Rides FAQ
Where and when are the rides?
What should I bring to a ride?
What happens at a ride?
How do I do the vet check?
How do I complete?
How do I know when to pull?
What happens if I pull? What do I do?
Do I need a crew?
How do I crew for someone else?
How do I maintain proper etiquette?
- Check the AERC ride calendar. You can also check the map created by the Green Beans for a good idea of where rides are located, though double check with the AERC calendar to make sure you have accurate details.
What should I bring to a ride?
- The basics are you, your horse, your tack, water for you, food for you and your horse, a way to camp for both you and your horse, and a crew bag if there's an out vet check. After that, the list gets long and fun!
What happens at a ride?
- Official "events" are usually the check in, vet in, meals, ride meetings, ride start, vet checks during and after, standing for Best Condition for Top Ten riders. The rest of the time is spent riding and taking care of your horse (and then you).
How do I do the vet check?
- Wait for your turn out of the way, walk your horse to the vet and keep it still and calm, hand the vet your card, listen to the vet and follow their directions, get your card back and put it in a safe place.
How do I complete?
- Ride intelligently.
How do I know when to pull?
- Pay attention to your horse. And of course listen to the vet, but ultimately your horse's care is your responsibility.
What happens if I pull? What do I do?
- You go back to your trailer and take care of your horse so they feel better. Depending on why your horse pulled and the ride itself, you may or may not get to ride another day. If you're an AERC member, the reason you pulled will be listed on your record. Better luck next time. Why don't you go volunteer if you have time?
Do I need a crew?
- No, but it's nice if you're one of the few lucky enough to have one!
How do I crew for someone else?
- Listen and learn what they want you to do for them.
How do I maintain proper etiquette?
- Use good horsemanship and manners.
- Two Questions I've been chewing on: 1) So, if you don't have crew and you are riding a 50, what goes into the crew bag and how big should it be? 2) For NATRC, on the morning of the ride, I always get up super early (3:30) and soak 1 flake for about 20 minutes, then I feed (around 4am), the soaked hay. There are alot of different theories about pre-ride feed.. I'd like to hear more..
- Crews: are they ever a necessity or can this be done alone? I doubt I will be able to wrangle a crew. And for those who function without one, what are the secrets to your success?
- I saw a 2-day 100 pop up on the schedule yesterday. What is the format of that type of ride? Why would you chose a 2 day 100 over 2- 50 mile rides-2 days in a row? It seems like your completion odds would be better with the 2-50's.
- Wouldn't it be cool if the trails were GPS'f ahead of time and downloaded do you could upload onto your GPS?
- Do you travel alone, or does someone help you drive? Do you go well ahead of time and "settle" in for a day or two? How do you and the horse cope with the travel?
- Can you just show up at a ride and enter (un-limited entries)? Is it considerate to pre-enter? What if you pre-enter and then you can't go after all? Can you enter with one horse and switch to another before the ride starts?