Marsha Hayes' Profile of Rusty Toth Wins Top Prize at the AHP Conference

June 20 2016

"All the World's His Stage," a profile of endurance rider Rusty Toth which appeared in Chronicle of the Horse Untacked magazine, won top prize in the annual American Horse Publications contest over the weekend in Florida. Freelance writer Marsha Hayes spent time with Toth last year, exploring the role that art plays in equine competition. Her article touches on the spiritual connection found between human and horse.

Toth is a retired ballet dancer and avid endurance rider. He won the Tevis Cup in 2013, and the Haggin Cup in 2012.

The article placed first out of 18 entries in its category. Judges commented, "This article approaches the very high quality that has been a hallmark of National Magazine Award-winning profiles in Sports Illustrated magazine."

Congratulations Marsha!

Canada: Memorial endurance ride set for this weekend

Devondispatch.ca - Full Article

June 16 2016
Alex Boates
devondispatch.news@sunmedia.ca

A special endurance ride will be taking place locally this weekend, in honour of a husband and father who loved the sport.

Ron Janzen passed away from cancer in 2008. The following year saw the inaugural Ron Janzen Memorial Ride, an endurance ride that has taken place every year since and will continue the tradition this Saturday.

“Ron and I years ago, we used to put rides on here all the time,” explained Christy Janzen, Ron’s wife. “When Ron died in 2008, the next year some friends wanted to put a ride on in his honour.”

Janzen said the ride is one of the largest in the province, not surprising when one considers Ron’s standing in the community of endurance riders.

“He was very well-known in the endurance world,” Janzen commented. After his passing, Equine Canada introduced an award in his honour. The Ron Janzen Memorial Award recognizes a person who displays the same goals, vision and ethics as Ron did...

Read more here:
http://www.devondispatch.ca/2016/06/16/memorial-endurance-ride-set-for-this-weekend

Jack Evers Elected to Green River High School 2016 Hall of Fame Class

Sweetwaternow.com - Full Article

June 10, 2016

GREEN RIVER – Green River continues to celebrate past successes and accomplishments as they recently announced the 2016 Green River Hall-of-Fame Class.

The class includes a three-time state championship cross county team, a former BYU National Invitational Tournament basketball champion and a RMFAC Football champion. This year’s banquet will take place Sept. 10 at the Green River High School.

“I speak for the entire HOF Selection Committee when I say that it is an honor to take part in this process,” Green River Athletic Director Tony Beardsley said.

Jack Evers:

• Graduated High School in Green River in – 1956
• Student Council President and Member of the Horseback Search & Rescue while in High School
• Received a Football Scholarship to attend and play at Colorado School of Mines
• Member of Colorado School of Mines RMFAC Football Championship and Hall-of-Fame Team (1958)
• Also competed in Boxing, Wrestling, and Rodeo in College
• Engineer for Atlantic Company, later ARCO, in both Texas and Oklahoma
• Petroleum Engineer for Mountain Fuel Supply Company in Rock Springs, Wyoming
• Professor and Department Head of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Wyoming
• Endurance Horse Racing – At age 72, earned his 3rd Completion in the Western States 100 (the Tevis Cup), considered the toughest 100-mile horse race in the world by Outside Magazine… other races in this list include the Tour de France
• Currently: Rancher outside of Laramie, Wyoming

June's Endurance Day on Horses in the Morning with Karen Chaton

Horsesinthemorning.com - Listen

Horses in the Morning for 06-14-2016 by the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) – Old Dominion, Nevada Discovery Ride, We’re All Nuts

On today's AERC Endurance Episode Karen catches us up on her latest riding adventures, Claire Godwin, DVM covers the historic Old Dominion Endurance Rides, Inc. and Samantha Szesciorka tells us about the Nevada Discovery Ride with her Mustang. Listen in...

http://www.horsesinthemorning.com/06-14-2016-by-the-aerc-old-dominion-nevada-discovery-ride-were-all-nuts/

Mandolynn Hill Farm to Host Arabian Racing Forum

An Arabian Racing Forum will be held at Mandolynn Hill Farm in Pilot Point, Texas, on June 21st at 6 PM.

Hosted by Evie Tubbs Sweeney and Claudia Spears, attendees will get a complete overview of the sport of Arabian racing: "the horses, the thrill, the purse money, the lifestyle, and the incredible opportunity emerging worldwide."

Mandolynn Hill is one of the top Arabian racing farms and stallion stations in the United States. Numerous Mandolynn Hill-bred Arabians have also gone on to great success on the endurance trails.

For more information, contact Evie at evie@EvieInc.net

In which AERC has made a mistake, and voices are needed

Haikufarm Blog - Full Article

by Aarene Storms
June 9 2016

All y'all, I saw a notice on Facebook this morning that shocked me:

Dennis Summers was handed a 1-year suspension for "unsportsmanlike conduct" by
the AERC Protest and Grievance Committee.

What?

I mean, WHAT???!!!

I'm not going to pretend to be neutral and unbiased. I know too many fine things about the Summers to be impartial, and I feel much too strongly to remain silent.

In fact, I am going to post my entire open letter to the AERC Board (it's down below).

This is a timely issue, with only 30 days for an appeal to be submitted, so rather than wait for the next issue of Endurance News to be mailed, I will post the entire text of the findings of the Protest and Grievance committee on this blog in the next few days. Please stay tuned...

Read more here:
http://haikufarm.blogspot.com/2016/06/in-which-aerc-has-made-mistake-and.html?spref=fb

Ride and Tie World Championships 2016 Coming to California

Mary Tiscornia (riding Nero) and Sean Pont winning the 2015 World Championship Ride & Tie near Klamath Falls, OR. Mary has competed in all 45 Championship events and is 70 years young. Photo: Brian Dorsey
Adventuresportsjournal.com - Full Article

The coolest sport you’ve never heard of
By Luke Yates

Ride and tie may just be the coolest sport you’ve never heard of, and you can get involved right here in California.

This year, the Ride and Tie World Championships will be held at the Cuyamaca Rancho State Park in Southern California, on July 2.
The sport is a mix of endurance horse riding and trail running. Teams comprise two runners and a horse, and races are complete when all three team members cross the finish line.

“You need to be a fairly good rider. This is definitely not riding around an arena. This is out in the wild.” says Ben Volk, media secretary for the Ride and Tie Association.

The human athletes alternate running and riding the horse, switching every few miles. At the start, the horse pulls ahead of the runner. After a while, the rider ties the horse to a tree and sets off running. Eventually, the second runner catches up and gets on the horse. They ride until they overtake their teammate and go ahead. The runners and riders repeat this sequence, leapfrogging each other to the finish...

Read more here:
http://adventuresportsjournal.com/ride-and-tie-world-championships-2016-coming-to-california/

Canada: Endurance rider searches for good Samaritan

Kelownacapnews.com - Full Article

Jun 4, 2016

After competing in an endurance riding event in Utah this spring, Elroy Karius and his horse, Jolly Holiday, were on their way home when the unexpected happened.

While travelling northbound on Highway 97 near West Kelowna, Jolly Holiday, inside the horse trailer, became entangled with a sliding metal latch and was in danger of being fatally injured.

Karius stopped the truck and tried to free his horse but, on his own with no assistance, the prospects didn't look good.

That's when a stranger stopped to lend a lifesaving hand to Karius and Jolly Holiday...

Read more here:
http://www.kelownacapnews.com/sports/381709771.html

It Started With a Parade, and a Girl’s Endurance Riding Dreams Have Come True

May 31, 2016
by Riley McHenry

I fell in love with horses when I was 7. I went to a three-day horse camp over Labor Day weekend near our home in Carson City, Nevada, and I was hooked. I learned to ride (on an English saddle), tack, and muck out stalls. Kim Chappell, the trainer, was a wonderful teacher. I’m dyslexic and get my lefts and rights mixed up so she would use different terms like “inside ring” and “outside ring” to help me understand the direction.

That was the beginning of my obsession about horses. Now I love anything “horsey” including movies, books, and my model collection.

As usual, in June of 2015 my family went to the Carson Valley Days Parade, and we talked to the AERC parade group. They were at the parade as part of their training for the 2016 Rose Parade. I got really excited and wanted to join the riders. My dad had lots of questions about endurance riding, and after the parade called the American Endurance Ride Conference office and asked if they knew of a sponsor for a 10-year old girl. They gave him the name of Karen Chaton from Gardnerville, Nevada.
I began going on rides with Karen on her horse Pro Bono D, a 19-year old Arabian gelding that has been an endurance horse for 10 years. Bo is a great horse with so much power and spirit. I have learned many things from Karen. She taught me that the horse always comes first.

When we do an endurance ride, I must first make sure Bo is fed and well hydrated before I feed myself. She also taught me how to put on hoof boots and do a proper vet check with Bo. The vet check is a big deal. I have to be able to communicate with the vet on Bo’s condition at the beginning, middle, and end of each ride.  
    
My first ride was 30 miles at the Red Rock Rumble in October. And of course it had to rain; it never rains in Nevada. We had trouble in one small section following the ribbons so we got off trail but soon got back on. This is when Karen gave me the job of being co-navigator. Now it was my job to always look for the ribbons and to make sure we didn’t miss them, or miss any turns.
Karen felt I was ready for a 50-mile ride in the High Desert Ride. There was a storm of all storms, windy and raining. We rode through two Nevada state parks, Lake Lahontan and Fort Churchill, and through a forest of golden cottonwoods along a dry riverbed.

My next 50 was Gold Rush Shuffle. The night before the ride, on our way there, my dad and I got lost, and since he does not have a cell phone, we were wandering around in the outskirts of Auburn in the dark. Finally, after hours of looking, we found the camp. The next day, it was freezing at the start, but it warmed up throughout the day and it was a very pretty ride.

At the Twenty Mule Team ride in Ridgecrest, California, it was very hot, and I made a mistake and didn’t eat enough or stay hydrated so I was exhausted after the ride. A big snake rattled at Karen’s horse Chief, but he let Bo and me walk right by without any problem. It scared Karen and me more than the horses.

Rides of March was my next 50 mile ride. That ride was a different story. I had learned my lesson and drank and ate plenty. We saw the strangest thing in the middle of the desert—a rusted old submarine.

At the Nevada Derby in early April, I rode Bo on Sunday. There were a lot of hills. I had to dismount to walk Bo down the steep, rocky hills. We rode to Duck Hill and then to Carson City. At the vet check, I got a compliment from the vet who said I had a good “trot-out” which made me happy with myself.

In addition to our endurance rides, I helped to get Bo ready for the Rose Parade in January. We rode in two parades: the Nevada Day Parade (I was dressed up in Arabian garb) and the Veterans’ Day Parade in Virginia City. We also practiced for many weeks in the large arenas at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, with the rest of our parade group.

My family has been very supportive of my new sport. They drive me to my rides, stay at camp during the long days while I’m on the trail, and cheer me on. They are very proud of me. I have ridden 250 miles in less than a year and I am fifth in the point standings for the juniors. My next goal is to complete a 100-mile ride.

I have had some exciting adventures riding Bo. I love endurance riding, and I hope to continue to ride with Karen for many more rides.
 
More information on endurance riding is available by visiting www.aerc.org or by calling the AERC office at 866-271-2372. By request, the office will send out a free copy of the 16-page Discover Endurance Riding booklet to prospective members.


Contact: Troy Smith
American Endurance Ride Conference
www.aerc.org
endurancenews@aerc.org
866-271-2372, 530-823-2260

Discover a New Sport for You and Your Horse

May 31 2016
 
The time spent with your horse is precious. For those who compete in equestrian sports, those few minutes in the ring may not satisfy your craving to spend more hours in the saddle. If you’ve been longing to hit the trails and really ride, it’s time to discover endurance riding.
 
With introductory, fun rides of 10-15 miles, and then the competitive distances of 25-35 miles (limited distance) or 50-100 miles (endurance distance), there is no doubt this sport will bring you and your horse closer in partnership.
 
The nonprofit American Endurance Ride Conference, now in its 43rd year, welcomes riders of all ages and equines of all breeds. Most people with a reasonably conditioned horse or mule will be able to complete a 25-mile ride within the allowed six-hour time frame. “And they’ll have a fun time, discovering great trails and meeting other endurance riders and their horses,” said AERC Executive Director Kathleen Henkel.
 
AERC rules require that a prize be given to each finisher — it can be anything from a photo taken during the ride to a T-shirt or certificate or handcrafted item. Often there are prizes for winners in varying weight divisions and for the horse deemed best condition in each competition of 25 or more miles.
 
Sound intriguing? AERC has reissued their 16-page Discover Endurance Riding booklet, which is available free upon request at 866-271-2372 or www.aerc.org/AERC_InfoRequest.
 
Just a few of the AERC rides across the U.S. and Canada this summer include:
 
Shamrock Pioneer – run on the historic trails of southeastern Wyoming, where Native Americans, pioneers and outlaws once roamed the West. This picturesque and challenging ride has a 30-mile and 55-mile option each day, July 1-3.
 
Bandit Springs – Held in the Ochoco National Forest in Oregon on July 9 and 10, this ride offers distances ranging from 25-75 miles.
 
Vermont 100 – One of only a few rides where equestrians share the trails with ultrarunners, this long-time ride is held in West Windsor on July 16. Besides the 100-mile ride, there are 50- and 75-mile options.
 
Pine Tree – This Maine ride has five days of riding, with distances of 25-55 miles,August 9-13. Trails run along and across the Saco River, near Fryeburg.
 
And, of course, the ride that started it all and remains THE ride that draws more people to the sport of endurance riding than any other: The Tevis Cup (real name: Western States Trail Ride 100). Begun on a dare in 1955, the riders and horses traverse the Sierra from Squaw Valley to Auburn in a true test of horsemanship and stamina.
 
Taking the first step towards entering the Tevis—or a 25 mile LD ride—is the easy part. AERC has extensive educational materials (including its own YouTube channel) and a mentoring program that can match up new riders to experienced veterans of the sport.
 
And the rider’s partner? While Arabians and part-Arabians are numerous, the sport is seeing a rise in the number of gaited horses, Paso Finos, and other breeds. All equine breeds are welcome, and it’s typical to see Mustangs, Appaloosas, Quarter Horses and even Icelandic ponies at AERC rides.
 
All competitions are run by a ride manager and overseen by veterinarians, known as control judges, who check over the equine athletes before, during and after the ride to be sure each one is “fit to continue” as they make their way along the course.
 
Hundreds of endurance rides are held annually around the U.S. and Canada, with everything from small, low-key rides to ultra-competitive races. The nation’s top riders are gearing up for the national championship ride to be held September 8 and 10 in Utah’s Antelope Island State Park.
 
The organization’s national office tracks miles and points for all members and their horses, and confers annual awards in both regional and national competitions, including a family award and an award given to the rider 65 or older who completes the most miles each year.
 
AERC’s monthly publication, Endurance News, includes an extensive ride calendar and awards standings each month as well as education articles and features.
 
New members can join AERC at www.aerc.org/NewMbrReg or by phoning the AERC office, located in “the endurance capital of the world” — Auburn, California—at 866-271-2371.

Contact: Troy Smith
American Endurance Ride Conference
www.aerc.org
endurancenews@aerc.org
866-271-2372, 530-823-2260

Know Your Neighbor: Mary, Mary, proves to be extraordinary

Gazettetimes.com - Full Article

STEFANIE NOONAN For the Philomath Express
June 1 2016

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, this article is not. Meet Mary, Mary, extraordinary, your neighbor, Mary Kautz.

It’s fun to discover how people land in Philomath. Truth is most of us mispronounced the name of our town the first time we came over the hill into city limits. For that matter, who dares voice texting the word, Philomath? My Bluetooth freaks if I so much as mention the word. Which I’ve learned to outsmart by simply saying, “Where home is,” instead of “Philomath” when texting.

Mary’s not so unlike yourself. She didn’t set out for Philomath and yet it has tattooed itself upon her heart. She’s here for good having recently purchased her forever home right here in, you know — where home is.

Mary graduated high school in Ohio and began like most 18-year-olds exploring the world where mom and dad are not. She headed west to Idaho, accepting a working student position in a horse training and breeding facility. The following summer she moved to California taking a similar position.

Fast forward to Mary meeting Scott, who planned to attend Oregon State. The NW began its tug on Mary when they came to check out the area.

“I really enjoyed the West. I just decided that I belong in the West, I don’t belong in Ohio. There are no mountains in Ohio,” said Mary.

After renting in Philomath for two months Mary just knew…

“I knew I’d like to stay around here. I fell in love with the area. I liked the recreational opportunities, the public hiking and horseback riding areas like Bald Hill, and McDonald and Starker forests. They’re both so friendly to recreational users. Where I come from, there’s nothing like that.”

Mary also likes the culture here.

“The culture here is hard to describe,” she said. “Maybe it’s in part because Corvallis is a college town, but there are lots of free events here. I went to the master gardener seminar and a health fair a couple weeks ago. I really enjoyed that.”

But ask Mary what she enjoys above all else and she will answer…

“HORSES!” She will say with a beautiful grin as her large brown eyes sparkle.

Mary eats, sleeps and breathes horses. As a child, Mary had a collection of “My Little Ponies.” By age 8, she became obsessed with the real thing. She wondered if she might have a career as a professional athlete, or a riding athlete, but Mary decided that being a jockey wasn’t for her.

She worked with professional horse trainers who taught her about basic training and breeding. She learned how to handle stallions and foals and organize events. Soon she was introduced to one of the great highlights of her life — endurance riding...

Read more here:
http://www.gazettetimes.com/philomathexpress/opinion/know-your-neighbor-mary-mary-proves-to-be-extraordinary/article_959d959e-63e0-5b3a-ac40-6892abc05e56.html

Belesemo Arabians: Beautiful and Enduring

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Call it a fluke, or divine intervention, but the chestnut yearling that 15-year-old Kim Frerichs Johnson picked for his beauty in 1973 at Idaho's War Eagle Arabians was destined to become the foundation sire for a successful line of purebred Arabians and the dream of a lifetime. Her parents presented her with this colt, Belesemo Trad, as a surprise for her 16th birthday.

I met with Kim at her Belesemo Arabians ranch, in Caldwell, Idaho, on a May afternoon. Lulls in activity are rare during and after foaling season, but she took a break from her non-stop work to talk with me.


"Trad was never picked because of his outstanding conformation, because of his outstanding pedigree, or any of that," she told me. "It was a total fluke. It was not something that was planned. Actually, I don't call it a fluke. It was a blessing."

"Belesemo Trad was simply a fantasy, larger than life," Kim wrote about the flashy chestnut in 1985. "He was the culmination of all my dreams after reading stories such as King of the Wind and the Island Stallion. He was perfection personified."

"Belesemo" is Italian for "beautiful," and Belesemo Trad (Las Trad X Alla Mem, by Alla Kas) was certainly that, with his 4 perfect stockings and perfect blaze. Kim and Trad had a successful show career in high school and college back in the late '70s and early '80s when the class A show ring was huge. "He was very, very versatile," Kim said. "He won 5 different divisions, and neither one of us knew what we were doing. We had no professional training. We just watched all the videos and went to all the clinics we could. He was the true all-around Arabian."

Trad was left a stallion, simply because Kim and her parents never gelded him. "There wasn't a person in the horse industry who didn't tell my folks he should be gelded, because I was a young girl with a stallion. And I totally understand why they all thought that. It was just kind of assumed he would be gelded, because he was supposed to be my show horse in the future. But we never got around to it."

He was not an easy horse to handle. "He was a very tough horse from the aspect of he had a mind of his own. He wasn't mean; there wasn't a mean bone in his body. But he was tough, which I think is the reason it stood him in good stead in his offspring, their toughness on the trail later."


After Belesemo Trad started winning in the show ring, people became interested in breeding to him, even though Kim and her family had no place to stand him at stud. He was 9 when his first foals hit the ground. Endurance riding was nowhere on Kim's radar at the time, but those genes for natural endurance talent would still find their way to the surface in many of his offspring.

One of Trad's first foals was out of his full sister, Krija Beden. "That's not even something I could consider now! But she was one of the only purebred mares I could find at the time," Kim said.

The resulting filly from this cross, Belesema Flirtasia, became an outstanding endurance horse. Ridden her first 2 full seasons by Bob and Arlene Morris, she was then bought by Dean and MJ Jackson, of Idaho. Dean took Belesema Flirtasia on to over 4100 AERC miles, and several national titles including National AERC Mileage Champion, and National AERC Best Condition Champion, in addition to numerous Regional awards.

Belesema Flirtasia was the first horse of Trad's that did well, but by the time she started showing her best stuff, she was 9 and 10 years old, which made Belesemo Trad 19 and 20 before he started getting discovered as an endurance sire.

"Trad came to that late in life, simply because breeding for endurance was not something people did at that time, unless you were Rushcreek, or HCC [Hyannis Cattle Company]. We didn't really know anything about endurance until his offspring started doing really well."


A number of endurance horses sired by Belesemo Trad during his late demand as an endurance stallion garnered impressive records and awards throughout their careers.

Belesemo Tradition (out of Velvet Dawn), owned by Dean and MJ Jackson, earned over 5300 AERC miles, and titles of National AERC Mileage Champion, National AERC Husband/Wife Team Champion, 18 Best Condition awards, and an 8th place Tevis Cup finish. Belesemo Bolero has over 3500 miles. Belizair, Belesemo Legacy, and Kismet Flashdance have crossed the 2000 mile mark; and a number of offspring have reached over 1000 AERC miles.

Belesemo Trad also sired numerous successful offspring in the show ring, with Belesemo Epic+++/ topping the list, receiving many National Sport Horse awards, and going on to become a successful sire himself.

Tragically, Kim's foundation stallion died in 1997. "When I lost Trad, that was extremely tough," she said. "I lost him the day before he turned 25, and I lost him before I got any mares bred to him that spring. So I had the last foal crop coming from him, and that was all that drug me back out to the barn, because I just couldn't go out there and see his stall empty."

Belesemo Magic (by Belesemo Trad out of Zimara, by Gazi) stood at stud at the ranch beside his sire until his death in 2014 at the age of 33. Despite standing in the shadow of his sire for many years, Belesemo Magic also became a successful sire of sport horses and endurance horses, with several AERC National Champions to his credit. "Magic represented the best of the Belesemo Arabians breeding program. He added the quiet, gentle spirit that Belesemo Arabians have become known for from his wonderful line-bred Abu Farwa dam, Zimara."

Kim still has 2 of Belesemo Trad's sons standing at her ranch, carrying on his legacy. Belesmo Image is 25. He's out of Farweyna, one of 5 Abu Farwa granddaughters that Dirk and Kim obtained in the early 1980's to breed to Trad. "Nobody wanted the mares anymore because they were over 20 years old. Belesemo Image is the last foal out of those old foundation mares." Image carries old line CMK/Davenport pedigree that features close-up breeding. His foals inherit his size and substance and are finding success on the endurance trails and in the show ring.


The other son of Belesemo Trad standing at the ranch is 19-year-old Belesemo Ibn Trad (out of Velvet Dawn). He's a full brother to Belesemo Tradition, mentioned above. Ibn Trad's offspring are on the way to success on the endurance trails and in the show ring, but, Kim said, "at 19, he is really just now getting a chance to produce some bigger foal crops.

"It takes SO LONG," Kim said. "People don't understand, when you're trying to prove a stallion in endurance, they're only 5 when they start competing, and they may not get good till they're 10. And most stallions are not bred when they're out running on the trail, because you don't know how good they are. So usually they don't even get a chance to start siring endurance horses till their mid-teens. And by that time it takes another 5 to 6 years before their offspring are doing well, so consequently these horses are 20-some years old before they become established endurance sires.

"Breeding is a waiting game. It's a lifetime commitment, and unless you have a passion for it, you don't get into it."

Kim currently stands two other stallions at Belesemo Arabians.

BR Gold Sovereign (*Seffer x PR Silvern Dream), a winning National Sport Horse, is an almost 100% pure Crabbet Arabian stallion from Sojourn Arabians in Pulaski, Tennessee. The 15.1 hand stallion provides a great outcross for the continuation of the performance and sport horse halter blood lines sought by Belesemo Arabians. He is also a Breeders Sweepstakes Nominated Stallion.

Belesemo Obsidian (RD Arizon x Velvet Dawn) is a Class A Reserve Grand Champion Futurity Stallion and the Idaho Breeder's Champion Futurity Stallion at halter. He is a paternal sibling to National Champion endurance stallion BA Fantizon, and out of the same dam as AERC National Champion Belesemo Tradition, making him both a maternal and paternal sibling to AERC champions. He has already sired halter, pleasure driving, and trail winners.

Belesemo Arabians produces a few select foals from proven matings every year, and the ranch primarily deals in selling young stock.

Kim points out that the Arabian breeding industry is going through a metamorphosis. "When I was getting into this in the 1980s we were breeding 35,000 purebred Arabians a year. Every decade that is halved. In 1990 it went to 17,500. In 2000 it went to 8500. In 2010 it went to 4500. But now, 2015, it was just over 3000 in the whole United States."


If one can assume two-thirds of those 3000 Arabians were bred for the show ring and likely don't have the bone or feet or mind or conformation for work, that probably eliminates a good number for the endurance trails. And with several major breeding programs now gone (Hyannis Cattle Company, Rushcreek, Suzie Creek Arabians), and the recent deaths of major players in the breeding industry (Al Marah's Bazy Tankersly, Varian Arabian's Sheila Varian, Om El Arab International's Sigi Constanti), the numbers of purebred Arabians available with long-established, proven bloodlines diminishes. Belesemo Arabians strives to continue Belesemo Trad's validated lines.

It keeps Kim busy, with around 50 head of horses at all times on the ranch. "You just can't leave. Horses are horses. Invariably they colic, they get upside down cast, they get out - it's just the nature of the beast."

Kim could not run the ranch, weather the storms, and enjoy the successes without her husband Dirk. "By nature he is not a horse lover. He's a farmer. He just doesn't have that empathy with the horse type thing that all the rest of us do. He just does it for me.

"He has been my literal absolute mainstay. He takes care of all the facilities, he irrigates all the pastures, he catches all the gophers, he changes all the hands lines, he hauls all the hay. He's given wings to my dream as far as it being a breeding program.

"I could only do so much of that on my own. I can't do the breeding program, I can't take care of the horses, I can't handle the horses, I can't foal the mares, I can't breed the mares, I can't daily handle the babies. I can't do all that - a full time job - and take care of the place. So I'm very sensitive to his ability to keep me going all the time as well. It's a pretty big undertaking.

"The day he says 'I'm done,' then I'm done."


But they'll still be around for the foreseeable future, breeding and raising excellent purebred Arabian endurance and sport horses, continuing the lines of her foundation stallion beautiful Belesemo Trad.

"Trad was something that we didn't set out and search for a foundation stallion for a breeding program. But it was obviously the Lord's plan. Just because of the unique individual he was, he became very dominant as a sire of that type of horse.

"I have been so blessed, and there have been so many neat people that I've met in the sport that ride our horses. We've made some life-long friends through it."

For more information on Belesemo Arabians, see:
http://belesemo.com/

Application Extended for AERC Ann Ayala Junior Scholarship

aerc.org

May 23 2016

AERC Juniors and Young Riders in good standing from their high school senior year through age 21 (must be younger than 22 as of 1/1/2016) are invited to apply for the 2016 Anne Ayala Junior Scholarship. The deadline has been extended to June 1.

Applicants must have a minimum of 500 AERC lifetime miles and an unweighted GPA of at least 3.0. Applications will be reviewed by the AERC Hall of Fame Committee.

One scholarship of $1000 will be awarded, and the recipient will be announced at the AERC Annual Convention in 2017

Get your applications in by June 1!

Application is here:
https://aerc.org/Static/Temp/2016Scholarship.pdf

Support Juniors at NAJRYC

NAJYRC Fundraising

With your support, AERC young riders will compete at the North American Junior and Young Rider Championships this July at the Colorado Horse Park. Please consider making a donation. Check out the YoungRiders.org Flyer.

The Adequan/FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North (NAJYRC) is the premier equestrian competition in North American for junior and young riders, age 14-21. Young equestrians vie for team and individual medals in the 3 Olympic equestrian disciplines of show jumping, dressage, venting, the Para-Olympic discipline of para-dressage and the FEI Equestrian Games disciplines of reining and endurance.

New AERC Decade Team - Karen Bumgarner & Z Summer Thunder

Karenshorsetales Blog - Full Story

May 19 2016
by Karen Bumgarner

The Owyhee River Challenge endurance ride marked Thunder's and my tenth year of completing AERC rides. Thunder is my second AERC decade horse. Zapped+/ was my first.

Back when Karen Chaton interviewed us about Zap and our Decade award, a question asked was "In choosing my next horse what would I look for?" I replied that I already had him. Thunder was two yrs old then, I'd owned his mother, Rushcreek Hollie, and his sire, Z Mufaurwa. He was born with that attitude that you knew would make him a good tough horse...

Read more here:
http://karenshorsetales.blogspot.com/2016/05/new-aerc-decade-team.html

Volunteer at the 2016 Tevis!

Teviscup.org

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the Tevis Cup Ride. About 800 people participate each year on Ride Day – more than four per rider! The Ride is a huge effort that relies completely on volunteers. There are Head Volunteers who provide the leadership for each of the many vet checks, as well as other areas of Ride activity. These "HV's" necessarily operate with a good deal of independence, but under the overall guidance and coordination of the Ride Director and the Core Ride Committee. The need for volunteers in some areas may not be known until late in the weeks leading up to Ride Day.

There are many jobs available for the 800 volunteers who help out each year, everything from mixing mash and holding horses, to directing vehicles or helping the vets. This event would not happen each year without AWESOME volunteers like you! 

Sign up at
http://www.teviscup.org/how-to-help/volunteering-for-tevis

2016 Tevis Sweep Riders Sign Up

Would you like to be a sweep rider for Tevis? 
Did you know that you have to qualify? 

Go to the website for Sweep Riders of the Sierra at http://www.sweepriders.org . They are always in need of good riders on good horses and it is a good way to see different sections of the Western States Trail, on the day of the ride! There is helpful information on their website and calendar dates are listed for meetings, training, and qualifying. 

Applications Available for 2016 USEF Youth Sportsman's Award

USEFNetwork.com - Full Article

RELEASE: May 11, 2016
AUTHOR/ADMINISTRATOR: USEF Communications Department

Lexington, Ky. - The search is underway for 2016 United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Youth Sportsman's Award nominees. The award recognizes young equestrians who exhibit exceptional leadership potential, serve as positive role models for peers, demonstrate an ongoing commitment and dedication to the promotion of equestrian sport, exhibit substantial community involvement, and exemplify positive sportsmanship principles.

The overall winner of the 2016 USEF Youth Sportsman's Award will receive a $1,000 grant payable to the educational program of his/her choice and a commemorative trophy. The winner will also be nominated for the USEF Junior Equestrian of the Year Award. The reserve winner will receive a $500 grant payable to the educational program of choice.

Applications are available online at usef.org or through any USEF Recognized National Affiliate Association or International Discipline Association. Required materials should be submitted directly to the applicant's respective USEF Recognized National Affiliate Association or International Discipline Association and received by the respective office on or before September 1, 2016. Each USEF Recognized Affiliate may select a National Winner, who will be considered for the overall award.

To be considered for the 2016 USEF Youth Sportsman's Award, applicants must:

· Have a current membership in good standing with the USEF
· Have a current membership in good standing with a USEF Recognized Association or International Discipline Association
· Be 17 years of age or under, as of December 1, 2015
· Demonstrate an ongoing commitment and dedication to the promotion of equestrian sport
· Serve as a positive role model for peers
· Participate at any level of competition, including local, regional, or national events
· Exemplify community invovlement
· Exhibit characteristics that exemplify positive sportsmanship principles

For more information regarding the USEF Youth Sportsman's Award, please contact Natalie Norwood, Director, National Breed/Discipline Affiliates, via email at nnorwood@usef.org or call (859) 225-6951.

May's Endurance Day on Horses in the Morning with Karen Chaton

Horsesinthemorning.com - Listen in

May 10 1026

On today's AERC Endurance Episode Endurance Episode Karen's hair raising road trip prompts a discussion about cameras with Distance Depot's Kristen, Mike from Redmond Equine talks about bentonite clay, Dr. Mero updates us on the AERC's drug policy and horse heroes Devan Horn and Justin Nelzen tell us about anew ride in Africa. Listen in...

Listen here:
http://www.horsesinthemorning.com/hitm-for-05-10-2016-by-the-aerc-slickest-mud-ever-happy-feet-aerc-drug-testing-update-new-adventure-in-africa/

Best of the Best 100 Competition

BEST OF THE BEST 100.

A new AERC ride has just been sanctioned for 2019. You must have 5 - 100 mile rides SAME HORSE AND RIDER. One of those must be a top ten finish/completion. 2 of the completions may be Pioneer rides with all days completed, but may not count as the top ten completion. Lifetime records will count!

Our hope is that it will move around the country and will be held every 2-3 years. This will save from volunteer burnout and hope to get riders excited about setting goals and meeting them.

The US fielded the best teams when the old Race Of Champions was held, and it is our belief that it was because there were more 100 mile riders out there to choose from. We want to see that happen again.

The first Best of the Best 100 will be held in Ridgecrest, California on October 12 by ride manager Cindy Simcox. For more information contact Cindy at quadequine@wyoming.com or Becky Hackworth at bechack@yahoo.com.

2016 AERC Specialized Saddles Rookie Award

All new AERC members are invited to apply for the first-ever Specialized Saddles Rookie Award -- for riders who have not entered any AERC rides of 25 miles or more before 12/1/15. Great prizes for the top 3 in both LD and endurance divisions.

Sign up by May 31, 2016 to be eligible for this High Mileage Award for Rookie AERC members. The award is based on one rider and one or two equines. Equines must be a minimum of 6 years old at the start of the first sanctioned ride. In the event of a tie, the higher number of completions will break the tie. Second tie-breaker will be the higher number of longer ride completions (55 miles and up). Riders with a completion rate of less than 80% at the end of the season will be ineligible for the Rookie Award.

For more information and to register, see
https://aerc.org/Static/RookieAward.pdf

Western States Trail to be Captured by "Street-View" Imagery

Trailrunner.com - Full Article

The American Trail Running Association is partnering with the Google Maps team to capture 360 degree panoramic “street-view” imagery of the entire Western States Trail using the Street View Trekker backpack.

Our expedition will take place the week before the 2016 Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run on June 25. Led by our Director of Online Marketing, Richard Bolt, and supported by several prominent ATRA corporate members, the expedition will be documented by iRunFar and experienced trail running race photographer Mike Hermsmeyer. iRunFar will be publishing exclusive stories about the Western States Trail as a companion to the Street View images.

Once the street-view imagery has been processed, it will be embedded into this webpage as well as onto selected sponsor websites. Stay tuned for a Go-LIVE announcement online & from our booth at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Salt Lake City, Utah, August 3-6.

Follow us on social media feeds & subscribe to our Trail News blog to get updates from the team as they traverse 100 miles of rugged Sierra Nevada mountain trails from Squaw Valley to Auburn, California.

See more at:
http://trailrunner.com/western-states-trekker/#.VxZ6im2m0p8.facebook

Greear takes long, long racing route Story

BHPioneer.com - Full Article

April 21, 2016 11:30 am
By Jason Gross Black Hills Pioneer

SPEARFISH — “Horse racing” conjures up images of a flat, oval track where the sprinting action ends in about 2 minutes. Spearfish physician Kerry Greear specializes in 25- to 250-mile horse races across all types of terrain; times are measured in hours, and the pace is considerably slower.

Greear sought a challenge in 2003 because she was going to turn 50, and her youngest child was set to graduate from high school two years later.

While in Steamboat Springs, Colo., she saw a book called “The Tevis Cup.” One of the photos in this book about a 100-mile horse race featured a horse-bound woman going practically straight up a rock.

This intrigued Greear, who read the entire book. “This is what I’m going to challenge myself to do,” she recalled.

Greear entered her first event in June 2004 in Montana. She placed eighth in the 50-mile ride...

Read more here:
http://www.bhpioneer.com/local_sports/article_71b0fae6-07d5-11e6-92a5-f3f37bb2e8e4.html

The 2016 Houston Flood Story - Darolyn Butler

April 19 2016 FLOOD STORY

Endurance Friends & Family,  (written by Russell Betts as told to him on the phone)

As many of you have heard there was a catastrophic flood in the Houston area. After 42 years of living on Cypress Creek, one feels you sort of know it. The weather had predicted 4 to possibly 9 inches per day, possibly for 3 days. Darolyn always watches the weather carefully as our rainy weather hampers the daily trail ride business. She was aware that Monday and Tuesday could be wet She knows when to initially prepare, tying lawn furniture down, picking up loose buckets, water troughs, etc. Get all vehicles off property and up on higher frontage road. Next get halters on horses, next move horses to high South side of the property. If the water keeps coming up, they even know when they have about 30 min. to get the last vehicle out, before the low spot in the road prevents going out. 45 Trillion gallons of water fell from the sky that nite. Almost all of it 10, to 40 miles west of us on the Cypress Creek Watershed. We only had 10 inches here, which we could normally handle, but couple that with the 15-17 inches back west, and the Flood gates being conservatively open on downstream rivers…. What happened is the fastest rising flood water that Harris County has ever experienced. Thus the 8 human deaths and probably more when all the water goes down. They are still boating in to CT after 4 days. Below is a fairly succinct outline of April 18.

Cypress Trails does have plans for the evacuation of horses. In 2015 there were 2 evacuations which took place, which in the end were not required after all. Evac is discussed with staff on a regular basis.
Mon 18th April.

12 am to 2am -  Darolyn had been regularly checking the internet flood gauges and rainfall sites from midnight onwards. Up until 2am everything was still ok with the levels the river was at about 55'. 12 ft. Over normal.

3am - 4" of rain fell here, the river incredibly rose to about 62' at this point, I had to make a quick decision if I was going to move horses or vehicles. I chose horses
3:30 AM The horses were moved out of the Arena Paddock to stalls in the House/Barn, & North pasture closest to the creek, to House/Barn (higher ground). Horses had just been through this terrific storm, and skittish. So Darolyn saddled up and rode into N. pasture to collect the horses. They followed her into the barn like lambs, but when they were being collected with halters, the horses spooked and broke out of the barn.  Running into the flood water on the south side, the strong current scattered the herd. Several horses ran into the Arena, got tangled in the cable fencing as the current pushed them into it.

Realize we had walked easily around this arena about 20 min. before catching the horses that lived there. Now it was a struggle to walk in it.  These are some of the horses later seen on the TV.  Darolyn and an employee, Hoku, swam to the Arena to rescue horses, but they were only just able to swim there. Hoku, sitting on a fence, held the horse, Amber's head above water until the water got a foot higher and she was able to disentangle herself from the fencing she had gotten in. She is fine.  Neither of us could buck the current to get back to the Barn/House. They had on T-shirts and gym shorts… 2.5 hours sitting in cold flood water that, as it grew higher was trying to tug our cloths off. Talk about DijaVu. This was almost exactly the same place Darolyn was back in 2001 when she swam in to save a couple of horses left at the house when they were at the TETRA convention.

5 am – to the west, upon the Cypress Creek watershed, 13 to 17"s had fallen.   Another 4"s fell , the river now at 65' (nearly 2' above the river bank). My house which is on pilings, was ok, but water was rising in the stalls and tack rooms. The law enforcement arrived with rescue boats, their priority was to rescue people and not horses. Darolyn and Hoku were rescued from the Arena about 8 am, where they had been stuck after swimming there 2.5 hours earlier. The TV pictures of horses stuck in the floods now came from around this time. No horses were tied to any fences or poles but some horses were entangled in cable fences now underwater.  (All but one got out.) There was no barbwire as stated in some account.

7 AM  There were no horses in the single story barn which can be seen with just its roof above the water in the news coverage. All these horses had evacuated themselves early on.  Confusion on this occurred because there is what is call a "barn" under Darolyn's house,

11am -  the river now 6' above its banks, volunteers now start to help rescue horses from the south pastures (which was the high ground) of the flooded Cypress Trails.  Justin Nelzen, Devan Horn, Mark Jensen and many others contributed to heroic rescues throughout the day as they snagged horses out of the currents and got them to safety. Still a fairly large herd on the edge of the South pasture. Fairly restless, and testing the current they moved around quite a bit.

2: PM  Kelly, Matt, and Cody in chest deep water, and Darolyn in a boat, pushed the horses to the west off the property, where Corrie Patrick, Tracy Taylor, and Krista Mohn picked up the 20 plus horses and pushed them through nearby woods to the neighbors. Unfortunately a groupe of 6 or 7 horses broke away from being almost contained at the neighbors ranch and returned to the farm.  When they reached their home trails and made their way to the house/barn, two split off for the evacuation area on the frontage road and were caught, two headed toward the barn, and two ended up getting swept into the creek.  Almost to safety, Jolly Roger, one of the barn direction horses failed to go in the barn and, he too, was swept in the creek when he got too near the edge. Devan Horn ended up seeing him caught in bank brush and went in the creek and guided him to safety.  The other two are two of the missing ones. Btw air boats are barely strong enough to negotiate the worst current. The motor boast had to stay well clear of the current between the arena and the house.

4 PM  Later in the day the final 12-14 horses in the house/barn were swum to safety with the aid of a power boat and rider for guiding.  All horses were guided to the South pasture edge where the water was shallow enough for them to walk, and then to the access road and a waiting trailer.

 The massive amounts of rain in the west water shed (12"-17") contributed to the rapid rise in the river level, as well as water released from the Conroe dam prior to this event, There have only been 2 horses lost to flooding at Cypress Trails back in 2001, 15 yrs ago.   No horses were tied up and left in the flood water to drown.  This reporting was probably due to the sight of horses tangled in fencing and unable to move.

 As of posting there is 1 27 yr old mare that is known to have died, having got trapped in the cable fencing, and 4 other horses are currently being actively searched for.  The remainder of the horses were moved to evacuation pastures near the George Bush Airport on Tuesday, and onto friend’s ranches after a brief respite at my neighbor’s ranch.

The dramatic videos of horses lurching in the water was them hitting fence lines that an observer could not see.  Brave people were bucking law enforcement to make these rescues.  Darolyn was threatened with arrest at least 20 times for any participation in the water. Everything would have gone much smoother, and quicker if the sheriffs had just backed off a bit.

6 PM Apr 18 The river level is still at about 5’ above the banks and access to the ranch house is by boat only.  AND there are two ponies on the upper deck of Darolyn's house being fed regularly, along with 5 dogs of Darolyn’s and 3 of friends.

All horses are in safe and comfortable facilities.  Any horses requiring doctoring or meds are either at the vets, or in a facility next door to the vet for observation. One horse was hospitalized due to a pastern puncture.

April 20 5 AM  The creek went back up another foot and hopefully this will be the end to the crest as at this time, we had only lost one small employee car, and one old farm truck, But no… at around 1 PM the Creek went up to 70 feet, and all the vehicles and 5 trailers drown including the L.Q.

Darolyn wishes to thank everyone for all their help and support, if you watch any of the videos you will understand why. There was a huge crowd of friends and strangers.

 Russell Betts for  Cypress Trails.

Btw... Will avoid another long story here, but there are really nasty people that are spreading incredible lies and exaggerations... Like “Darolyn was eating doughnuts while her horses drown”, in actuality, she had one as she came off the boat from being rescued from the 2.5 hour sit in the water. That was her meal for the day. They are launching a petition to take her down, based on many falsehoods of the day. If you care too, read the nice stuff on her FB… oh but wait, the “Haters” have even commandeered the FB. They have created 3-4 other FBs in my Cypress Trails name and are plastering the negative stuff. So not even sure you can get up on the right one. Hopefully you have as much information as you need. Call or e me other questions if you like. Thanks in advance for your support, and thanks to everyone that helped on the rescue operation.

Darolyn Butler

More Than 100 Horses Rescued from Houston Floods

Thehorse.com - Full Article

By Pat Raia
Apr 20, 2016

More than 100 horses were rescued from rising water and another five remain missing after flash floods swept through Harris County Texas.

On April 18, heavy rain began falling causing flash flooding in Harris County, including in Houston. The following day, another 12 inches of rain fell causing evacuations throughout the area. In all 20 inches of rain fell leaving five people dead and 101 horses in need of rescue, including 75 endurance horses from the Cypress Trails Equestrian Center in Humble.

Owner Darolyn Butler said the animals were located around the farm when flooding began. Before long a nearby creek rose 30-feet, she said.

“I actually have a two-page flood plan, but we thought we were going to be okay, so I didn't evacuate the horses,” Butler said. “But the water rose so fast we didn't have time to get the horses out.”

Butler said some of the horses located in the barn beneath her home were standing in belly-deep water when the waters rose. A barn located elsewhere on the same property was empty, but horses caught outdoors when the flooding began had to be rescued by Butler's friends, students, and employees after they became tangled in cable fencing around the arena. Others were swept into the river nearby or into the flooded woods...

Read more here:
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/37451/more-than-100-horses-rescued-from-houston-floods

DREW - Love At First Ride

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net
April 19 2016

He's already special in that he's one in a thousand equines who have crossed the 3000 mile AERC threshold in their endurance careers.

But for most of those who know him, he's one in a million. For many, it's been love at first ride on Drew, the little gray Arabian endurance horse who has touched so many lives.

Owned by Lisa and Shel Schneider of Agoura, California, Drew has been part of the Schneider clan for 14 years. They bought him from David and Tracy Kaden in Texas in 2002 when he was 10 years old. In his previous life, he had been a Western pleasure show horse.

"We went to see the Kadens and tried 4 or 5 horses," Lisa recalled. "We had trailered out to the desert to ride, and there was this huge train that went by. We had just switched horses, and the one I was now on bolted, and the one Shel was on - which was Drew - just stood there doing nothing.

"He was a little guy, just a sweetheart, took care of himself. He was busy drinking at the water trough when this big loud train went by. So we bought him. They delivered him to us at the Twenty Mule Team [ride in southern California], and Shel rode the 35 on him the next day with our 12-year-old daughter Amy. It was love at first ride."

"I was pretty much a beginning rider then," Shel added. "Lisa had so much confidence in him, that I got on him at 20 Mule Team, and I not only rode him without knowing him really, but Amy and I came in second and third. We didn't ride very slow."

Lisa said, "We knew immediately he was safe enough for Shel to ride. Then we put Amy on him, and she took him to 4H. He did all the English classes, hunter hack, Western pleasure, gymkhana, and trail classes. And she won everything! She was high point pretty much every year she rode him in 4H."


Drew, Amy, and Poni the dog, Andi Smith photo

When Amy turned 16 and could ride by herself without a sponsor, she sometimes rode Drew alone. "We never worried about her," Lisa said, "because, first of all, she had a lot of miles. But we also knew Drew would take care of her. That's such a freeing feeling that he gives you because you don't have to worry about him doing something stupid. You don't have to care about him getting race brain. He doesn't care if other horses pass him. He doesn't care about being left. He just does his own thing, and it's just so easy and so fun. And he can really move out sometimes.

"He just understands who's on his back. If I get on him and we're going out for a longer ride, and I let him get going, he'll crow hop, saying yippee, and haul ass towards home."

Lisa recalled the 25-mile ride that endurance ride photographer Lynne Glazer did on him in the 2014 Cuyama Oaks in California. "Lynne goes flying by us on him. I said 'Lynne, slow down!' and she says 'I'm not in charge!' She was having fun.

"He's always good. He just gets it. He knows his job."

"He's perfect on the trail," Shel confirmed.

The one thing Drew does not like is water. He's a real desert horse. When I talked with Lisa and Shel, Lisa had just come back from a ride on Drew where it hailed. "This never happens in SoCal, and he was NOT happy. He doesn't like water. He'll cross water, but he doesn't like being wet. He acts like a little drowned rat when he gets wet in the rain."

It was muddy water that took Drew down, literally, at Tevis. After a 6-way bypass heart surgery in 2001, Shel decided he wanted to ride Tevis in 2002. He was scheduled to ride another of the Schneiders' horses, but that one came up injured, and Drew was the alternate. Lisa rode with them aboard Barnard De Soi.

Everybody has heard of the infamous bogs in the Granite Chief wilderness. Drew met the bogs and did not like them. And there's no avoiding them. Lisa said, "We had to go into this hock-high bog. So I went first, and Drew took one look at that and leaped up on a rock. He couldn't balance for very long, and he leaped off the side. This was down a very steep hill, and it got very scary. Shel came off him at the top, and landed on a bush, which cushioned him perfectly; he was fine. But Drew kept going down; he was just freaked out.

"He got stuck in a big bush, and Shel had to go downhill to find him. This is at 10,000 feet mind you, in Granite Chief at the high point. I'm freaking out because I'm up on the trail and I can't see either of them; all I can see are these bush tops waving around wildly. And I'm thinking of them falling down the cliff, and Shel just had this bypass surgery a year prior. And I'm thinking, how are we going to get a helicopter in here for one or both of them!"

Shel finally got to Drew and started leading him back up to the trail. "I'm yelling at Shel, and he's now able to talk, but he's trying to walk uphill with a very shaken up Drew, and we're at altitude."

They did make it back on trail, got Drew settled down and Shel back on, and they rode onward. When they got to Deadwood at 56 miles, Drew passed the vet check, but Shel opted to pull. "We're done for the day," he told the vet. Lisa went on to finish Tevis for the second time.

That was Drew's only attempt at a 100-mile ride, but he went on to a stellar record of (currently) 112 starts in 119 finishes, with 3080 endurance miles and 1445 Limited Distance miles.


Susan Garlinghouse on Drew at the 2009 Shine and Shine 25-mile ride near San Jose, California

Along the way, he's given confidence and riding bliss to numerous endurance riders, probably none more so than Susan Garlinghouse, DVM. It's an occurrence that most all of us can relate to.

Lisa recalls, "Susan had had a couple of accidents on another horse involving broken bones. She lost a little confidence, so we said, come ride Drew. She drove 75 miles out here, each way, every weekend for several months, and she'd stay with us or just ride and go home.

"They just clicked. So we switched with her, took her mare, and she rode Drew for about a year. After some Limited Distance rides, she moved up to 50's on him. Now she's finished Tevis 3 times."

Drew has carried a number of "green bean" (new) endurance riders to happy finishes, and at an Endurance 101 clinic he hooked a woman and her little girl. "This woman hadn't done a ride at all," Lisa said. "Her little girl is just hanging out absorbing everything, but she doesn't have a horse. So Shel puts her on Drew. And she's riding around the arena, and this kid is just absolutely hooked.

"So now they're getting her a horse, and her mom's competing, and she's finished her first 50. We attribute it all to Drew!"

Shel chimed in, "He's such a good ambassador. After that, the mom got rid of the mare they had, because she wasn't very nice. She wanted to get something her kid could ride, like Drew."

You don't have to be an endurance rider to fall in love with Drew. The Schneiders live next to a state park where they often encounter inner city kids, or foreign visitors, some of whom - it's hard to believe - have never seen a horse in person.

"Drew is the ambassador," Lisa said. "We've put tons of kids on him. We put a Japanese tourist on him, and oh my God, I thought she was going to faint from happiness. All of her friends took pictures, and she was the only one brave enough to get on him. She'll never forget that.

"Drew gives such a great first impression [of a horse]! And he just stands there batting his long eyelashes looking adorable."

The local church group was having a fundraiser one weekend, and they asked if the Schneiders could bring Drew over for pictures with the kids. Amy rode him over there, and polaroid after polaroid was taken with each of the kids. Lisa said, "There are a lot of refrigerators in the neighborhood with pictures of Drew. Some of the kids didn't want to get off him. He loved it."

The little gray gelding has also carried developmentally disabled children. Lisa recalled one particular one. "This girl was probably 8 or 9 and was so disabled, she didn't speak, had some balance issues, had some pretty severe brain damage. So we put her on Drew. He stood stock still. He knew who was on his back. And she smiled for the first time in her life on Drew. Her mother was just in tears."

Shel has tried to put together a list of how many people have ridden Drew. "I stopped at about 70. And I don't know how many I missed. We started adding it up; it's amazing. Both of Lisa's brothers rode him in the arena, and their kids. Somebody comes over, you put him on Drew. Or at an endurance ride, if we're going to do a pre-ride, Drew's an extra horse for somebody."


That's me on Drew!

That somebody one time was me, at the 2009 AERC National Championship ride in California. I was present to report on the ride for Endurance.net, and I stopped to say hi to the Schneiders. "Want to come with us on a ride?" Lisa asked me. She handed me a helmet (which I still have) and I climbed aboard this perfect little gray horse and went on a pre-ride spin with Lisa and Shel. I don't just automatically enjoy every horse I get on for the first time, but I had a delightful short ride on Drew. I could tell he was a special one. Lisa told me to keep the helmet - and every time I wear it, I'm reminded of Drew.


Drew's the smallest horse in the 5-horse Schneider herd ("14.2, with his shoes on"); he's the oldest, at 24 (on April 21); and he's the King.

Lisa said, "I was once asked, if I could clone any of the horses I've ever had, which horse I would want to clone. And it would be DREW. He has the perfect disposition, and perfect conformation. My only regret is that we got him when he was 10. We wish we would have had him when he was younger."

The Schneiders will be throwing a real birthday party for Drew on April 30, with guests and a cake made with carrots and oats and some apples thrown in. If you're lucky enough to be invited to celebrate this fabulous little horse's life, give him a hug. He'll deserve it because he's one in a million - and he'll love it.


Drew mowing the front lawn, because every older horse should get to do this!

Top photo: Lisa on Drew, Shel on Barnard De Soi in the 2009 AERC National Championship 50 in Greenville, California

Endurance Canada Announces Three New Awards

Endurance-canada.com - Full Article

April 18, 2016
by: Equine Canada

Endurance Canada is pleased to announce the creation of three new awards, acknowledging the special horses that are the very heart and life of our sport.

The ELITE Award recognizes and honours horses that have demonstrated an outstanding competition record including high distance totals of at least 4,800 km (3000 mi), and completion of several 160 km (100 mi) rides. The award is open to both past and current competitive horses that have met these requirements...

Read more here:
http://www.horse-canada.com/horse-news/endurance-canada-announces-three-new-awards/?utm_source=Enews+April+18%2C+2016&utm_campaign=EnewsApr182016&utm_medium=email

Janet Tipton and Lady Jasmine are AERC’s First 5,000 Mile Limited Distance Pair

AUBURN, California – April 12, 2016 – Janet Tipton and her longtime Mustang partner, Lady Jasmine (“Ladybug”), were recognized at the 2016 AERC Annual Convention for reaching 5,000 Limited Distance (LD) miles together, in addition to achieving the National LD Mileage Championship title.

To earn the first-ever 5,000 mile LD award—an embroidered blanket—the pair competed in rides of 25-35 miles in one day. While most of AERC’s high mileage horses are those that compete in 50 mile competitions and up, Janet and Ladybug had to go to double the number of rides of most endurance riders to reach this milestone. In fact, the AERC has recognized 265 5,000-mile endurance horses and now, just one LD 5,000 mile horse, Lady Jasmine.

Theirs is an incredible accomplishment in distance riding and a testament to the hundreds of rides they have successfully completed together, particularly as the next highest LD horse mileage recorded by the AERC is 3,930. But perhaps equally as important as their mileage is the fact that Janet and Lady Jasmine have completed 209 out of 211 rides entered, and Lady Jasmine has never been pulled from a ride.

Don’t let her diminutive size (13.2 hands) and the delicate name, Lady Jasmine or “Ladybug” as she is fondly called, fool you—according to Janet this mare is tough, strong-willed and capable of digging deep. During their almost two decades together Janet and Ladybug have earned titles in many different competitions including winning the title of Open Champion in the Extreme Horseman’s Challenge (a series of six extreme cowboy races). Ladybug has also received the Spirit of the Mustang award once and the Super Horse award twice at the Utah Wild Horse & Burro Festival along with Reserve Grand Champion Overall Youth in the Tri-State Mustang Series.

About the AERC award, Janet says, “I am so thrilled to receive this award. It means so much to me. We have been a team through so many miles and trails. We have met some of the most wonderful people that we will never forget. We have seen some of the most breathtaking sights in our travels and we have done it all together.”

Ladybug was gathered from the Antelope Head Management Area near Ely, Nevada, on December 3, 1998. The following April, Janet and her husband ventured to Logan, Utah, with the goal of adopting a Mustang. Although Janet had her heart set on a Buckskin colt, there was something about the way that this small, very pregnant, 3-year-old roan mare looked at her that changed her mind. So Ladybug came home with Janet and two weeks later presented her with a charming stud colt. Just a few short weeks later, Ladybug was saddled and being ridden.

Janet and Ladybug did their first LD ride together in April of 2004 at Color Country. They went to this ride not knowing anyone, but came away after riding day 1 and day 3 with a whole new family and a love of the trail. They were both hooked on distance riding and they have never looked back.

After almost two decades together, Janet is still as enthusiastic about her mare as the day she brought her home. “Ladybug has continued to amaze and delight us and prove to us and the world that there isn’t anything this little horse can’t do,” says Janet. “Ladybug is a very versatile horse. She rides western and English, she drives, she does reining, mounted drill team, parades, pony rides at adoptions and BLM events, she excels at endurance and has even obtained her mounted Search and Rescue certification—all this from a little 13.2 hand mare!”

When asked what is next for she and Ladybug, Janet explains, “Our plan is to slow down, at least the number of miles we do for a year. Last year Ladybug did 965 miles of LD and a 50 totaling 1,015 miles, as a 19-year-old. We set out the year to get our 5,000 milestone and decided it would be fun to get the National LD Mileage Championship in the same year to really make it memorable. We completed rides in Nevada, Washington, New Mexico, Utah and Idaho.

“Our next goal is to make the AERC Decade Team, we have five more years to go, which will put Ladybug at age 25,” said Janet. The Decade Team award is for riders and horses who have done endurance distance rides (50 or more miles) for at least 10 years.

“I hope to keep her going down the trail so that she can help my granddaughter develop the love for the sport that I have with her,” said Janet.

Happy Trails to Janet and Ladybug as they continue their journey together!

About AERC

In addition to promoting the sport of endurance riding, AERC encourages the use, protection, and development of equestrian trails, especially those with historic significance. Many events, particularly multi-day rides, take place on historic trails, and promote awareness of the importance of trail preservation for future generations as well as fostering an appreciation of our American heritage. AERC’s founding ride, the Western States Trail Ride, or Tevis Cup, covers 100 miles of the famous Western States and Emigrant trails over the Sierra Nevada.

Established in 1972, the American Endurance Ride Conference is headquartered in Auburn, California, “The Endurance Capital of the World.” For more information please visit us at www.aerc.org or call 866-271-AERC.

Contact:
Candace FitzGerald
Dobbin Group LLC
603-738-2788

St. Jude Patient Gets His Dream Ride from Retired Arabian Horse

KStoddardphoto.com - Full Article & photos

April 8 2016
Kaitlyn Stoddard

It was just a couple weeks ago when Lizz Hoard, owner of Elizabeth Hoard Photography and my own wedding photographer, called me about 3 year old St. Jude Patient, K'meil. What started out as a business talk between his mom, Leyah, and Lizz turned into a story of her son's current battle with cancer. Essentially, she wanted photos of her child like any other mom, but long story short, "It's not good," Lizz told me.

K'meil has been diagnosed with neuroblastoma a rare cancerous tumor that seems to always affect children based on research at St. Jude. He has just finished his second round of chemo therapy and currently wears a port in his chest. The cancer has metastasized and spread to his bones, and he will soon be going through a bone marrow transplant as well.

K'meil's dream was to have his picture taken with a horse and maybe even ride one. That's when my phone rang. Lizz photographed me back in November in my wedding gown with my horse as a gift for my husband. She asked me if I thought we could use one of the horses, and even if he couldn't ride, the horse could be in the background. At that moment, I was sitting in the passenger seat of a dodge pickup truck pulling a gooseneck trailer with two horses in it headed to Alabama for an endurance race. I looked over at my cousin, Jennifer Whittaker, who owns Mystic Rose Arabians, teaches riding lessons and whose life is literally horses, kids, and more horses and told Lizz, "I think if he wants to ride a horse then he will ride a horse. He could probably have his pick of colors from Jennifer's lesson horses if he wants." And just like that, K'meil's dream of riding a horse was coming true. We scheduled their family shoot/horseback riding around his chemo treatment's at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and set the date for April 5th...

Read more here:
http://www.kstoddardphoto.com/musings/2016/4/5/st-jude-patient-dreams-of-riding-a-horse

Texas: Priefert to host equine endurance riders

Dailytribune.net - Full Article

April 2, 2016
By LYNDA STRINGER lstringer@tribnow.com

Rodeo and horsemanship is big in Mount Pleasant, but many may have never heard of or seen an equine endurance ride. They’ll have a chance to see the action up close when the Racing Stripes Endurance Ride comes to Priefert Ranch April 9-10.

It’s the world’s fastest growing equine sport combining a nature trail ride with the athleticism of endurance sports.

“Riders will be hauling their trailers from miles around to converge on Priefert Ranch,” according to a release from the sport’s sanctioning body, the American Endurance Ride Conference...

Read more here:
http://www.dailytribune.net/news/priefert-to-host-equine-endurance-riders/article_48f55cee-f86e-11e5-b0db-cf0b43739f4e.html

The Equine Photographers Podcast with Lynne Glazer

Equinephotographerspodcast.com - Listen In

by Peter DeMott
Jan 31, 2016

Episode 14 : Lynne Glazer – Lynne Glazer Imagery / Endurance Ride Photography and more – PODCAST

Lynne is a California-based equine sport, ranch, portrait, pets and livestock photographer for both personal and commercial clients.

Lynne is a California-based equine sport, ranch, portrait, pets and livestock photographer for both personal and commercial clients.

I’ve known Lynne for many years. She is a talented and very technically particular photographer. What I mean is that she never fudges getting the images right in the camera and on post processing to create the best possible image for her clients.

Because of this she has done all sorts of both personal and commercial photography, but for today’s interview we spend a lot of time discussing her endurance ride photography including covering the internationally known Tevis endurance ride which is a point to point 100 mile trail event which occurs every year in California.

Lynne has been horse crazy as long as she can remember, but she got her first horse at 31 years old. He was an older horse, but she was able to enjoy him for quite a few years.

In 2003 started shooting endurance rides. She also had a desktop technology support business for media companies as a freelancer, so she knew how to run a business before getting into the business of photography. She also had a lot of knowledge about using technology proficiently for her photography business although later in the interview she explains that she hates to blog which she knows would increase her visibility as a photography business.

Now she works with an aerospace engineering company in areas of technology that you and I would not have a clue about. She can work remotely and on the schedule she chooses which is usually at night. It’s just what she likes to do. That also leaves her time during the day for photography and enjoying her horse.

Listen to the podcast:
http://www.equinephotographerspodcast.com/14-lynne-glazer-lynne-glazer-imagery-endurance-ride-photography-podcast/

March's Endurance Day on Horses in the Morning with Karen Chaton

Horsesinthemorning.com - Listen in

March 8 2016

On today's AERC Endurance Episode we're all over the map, starting with a GPS tip from Karen then it's a quick stop in Spain for a chat with Andrew Steen about his role in the early development of endurance riding and Gina Hall in Nevada brings it all back to center with a chat about what 'To Finish is to Win' really means. Listen in...

http://www.horsesinthemorning.com/hitm-for-03-08-2016-by-the-aerc-andrew-steen-endurance-early-years-gina-hall-to-finish-is-to-win/

2015 USTA Endurance Award winner announced

Monica Bretherton photo
USTrotting.com - Full Article

Monday, March 07, 2016
by Jessica Schroeder, USTA Outreach & Membership Enrichment Coordinator

Columbus, OH --- Naked Willow, a.k.a. Fiddle, is the 2015 High Mileage Standardbred, an award given by the USTA in conjunction with the American Endurance Ride Conference.

Foaled in 2002 in Surrey, British Columbia, the daughter of Dal Reo Hop Sing never made it to the races but has made a name for herself in the Northwest region in endurance.

“I am giddy with excitement over this award,” said Fiddle’s owner and rider Aarene Storms. “We also enjoy our winter dressage lessons, which add valuable flexibility and communication which serves us well on the endurance trail.”

After years of competing the Storms and Fiddle were featured on the cover of the July 2015 edition of Endurance News, the official publication of the AERC. Aarene wrote the book Endurance 101: a gentle guide to the sport of long-distance riding.

The team completed 515 endurance miles for the 2015 ride season; 465 of those were of standard distance (50-plus miles), while 50 of them were considered LD or limited distance (rides less than 50 miles)...

Read more here:
http://xwebapp.ustrotting.com/absolutenm/templates/article.aspx?articleid=68531&zoneid=63

Live Concert at Owyhee Tough Sucker

March 5 2015

At the April 2 Owyhee Tough Sucker endurance ride, rumors are that there will be live old time bluegrass music at the ride venue provided by the Pickett Creek Ramblers before and after the ride on the Teeterville Common.

The Teeterville K-9 corps will likely be on hand to provide crowd control due to the expected crush of groupies and wild fans at the concert.

Rumored guest appearance by legendary songwriter, fiddle and guitar player Trapper may materialize.

I'm still trying to grow my fingernail out from the last concert, it was that crazy," one banjo player was heard to lament. "I need my fingernail for picking."

Greatly looking forward to their repeat smash performance, one banjo player said, "I changed my banjo strings for the first time in 17 years in anticipation of our reunion!"

"Horses were heard to neigh in their paddocks while we played," said one guitar player of last year's concert.

"A producer was at our last show and tried to sign us up, tried to video some of our performances right there," declared a fiddle player.

"I thought our band name was Pickett Cricksters," said a bass ukulele player.

"Wait." said a mandolin player. "This isn't the Teeterville Jammers? Have I been showing up with the wrong band?"

Despite a year on the road (as in, driving twice round trip on the 10-mile bumpy-ass crick road to the ride and concert venue last year) the Pickett Crick Ramblers are still full of energy, enthusiasm, laughs, mistakes, and slightly off-key notes, but they play on anyway.

For more information on the historic ride and concert, see
http://www.endurance.net/international/USA/2016ToughSucker/

Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Endurance Rider?

AERC.org

If you’re not an endurance rider (yet), it may be difficult to believe that people would do this sport on purpose. It takes a certain dedication and toughness to join the American Endurance Ride Conference and pursue endurance riding (50-100 mile rides) and limited distance riding (25-35 mile rides). We offer a test: do the stories below intrigue you? (You may want to join right away.) If you find them horrifying, maybe this isn't the sport for you. (Or you should just stay away from friends with thermometers.)

by Michael Campbell, AERC President

At the pre-ride check in, the riders were lined up with their horses along a fence line and watching as each rider presented his/her horse to the veterinarians. It’s a relaxed time. The riders chatted with one another and commented on the horses and riders trotting for the vets. One rider, proud of his bay mare, trotted her out on a loose lead line, very loose. They turned at the cone and headed back toward the vet. The mare was feeling good at a vigorous trot with an occasional little canter step.

She felt so good that she wandered away from the rider a bit to the end of her lead and kicked up—not aggressively, just excited—and caught her rider right in the groin. An audible gasp erupted from the crowd and everyone stared open-mouthed at the rider. The male observers cringed. One of the vets started to jog toward what he was sure would be an emergency situation. But no, this was an endurance rider, and he just kept on trotting his horse, who got an A+ for attitude. (The rider caught the kick at the end of the arc in a precariously non-vital part of his anatomy.)

Like all endurance riders, this guy not only volunteered for this but paid hard-earned money for it. A Hollywood stuntman would get a big check for that one.

Endurance riders are not quitters and don’t tolerate such among themselves. One tough woman endurance rider brought a lady friend to try a limited distance ride on a well-seasoned horse. The woman came into her first vet check of the 50 mile ride and asked the timer about her lady friend. The timer explained that the horse was just fine, but her friend had pulled, rider option, after the first loop of the LD because she was just too fatigued.

The rider woman exclaimed, “Oh, no! She’s un-pulling!” and stormed off to find her friend. The friend soon returned, somewhat chagrined, to the timer table, helmet and horse in hand, to complete her second loop. That friend was later so proud of finishing the ride that she went on to complete many more. Even when things get tough, endurance riders don’t quit. They learn how to endure from other riders and their horses.

Endurance riders are not whiners, either. But they can have a sense of humor about whining as they find creative ways to discourage it. At a ride late in the year, the wind was blowing, rain soaked everything, the temperature was dropping and everyone in camp was . . . well, I guess the politically correct way to say it is they were all feeling challenged.

One new rider was hanging around the vet check area and complaining that she just didn’t feel good and maybe she would quit because she might be coming down with something, etc. The vets were checking the horses’ temperatures that day and the new rider’s friend was assisting the vets. The friend got tired of the new rider’s complaining and said, “Let’s see if you have a fever,” and shoved a thermometer on a string into the girl’s mouth. After a couple of minutes, the friend checked the thermometer and said, “Nope, you’re okay, now go!”

Everyone got a chuckle—even the new rider, when it was explained to her later that the thermometer on a string was for the horses’ rectal temperatures. (She later told me she used a whole bottle of mouthwash when she learned the truth.)

One last anecdote. Some years ago we were warming up our horses for a 4:00 a.m. start of a 100 mile ride. The weather was freezing. It was so cold that the lady in the camp next to ours woke to find her contacts had frozen in their container.

As the ride manager took roll and her husband helped, one of the riders commented, “I can’t believe we’re out here riding in this weather.” The manager’s husband responded, “Yep, and I can’t believe I’m out here watching you.”

This is a volunteer organization. Our members pay to do this for fun, a sense of personal accomplishment and because they love spending time with their horses. We have over 5,000 members across the U.S. and Canada. Non-endurance people can’t believe we pay to do this. They have a hard time believing that we actually ride 25, 50 or 100 miles in a day. How many times has someone asked you incredulously, “In one day?”

We have better stories and in our dotage, we’ll have better memories. We’re tough, we don’t quit, we don’t whine, and we laugh. Only 1 in 60,000 citizens of this country can say they do this remarkable sport. We hope you will choose to join in the fun.

More information on endurance riding is available by visiting www.aerc.org or by calling the AERC office at 866-271-2372. By request, the office will send out a free information packet to prospective members.

Contact:
Troy Smith
American Endurance Ride Conference
endurancenews@foothill.net
866-271-2372, 530-823-2260

American Endurance Ride Conference Celebrates Achievements

RENO, Nevada – February 29, 2016 – Keeping endurance riders away from their equines for a weekend isn’t easy, but the annual gathering of the American Endurance Ride Conference gives them an opportunity to celebrate their riding accomplishments, learn more about the sport, and share input for the future of endurance riding.

The 2016 AERC convention held in mid-February in Reno, Nevada —“the best convention I have been to,” according to one board member, culminated in the national awards banquet, where longtime ride manager Ann Nicholson was named as the 2015 Hall of Fame person. The newest Hall of Fame horse is LV Integrity, a 22-year-old Arabian gelding (AHR*498744) owned by Joyce Sousa of Hydesville, Calif.,).

Nicholson, along with her husband David, a veterinarian who is also in AERC’s Hall of Fame, puts on a great number of multi-day endurance and limited distance rides throughout the Western United States, and has put on several AERC-sanctioned XP rides that followed the Pony Express trail across the West. Pacific Southwest Regional Director John Parke said Ann “hauls water, makes lunches and dinners, but it’s not just what she does, it’s how she does it.” He added, “She is always smiling, always polite, never says a bad word about anyone.”

Endurance riding is often a family affair, and Ann’s mother, Lavonne Booth, was inducted into the nonprofit organization’s Hall of Fame exactly 20 years before.

The newest Hall of Fame horse, nicknamed Ritz, has completed more than 9,000 miles of endurance competition, including 35 one-day 100s, and has completed the prestigious Tevis Cup ride four times. Ritz has competed overseas and in two national championship rides. Upon accepting the honor presented by her daughter, Jennifer Niehaus, Sousa simply said, “We take such pride in what we do.”

The Pard’ners award, which honors a rider/equine partnership that exemplifies friendship, enthusiasm and sportsmanship, went to local rider Gina Hall and Fire Mt. Destiny, an 18-year-old Arabian cross gelding (AHR*3A325818). They have competed together since 2002, racking up 7,300 endurance miles—124 rides with only two non-completions. Their partnership was rocky at first—“he was really scary,” said Hall—but now Destiny is a trusty companion and an “awesome babysitter” for horses new to endurance.

Also honored were Buck and Donna Shrader of Pennsylvania who have volunteered at Northeast Region rides for decades and recently announced their “retirement” from pulse-taking, timing and other assorted volunteer duties. Riders will no longer anticipate Buck’s call at the start of rides: “Good luck, have fun and be careful!” The volunteer award gives them a great send-off and thank you for their dedication.

Dot Wiggins, who has been involved with endurance riding and trails building and maintenance since the 1970s, is the recipient of the 2015 Ann Parr Trails Preservation Award. In Idaho, Wiggins has worked with the Forest Service, BLM and private land owners to preserve equestrian trails, most notably working from start to finish on the 84-mile Weiser River Trail, one of the few rail trails owned and managed by a nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Weiser River Trail, Inc.

Convention-goers had two full days of seminars ranging from horse health to rider health to online equine myths presented by nationally-renowned speakers, as well as a lively trade show with more than 40 exhibitors.

Special guests at the convention included FEI Endurance Director Manuel Bandeira de Mello of Portugal and Australian veterinarian Brian Sheahan, chair of FEI’s Endurance Technical Committee. The two, along with other United States Equestrian Federation President Chrystine Tauber and USEF Endurance Director Kristen Brett, were there to explain progress made in Region VII countries with regard to horse welfare. Despite setbacks in national, non-FEI competitions, overall there are major gains made with regard to horse welfare, lowing the number of vehicles and grooms on the course, and other requirements stipulated by the FEI.
The AERC Board of Directors confirmed the continuation of AERC’s executive positions, with President Michael Campbell, Vice President Lisa Schneider, Treasurer Mollie Krumlaw-Smith and Secretary Susan Garlinghouse, DVM, re-elected to serve another term.

With membership gains for the first time since the recession began, the conference is seeing a host of new and younger members taking to the trails for 25- to 100-mile AERC-sanctioned rides across the U.S. and Canada. More information on endurance riding is available by visiting www.aerc.org or by calling the AERC office at 866-271-2372. By request, the office will send out a free information packet to prospective members.

Troy Smith
American Endurance Ride Conference
endurancenews@foothill.net
866-271-2372, 530-823-2260