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A little background on the UAE sponsorship thing:

The sponsorship is actually coming from the Emirates International
Endurance Village. This group, representing Endurance in Abu Dhabi and
under the umbrella of Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan chose to
sponsor two rides in the USA during the 2004 ride season. This is also
the 'home' of Al Wathba stables, and the President's Cup invitational
event.

> From the recent Arabian Nights press release: 
This premier 100 Mile equestrian event is title sponsored by the
Emirates International Endurance Village (EIEV) of Abu Dhabi, United
Arab Emirates. Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Al Nahyan developed the EIEV and
his dedication to Endurance Riding has brought Abu Dhabi to the
forefront of Endurance.   Ted  Lewis, member of the Emirates
International Endurance Committee and advisor to chairman H.E. Mohamed
Al Sayed, explains, "Our primary goals are to promote the sport of
Endurance worldwide and to make people aware that Abu Dhabi and the
Emirates International Endurance Village is one of the premiere
endurance venues in the World."

The Tevis is, around the world, THE endurance ride. So their choice of
this ride to sponsor was obvious, it is a very prominent ride. 

The committee also contacted (via USEF) the FEI (Internationally
sanctioned) rides regarding sponsorship opporunties. The timing of the
Arabian Nights ride suited their schedule (plus I suspect the name of
the ride was a bonus!) so they offered title sponsorship for the ride,
nka, Abu Dhabi Arabian Nights. A tremendous opportunity for us to make
this a big event. We originally sanctioned the ride because USEF needed
a training/demo ride to prepare riders for the 2004 WEC in Dubai - hot,
flat, desert ride. Our original goal was to try not to lose too much
money. But now, we can give beautiful halter/rope completions awards
instead of rocks. And now we can provide wonderful meals and amenities
for the riders, and invite others from around the world to attend. 

I think it's going to be a blast - a lot of work, a little extra
pressure - but what a wonderful opportunity to do a real International
event in Idaho! (who would have thought...).

We are going to do our best to honor the sponsors' wishes, and offer
them quality promotion, including banners, publicity, doodads, whatever
... And hopefully a wonderful experience in Idaho. I do not feel like we
are being bought, this is still an Idaho ride, we are still ride
managers and have control over the ride - both the rules, and the
'flavor'. We're encouraging first time 100 milers to attend as well,
hoping to achieve a succesful blend of endurance riders (and racers).
Plus we're getting wonderful support from the community including the
use of a historic Oregon Trail ranch for the vetcheck. The cowboys will
be watching closely, thinking of the 50 miles per day of hard riding
they often ask of their ranch horses. So, what's the big deal?

This isn't a burden or an obligation, it's a wonderful gift!  And I
can't help but appreciate the opportunity for a positive
cultural/political statement. We are all 'horse people', we have this
strong common thread. And that's worth a few gold nuggets and a few
gallons of oil.

Steph


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