Australia: Chef d'Equipe Application Date Extended

April 25 2012

Equestrian Australia are calling for applications for the position of Chef d’Equipe for the World Endurance Championships to be held at Euston Park, Great Britain, in August 2012.

The job description, resume template and nomination form are available from the AERA Secretary, Ieva Peters, email: ieva.peters@bigpond.com or from the AERA website.

Applications must be to the Equestrian Australia (National Office) by no later than 30th April 2012.

View/download the job description, resume template and nomination form or contact the AERA Secretary, Ieva Peters, email: ieva.peters@bigpond.com or from the AERA website.

Regards,
Ieva Peters
60445

Belgium: Mont-Le-Soie Pre-Ride

April 24 2012

On the saturday 28th and sunday 29th of April, Mont Le Soie will organize a series of competitions for senior and young riders, all in FEI classes. This will be a unique opportunity for the national squads to discover the competition.

Everyone knows of course how important it is to prepare well in advance all details concerning their participation to a big event.  

On the saturday 28th of April, 5 international competitions:
° CEI**YR120km and CEI*YR100km
° CEI***160km
° CEI**120km and CEI*100km  

On the sunday 29th of April, 3 international competitions:
° CEI**120km
° CEI*100km
° CEI*YR100km

The startlist for the pre-ride is now available here.

Mongolia: Globetrotting - Getting Under the Skin

Globetrotting1.wordpress.com - Full Article

April 23 2012

The girl’s cheeks are flushed beetroot red, her half moon eyes bright with anticipation as her wiry bay pony jigs around in a circle. Shadows of her horse’s ribs are visible beneath the make-shift saddle, a stirrup-less foam pad that is secured by a rawhide girth strap. The number nine is pinned to her back and chest. She is one of 20 child jockeys that will be competing in the Naadam Festival race held in a remote northern region of Mongolia. The child jockeys are stone faced with concentration as they trot their dread-locked, wild-eyed ponies past the group of onlookers.

The children start to sing in mid-trot. Their high-pitched voices echo across the lonely steppe. Our interpreter Molor explains, “they’re worshipping their sky father and giving thanks to the horse.” It’s a haunting, high-pitched chorus that ebbs and flows with intensity as they amble past.

My husband, our two good friends and I were at the beginning of a 19-day horse-riding adventure, where we trekked deep within the remote Darhat Valley, only accessible by horse, reindeer or foot. We were in search of the Tssatan people while getting a taste of a nomad’s life. To arrive in time to see Naadam festivities we jumped on an overnight train, hitched a ride on a regional flight and spent half a day in a Russian army van to reach the windswept town of Khatgal. It’s the frontier town to Lake Khovsgol National Park, the deepest lake in central Asia.

Naadam is a traditional type of festival in Mongolia held in country towns like Khatgal during the midsummer holidays. Translated as ‘the three games of men’, it includes Mongolian wrestling, horse racing and archery.

The dust cloud on the steppe signified that the 25-kilometre horse race had begun...

Read more here:
http://globetrotting1.wordpress.com/tag/endurance-riding-mongolia/

Great Britain: Cheshire Cheese Grin for Horse Riders

Cheshireeast.gov.uk

April 18, 2012

The Cheshire Cheese Loop – the very first long distance horse ride in Cheshire East – is now open to the public. Named Laureen’s Ride, the route runs through the heart of Cheshire East and is ideal for horse riders with friends or family on bikes.

The route is located to the South East of Knutsford, around the parishes of Over Peover, Chelford and Ollerton. Councillor Rod Menlove, Cabinet member with responsibility for environmental services, said: “Cheshire East Council is delighted to have been part of this project to improve the environment for people who are eager to get outside and enjoy the Cheshire countryside.

“As part of the project, Cheshire East Council has ensured the route is safe and well sign-posted, so that visitors can enjoy a relaxed trek through the beautiful countryside.”

The Cheshire Cheese Loop passes through pretty countryside with green hedged fields and shady trees created for Cheshire dairy cattle.

There are also magnificent country estates to see, such as 16th century Peover Hall, Colshaw Hall and New Hall, which was used by General George S. Patton during the Second World War.

The route is signposted on roads and way-marked on bridleways and byways. There are also maps and a talk-around service to guide the rider around the 27km (17-mile route). A leaflet is also available, which lists horse-friendly pub stops, accommodation and equestrian services close-by.

Here is what some riders have to say about the route:

“Lovely country lanes and plenty of canter opportunities”

“Very enjoyable, easy to follow ride, through pretty countryside over a variety of terrain providing interest for both horse and rider”.

Laureen’s Ride was developed by North Cheshire Riders in partnership with Cheshire East Council, with funding from the British Equestrian Federation, British Horse Society and local riding groups.

The Cheshire Cheese Loop is one of two loops of Laureen's Ride. The second, Heritage Loop, is currently being developed. To find out more about the various horse riding, walking and cycling opportunities, log on to: www.discovercheshire.co.uk.

Malaysia: Al-Khamsa-RTES Malaysia-Thailand Endurance Open Championship 2012

The Al-Khamsa-RTES Malaysia-Thailand Endurance Open Championship will be held May 17-20, 2012, at Terengganu International Endurance Park in Lembah, Bigong, Malaysia. Events will include a 40 km National Ride, an 80 km FEI1* (Jr & Sr), and a 120 km FEI2* (Jr & Sr).

The 40 km ride will start at 6 PM on 18th May, and the 80 km and 120 km will start at 6 PM on 19 May.

For more information, see
http://www.facebook.com/events/126675324131208/

Poland: ARABIA-Polska Arabian Horse Festival

April 19 2012

Please feel invited to the First International ECAHO Show in Poland since many years. The ARABIA-Polska Arabian Horse Festival, under the Patronage of HE Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, will take place at Sluzewiec Racecourse in Warsaw on the 23rd-24th of June.

Our international judges are: Sylvie Eberhardt (Germany), Marianne Tangstedt (Denmark), Katrina Murray (UK) and Raymond Mazzei (US).

Show schedule, Entry Form, VIP reservations and Sponsorship fee are available now! Closing date for entries: 15th of May! Contact us: pp@polishprestige.pl

For more information, see:
http://www.arabianessence.com/waterhole/mailblast/2012/mailblast65-polska.html

India’s Indigenous Horses Trot Into Sunset

Littleindia.com - Full Article

India’s ‘native steeds’ are staring at an uncertain, if not calamitous future, just two years ahead of a century since World War I that will commemorate the greatest contribution of horses towards a human enterprise

By Rajat Ghai

For millennia, they have shared the world with their human masters. They have carried their owners in the thick of battle, across grasslands, hills, plains and the highest mountains. But there has never been a more trying time for India’s six indigenous breeds of horses than now.

The Kathiawari horse, the Marwari horse, the Zanskari pony, the Spiti pony, the Bhotia pony and the Manipuri pony are threatened by the loss of genetic purity, say experts.

In January this year the media in Gujarat speculated that there were fewer than 50 purebred Kathiawari horses left.

Warns Satyajit Khachar, a Gujarat-based horse breeder: “If they are not saved now, a stage will come when because of declining numbers, the gene pool will get restricted. Then breeders will resort to inbreeding to preserve the breed’s purity.”

Raghuvendra Singh Dunlod, secretary general of the Indigenous Horse Society of India, a Jaipur-based NGO working towards conserving the six breeds, said: “A horse breed is declared threatened when fewer than 50 breeding mares are left, according to the Brussels-based OIE or World Organization for Animal Health.

“By that yardstick, I don’t think that these six breeds are on the verge of extinction. But some of them, if not all, will slide towards that end if something is not done soon..."

Read more here:
http://www.littleindia.com/life/12681-india%E2%80%99s-indigenous-horses-trot-into-sunset.html