Walking On Volume 4, Issue 8, August 2017 | Page 21

How were you introduced to the breed
and why did you decide to get a TWH?
In the early 2000s, my mom acquired a BLM mus-
tang mare who was gaited. This opened the door again
into some curiosity about gaited horses. After I moved
away to college, she bought a couple TWHs and began
the ‘gaited learning curve.’ I was very skeptical but
helped her put some miles on these horses.
She had purchased this flimsy-looking 2 year old
named Ebony’s Blue Sky from Arizona when I was in
my first couple years of college. I lightly started her
and then in her 4th year, decided to help my mom
by putting some miles on her and finishing her out. I
instantly clicked with Sky. She was smooth, loved to go
and had endless stamina. She instantly turned me into
a lover of gaited horses and I was hooked.
What makes her so ideal for
the type of riding that you do?
Sky loves her job and going down the trail. We can
be all alone on the hottest, hilliest most awful trail and
she’s always game to see what’s over the next rise. This
is essential for a successful endurance horse. If they
don’t love their job, the last 30 miles of a 100 is going to
be pretty miserable.
What’s the name of the TWH that
you competed in the Tevis Cup with?
Ebony’s Blue Sky; she turned 11 this year. It took a
long time to build up the fitness to reach a successful
Tevis Cup finish. Sky did her first limited distance ride
at age 6; her first 50 mile ride at age 8; her first 100 at
age 10 and first completion at Tevis at age 11. I firmly
believe that if you start them slow and maintain their
fitness they will keep going. In my opinion, the prime
age for an endurance horse is around mid-teens; a 17
year old Arab named Auli Farwa won the ride this
year. More impressive is the 26 year old horse that fin-
ished Tevis this year after also finishing Old Dominion,
the hardest 100 miles on the East Coast.
It’s much harder to take a gaited horse through a 100
mile ride than an Arab. You have extra considerations
due to heat management, electrolyting and the gait
they are doing. Depending on the horse, an even four-
beat gait may not always be the most efficient gait to
cover miles. I aim to do many of our rides at a running
walk because it is low impact and ground-covering.
However, there are times when you need a faster gear
and the rack may not be the most efficient gait for
your horse. To be honest, many of the most successful
TWH’s who do 100 mile rides will move at a step-pace
or gait-a-lope at these faster speeds. Sacrilege, I know,
but it challenges our thinking as to what is ‘correct’ or
efficient for these distance TWHs.
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