Char Antuzzi competes each year in the Tevis Cup Endurance Ride, riding a mustang named Sir Galahad who was rounded up with other wild mustangs by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management."I like the mustangs because...the day they are born they do an endurance ride," Antuzzi said.Many horseback riders pick Arabians because they are born in the desert. But mustangs are, too, and they have survival skills that allow them to expend the least amount of energy possible and stay alive, Antuzzi said. "Because they always have a reserve, they'll never run themselves into the ground," Antuzzi said.
They can also recognize danger faster than many other horses, she said. On one trail ride, Sir Galahad stopped, his ears perked up and he started quivering. Antuzzi did not understand why he would not go anywhere until she saw what lay in their path."Around the bend there was a pack of coyotes," Antuzzi said. "And the horse behind me was clueless."These equines stay aware of the dangers in the wild and sustain themselves water hole to water hole, she said. Nine-year-old Sir Galahad has covered 1,000 endurance miles, finishing 15 minutes past the cutoff two years ago and earned his buckle last year. Riders earn a Tevis Cup buckle if they complete 100 miles in the time allotted."Mustangs are consistent," Antuzzi said. "They don't go fast, but they trot up a hill, down a hill, over logs, through creeks. They just maintain this forward momentum."by Tanya Roscorla, who can be reached at tanyar@goldcountrymedia.com. http://www.auburnjournal.com/articles/2006/08/01/news/top_stories/03tevis1.txt
*Source: www.mustangs4us.com*
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