{"id":1311,"date":"2009-06-02T12:03:17","date_gmt":"2009-06-02T17:03:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sallyharrison.com\/?p=1311"},"modified":"2009-06-02T12:18:25","modified_gmt":"2009-06-02T17:18:25","slug":"endurance-ridings-most-enduring-horse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sallyharrison.com\/?p=1311","title":{"rendered":"Endurance riding’s most enduring horse"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Tulip, a Morab gelding who will turn 21 on June 21, is endurance riding\u2019s most enduring equine, with 20,805 miles to his credit. He is the first horse in American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC<\/a>) history to surpass the 20,000-mile mark.<\/p>\n

Tulip\u2019s name? The rumor, according to Dr. Les Carr, Tulip\u2019s owner, is that a bed of lovely tulips was nearby during Tulip\u2019s birth. The 15.2-hand Tulip, registered as a half-Arabian by the Arabian Horse Association, is by the Morgan stallion Calamity\u2019s Pizzaz, whose sire is from the Kingston line. His dam, Belif, is a granddaughter of Bu-Zahar, a son of Hall of Fame sire Ferzon.<\/p>\n

The 74-year-old Carr has amassed 46,460 miles of his own during his 24 years of AERC competitions. At 5’8″ and 148 pounds, when he\u2019s not riding, Carr keeps himself in shape with body-building and weight lifting.<\/p>\n

Although he has completed four 100-mile rides, Tulip\u2019s specialty is the 50-mile endurance ride, especially when combined into AERC Pioneer Rides, which include at least three consecutive days of 50- to 55-mile rides. But the grey gelding is not burning up the trail; he and Carr tend to finish towards the back of the pack in most competitions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe AERC motto is \u2018to finish is to win\u2019,\u201d said Carr, who lives in Somerset, California,\u00a0 \u201cHowever, winning can be accomplished in different ways. One way to win is for the rider to make the decision to ride the same horse over a long period of time and place at the middle or tail end of the ride. This approach has been my choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

A pace of 5.5 miles per hour is another of Carr\u2019s tenets. By not galloping or cantering, he can finish a 50-mile ride in nine to 10 hours. To make the trail time easier on Tulip, he spends most of his time standing in the stirrups and allows Tulip to stop to eat and drink along the trail, while monitoring his condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Tulip is even slightly off in his gait\u2014even if the judges say he could continue in the ride\u2014we load up and go home,” said Carr. \u201cMy operating philosophy is that there is always another endurance ride to do, but not another Tulip.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most years, Carr and Tulip have logged about 1,000 miles in competition, although they completed 1,970 in 2006, earning numerous awards from AERC.<\/p>\n

As a practicing clinical psychologist, Carr considers riding a mystical and spiritual experience, noting that \u201clife along the endurance trail is unpredictable, in line with our universe that is inherently chaotic and unpredictable.”<\/p>\n

Carr hopes to ride Tulip as long as possible along the endurance trails, along with his wife, Jill, and her trusty mule, Walker, who accompany him on all of his rides.<\/p>\n

For more information about AERC or endurance riding, please contact the AERC office, located in Auburn, California, at 866-271-2372, email aerc@foothill.net<\/a>, or visit www.aerc.org<\/a>. \u00a0Photo of Tulip and Carr by Lynne Glazer www.lynneglazer.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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