Dear Endurance
Rider,
Thank you for
your request for a nomination form for the 2003 PAC Mountain Time Zone
Endurance Team. We have put together
some information for you about FEI/International, what it will take to compete
at the ride, and the nomination/selection process.
But
now mes
amis, a
brief Lesson in French .
The FEI is the Federation
Equestre Internationale. The
FEI is the international governing body for all Olympic horse sports. They also oversee international competition
in driving, vaulting, reining, and as of 1978 ENDURANCE RIDING! The two official languages of FEI are
English and French.
You are
now entering the world of euro-enduro
Everything
here is measured in the metric system
Kilograms
instead of pounds--Kilometers instead of miles
Each equestrian
discipline is perfectly named in French and has it’s own rating system as to
difficulty/class of competition. An
endurance ride is a Concours de Raid d’Endurance International and
is referred to by the initials CEI. CEI’s
are rated from one to four stars depending on the mileage, speed and recovery
criteria of the event. A two star ride
is between 62 and 86 miles (100-139 km) in one day and a three star event is 87
miles and up in one day (>140 km). A
championship such as the PAC or WEC gets a four star rating.
The basic rules
for FEI riders are that they carry a minimum of 165 lbs (75kg) (combined
rider/saddle), wear a helmet, a shirt with a collar (tres
chic!), and boots with heels
or running shoes with stirrup
cages. Horses must be at least six
years old for CEI’s and seven for championships. They must be recorded with USAEquestrian and have some kind of
identification papers .
SO WHAT ‘S THIS RIDE ALL ABOUT AND HOW DOES IT
WORK?
This is a big
fancy ride with all of the bells and whistles of any major one-day 100. The two main differences are that first you
must nominate and then qualify for a position on the team, whether as one of
the Army of Twelve or as one of the
Six Reservists.
The second difference is the element of team competition. From the Army of Twelve we will pick out a
squad of four who will ride for a team medal based on total elapsed time. At least three riders out of the four must
finish. (The Mountain Time Zone has not
been in the medals since 1991). To
further enhance the team experience, each zone will have a designated area for
stabling their horses. This year will
be like a regular endurance ride as we all will be camping out, except the
grounds will be partitioned like post-war Berlin!
There are many
organizations involved in international riding and you will need to join
several of them in order to compete.
They are:
AERC (you should already belong to this)
USET (United States Equestrian Team) the
organization that has historically
overseen and FUNDED teams
from the USA. $35 to join.
USAEquestrian
(formerly AHSA) –an
associate membership is $40 plus $10 for
the
endurance committee. Recording certificates for your horse and FEI passports
are obtained through USAE
The USET and USAE are locked in a death
match to determine which group will be the official National Governing Body (NGB)
to represent equestrian sports to the United States Olympic Committee (USOC). Until this is resolved, exact qualification
and identification requirements are on hold.
RIDERS: HORSES:
Belong to AERC & AERC Int. Registered
with AERC
Have at least 500 lifetime miles on
50’s & up Same
Have COMPLETED two one-day 100’s Same
Must
be seven years old
HORSE & RIDER
COMBOS:
Must
have completed a minimum of 200 miles together including a
one-day
100
These are the
absolute bare bone minimums needed. You
and your horse must be comfortable with all of the facets of a one-day
100. This is not the ride for
experimenting or for trying to figure out what works, whether it’s feeding,
shoeing, making your tack fit, how to ride in the dark, etc, etc. You must have all the basics down and
know what it takes for you and your horse to complete a one day 100 before
undertaking this event!
The important
things! Many of you will have to put in
for vacation at the beginning of the year so we want to help you plan. The more time that you are able to
devote to being at the ride, the better the outcome will be. Traditionally riders have been asked to
arrive at camp by Monday but no later than Tuesday before the ride. We ask you to arrive early enough
to accomplish two things:
First-to allow enough time for your horse to rest up after
traveling to the ride (one day of rest for every day of travel would be ideal);
Second-to be able to pre-ride the end parts of the trail that you will
be possibly covering after sundown. It
is of great strategic importance that you make time to do this in
order to set your horse’s homing device for camp and to help you maintain a
good pace in the dark instead of having to slow to a crawl. Ride management has told us that the trail
will be completely marked a week before the ride. Pit crews and other ground support people will be spending time
getting familiar with the course and plotting strategy. We also want to have time getting to know
one another and just to have some great fun since we come from such a huge
region.
Our fund raising
efforts have begun. Our goal is to at
least be able to cover the major expenses such as entry fees and uniforms. We have been receiving cash donations, have
some ideas for some fun money makers, and will be trying for a couple of big
corporate sponsors. We encourage you to
drum up some of your own support as well.
Telling the folks at home “Hey, I’m entering an International
Competition!” may help to open some financial doors for you.
This year’s team
is headed up by the Mountain Team Triumvirate, three people who are combining
their complimentary talents in order to pull our zone’s greatest riders and
resources into The Army of 12 who will ride for the heart of the True
West. Our job is to organize and
manage the team and support people, raise money and find sponsors, and to help
get you through the process of competing at an FEI championship. We will also act as the interface between
ride management and you. There will be
no all-rider meeting before the ride; instead management will meet with all of
the zone leaders who will then report back to their teams. What we are NOT here for is to baby sit a
bunch of high maintenance divas and ding-dongs who show up at the ride either
mentally, physically or emotionally unprepared for the job at hand. We are:
Susan
Schomburg (Wheatland,
WY) Susie has been involved in endurance riding since 1985. She has managed the Shamrock 150, the
Laramie Peak 25/50/75 and the Cottonwood Creek rides for many years. She was also part of the management team for
the Race of Champions for years and recently assisted with the IAHA
Championship. She has served as an AERC
director-both as a regional and At-Large Director and is the current president
of the Mountain Region Endurance Riders.
She has also competed in several 100 mile rides.
Jan Stevens
(Ashland, MT)-Jan became
involved with endurance riding in 1995 when she and her husband Bill purchased
their first endurance horse. Since then
Jan has completed over 950 miles, has crewed overseas for the Kanavy Navy, and
has since become a licensed FEI endurance official, an IAHA Endurance Steward,
and is currently an AERC Mountain Region Director. Since 1997 Jan and Bill have held the wildly successful Ft. Howes
endurance rides. Jan brings to the team
organization, determination, and a plan for a good time to be had by all!
Holly Ulyate
(Larkspur,CO) Holly
started endurance riding in 1975 on a big 100, the Tevis. Since then she has completed over 5600
miles, including the Race of Champions, Big Horn, and many other 100 mile
rides. She rode for the Mountain Zone
Team at the 1995 North American Ch. and was an alternate for the 1996 WEC in
Kansas. She has also been a ride
manager, AERC director, clinician, zone selector and is active in the Mountain
Region Endurance Riders organization.
You will need to
bring at least one person with you who will be your Official Groom. This is the person besides you who is
designated to handle your horse for vet exams, vet checks, trot outs, etc. Bringing your own pit crew (however many)
who already know what you and your horse need and how you want it done, will
give you a distinct advantage as a competitor.
We will have volunteers to help riders, however they might not learn in
two days everything a dedicated crew has learned all summer.
This ride should
be the main focus of your year instead of just something you are going to tag
onto the end of a long hard summer of competing. Circle the date on your calendar (Sept. 13th) and
then working backwards, start planning your schedule of training, competing and
shoeing. Your greatest performance
of the season needs to be at the PAC, not at your demonstration ride!!!
Between March 31st
and July 27th you will be demonstrating to the selection committee
that you and your horse can do 100 miles carrying at least 165 lbs. An FEI weigh-in is the rider, saddle with
any packs/bottles empty, and pad-that’s all.
Complete information on the selection procedure will be included in your
nomination packet.
In past years by
the time the demo period has ended, it’s been a scramble in order to try and
find twelve horses still sound enough to go to the ride, let alone fill six
alternate spots. We all know that
accidents and other things just seem to happen with horses. However, if you over-ride your horse early
in the season and lame it up or have a metabolic meltdown, you will just make
room for someone who rode smarter than you did and thereby shorten the list of
people who will be receiving that joyous phone call August notifying them of
their placement on the team.
NOMINEES-THIS
IS YOUR MISSION:
CAN YOU BRING A HORSE TO A
SEPTEMBER CHAMPIONSHIP
THAT HAS APRIL-FRESH LEGS, MIND AND BODY???
Due to the
ongoing battle between USET & USAE, and pending the outcome of a waiver
filed by the United States with FEI to allow us to drop their more
objectionable requirements, a few things are still up in the air that should be
resolved by the first of the year.
We do not yet
know what you will need for horse identification papers. It might be as simple and cheap as a
well-drawn Coggins certificate or as complicated and expensive as an FEI
passport. You will need to get a
recording certificate for your horse through USAE, either annual or lifetime.
Riders and horses
will need to get a Certificate of Capability which is earned by completing an
FEI sanctioned ride of at least 75 miles at the minimum of 165 lbs.
Here is the list of FEI rides for 2003 as
well as last year’s rides. You may
choose to use one of these as a demonstration ride if it falls within the
observation time period. It might not
be a bad idea especially if any of the vets also happen to be working the PAC.
2002 2003
2/16/02 Twenty Mule Team 100, CEI*** 2/1/03 Moonlight Madness 100, CEI***
Ridgecrest, CA Socorro, NM
4/6/02
Foxfire 100, CEI*** 2/15/03 Twenty Mule Team 100, CEI***
Chireno, TX Ridgecrest,CA
5/4/02
Biltmore Challenge 100,CEI*** 4/26/03
Indian Springs 100. CEI***
Asheville, NC Socorro, NM
5/4/02
Washoe Valley 100, CEI *** 5/2/03 Washoe Valley 100, CEI***
Carson City, NV Carson City, NV
6/1/02
Mt. Adams 100, CEI*** 5/10/03 Biltmore Challenge 100, CEI***
Trout Lake, WA Asheville, NC
6/1/02
Top of the Rock 100, CEI*** 6/8/03 Ft. Howes 100, CEI***
Henryville, IN Ashland, MT
6/7/03
Ft. Howes 100, CEI*** 6/14/02 Sunriver 100, CEI***
Ashland, MT Bend, OR
6/15/02
Smokey Hill River Run 100, CEI*** 6/21/03 USET Fest. of Champs 80, CEI**
Marquette, KS Gladstone, NJ
6/22/02 USET Festival of Champs 80, CEI** 6/28/03 PAC So. Challenge 100,CEI***
Gladstone, NJ Reno, NV
10/19/02 Fair Hill Intl. 100, CEI *** 6/28/02 Pine Tree 100, CEI***
Elkton, MD North Waterford, ME
10/18/02
Fair Hill Intl. 100, CEI***
Elkton, MD
Please do not
hesitate to contact us with any questions that you might have. Our email is MtnZoneEnduro@yahoo.com
Good Luck and
Good Riding!
-Susie, Jan & Holly