on Daddy.” “It’s hard to keep up with a 75-year-old man.” “Tina beat her father at the finish line by 7 lengths.” For information about Endurance Riding, visit the AERC website at http://www.arec.org. For information about the Shelby Farms Equestrian Alliance, visit http://www.seraonline.org. See also the article in the March 2010 Mid-South Horse Review on the City Slickers Endurance Ride at: www.midsouthhorsereview.com/articles/2010/03/04/.../news08.txt.