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RE: [RC] Endurance - FEI, UAE - bobmorrisSteph: You wrote: <<<<At a recent conference call of the USEF High Performance Athletes committee (USEF riders elected to the committee), of which I am a member, a motion was put forward to recommend to the USEF Endurance committee that the mileage requirement qualification for horses to be nominated for the 2006 WEC be eliminated. The proposal put forward by a committee member was to allow riders to nominate horses with no previous mileage requirement. By majority vote, the committee recommended that the horse requirement to have completed two 100 mile rides be eliminated. The committee recommended by majority vote that the requirement of the horse to have completed 500 lifetime miles be reduced to 200 lifetime miles. The argument of persuasion was that 'we need younger faster horses to compete' and that 'we have too many old high mileage horses trying to compete'. I have to ask - what was the age of the US horses that have won World Championships in the past? It appears to me that some are now promoting the quest for 'victory' at all costs. This is short sighted and IMO foolish. Do we really want to allow riders to nominate 6 year old horses, that have done 4 50-mile rides, to be considered to represent the US at a World Championship 160km race.>>> Would this not be a very good thing to be brought to the attention of the AERC Welfare of the Horse Committee? Should we not get their views on the matter and then make our position known to the USEF High Performance Athletes Committee? It appears as though the Athletes the USEF is concerned about are the humans and not the equines. I believe that since the AERC is the Discipline Organization for Endurance we should have some input and be capable of exerting some influence. What is the stand of the AERC International Committee on this matter? Bob Bob Morris Morris Endurance Enterprises Boise, ID -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of StephTeeter Sent: Sunday, February 20, 2005 12:59 AM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Endurance - FEI, UAE Last night was the closing dinner for the Presidents Cup. Outdoors at the Hilton in Abu Dhabi. A little breezy and chilly, but a nice gathering for the International guests. Live music - a traditional bedouin group of musicians and dancers. Low key and pleasant. Gifts for all of the riders and crew - for the women small gold horse pendants designed by Mohammed al Saed's (OC Chair) daughter, and khanjar knives (the traditional curved knife in a sheath) for the men. Nothing excessive, but very nice. I spoke with some of the veterinarians who have spent several years over here, helping shape Endurance in UAE. Basically trying to protect the sport and the horses from the fiercely competitive attitude. The speed and performance of the endurance horse has pretty much peaked here. Best horses, best trainers, best vets, hundreds of horses in each of the major stables. It's now comparable to UAE flat track racing in that respect. The very best horses, that withstand the rigours of training, will be the winning horses - one in hundred at best. And then there is the rest... the rest of the horses, the rest of the world. The question now is how to keep this sport alive and interesting and competitive and still protect the horse. One of the topics mentioned was that of qualification rides, or even divisions of rides. This is what has happened in flat track racing, and all of the other major equestrian sports have some sort of proving and qualifying phases. It is logical, and probably inevitable, that Endurance at the FEI level will eventually adopt the same safeguards and levels of competition. In my PERSONAL OPINION - this is where the split between Endurance (USA style) and Endurance (FEI/UAE style) will occur. I don't think the sport will ever change at home, it's too enjoyable and engaging just the way it is - any horse, any rider, any trail - for leisure sport and for the enjoyment of the horse and the outdoors. But at the FEI level, International competition, we are going to have to find a way to separate the proven horses from the novice horses, the truly elite athletes from the 'also rans'. John and I attended a training course for FEI Judges and Stewards last week. Ian Williams (head of Endurance, FEI) and Jim Bryant DVM ran the course. It was excellent, and addressed the issues and problems that the sport is facing, and the increasing need for qualified judges and stewards. The FEI has passed a new set of rules which will be effective January 1, 2006. The biggest change is in the qualification rule - 'Certificate of Capability'- that horses and rides must obtain to compete Internationally. The new rules are available on the FEI website, www.horsesport.org . To paraphrase the qualification - Beginning in 2006, to participate in a Championship level event (WEC, Continental Championship) horse and rider must have completed a one-day 160km CEI*** event in a ride time of 12 km/hr - or 13 hours, 20 minutes - within 24 months of the championship event. OR - if a rider wishes to compete on a horse on which he/she has not met the above qualfication, then the horse must have completed three one-day 160km rides, all of them in the 13:20 window, and one of them must have been an FEI sanctioned event. The practical consequence of this is that for the 2006 WEC in Aachen, this rule will apply. This is going to limit the pool of qualified horse/rider teams - a 13 1/2 hour finish at Biltmore or Fort Howes will no longer suffice as qualification. (Caution: the following paragraph is totally subjective, I'm going to vent a little ). At a recent conference call of the USEF High Performance Athletes committee (USEF riders elected to the committee), of which I am a member, a motion was put forward to recommend to the USEF Endurance committee that the mileage requirement qualification for horses to be nominated for the 2006 WEC be eliminated. The proposal put forward by a committee member was to allow riders to nominate horses with no previous mileage requirement. By majority vote, the committee recommended that the horse requirement to have completed two 100 mile rides be eliminated. The committee recommended by majority vote that the requirement of the horse to have completed 500 lifetime miles be reduced to 200 lifetime miles. The argument of persuasion was that 'we need younger faster horses to compete' and that 'we have too many old high mileage horses trying to compete'. I have to ask - what was the age of the US horses that have won World Championships in the past? It appears to me that some are now promoting the quest for 'victory' at all costs. This is short sighted and IMO foolish. Do we really want to allow riders to nominate 6 year old horses, that have done 4 50-mile rides, to be considered to represent the US at a World Championship 160km race. The potential for pushing horses beyond the limit of conditioning is very high in this circumstance. We might see some younger horses turning out faster ride times w/o the lameness issues that often accompany high mileage horses... but we probably won't see these horses compete successfully for very long. What is the cost? And do we, USEF, really want to endorse this attitude, this 'message'. I personally do not. Ok, venting over. later - Steph =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. 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