Most of us start with goals for ourselves and families at the New Year. Unfortunately many of those goals we set at New Year's never come to pass, such as losing weight, working out more, handling finances better, and so on. Endurance riders look at goals for themselves and their horses starting December 1. I think we do better with our endurance goals because it's something we truly enjoy.

National/regional awards. In our sport there are a multitude of possible goals. For awardsÑthere are overall, top ten, weight divisions, mileage, junior awards, family, age-related, pioneer, mares/stallions, and numerous limited distance ones. You can excel by placing well or by riding a lot of miles in the regional point standings. These goals usually involve you and your horse working as a team.

Longevity awards. There are also longevity awards such as the Decade Teams (supported by Karen Chaton) and the mileage patches for yourself and your horse every 1,000 miles as well as the 5K+ horse lifetime miles and the 10,000+ rider lifetime miles on our website.

Be a mentor. There are other goals that you can set for yourself that involve you and other riders. These can be of great benefit to others in our organization. For example, you can mentor a new rider for the coming season. AERC has a large number of new members every year but we lose a substantial number of them over the subsequent two years. Some don't rejoin because it's not a good fit for their interests or their horse's abilities. Others don't stay with us because they never find a way to get started and enjoy endurance. A mentor can make a tremendous amount of difference in whether a new member continues in our sport. You can also set a goal of introducing your friends to our sport and creating new members.

Be extra-courteous. Another goal can be that of showing more courtesy toward your fellow riders. It's possible to get so wrapped up in competing and riding for the ÒwinÓ that we forget that many riders we see on the trail are there to enjoy the scenery and the camaraderie. And for all ridersÑasking to pass, checking to see if everything is all right when a rider is dismounted, waiting while a rider mounts, and asking if it's all right to go on at a watering spot when other horses are still drinking are among the simple things we would like others to do for us. Courtesy toward others is an important factor in how we get along in all of our human interactions.

Be friendly. A goal of being friendlier at rides can benefit both new and current members. Saying ÒHelloÓ on the trails as you pass and introducing yourself to the people you don't know camped next to you in camp are great ways to make our sport friendlier.

Make improvements. Improving your riding skills, learning more about conditioning, trying new gear, and better care for your horse can be goals that improve how you and your horse fare on the trail.

Writing down your goals and posting them in a place where you will see them at rides is important in remembering them and making them happen. Out of sight is often out of mind. Posting a copy on the inside of your trailer tack door is one place for them. At several times during the year evaluate where you are with respect to your goals to make sure you accomplish them during the season. Someone once said that goals are just wishes until you write them down.

My goals for the coming season are to:

-- Reach the next lifetime mileage level for each of my horses and myself,

-- Meet more new riders in our sport,

-- Be more courteous on the trail,

Get my Endurance News column to Troy before the first of the month.

What are your goals for the newAERC ride season?