All ride managers should have a clear knowledge of the AERC rule book but there is more to managing a ride than just knowing the rules. Ride managers need to use common sense and be ethical. The definition of ethics in Webster's Dictionary: Standards of conduct and moral judgment, essential quality of character.

Ride date conflicts

Choosing ride dates can raise hard feeling among ride managers and sanctioning directors. The AERC administrative manual states: "The Sanctioning Directors shall endeavor to avoid sanctioning rides on the same dates less than a reasonable distance apart, so they will not conflict in the number of riders that rides can hope to attract. A minimum of a 150 miles or a major geographical barrier (mountain range or one of the Great Lakes as an example) should probably be maintained on any given weekend. Some of the regions have been able to maintain 300 miles between rides. Three hundred miles or more would be preferable."

It is a good idea to check on rides near the boundaries of the adjacent region(s) to avoid very close conflicts.

"Old" established rides which have been successfully managed should have their dates reserved. This is not a rule, only a guideline, for the sanctioning director but ride managers could make the director’s job so much less stressful if all ride managers were just considerate when choosing a ride date. When picking a date be sure and check last year's calendar. There is nothing more irritating that checking the Endurance News ride calendar and seeing another ride sanctioned on the same day as your ride and only a few hours away.

Don't let the decision fall solely on the sanctioning director. The ride manager needs to make the right choice and do what is fair for the established ride and the riders of the area. Look at other potential dates and talk to your sanctioning director or the other ride managers for guidance. If the ride managers would just talk and use common sense many of these conflicts could be avoided. Ride managers of an established ride should not delay in sanctioning their ride until the last minute; this can make it difficult for other ride managers to schedule their rides around the established rides, not knowing which rides are canceled.

Alternate ride managers/riding your own ride

Some ride managers choose to organize and sanction rides in order to have another ride to attend and compete in. The ride manager will get everything organized and line up an alternate ride manager to run the ride while they are out competing. Most of the time the alternate ride manager will manage only during the ride while the regular ride manager will hold the ride meeting and then the awards meeting. The alternate ride manager needs to be introduced, by name and in person, to all the riders during the ride briefing and be available to riders and crews during the ride. On the AERC sanctioning form, the alternate ride manager must be listed and be an AERC member. Common sense should tell the ride manager to choose an alternate who is knowledgeable in managing a ride.

The alternate ride manager needs to be very familiar with the trail layout or the ride manager should have a trail boss at the camp who knows every inch of the trail in case things don’t go as planned and an emergency should occur out on the trail. They need to know where to send horses that may get into trouble and need further veterinary assistance during the ride. They need to be responsible for the ride while the ride manager is riding. They need to be able to make decisions as the ride manager.

Ride managers should do everything in their power to have the trail marked perfectly. If they discover during the ride that trail markings have been sabotaged, they should try to reconcile the problem before continuing down the trail in competition. The ride quality should always be foremost in their mind even while competing. The ethical thing for the ride manager who is riding their own ride would be not to come in first place. But, if ride managers would win their own ride, they would not be breaking any rules.

Ride veterinarian or ride manager's family riding

Ethics need to shine through when a ride veterinarian’s spouse or a family member competes. This of course happens most all the time with no problems at all. As a matter of fact, most of us have seen vets judge harder on their own horses than anyone else's. But this conflict of interest can easily be avoided by the ride manager making sure the veterinarian never has to vet his own family's horse. A ride manager can help a veterinarian out in this situation by keeping two veterinarians in a vet check which will give the family member someone besides their own relative to vet their horse.

If the veterinarian’s family finishes a horse in the top 10, the vet needs to make an ethical decision to either not have the horse judged for best condition or make sure another veterinarian is doing the judging. Not that it would be breaking any rules if they vetted their own horse or if it won best condition, but would this be ethical?

Likewise, the ride manager may be the husband, wife or parent of some entrants. It should not be thought inappropriate or unethical for the listed ride manager's family members to be competing in the ride as long as the family member who is managing the ride is actually in charge of the ride.

Rider ethics