After Elmer Bandit, a 37-year-old Half-Arabian, broke the record for lifetime competitive trail mileage in October 2008, we were flooded with questions about Elmer’s care and, specifically, what fuels the fire that keeps him going. As it turns out, feeding Elmer requires careful consideration and a serious time commitment.

"Getting enough calories to Elmer challenges me," said his owner and rider, Mary Anna Wood of Independence, Mo.

She continually reevaluates his condition to see if changes are in order.

Each of Elmer’s two daily meals usually consist of two gallons of water, four pounds of beet pulp shreds with molasses, four pounds of some type of equine pellet (Wood uses Equine Senior or Strategy), and the supplements ReStore or Revolution (by Biovance Technologies, Inc., of Omaha, Neb.). She mixes all of these ingredients together into an elaborate caloric soup before giving it to Elmer