Endurance - feeding query

[DanceswithCows]

Just wondering what endurance peeps will feed ON the actual race day? Lots of grub for energy, or perhaps scale it back so they aren't too full? Little and often throughout? There's no rest time as such though is there so it made me curious?

 

[lillyem]

Okay, my friend feeds her arabs a cup of speedi beet, a handleful or alfalfa and half a cup of pasture mix before a endurance ride. Shes only been doing 10 and 20 miles this year due to her top horse having a tendon problem so i've only seen her feed that before a small race. Hope this helps.

 

[EstherYoung]

Whatever they'll eat

Keeping the 'little and often' concept in mind with fibre going through their system is a good aim, and also trying to keep them hydrated (the fibre will help with that too). You can have up to 50 minutes in the vetgates to get food and drink down their necks, although that time goes very fast.

H was a bit difficult to get to drink, so with him I found that getting as many carrots down him as possible was a good thing. I'd also let him pick grass on the trail itself. If he was eating well, then he'd drink. Then in vetgates we'd have several buckets with little bits of everything from dry mix to sloppy beet. And three different types of water....sigh..... They are generally quite good at picking what they need, and you get quite good at preparing a buffet for them to pick from.

With Orrie we found that giving him a little bit of mix at a couple of crew points on the route worked well, too, and would give him a bit of a boost.

 

[DanceswithCows]

Brill, thanks for the answers!