I'd guess that there are many views among our membership on how to condition their horses for the sport we all enjoy. There is strong interest in the "best" way to do this as was evident at a panel where John Crandell III was asked about his conditioning program for Heraldic. John's answer contained the words, "It's an individual process that depends on the horse," and while that's true, I think there are some basic principles that can apply to all of us.

I'd like to use my own experience to illustrate lessons I've learned riding in very different regions of the country and starting from no riding experience. My personal conditioning strategy is not for top ten but for making sure we finish the ride.

I first started conditioning for competitive trail rides in New Jersey when I learned to ride in 1990. There were trails through the woods and a few hills with an elevation gain of several hundred feet. My first conditioning plan followed the premise that the more time I spent riding and conditioning of my horse, the better.

I was conditioning five to six days a week with the hill work being in the form of going up and down my nearest hill many times. In the winter -- with snow on the ground -- I'd ride back and forth on a one-mile stretch of gravel road that was clear of snow and ice. This lesson was one that I later "unlearned" in finding that less conditioning was actually better for my horse. It's easy to overcondition your horse and actually complete fewer rides.

As I've moved to different regions of the country, I've conditioned my horses in New Jersey, Texas, and California, which have very different terrain available for conditioning as well as very different climates. In southeast Texas near the Gulf coast, our biggest hill is a freeway overpass and not practical for hill work. New Jersey had the terrain previously described while California had nice 800- to 1200-foot hills for conditioning but fewer places for long trots.

In each area, I've tried to find ways to train that will increase my horse's conditioning without overstressing it.

In Texas, I use the bayous for long trots. To provide resistance, I go to the beach and trot in the water or loose sand. It's difficult to get my horse's heart rate up unless I do this. The only hill work I do is at rides in other parts of the state. Even with the lack of hills to use for conditioning, I find that my horses can handle reasonable hills at rides.

In California, the conditioning for hills was excellent. On one long hill, we would trot one time, canter some of it the next, and walk the whole hill last.

The personal lesson I learned here concerned what to do going downhill. I've talked with a number of riders I respect and often the response was: There are only a finite number of downhill trots in your horse. You practice enough so your horse knows how to do it but if you are competing for top ten, save those downhill trots for competition. I used to trot all the downhills in conditioning but now I always walk them to reduce the stress on my horse.

Today my conditioning schedule would be described as riding about twice a week for 10 miles, along with one longer ride on weekends. If I do a number of rides in the season, I condition less, depending on the rides themselves for conditioning.

I've gone from conditioning five to six days a week to a maximum of three days a week as I've learned more about endurance. I've gone from trotting most downhills to walking or getting off and jogging with my horse. I look for natural ways in the places where I've lived to provide increased conditioning for my horses.

My most significant lesson in the 12 years I've been riding endurance is to learn that less may actually be better to keep your horse happy and going down the trail for many years.