First day and already a disaster :(

[lesson_junkie]

@Jealoushe

Did you ride the entire trail? I saw photos of the trail washed away with craters…which were definitely not safe. They were close to the venue.

Obviously not, in the three hours we followed hounds, and I’m not exactly sure where the whole track goes. We’ve watched it develop this past year, as this is where we hunt. I’ve been riding in these woods for 25 years now, I know all the trails well. The most problematic features of our country are the crossings on White Oak Creek. The creek is deep and the banks are steep and can be soft. My 14h pony has been in the water to the point of her shoulder. These crossings weren’t used.

Also, the woods are cleared on both sides of the trail-would common sense not tell you to ride around a visible hole? I guess runoff could create a ditch quickly in fresh disturbed dirt, but nothing a seasoned hunt horse wouldn’t just hop over. It’s red clay in pine woods people, not Churchill Downs.

I don’t mean to argue, honest, but I rode out there this morning, after a rain, and just didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

[Brown_Derby]

@sixteenhands

that article is from 2015. Old news

Here, this one’s a little newer. No injuries or deaths shown but disturbing image of what they consider “Endurance.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7Yt1PTH5hs

[Denali6298]

My question is, why is there such a disconnect with FEI endurance. My friend rides endurance and I think of the Tevis when I think of the best.

[skydy]

The middle east is flat with a lot of desert.

Riding a horse forward on the flat does not take much skill which is another draw for some Middle Eastern folks. You can WIN without putting in the time and effort to learn either horsemanship, or how to ride.

The FEI policy of holding the rider as the party responsible for any doping violations has been key in Endurance, because many of the UAE riders complained that they shouldn’t be responsible for the doped horse they rode because they have nothing to do with the horses, other than getting on them right before the race begins.

Sheikh Mohammad and many others have used that excuse when their horses tested positive and (thankfully) it didn’t fly. The FEI insists that if you are riding, you are responsible.

[Denali6298]

@skydy

The middle east is flat with a lot of desert.

Riding a horse forward on the flat does not take much skill which is another draw for some Middle Eastern folks. You can WIN without putting in the time and effort to learn either horsemanship, or how to ride.

The FEI policy of holding the rider as the party responsible for any doping violations has been key in Endurance, because many of the UAE riders complained that they shouldn’t be responsible for the doped horse they rode because they have nothing to do with the horses, other than getting on them right before the race begins.

Sheikh Mohammad and many others have used that excuse when their horses tested positive and (thankfully) it didn’t fly. The FEI insists that if you are riding, you are responsible.

I was asking more about rules. 24 hours to complete 100 miles or some such. Not terrain vs the Middle East. I’m trying to wrap my head around the cancellation.

[skydy]

Oh.I’m sorry. I can’t help with that. Have to check the rulebook(s).

[Denali6298]

@skydy

Oh.I’m sorry. I can’t help with that. Have to check the rulebook(s).

Yeah that’s where I’m like WTF? I mean it’s different depending on location. So did they not meet in the middle?

[skydy]

@Denali6298

I’m trying to wrap my head around the cancellation.

Good luck!

[buschkn]

@Brown Derby

Here, this one’s a little newer. No injuries or deaths shown but disturbing image of what they consider “Endurance.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7Yt1PTH5hs

That’s disgusting. Those poor exhausted animals.

[MHM]

@lesson junkie

Also, the woods are cleared on both sides of the trail-would common sense not tell you to ride around a visible hole? I guess runoff could create a ditch quickly in fresh disturbed dirt, but nothing a seasoned hunt horse wouldn’t just hop over.

But didn’t the delayed start mean they would have been riding in the dark by the time they finished? Or was that always going to be the case, even without the kerfuffle at the start? Harder to see holes and ditches in the dark, either way.

[tabula_rashah]

@MHM

But didn’t the delayed start mean they would have been riding in the dark by the time they finished? Or was that always going to be the case, even without the kerfuffle at the start? Harder to see holes and ditches in the dark, either way.

Yes, we ride in the dark. You might not be able to see the holes and ditches, but your horse certainly can. It’s an incredible feeling to move through the dark in the woods at speed- you have to trust your horse and you have to be in sync with them. Look up the Vermont Moonlight 100- it’s a ride in July in Vermont where they schedule in coordination with the full moon and start later to make sure every competitor gets to ride at night.

[Sticky_Situation]

@tabula rashah

Yes, we ride in the dark. You might not be able to see the holes and ditches, but your horse certainly can. It’s an incredible feeling to move through the dark in the woods at speed- you have to trust your horse and you have to be in sync with them. Look up the Vermont Moonlight 100- it’s a ride in July in Vermont where they schedule in coordination with the full moon and start later to make sure every competitor gets to ride at night.

That sounds like a blast. I’ve trail-ridden a good bit at night, but have only really galloped in the dark when the moon was pretty bright, or on sections that were pretty wide open and I knew extremely well. Do you use headlamps or anything, or is it totally in the dark?

Endurance riding in the US sounds like fun and like something I might want to try someday.

What they do in the UAE is just plain animal cruelty.

[tabula_rashah]

@Sticky Situation

That sounds like a blast. I’ve trail-ridden a good bit at night, but have only really galloped in the dark when the moon was pretty bright, or on sections that were pretty wide open and I knew extremely well. Do you use headlamps or anything, or is it totally in the dark?

Endurance riding in the US sounds like fun and like something I might want to try someday.

What they do in the UAE is just plain animal cruelty.

Please come out and try it (PSA it’s completely addictive )

Some riders use headlamps (a lot of times with the red lights so as not to bother the horse’s vision), others put glowsticks on breastplates, some use nothing. Usually trail will be marked with glowsticks so you know where you are going. I that I like no lighting because I get motion sick easily and the lights make it worse

[amb]

@OverandOnward

But what is confusing is that those speaking for the Middle Eastern contingents seem to be arguing both sides, in various social media sites, sometimes against themselves, saying the race should not have been cancelled, etc.

Even the UAE isn’t a consistent voice here. Dubai still seems to be a train wreck, but the stuff coming out of Abu Dhabi and Boudheib in particular seems to have turned a corner, taking better care of horses, using natural terrain, and lowering speeds. To quote the not-at-all-restrained-about-the-UAE Pippa Cuckson, from https://horse-canada.com/cuckson-report/uae-endurance-the-shameful-saga-continues/ : [INDENT]
If Euston genuinely wanted to educate it could have adopted the well received (well received everywhere other than Dubai, that is) BouThib best condition protocols. They pivot largely around a controlled average speed of 20kph, and tighter presentation times and heart-rate parameters. Their promoter HH Sheikh Sultan al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi firmly believes that a heart-rate recovery parameter of 56 bpm (beats per minute) in every loop is the only way to claw back the core values, and reduce attrition.[/INDENT]

I’m not a huge Endurance person (one of the trainers I ride with is, so my news is somewhat informed but secondhand), but some of the endurance tracks at Boudheib actually look like a fun ride, too.

[caffeinated]

Did anyone catch the press conference earlier? Apparently one horse was euthanized (kidney failure)…

[sixteenhands]

@Brown Derby

Here, this one’s a little newer. No injuries or deaths shown but disturbing image of what they consider “Endurance.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7Yt1PTH5hs

I’m not arguing with you that there are abuses in endurance. That is fact. But this is a 2018 WEG forum, not a let’s pick on the UAE forum. IMHO.

[pony4me]

Link to audio of the press conference mentioned above. http://www.horseradionetwork.com/201…2018-weg-show/

[Jealoushe]

53 horses didn’t pass the Vet midway? They said it was unprecedented? Horses were being ridden “way too fast”.

and a man who rides for UEA saying he wants them to find the person who directed them the wrong way. Good, why don’t they pursue that?

[DMK]

I think they did, it sounded like they were directing him to the people in the FEI tent who were conducting the investigation…

[MHM]

@Jealoushe

and a man who rides for UEA saying he wants them to find the person who directed them the wrong way. Good, why don’t they pursue that?

Yikes. What are they going to do to him if they find him? Was this the same group that was threatening to kill the officials the other day?