FEI/UAE: And The Hits Just Keep on Coming…

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

Cuckson Report | October 11, 2016

It may have been staged three weeks ago, but unsavoury matter is still rising out of the effluence of the world endurance championships at Samorin.

There seems to have been so much anarchy and/or incompetence at the replacement venue in Slovakia on September 16th you have to wonder how much worse the championship could actually have been if still staged in Dubai.

The UAE contingent – all riding for the Maktoums’ premier stables, no rider or owner from any of the other Emirates got a look-in – set out defiantly, having been stripped of the right to stage this event themselves. But they are not the only ones to blame for the shambles at Samorin. Too much of what is widely reported to have occurred behind the scenes suggests that for all their brave word, elements of FEI officialdom are still at pains not to offend the ruling family of Dubai.

So many endurance scandals should have provided the “tipping point” for serious reform: the media focus on doping offences in the royal barns of Dubai, the Marmoog swap and other horse identity frauds, Splitters Creek Bundy, the phantom rides. But numerous official wrist-slappings of the UAE have not resulted in any discernible improvement in their respect for horses, other riders, officials or for FEI rules.

Following Samorin, many more senior figures have felt moved to speak out on social media and in mainstream equestrian publications. Maybe now the tide will start to turn…but I am not holding my breath.

Read this salutary account, for instance, from a very experienced organiser and four-star judge, Francois Kerboul. If you are involved with other horse sports you will find just one of his many bullet points shocking and unbelievable, and you may not make it to the end without a stiff drink. Here is the original French on www.ceermp.org (scroll to the heading “WEC Samorin (SVK) 17-09-2016: Quand les rumeurs se font confidences et inquiètent passablement”). There is an English translation at the foot of this blog.

I will not take up your time with extra commentary on Francois’s text, other than to note that a) none of it to date has been denied in any other reputable media; b) regarding the alleged “sale” of the Italian grooming area to the UAE, bear in mind that the foreign judge who could have reversed it was a Mr Al Hammadi who is, ahem, from the UAE; and c) the intervention of the French team manager relates to a widely-expressed view that Ajayeb should never have been passed to set off on what was to prove her fatal phase...

Read more here:
http://www.horse-canada.com/cuckson-report/and-the-hits-just-keep-on-coming/

South Africa: Sandymount Express 1000 : The final day, and the day after - Devan Horn

http://www.endurance.net/international/SouthAfrica/2016SandymountExpress1000

October 9 2016

All 9 riders complete the Sandymount Express 1000

I woke up the morning of the final day secure in the knowledge that I would have an easy finish. My legs felt awesome, I was full of energy, and very confident. Starting out on the first loop, we were all full of cheer and high spirits.

And then the storm came.

The cloud cover gave a respite from the Fauresmith Sun (like the Tevis Moon, just less charming), but the wind was something primal. So hard and fast I couldn't breathe, a relentless headwind that made Every. Single. Stride. A fight. Every inch of forward progress was a victory. Rain. Lightning. Dust twisters. Definitely qualifies as the hardest day.

But my horses and I were harder. Fairlane, fresh and strong, Aviatrix, completing her 240th kilometer, ears pinned to her neck and nose snarled shut, and especially Brio who handled the worst of it with his striking long trot, cutting a straight line through the storm and getting me to the finish.

As soon as I crossed, and the tears and champagne hit the dirt, I learned that Lize had vetted out on her last loop and had to do an extra 40 in these conditions. As Tines had done for me on my very first day, all 8 riders loaded up in the back of a truck to cheer her home. The din when she crossed the line is hard to imagine. We mobbed the vet at the end, teasingly daring him to vet her out a second time. But her horse looked fantastic, and the Sandymont was officially at an end.

For my team, the kilometer breakdown was:

Aviatrix: 250 K

Hidalgo: 170 K

Zara: 170 K

Brio: 170 K 

Fairlane: 120 K

Coco: 80 K

Sunita: 40 K

Cowboy: 40 K (vet out)

As you can tell, I had the privilege of riding amazing horses this week. I want to thank Donnie, Jackie, Wessel, and especially Rykie for letting me ride their horses on this adventure.

I also want to thank Jaco and Rykie for their help during the race. They were my support team, helpers, grooms, and family. Along with Elias, Beeerkjie, and Joseph, they kept me moving to the finish line all week. To Leon and Engela to opening their home to me while I attempted this ride.

Thank you to my fellow riders, all 8 of you were amazing, not a single one of us quit or retired, and it was an absolute privilege to ride with you. It was tough, beautiful, and wild all in one. We've done this, we can do anything.

Thank you to my sponsors, Hammer Nutrition and Tropical Riders, both of which supplied product that I couldn't have gotten through without.

A big, huge thank you to the South African endurance community in general. I came here solo, with no family or support team, and you made me feel welcome and became my support.

More from Devan at:
http://www.endurance.net/international/SouthAfrica/2016SandymountExpress1000/

Australia: Tom Quilty Gold Cup winner: Rider Debbie Grull; horse Lauralyn Notorious

Weeklytimesnow.com.au - Full Article

DALE WEBSTER, The Weekly Times
October 9, 2016

TASMANIAN rider Debbie Grull and her horse Lauralyn Notorious took out the 2016 Tom Quilty Gold Cup endurance ride at Lexton on Saturday in 10 hours, 21 minutes and 13 seconds.

The pair crossed the finish line of the 160-km (100-mile) endurance race just nine minutes ahead of Talea Hasko-Stewart, of Harden in NSW, in second place.

Of the 233 riders who started what is regarded as the toughest horse race in the world, just 120 completed the course and earned themselves a coveted Quilty buckle...

Read more here:
http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/sport/horses/tom-quilty-gold-cup-winner-rider-debbie-grull-horse-lauralyn-notorious/news-story/eef21076ebdc330486ebfda61fdcae14

Cambodia: CEF pressing on with endurance build-up

Lon Sopheaktra, seen here taking part in a dressage competition, won the CEF’s first 40 kilometre endurance trial. Photo supplied
Phnompenhpost.com - Full Article

10 October 2016
H S Manjunath

The Cambodian Equestrian Federation’s determined effort to prepare an endurance team to take part in next year’s SEA Games in Malaysia has been boosted by the Thailand Equestrian Federation’s all-round support in the build-up.

As one of the leading nations in the region on the equestrian front, Thailand has stepped in to lend its experience and expertise to help Cambodia move past dressage and showjumping capabilities to the more demanding endurance events.

With the Malaysian SEA Games less than a year away, the CEF has taken the preparation of endurance riders to a war-footing since it is a mandatory eligibility criteria for a participating country to complete a minimum of four trials – three over 40 kilometres, extending to 80 kilometres for the final one...

Read more here:
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/sport/cef-pressing-endurance-build

New Zealand: Canterbury farmer's lifelong passion for horses of the desert

Stuff.co.nz - Full Article

PAT DEAVOLL
Last updated 17:33, October 4 2016

David Marshall's childhood dream was to one day ride an arabian horse and do it justice. Now he owns one of the top arabian studs in the country. He talks to Pat Deavoll about what makes the horses so special.

Long time Arabian enthusiast, David Marshall is hoping his stallion Zaddam wins supreme champion at this year's Canterbury A&P Show.

Afterall, Zaddam has an impressive pedigree of wins including supreme champion as a yearling at the Silver Anniversary Canterbury All Arabian Show and champion arabian stallion and champion ridden stallion all-breeds at the Canterbury show last year.

Zaddam is also an open qualified endurance horse - endurance riding is Marshall's passion - and the sire of two of hs team of endurance arabians. A beautiful, graceful grey with flared nostrils and large dark eyes, the horse is, as Marshall puts it, a product of the desert. It is easy to see why he is enamoured with the arabian breed...

Read more here:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/84357698/Canterbury-farmers-lifelong-passion-for-horses-of-the-desert

Equestrian Australia Pens Letter to FEI Regarding Slovakia WEC

October 3 2016

Equestrian Australia has sent the attached letter to the FEI, on behalf of the EA Endurance Committee, following on from the running of the World Endurance Championships.

The letter offers suggestions for ways that completion rates for Championship events can be increased, and the level of horse welfare improved.

They include compulsory walk in/walk out water points on each loop to slow horses down and let them catch their breath a bit; institute lower heart rate and recovery times on flat courses; and encourage more technical courses requiring more horsemanship.

The full letter can be seen here:
http://www.endurance.net/international/UAE/2013FEIControversy/Oct2016AustraliaLetter.pdf

USA's Devan Horn to Compete in South Africa's Sandymount Express 1000

September 29 2016

It's an endurance horse race, testing riders to the their physical and mental ability to complete 1,000 kms in eight days. She'll have 8 horses to get acquainted with and ride each day. The ride begins October 1.

USA's Devan Horn, a Mongol Derby veteran (2nd in 2013, withdrew in 2015), is thrilled to begin this new escapade in South Africa.

"It feels incredibly right to be headed into another wild, insane adventure," she wrote. "I'm indulging a measure of wild ferocity I generally attempt to batten down in polite company. In three weeks’ time, I’ll have both of the longest horse races on the face of this planet dusted~!"

She got a chance to ride two of her horses on Wednesday. "I'm quite happy with both of them, and I still have 6 to meet!"

Her hotel is a great accommodation with roan antelope and sable antelope out by the pool. "I don't know how I ended up in this African palace, but I'm not asking any questions! I keep expecting someone to come in and tell me I've got a cot in the back of the horse trailer instead. But it seems to me this cozy little room (with ensuite SHOWER!) is mine for the week! I'm in such good hands with these excellent horses and hostesses!"

Keep up with Devan's adventure here:
http://www.endurance.net/international/SouthAfrica/2016SandymountExpress1000/