Home Current News News Archive Shop/Advertise Ridecamp Classified Events Learn/AERC

All Endurance.Net Advertisers Belesemo Arabians. Cypress Trails Equestrian Center,Sales, Training, Boarding Distance Depot Tack and Equipment DWA Arabians Endurance Ride Photographers Guild Equipedic Saddle Pads for Horses EuroXciser Owyhee Endurance Rides Parry Harness and Tack/Running Bear PNER Renegade Hoof Boots Slypner Gear Trail Supplies SWITnDR Synergist Saddles Tevis Cup Magic TK Designs Custom Jewelry Tteam For Endurance

2007 Haras National d'Uzes

---

The Young Horses of France || The 90KM Ride
40km Results(4yr)(PDF) || 90km Starters(6yr)(PDF) || 60km Starters(5yr)(PDF)
Journal #3 - Uzes 2007(PDF)
6ans Classements(PDF) Championnat - Jeunes Chevaux de 6 ans(PDF)
Championnat - Jeunes Chevaux de 5 ans(PDF)

---

Day 1 Images by Brigette Huard

Snips Images by Basil de Mulo

---

The 90km

Talk about the Uzes Young Horse Finals and you're talking about a logisitical nightmare. But apparently only for the ride photographers, not the organisers who seemed to run the whole shooting match like proverbial clockwork.

With over 167 starters (some of the entrants had failed the initial vetting last night) and because of the indecently fast speeds last year, the powers-that-be (the SHF) decided on a staggered start which spread over 75 minutes with approximately 10 horses leaving every five minutes.

Easy enough if the numbers had been concurrant but the batch of ten were drawn like a bingo card with one horse from each decade (or two) in each pack. So the first group to leave - at 7.00 - were numbers 5, 16, 31, 45, 60 etc. and the next might have been 4, 22, 38, 56 etc. So - really really not an easy race to judge who was in the lead but this was exactly what the SHF had in mind when they decided to have an alternative to a mass start.

[More ...]

---

Championnat des chevaux de 5 ans 169 partants 135 classés, 66 "Excellent", la Finale des chevaux de 5 ans a conforté, après  la satisfaction des résultats des chevaux de 6 ans hier, la philosophie de ces Finales à Uzès en proposant une course pensée pour les jeunes chevaux, dans un rythme idéal, sur un terrain parfait. 

---

Uzes, the capital of the young endurance horses

The Show jumping finals for young horses have just taken place in Fontainebleau, the Eventing finals in Pompadour, the Dressage finals in Saumur, and the Driving finals in Compiegne. It is now the turn of Uzes to welcome the young endurance horses finals which are also organised by the SHF, which is in charge of all the competitions for young sport horses.

---

there are three classes:

• four year olds who are attempting their first 40k - that was today and there were 41 of them taking part.
• six year olds tomorrow who are trying their first 90k and there are 186 entrants for that.
• and nearly two hundred entries on sunday for the five year olds who doing their first ever 60k

---

The Young Horses of France

Get two French endurance riders together and, when talk comes round to their youngstock there is only one question ? 'Uzes?'

These four letters (actually a town in the heart of the Languedoc Roussilon area) are the culmination of a season of qualifying rides held by the Society Hippique Francais who are the body dedicated to nurturing, furthering and proving the quality of young French bred sports horses.

All over the country from March onwards, on the Saturday before the scheduled competitions which are held on the Sunday, the SHF run their set speed qualifying rides for four, five and six year old horses. The pulse and speed parameters are the same as for normal rides over those distances but, unlike the regular competitions there are no placings; you either pass or fail and, as a bonus, if you do pass, you get financially reimbursed.. If you wish your horse to enter the finals then it cannot have attempted the Uzes distance beforehand. So the 4yr olds may not have tried a 40k ride, the 5yr olds have to have only competed up to and including 40k and the six year olds can never have attempted more than a 60k set speed ride.

Every year since the ride's inception in 1992 the numbers have swelled and this year there were over 400 entries across the three classes. 41 four year olds doing their first ever 40kilometres consisting of two 20k loops to be completed between 10 and 12kph with an hour's rest in between, This took place today and was followed by a parade of those horses who had been entered in a 'friendly' sale (as opposed to an auction).

Tomorrow there will be 189 six year olds competing in their first ever 90k 'race'

[More ...]