news.co.nz
photo:Hannah Ritchie and Charlotte Davison are part of a team competing in the Mongol Derby

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 7:51p.m.

Two New Zealanders living in London are preparing to canter into the record books with the race of a lifetime.

Hannah Ritchie and Charlotte Davison are part of a team competing in the Mongol Derby - a race the organisers have called the biggest, baddest equine affair on the planet.

"It's based on the old postal system that Genghis Khan created," Ms Ritchie explains. "When he was developing his empire, basically his riders would ride 22 hours a day in the saddle and change horse every 40km so they could get a message from Mongolia to Western Europe. I think they did it in about 11 days."

Starting in the ancient capital of Kharkhorin, the 26 riders of the derby will cover 80km a day to finish up somewhere in the Khentii province of Mongolia two weeks later.

It's not so much a race as an endurance test. Riders will spend 14 hours a day in the saddle.

The Kiwi pair's trusty steed for the race is the native Mongolian horse. It's an ancient breed that's stocky with short legs and a large head and roams free for months at a time.

Between them the race competitors will go through almost 800 horses in Mongolia, but sourcing so many horses shouldn't be a problem. In Mongolia they outnumber people seven to one.

The competitors are only allowed to carry 10kg of supplies and there are no support vehicles following them. The only safety net is a GPS attached to each rider to ensure they can be found if things go seriously wrong.
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USA: Thistle Down riders complete course, despite rain

Frazee-Vergas Forum
by Dale Fet
photo:Almost 2 inches of rain altered the course at the Thistle Down Run near Frazee this weekend. Riders (from left) Alexis Visser of Pequot Lakes, Karen Kersten of Pine River and Tara Saley of Brainerd headed out of the campground on a timed run Sunday. Photo by Gale Kaas

The Thistle Down Run endurance horse ride near Frazee was a success with over 80 riders entering for the weekend in spite of less than ideal weather.

The temperature in the days preceding hovered in the mid-90s with the first real warm spell of the summer. It then cooled for Saturday, but rain showers forced everyone to bring out the rain gear as the wet weather continued through Sunday morning.

As it always seems to happen, the sun came out Sunday afternoon giving everyone a warm, sunny ride home.

Endurance riding goes on rain or shine and, true to form, these riders showed they are serious horse people who love to ride.

Ride managers Teresa and Dale Fett made extra trail checks to make sure trail markers stayed up during the rains and wind so riders would stay on course. A few route changes were made to adapt to the wet conditions as safety and wellbeing for both riders and their horses is first priority.

The ride was held in memory of Ben Piche on the family farm of his children Scott (Lisa) and Renae (Ken). Thanks to Les, Pat, and Ron Kertscher along with Vinton and Joyce Vogler who allowed the ride to also cross their property.

The local crew of volunteers included Spencer Fett, Donna Fett, Orlynn Hanson, Clio Jepson, Robin Holmer, Vernette Johnson and Jessica Looker who handled sign-up, timing, vet scribe and general duties. Joyce Vogler kept everyone well fed with her excellent culinary skills.

Riders were offered choices of 50- or 25-mile endurance and 25-mile competitive rides Saturday. Sunday offerings were 25-mile endurance, 25-mile competitive, and an 8-mile novice ride.

The course was divided into two loops of 16 and 8 miles. After completing a loop, riders must have their horse vet checked for any health issues and then must take a mandatory 40-minute hold in camp to allow horses time to eat and drink.

They then mount up again and take their next loop until their particular class is completed. Vet checks are performed at the end to make sure all horses are healthy with vetting chores being handled by Dr. Dean Peterson of Ham Lake and Dr. Travis Kuhlka of New Salem, N.D.

Clio Jepson of Frazee endured a heavy rain shower Sunday morning on an Arab mare (Mi) to win the 8-mile novice class. Also in novice was Lisa Piche, who just started riding a few months ago under the watchful eye of Teresa Fett, riding her late father-in-law's grade mare (Penny) to a 4th place finish.

Teresa Fett, besides being a ride manager, competed both days in 25-mile endurance on her two new 4-year-old registered Arabs (Lillee and Mistir Aaz) with completions. These young horses are just old enough to enter this class and will take two to three years to get the experience and endurance needed to compete in the top of this class.

A rider's potluck was held Saturday evening with awards being given out and then Spencer Fett turned on the DJ music to entertain riders for the evening.

[full article ...]

Canadian Endurance Team Wins Silver at Endurance Young Riders Championships

HunterJumperNews.com
August 17, 2009

Ottawa, ON—Three Canadian young riders Lee Hutten, 17, Kate Coady, 20, and Ariel Macleod, 15, won the team silver medal at North American Young Riders Endurance Ride (NAYRER), held July 24, 2009, at the Clark State Forest in Henryville, Indiana. The competition was held in conjunction with the North American Junior and Young Riders Championships.

The three Canadians joined forces with two riders from Mexico and forming the International Canada/Mexico Team in which all five team members finished the ride. The Canadians rode together and each finished in a time of 11:18 over the five-loop 75-mile ride. Coady of , BC, earned an eighth place finish with Apache Eclypse, a 13-year-old Arabian gelding owned by Elroy Karius. Hutten of Chesterville, ON, rode I Bee Jazzin, her eight-year-old Anglo-Arab mare, to a ninth place finish. Riding A Salisbury Rose, a 10-year-old Arab mare also owned by Karius, Macleod of Montney, BC, finished in 10th place.

“To ride as a team was the best decision we made,” said Coady, who rode Apache Eclypse for the first time at the competition. “We helped each other along the way and the horses bonded, which made it easier to finish the last 10 miles. Elroy Karius and Gail Jewell donated my horse and Ariel’s horse, A Salisbury Rose. We would not have been able to attend the Championships without their generous support.”

“This was my first international competition, and I would definitely do one again,” Hutten, who started riding 10 years ago with Dessia Miller. “To prepare for this competition, I did two 50 mile rides and I conditioned my horse all winter. She really handled the distance of this ride very well.”

Mountain/Pacific Region team won the team gold medal, and the Central team was awarded bronze.

The winning time of 8:19 went to Kelsey Kimbler riding Junior CAHR of the Central Team. Junior CAHR was also named as the best conditioned horse.

“We are so very proud of these young riders, these horses and their devoted crew — a huge team effort and a huge success story,” said the chair of Endurance Canada, Daphne Richard. “Congratulations to all of the riders and thank you for a job well done.”

Complete results of the North American Young Riders Endurance Ride may be found at http://www.youngriders.org/documents/results/2009/endurance/2009FinalResults.pdf.

For additional information on Endurance Canada and its programs, please visit the Endurance section of the Equine Canada website or e-mail endurance@equinecanada.ca.

Written by Julie Cull

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Australia: Top lot goes to Dubai at Magic Millions Sporthorse Sale

Efanational.com

17 August 2009

The Magic Millions inaugural Sporthorse Sale was held on Saturday evening at their Gold Coast Sale Complex.

109 lots comprising of dressage, jumping, eventing, polo, endurance, showing, breeding stallions and youngstock were put through the sale ring.

Lot 9 topped the sale at $46,000, a 6-year-old endurance mare offered by Toft Endurance Pty Ltd sold to Dubai. In total 39 lots sold for an average price of $10,600.

International buyers from Korea purchased 11 horses, 3 horses were sold to Dubai and Chinese buyers also attended the sale.

The horses were viewed and trialled in the preceding two days at the Gold Coast Polo and Country Club about 40 minutes from the sales complex. Show jumps, dressage arenas and a free-schooling yard were set up on the polo fields to enable prospective buyers an opportunity to try the horses.

On Saturday the horses were moved into the sales complex where they were able to be inspected in-hand but not ridden. Vet checks were available at the expense of the purchaser.

The horses were presented in-hand for the auction as they would be at a thoroughbred sale. The auction started at 5pm and concluded around 9pm.

Attendance was good with most of the seating filled. The bidding was reasonable however the majority of horses were passed in as they did not reach their reserve price (the highest bid of the evening was $75,000 for the black jumping stallion Dutch Choice but it fell short of the reserve).

It appeared that many people were just there as spectators and not as buyers, which was not unusual for the first year of the sale.

Feedback from the vendors was largely positive. Most agreed that the first year was always going to be the most difficult but they were eager for Magic Millions to persevere.

"It is really important that we stick with this idea and support Magic Millions," said Peter Toft of Toft Endurance, "it is exactly what our industry needs."

"I think it is a good idea and with some fine tuning it could work very well," commented Olympic rider Vicki Roycroft who, along with Adam Mellers, acted as an advisor for Jumping .

"I sold the three horses that I brought," said event rider Kevin McNab, "next year I'll bring a lot more."

David Chester, Managing Director of Magic Millions, said that they were very excited about the development of the sale and the marketing of Australian Sporthorses around the world.

"To create international exposure for Australian performance horses, will be of great benefit to the development of the industry as a whole, and we envisage this concept will only grow from strength to strength," said David.

Industry professionals from each discipline formed a sale committee to advise Magic Millions and to assist with the selection of horses. Jumping – Adam Mellers and Vicki Roycroft, Dressage – Brett Parbery, Polo – Ian "Ginger" Hunt, Eventing – Tim Boland, Showhorse – Kim Durante and Endurance – Peter Toft.
Photos coming soon.

Bahrain: Royal team excel in Germany event

Gulf Daily News
Posted on » Sunday, August 16, 2009


BAHRAIN'S Royal Endurance Team starred in an endurance horse race in Germany, where they took first place in several race categories.

Yousef Taher riding French horse Siyam won the 160km race, which featured riders from the UK, Belgium and Germany, and consisted of six stages.

Taher finished in a time of nine hours 31 minutes and 12 seconds, as he contested the event with an average riding speed of 16kph.

Second and third place also went to Bahrain. Jaffar Merza took the runner-up spot after completing the ride in just a second behind his victorious compatriot, while Abdulrahman Al Sa'ad was also not far behind, finishing two seconds behind Taher.

In the 120km event, Ahmed Abdulla on his horse Rashken took the winner's trophy in 6:38:25. He had an average speed of 18.72kph.

Shereen Fayez, also of the royal team, won the under-18 female event also over 120km. She clocked a winning mark of 6:39:16 and a speed of 18kph.

In the men's under-18 race over 80km, Bahrain's Ahmed Al Guood finished in second place with in 5:03:23, while countryman Ahmed Janahi was fifth in the same distance's under-20 age category.

Congratulated

Following their victorious campaign, Royal Endurance Team leader Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa congratulated His Majesty King Hamad on the win and thanked His Majesty for the support to endurance riding and to all sports in the kingdom.

Shaikh Nasser pointed out that the Bahrainis' fine showing in Germany helped lift their spirits as they prepare to take part in several other European rides as well as the world championships.

Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad expressed his appreciation of the royal team's efforts in victory, and encouraged them to continue their strong display in their remaining events in the summer.

Mongolia: Inner Mongolian International Endurance Event

TheLongHorseRide.blogspot.com
photo: the leading horse being vetted

The Long Horseride website

The Long Horse Ride is a journey on horseback from Beijing to London. It is scheduled to start out shortly after the closing ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and to arrive in London in time for the 2012 London Olympics.

The ride will bring a message of goodwill from Beijing in the Beijing Olympic year to London in the London Olympic year. It also aims to raise money for disadvantaged children through its chosen charity Schoolchildren For Children.

Starting from the China Children Charity Monument on the Great Wall at Badaling, it will cross the steppes, deserts and mountains of China and Central Asia, following the Great Wall and the ancient Silk Routes. In the path of the Mongols and Huns, it will skirt the northern shores of the Caspian and Black Seas, before the final leg through the fields and forests of Europe.

[More Mongolia images...]

Capistrano Horses, Rider Finish 100-Mile Race

The Capistrano Dispatch

Vol.7, Issue 20, August 14-27, 2009
The Capistrano Dispatch

photo:Allan Horn is among the 87 riders who finished, after 169 start

Two San Juan Capistrano horses finished the grueling Tevis Cup 100-mile race in Auburn, Calif. on August 1. Capistrano residents Allan and Lauren Horn brought their two Arabian mares to Lake Tahoe to start the 100-mile race, which ends in Auburn.

The Western States Trail Foundation hosts the annual Tevis Cup race since 1955. It is world famous and is known as the toughest endurance ride in the world that covers 100 miles of treacherous trail with 22,000 feet of elevation descent and 17,000 feet of elevation climbs through narrow, steep canyons, mountains and river crossings. Horses and riders have 24 hours to complete the ride. The completion rate has historically hovered around 50 percent. Just to finish the ride is an accomplishment in itself and reflects the endurance motto, “To Finish Is To Win.”

Allan Horn rode his 13-year-old grey mare, Royal Sassha HP and Vista resident, Lynn Rigney rode Lauren’s 8-year-old mare, Red Hot Rosa to the finish line in just under 24 hours. They passed all the checkpoints and completed the ride. There are 13 checkpoints throughout the ride where veterinarians assess the condition of each horse before proceeding. Riders can be “pulled” at any point along the trail and most disappointing is to be pulled after crossing the finish line at the final vet check.
This years’ ride had 169 participants from six countries and 22 states. Only 87 riders completed the ride to earn a silver belt buckle. Allan said he did it for the meaning behind the buckle.

“It is a very prestigious ride and a very tough one for horse and rider. It says a lot about you as a rider and your horse. You need to come prepared and having done your homework. There is no margin for error on the trail.”

Because of the difficult trail, tragedy has beset the ride at various times in it’s history. This year a Maryland horse stumbled and slipped and went off the trail to his death. The rider, who was off at the time and leading his horse, was not hurt. Lauren said, “Personally, I don’t know if I ever want to attempt this ride. It’s too scary and too difficult for me. I knew my horse could do it and a friend wanted to ride, so I let her ride my horse. I crewed for Allan and Lynn and had a great time being part of the team and the fact that my horses completed the trail on their first attempt is reward enough for me.”

Lauren has a friend who has attempted Tevis seven previous times before and has not finished the ride. “This year was his year and he did it on his eighth try,” Lauren said. “Allan and I have been riding endurance for 12 years now, training on our local trails. Tevis has always been the ‘mother of all endurance rides’ and a goal of Allan’s. When you are gathering at the start a couple days ahead of time, there is a strong feeling of support and camaraderie. You truly wish everyone could experience a completion but you know in your head, only 50 percent will make it and be able to proudly wear the buckle. I’m so proud of my husband and our two horses. It really is an accomplishment.”

full article