Mexico: First FEI 1* competition

The first FEI 1* competition will be held 13-14 April at Oriental Puebla, Mexico.

Status :  
CEI1* AND CEIOYJ* 50 miles
CEN & YJ 20,40 Y 60 KLM

ORGANISING COMMITTEE  
Honorary President:       
President of the Event: Ricardo Galan 
Show Secretary: Ana Lucia Franco 
Press Officer: Cecilia Samaniego 

1. COMPETITION 
 
Team  - No 
Individual  - Yes
Time limit - CEI 1* 80  17:10 
Starting method - Mass 
Type of ground - Dirt Roads 
Altitude differentials - 150 mts 
 
 
2. MINIMUM DISTANCE PER DAY  - Km 80 
Number of phases (2 to 6) - 3 Vet Gates 

Km - 30 Into a hold of 30 min. 

Km - 30 Into a hold of 40 min. 

Km 20 - Into finish 

(For CEI 1* and 2* at least one timed hold not shorter than 40 minutes / for CEI 3* 
at least one hold not shorter than 50 minutes) 

For all 160Km rides must have min. 5 Vet gates. 
 

Time 
Opening of stables: 13-04-12  8:00 am 
Veterinary Examination: 13-04-12 Upon Arrival 
First Veterinary Inspection: 13-04-12 5:00 pm 
Final Veterinary Inspection: 14-04-12 Within 30 min of finish 
Best Condition Award: 14-04-12 1 hour after finish 
 
 
4. HEART RATES 
Maximum Pulse at Vet Gates: 64 bpm within 20 minutes. At Final Exams, the 
Maximum Pulse shall be 64 within 30 minutes 
 
 
5. MINIMUM WEIGHT 
(no minimum weight for Juniors and Young Riders competitions) 
Kg - 70 kg

 
6. PLACE AND TIME OF START 
Place - Base camp Hotel Santiago Texmelucan, Oriental, Pue 
Time - 8:00 am
 

Great Britain: Man v Horse race: 'No horseshoes' plea by rider Sarah Braithwaite

BBC.Co.UK - Full Article

11 April 2012

The organisers of the annual Man versus Horse race in Powys are being urged to change the rules so its four-legged entrants can compete without shoes.

Riders whose horses go "barefoot" claim metal shoes can harm the animals' hooves in the long term.

Sarah Braithwaite, who has written a book about barefoot horses and competes in endurance rides, said rules forcing shod horses were outdated.

A spokesman for the Llanwrtyd Wells event said shoeing protected horses.

Green Events said a committee was meeting on Wednesday night to discuss the issue and would release a statement on Thursday.

The spokesman added: "It has always been a rule of Man versus Horse that horses are to be shod because of the course, and because it's a race rather than an endurance ride..."

Read more here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-17681240

France: On Stevenson’s trail: honey and horses in the Cévennes

Theecologist.org - Full Story

Ruth Styles
11th April, 2012

Robert Louis Stevenson’s account of his epic 1879 journey through the Cévennes is one of the high points of travel literature but as Ruth Styles found out, there’s still plenty to be discovered

Travel writing is supposed to be about providing a lyrical introduction to a new place or at the very least, showing a destination in a new light with a quirky angle and new things to do. But how do you do that when said destination is the Cévennes - an area so beautiful, so wild and so historic that the world and its wife have waxed poetic about it? And worse still, when the experience you’re writing about has been done before by the luminous likes of Robert Louis Stevenson?

Stevenson’s 1879 Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes was one of the first travel tomes to grab the popular imagination and paved the way for the likes of Paul Theroux, Ryszard Kapuściński and William Darymple. His adventures along a 120-mile route through some of the most beautiful countryside on Earth with only Modestine, an entertainingly cantankerous donkey, for company, make for a wonderful read. So here I am, attempting to follow in some very illustrious footsteps, with an equine adventure of my own. Not for me though, the crotchety charms of a donkey (although you still can if you want to); instead, I was in the Cévennes in pursuit of an altogether more thoroughbred beast: the Arab.

As well as being the scene of Stevenson’s 19th century adventure, the Cévennes is also famous for its purebred Arabian horses, from whose bloodlines have sprung some of history’s most famous steeds...

Read more here:
http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/out_and_about/1310043/on_stevensons_trail_honey_and_horses_in_the_cvennes.html

South Africa: Albertinia Endurance Ride through dune veld

Suidkaapforum.com - Full Article

Thu, 05 April 2012

HESSEQUA NEWS - On 23 and 24 March, Wynland Endurance Club hosted a two day event with distances of 80 km and 120 km to choose from. The route took the rider and horse through the dune veld of the Albertinia area, making this a difficult ride due to the deep sand on the dunes.

An 80 km ride was offered on Friday, 23 March. Terry Vorster on Nabeehah Azraff completed her 80 km in 5h41, taking second place in the LW Senior division...

Read more here:
http://www.suidkaapforum.com/news.aspx?id=24342&h=Albertinia-Endurance-Ride-through-dune-veld-

France: AllTech FEI World Equestrian Games 2014 names Nicolas Wahlen as endurance discipline manager

Horsereporter.com


April 5, 2012
By Pamela Burton - Pamela@horsereporter

Caen, 5 April 2012 French translation below

With 871 days to go, the Organizing Committee for the Alltech World Equestrian Games 2014 to be held in Normandy, France, has named Nicolas Wahlen as endurance event organiser. Wahlen, a former professional rider, organized the 2000 Compiegne, France, World Endurance Championships and since 2004 has been event organizer of international endurance competitions in over 15 countries, including the 2005 European Endurance Championship.

The discipline team has selected specialist technicians in the organisation of equestrian competitions, each expert in their own discipline.

These include:

Jumping : Frédéric MORAND, technical manager of the Bordeaux CSI World Cup

Eventing : Jean-Marc VARILLON, technical director of the CCI 4* Stars of Pau

Dressage : Didier FERRER, event organiser of the Biarritz CDI 3* and the Vidauban CDI

Driving : Jean-Pierre BRISOU, event organiser of the International Driving Competition, Compiègne,

Endurance : Nicolas WAHLEN, event organiser of the CEI Compiègne,

Vaulting : Philippe ROSSI, event organiser of the 2011 European Championships and the 2012 World Championships,

Reining : Michèle PFENDER, international judge since 2002,

Para-Equestrian sport : Didier FERRER as well as a soon-to-be-appointed specialist.

L’esprit d’équipe, puissance 8 : les responsables de disciplines rejoignent la Direction des sports.

Le Comité d’organisation Normandie 2014 s’enrichit de profils d’experts équestres pour orchestrer une organisation sportive à la hauteur de l’événement. Nommés au sein de la Direction des sports, les responsables des 8 disciplines officielles sont les acteurs d’une co-construction qui débutera en mai au Haras du Pin par trois journées d’échanges et des rencontres avec leurs homologues de la Fédération Equestre Internationale.

About the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy

Held every 4 years, alternating with the Olympic Games and under the authority of the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI), the World Equestrian Games are the biggest equestrian event in the world. They will be held from 24 August to 7 September 2014.

The event brings together 8 official disciplines over a period of two weeks of competition: Jumping, Dressage, Eventing, Driving, Reining, Vaulting, Endurance and Para Dressage.

Over 60 nations and nearly 1000 athletes will come together to demonstrate equestrian competitions of the highest standard to the 500,000 visitors expected at the various sites.

~end

USEF Names Long List for the 2012WEC

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

Lexington, KY – Endurance competition heated up this weekend at the Priefert Ranch in Mt. Pleasant, TX as 45 of the nation’s top horses and riders contested the 160km Selection Trial for a spot on the Long List for the 2012 FEI World Endurance Championship. In a close race to the finish Jeremy Reynolds guided A Kutt Above to the win in 8:16:03, narrowly beating out Wendy MacCoubrey and Reach for the Gold (8:16:05) and Becky Hart riding No Repeat (8:16:09).

Over a course designed to replicate the Championship environment, 19 of the 45 starters finished the race. The top finishers were strong all day and recovered well in the vet gates. Reynolds, of San Jose, CA and A Kutt Above (owned by wife Heather Reynolds), also earned the coveted Best Conditioned Award. A Kutt Above has been named to the Long List with both Jeremy and Heather, who finished fourth on Riverwatch. Reach for the Gold was ridden by Proxy Rider MacCoubrey and has been named to the Long List with owner Valerie Kanavy of Fort Valley, VA. Both Kanavy and Hart (San Juan Bautista, CA) will seek a chance to earn another World Endurance Championship title. Kanavy currently has two titles to her name and Hart will seek a fourth, this time with her own No Repeat.

“I am extremely pleased with the horses on the Long List. Three Young Riders completed the race and were named to the Long List, which is so encouraging for the future,” said Chef d’Equipe Emmett Ross. “There are a few disappointing absences to the list, but overall this is a fantastic group of horses and riders who all have potential to be extremely competitive. Race day was hot and humid, but for one boggy area on the course which had to be repeated several times, the course rode well and the times were all good. I am very pleased with all the officials, staff and volunteers. Priefert Ranch was phenomenal and very supportive with both materials and staff.”

Per the selection procedures all 19 finishers were named to the Long List. Ross may name up to three applicant athlete/horse combinations who did not compete in or complete the Selection Trial to the Long List in addition to the top 19. Ross has named John Crandell III with Heraldic and Deborah Reich to the Long List.. Crandell elected to withdraw Heraldic after the horse passed the vet check at gate two, but before going out on loop three with concerns about deficiencies in the horse’s metabolics. Reich, who was unable to compete in the Selection Trial due to injury, has been named to the Long List with DJB Juniper who finished seventh. Riders are listed on the Long List with each horse they applied for consideration with and that finished in the top 20. Please click here for the complete Long List.

The 2012 FEI World Endurance Championship will take place August 25, 2012 in Euston Park, Thetford (GBR). To find out more about the Championship visit: http://www.eustonparkendurance.co.uk/.

Keep up with the 2012 U.S. Endurance Team here: http://www.usefnetwork.com/featured/2012Endurance/.

For more information, contact Vonita Bowers, USEF Director of Endurance and Reining Programs, vbowers@usef.org.

Great Britain: Olympic year buzz over Golden Horseshoe endurance ride

Horsetalk.co.nz - Full Article

By Horsetalk.co.nz on Apr 03, 2012 in Just Briefly


The scene is set for Britain’s biggest and most demanding endurance ride as the final preparations are completed for the Exmoor Golden Horseshoe Ride, from May 13 to 15.

The ride, with four competitive classes, is held over the challenging Exmoor terrain, classed as among the most challenging tests on the endurance calendar and attracts riders from all over the country, and sometimes from Europe.

“With London hosting this year’s Olympics, there’s a real buzz in the equestrian world at the moment and this year’s Golden Horseshoe is set to be as popular and exciting as ever,” said ride organiser Barbara Wigley.

“Exmoor takes a long time to dry out after the winter, but at the moment the ground is good. I do, however, hope that riders have remembered to include plenty of hillwork in their training because the 2012 route includes Exmoor’s famous – but very steep – Punchbowl in the competitive classes.”

This year’s event has a special prize up for grabs, too. Equine physiotherapist Mary Bromiley is offering £100 to the first rider on an Exmoor pony to complete 50 miles in one day...

Read more here:
http://horsetalk.co.nz/2012/04/03/olympic-year-buzz-over-golden-horseshoe-endurance-ride/