Great Britain: WCSPS Squad is Announced

Endurancegb.co.uk

29th March 2012

The International committee, Selectors and the Management Team of the WCSPS would like to thank the ride organisers of Kings Forest, Di Luke and Karen Collier, for once again welcoming the Squad for their selection ride in preparation for the competition at Mont Le Soie, Belgium on 28th and 29th April 2012.

Congratulations to the following combinations who will be representing Great Britain at the ride.

Caroline Cowley and Summer Mistral
Jane Greatorex and Trust me Too
Alison House and Aberllwyd Briar Rose
Rebecca Kinnarney and Seren Capella
Jo Malcolm and Rasslan

Helen Boston the Young Rider Chef with Young Riders Kate Atkinson, Brett Corcoran, Carri Ann Dark, James Dickinson and Louise Rich will be travelling with the Team and competing at Mont Le Soie which is also the pre-run for the Young Rider European Championships on 8th September 2012. Emma Miller, Chair of International, said "We would like to wish the riders the very best of luck at this ride."

Great Britain: Riders enjoy the Camel Valley scenery as part of endurance ride

Thisisdevon.co.uk - Full Article

Friday, March 30, 2012
Western Morning News

Members of Endurance (GB) South West and pleasure riders from across the Westcountry have enjoyed two gloriously scenic rides in Cornwall, thanks to the county's landowners.

The first, at Colquite, near Bodmin, was held with permission of the Countess Pinky Le Grelle, the Colquite Estate and the Forestry Commission. Nearly 70 riders turned out to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful scenery of the Camel valley. The route covered 19km (12 miles) of woodland, fields and tracks along the Camel River. Riders wound their way down through the woods to the bank of the river at Helland Bridge, where they crossed the lane and turned uphill on forestry tracks towards Tresarrett...

Read more here:
http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk/Riders-enjoy-Camel-Valley-scenery-endurance-ride/story-15667516-detail/story.html

Great Britain: First home in 120km ride

Midweekherald.co.uk - Full Article

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Young endurance rider Dace Sainsbury from Lyme Regis has won a 120km FEI 2* ride with her horse Ballota.

The pair are aiming to get qualified for the Young Rider championships which will be held in Belgium this year.

After a winter spent keeping Balotta (Lottie) fit and building her stamina up, they had their first training ride on Exmoor with lots of hills and tough terrain.

They started the competition season successfully, finishing third in the 80km Jubilee Trail ride in early March.

To qualify for the Young Rider Team the pair had to pass a 120km FEI 2* ride early season. Endurance rides have vet gates where the horses have to pass strict recovery and fitness tests before they can carry on. Dace entered for a ride at Bury St Edmunds, and despite the distance, Lottie finished full of running, and held a 20 minute lead over the field at the final vetting...

Read more here:
http://www.midweekherald.co.uk/sport/first_home_in_120km_ride_1_1331574

Bahrain riders crash out

Gulf-daily-news.com


Sunday, March 25, 2012

BAHRAIN'S Royal Endurance Team riders Jaffer Mirza, Ahmed Al Hazza and Abdulrahman Al Zayed crashed out of the 120km Dubai Crown Prince Endurance Cup held yesterday.

The trio were unable to complete the prestigious four-stage ride, which took place at the Dubai International Endurance City in Seeh Assalam area in the UAE.

Both Al Zayed and Al Hazza were eliminated after their horses suffered injuries at the end of the first stage, which was over 40 ams, while Jaffer made his exit during the second stage for the same reason.

Host country's Sultan Al Beloushi of Al Reef Stable steered Corns to victory with a total ride time of four hours, 21 minutes and 46 seconds at an average speed of 27km per hour.

Behind him was Nad Al Sheba Stable's Abdulla Al Ghanim on Angelica (4:22:49) in second place while Fatma Jassim Al Mirri (4:22:02) of Seeh Al Salaam Stable was third on Ohio.

Completed

Riding Saj, Al Zayed completed the first stage in one hour, 36 minutes and eight seconds with a 27km per hour average speed.

Al Hazza, who came second in the 160km Sheikh Mohammed bid Rashid Al Maktoum Endurance Cup held two months ago, was also out after his horse Sondon was unable to reach the finish line.

As for Mirza, he successfully passed the veterinary examination at the end of the stage on Dancer, clocking 1:36:16 and an average speed of 24km per hour.

Thani Al Muhairi of Seeh Al Salaam Stable took the lead after the first stage in 1:25:42, followed by Al Reef Stables' Abdulla Khamees (1:25:47) and Mohammed Sulaiman (1:25:59) in second and third positions, respectively.

In second stage, which was also over 40 kms, Al Muhairi maintained his lead in 2:57:49. Ghanim Al Owaisi (2:57:50) moved up to second and Al Mirri (2:57:53) climbed into third position.

The 20-km third and penultimate stage saw major changes in the standings with Saeed Al Ma'amari (3:48:00) of Ammar Stable taking over the lead.

Al Beloushi (3:48:09) rose up to second and ahead of third Khalfan Al Sabri (3:48:05) of Ammar Stable.

At the end of the race, Bahrain Royal Endurance Team captain Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa said his team took part in this event due to the strong linking both Bahrain and the UAE.

Shaikh Nasser congratulated the Crown Prince of Dubai Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for the success of the race.

Scotland: Borders ride sees new distance

Thesouthernreporter.co.uk - Full Article

Published on Thursday 22 March 2012 19:43

THE Scottish Borders Endurance Club saw the return of their popular Harstanes ride near Jedburgh on Sunday.

With an excellent turnout of more than 70 horses and riders, and the weather playing its part too, the day was a great success.

Options included 18km or 30km and the new 40km, this being a first for Scotland, the caravan and vet crew were kept hard at work.

The ride itself was marked out well with the usual orange tape and pink arrows ideal for helping direct the 12 non-members who attended on the day.

With a great long stretch of railway line in position at the beginning of the ride and lengthy woodland tracks, it had the makings of what was a very fast ride...

Read more here:
http://www.thesouthernreporter.co.uk/sport/other-sports/borders-ride-sees-new-distance-1-2186901#

Great Britain: Riders treated to glorious views to cape Cornwall

Thisiscornwall.co.uk - Full Article

Western Morning News
March 23 2012

The St Just endurance ride is the most westerly endurance ride in Britain, jutting right out into the Atlantic.

As anyone who lives in the far west of Cornwall will tell you this region not only has its own unique landscape but its own very local weather. This year's ride, organised by the South West Group of Endurance GB, was no exception. The heavy rain forecast by the Met Office blew in overnight and then vanished, leaving glorious sunshine behind it with a cold and gusty wind.

This whipped up the white horses coming in across the sea and caused some of those on the ride to get "the wind in their tails".

Photographer Kim Goostrey is a familiar sight on many of the rides in the Westcountry and usually the horses and ponies take no notice. At the St Just ride, though, the sight of him up by the mast above Hillside in the strong wind caused quite a few sideways leaps and snorts...

Read more here:
http://www.thisiscornwall.co.uk/Riders-treated-glorious-views-cape-Cornwall/story-15599675-detail/story.html

Australia: 78 Days till the 47th Tom Quilty Gold Cup

AERA.asn.au/tq12

The 2012 Tom Quilty Gold Cup will be held in St Helens, Tasmania on 8-10 June at St Helens, Tasmania.

This is a general information page for all AERA members, riders, crews and families wanting to come down to Tasmania and participate in the 47th Tom Quilty Event. Don't be put off by the stretch of water – we Tasmanians manage to cross it every time we travel over to support the mainland events and commercial horse transport companies operate on most crossings on the Spirit of Tasmania.

To make your arrangements for the trip straightforward we have collated relevant information which is noted below. Please take special note of the requirements for the bookings on the Spirit of Tasmania, the quarantine regulations and supply of fodder.

For more information, contact
tq12@aera.asn.au

or see
http://www.aera.asn.au/tq12/index.htm