Popularity of endurance horse riding is growing in WNY

Buffalonews.com - Full Article

By Teresa Sharp
Niagara correspondent
on September 28, 2014

They come from varied backgrounds and ride a range of breeds, but these athletes all have one goal in mind – to test their horsemanship across distances of 15, 30 – and for some – even 100 miles. And to do it on deadline.

They will move as one with their horses across demanding terrain, and in the end, they will know their own and their horses’ capabilities and maybe even their limits, more intimately than they ever had before.

Welcome to the exhilarating world of endurance horse riding, better known out West, but growing in popularity in Western New York.

A small group of local members of an “Endurance Green Bean Team,” or novice group, is preparing for a 30-mile endurance ride Saturday in Allegany State Park, called the “Allegany Shut Up and Ride,” endorsed by the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC).

Sue Neidlinger, owner of Shoppe on Main in Newfane, will enter the competition with her 12-year-old pony, Spirit.

She said training for such an event is “very similar to training for a marathon...”

Read more here:
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/niagara-county/popularity-of-endurance-horse-riding-is-growing-in-wny-20140928