Holly McLaren on Cookie, a Crillo/QH mix. Holly was the team captain for Horsing Around team that won the 30 mile gold team medal at Muckleratz. Photo by Paige Beiler
Endurance. For some, the word conjures up the fortitude required to achieve an extraordinary feat, such as running a marathon. For others, endurance is what was required of them during a root canal. For Holly Corcoran of Stroudsburg, PA, endurance is a hundred miles or so on horseback, enjoying quality time with a superbly trained horse.
Corcoran is a busy woman. Besides training for competition, campaigning to compete internationally and running her accounting business, she was the ride manager for the Muckleratz Endurance Ride, which took place in July. That’s Muckleratz. Which is in the Weiser State Forest in Halifax, PA.
“It’s Muckleratz Boy Scout Camp, where we stay,” Corcoran explains. “The ride has been in existence for about 20 years and we have managed it for the last four years.” But the name? That’s a story that goes a long way back in history. “There are various stories about the name,” Corcoran says, laughing. Some say it’s an old Pennsylvania Dutch expression meaning the place is so quiet you could sleep as if you were a log. Others believe the place used to be a farm owned by a family named Muckle. It’s unclear what Farmer Muckle farmed, but legend says that there was a robust population of very large rats running around. People came from nearby towns just to see Farmer Muckle’s rats.
Yes, well, the Muckleratz Endurance Ride—sans rats—was what Corcoran calls a test event, in preparation for a June 2024 event that will be held at Fair Hill in Maryland. “It was basically a test of the format and how we were setting up the team event,” she explains. “The location will be different. A true test event is usually in the same place a year in advance of the event, so you can test the venue. And this one was set up with the formal team procedures at Muckleratz to see how everything worked.” It’s a daunting task to organize this type of competition. Attracting competitors seems like the easiest part.
It Takes a Village—and Several Vets
The American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC), under which endurance rides are sanctioned, puts the responsibility of competitors and ride organizers succinctly. “In endurance riding, the equine and rider are a team, and the challenge is to complete the course with a horse that is ‘fit to continue.’” Horses are judged before the ride begins, to ensure they are fit to start. There are designated veterinarian checks during the competition, during which horses can be held for up to an hour, to ensure their metabolic rates are normal and that they are not exhibiting any signs of lameness or distress.
Veterinarians have the authority to disqualify a horse from the race if they judge the horse’s condition to be unfit.
“At Muckleratz we had probably 35 volunteers, helping with the ride, and next year for the big team event we’ll have a similar cadre of volunteers that are helping,” Corcoran says. Additionally, she says there were three veterinarians scheduled. It was July 1 and the weather was beastly. “It wasn’t as bad as it could have been. We went into the ride worried about air quality issues, because the Canadian wildfires started kicking up. Thankfully the air quality improved by the ride day. We were fine. The heat and humidity were a challenging aspect for the horses, though.”
Corcoran says that in AERC competitions, any of the top ten riders in any distance can choose to stand for best condition. It’s an opportunity to gain additional points for their overall scores. “When they come back an hour after completion (of the course), they choose to stand for best condition. It’s a full score, which includes condition as well as weight and time factor.” The score sheets include evaluation of: the horse’s recovery score, which is based on how long it takes for the horse’s heart rate to return to normal; the hydration score, which is based on metabolic parameters that determine hydration, including skin tenting, mucous membranes, capillary refill rate, gut sounds, etc.; and the presence of lesions or sores.
“The first place horse might not look the best, but they finished the fastest,” Corcoran explains. “The horse carrying the heaviest rider may not have looked the best but was carrying the heaviest weight and some tiny person may have been riding a horse and the horse looks fabulous and has a high vet score.” She says that at Muckleratz they were using this scoring for all the teams, not just the top ten riders. “The riders didn’t finish top ten perhaps, but we were shooting to see that the team itself was focused on the welfare of the horse, finishing the best.”
The Big Event at Fair Hill
The Muckleratz Endurance Ride was set up as an educational opportunity as well as a test ride. “What we did at Muckleratz is we limited teams to four riders, in the hopes we would create more teams and I think that was effective. In 2024 we will allow up to five members because that is what happens in international competitions,” she explains. There will be a couple of significant differences from this year’s event and the Fair Hill event. “Muckleratz we set up truly as an educational event and putting everybody on the same playing field. Each team had to have a beginner rider which was defined as an adult with less than 1,000 miles of competition, a young rider or a junior on their team. So out of the four member teams one of them had to be one of those people. We hoped that the team would mentor the inexperienced riders and the captain on the 50-mile teams, would mentor the entire team.”
Corcoran’s organization, USA Northeast Endurance, Inc. (usaneenduranceinc.org) is a newly-formed 501(c)3, set up to support endurance horses and athletes in the region, and to sponsor events such as the June 20-23, 2024 Fair Hill endurance competition. “It’s going to be set up as a two-day event—we’re still working on the details—with the idea that limited distance 25-mile and 50-mile rides will take place on one day with individuals and teams. The second day we’ll have 65, 75 and 100-mile distances.” She says the second day will be Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) as well as AERC sanctioned.
“Between now and the end of September we’re sending out a sponsor and vendor packet. We’re hoping to have up to ten vendors and then we want to have the platinum, gold, silver, bronze sponsors of the event because we’re really hoping to make this a big event,” she says. “The vendors would be there for shopping, but also contributing awards and so forth. And that’s for the 2024 event. We’re getting this out in advance, so potential vendors have time to make decisions.”
Unlike the July event at Muckleratz, there will be teams of five at Fair Hill. “And they won’t have the limitation of having to include a beginner rider. You can create your own dream team, and it’s a big competitive event, but for the higher miles we’re going to have some qualifications to make sure that people—and horses—are prepared for the event.”
She says she and her fellow officers at USA Northeast Endurance, Inc., Holly McDonald, Steven Hay, Mary Howell and Heather Hoynes, are focused on the Fair Hill event, and ensuring it’s as big a success as the Muckleratz ride.
From the Show Ring to the Trails
Endurance riding has turned out to be the Holy Grail for Corcoran. “I got started in endurance in 2003, coming out of the show ring. My preference was being on the trail. In 2008 I made the goal of riding internationally. In 2009, I lost my son and endurance really gave back to me a huge gift, because it supported me mentally and physically and emotionally. Interestingly at that time, not a lot of people knew me in the international endurance world, and I didn’t share it very much. And I would go to the rides and I would just be a normal person and I didn’t have this elephant in the room and I could just pretend that everything was normal for a little bit.”
Although her horses are in light work now, Corcoran is looking ahead to a busy season. “The next training ride will be in September. The Hector Half Hundred in Hector, NY. This year, sadly, the Vermont 100 was wiped out because of flooding. That was going to be one of our team rides. So, we’re hoping that Hector might pick up the next informal team event.
“I think I have to ride for my own sanity. I’m just really lucky because I’m self-employed and I have flexibility. So if I choose to put my efforts in this direction for a time period, I can work later or start earlier, so I’m very fortunate.”