Great Britain: Introducing the Ridgeway Rally

Ridgewayrally.com

Ridgeway Rally is an annual event to rival no other. Ridgeway Rally is a three day riding competition covering 30 miles (48km) a day over the length of the Ridgeway trail.

The 2017 debut event is March 26th-30th and is full; the 2018 event will be held March 25th-29th 2018.

Entrants of the rally can expect four/five hours a day in the saddle, marquees on route for lunch and evening dining with ‘super’ chef’s. Chauffeuring from the riding route each evening to their no expense spared hotels each night, including dinner and entertainment at top 5 star hotels and an evening at Highclere Castle.

The rally combines a superb riding competition with first class hotels and entertainment with world royalty and celebrity.

The Wrangler Jeep and the Ridgeway rally gold cup goes to the winner.

This event is exclusively high end.

A combination of fitness and speed determines the winner.

The Ridgeway is an ancient Roman trail covering some 89 miles. A mixture of mainly chalky tracks running along side open fields of crop land and rolling hills, this is the perfect traffic free riding terrain.

All riders must be advanced and fit for this level of endurance riding. Riders and horses should be currently fit for riding five hours in trot and canter with no problem to be able to enter this rally.

This event is also the perfect training ground for longer endurance rides and gives horses the opportunity to ride terrain they would not otherwise experience, especially horses and riders from the Middle East.

Maximum of 20 entrants.

For more information or to enter, see:
http://www.ridgewayrally.com/

No NAJYRC in 2017 for Endurance

December 20 2016

New locations for the North American Junior/Young Rider Championships (NAJYRC) have been announced, but endurance will not be an event.

While Rebecca Farm in Kalispell, Montana, will host the 3-day eventing competition, the disciplines of show jumping, dressage, and para-dressage will take place at Saugerties, New York, if the bid is approved.

According to USEF, endurance did not submit a proposal for endurance for 2017 because there wasn't a "feasible option" for a 75-mile course at a venue.

Bouthib continues to improve Endurance in UAE

The Endurance season is just beginning in the United Arab Emirates and once again, HH Sh Sultan and his team are showcasing the sport of Endurance at the Bouthib venue. With emphasis on horse welfare and 'fit to continue' criteria, Bouthib is forging ahead with its version of Endurance in the UAE. Recent changes in venue and trails are continuing the trend, with more spacious crewing areas to reduce stress on the horses, natural trails to introduce variety and challenge, and reduction of on-track crewing.

The following article is written by François Kerboul, a 4* FEI Judge and TD. In the article he notes:

NATURAL TRAILS
The FEI rulebook is clear:
"The course should include naturally occurring or manmade features such as (but not exclusive to) tracks, ditches, steep climbs, descents and water crossings that implements technically challenging factors including but not limited to: footing, terrain, altitude, direction and speed (art 801.2)". We are far from the compacted "hippodrome like" trails travelled by uninterrupted gallops.


Follow this link to read Kerboul's most recent article on the Endurance transition taking place at Bouthib




Natural course through the dunes.




Crew vehicles prohibited.

To learn more about Bouthib's Endurance 'revolution':

Previous story on Bouthib, The Unbelievable Season 2015-2016

UAE: British Endurance Rider Being Investigated

Horse-canada.com - Full Article

December 14, 2016
by: Pippa Cuckson

The FEI is to discuss with “urgency” the widespread use of severe bits at endurance rides in UAE, after images of a horse ridden by a former British team member caused a storm on social media.

Emma Finnie, 37, an ex-pat working in risk management for the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, was photographed at Al Wathba on December 3 using a long-shanked curb bit and looped reins of the type associated with para-riding. Her horse also wore a flash noseband, which partially comprised a chain link.

To compound the controversy, video footage showed the tiring horse dropping down to trot in the closing stages of the ride, with Ms Finnie energetically using her legs to keep him going, while accepting numerous a series of “slosh bottles” from grooms running on the piste. He picked up speed to finish fourth when another horse passed him. The top six all won cars...

Read more here:
http://www.horse-canada.com/horse-news/british-endurance-rider-being-investigated/

After kicking cancer, this former Marine celebrated by racing over 10,000 miles across Europe and Asia

Businessinsider.in - Full Story

TALIA LAKRITZ
DEC 13, 2016,

The INSIDER Summary:

• Adam Casey was in the Marine Corps when he found out he had stage IV cancer.
• He celebrated entering remission by racing in the Mongol Rally and Derby.

It's difficult to tell where Adam Casey's story begins.

Perhaps it's when he met a girl who changed his life and inspired him to start a nonprofit called I Do It For Her, helping at-risk youth in St. Louis receive a better education.

Or when he enlisted in the military and became a First Lieutenant Infantry Officer in the Marine Corps.

Perhaps it's when he was diagnosed with stage IV cancer.

Maybe it's when he entered remission, and celebrated by racing 10,000 miles in the Mongol Rally and got halfway through the Mongol Derby before the wild horse he was riding bucked him off and broke his ribs...

Read more here:
http://www.businessinsider.in/After-kicking-cancer-this-former-Marine-celebrated-by-racing-over-10000-miles-across-Europe-and-Asia/articleshow/55950635.cms?format=slideshow

Australia: 9-year-old Georgie Girl Wonder

TheWesterner.com.au - Full Article

POSTED BY: LEE OLIVER
DECEMBER 7, 2016

Georgie Barber is showing the older kids how it’s done on horseback.

Last month the nine-year-old won the junior division of the South Burnett Endurance Riders Association event held at Nanango, for riders 17 years and under.

The Dayboro Pony Club member was the youngest rider to complete the 80km ride, finishing the course in a time of 6 hours and 24 minutes.

Over the past 12 months, Georgie has done ten endurance horse riding races, on three different horses.

“The best one yet was winning my first 80km (ride) on Shanti,” she said...

Read more here:
http://www.thewesterner.com.au/georgie-girl-wonder/

Australia: New plan could make Imbil a cultural hub

Gympietimes.com.au - Full Article

scott kovacevic | 8th Dec 2016 5:51 PM

THE FUTURE of the Rattler might still be up in the air, but a plan to turn Imbil into a business and tourism hub shows the town has no intention of waiting.

The Imbil Heritage Precinct will have the historic train station turned into a community recreational space, designed to showcase the region's history and establish a cultural centre for tourists and residents.

Running under the auspices of the Mary Valley Chamber of Commerce, advertisements have already been posted for the position of project manager.

Among the skills required for the role, applicants should be "motivated and decisive leader who is approachable, inclusive, good humoured and very much a team player”.

The project still requires significant funding, but the Chamber of Commerce said they were committed to developing a precinct which would expand on the range of other attractions already situated in the Mary Valley.

Mary Valley Chamber of Commerce acting president Karen Phillips said the plan demonstrated considerable foresight, especially in light of the recent denial of state funding for the revival of the Rattler this year.

Already host to international events including the International Rally of Queensland and the Easter endurance horse riding carnival, Mrs Phillips said the project manager role might not be time consuming, but would have a significant impact on the region...

Read more here:
http://www.gympietimes.com.au/news/new-plan-could-make-imbil-a-cultural-hub/3120783/