Endurance Riding - Getting Started
​​​​​​​IS THIS YOUR FIRST ONE?  DO YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO & WHEN? 

  • PARK & unload horses.
  • REGISTER: normally at a designated horse truck or tent. (this is when you pay & fill in the necessary paperwork.)
  • VET take your horse to the vet ring WITHOUT saddle and bridle.
  • SADDLE UP
  • RIDE BRIEFING Normally about 5-10 mins before the start-time. Be ready to ride – check official time and adjust your watch.
  • RIDE
  • STRAP: get horse’s heart rate below 64bpm
  • VET: present horse to vet within 30 mins of finishing; again WITHOUT saddle & bridle.
  • Heart rate must be 64bpm or less.

A level for everyone

Endurance riding is a sport with many levels of appeal. For some it is a highly competitive and challenging athletic endeavour, whilst for others it is a recreational activity combining a day out with a long distance ride following a marked trail.

An endurance ride is an event in which the same horse and rider compete together to complete a marked trail within a maximum specified time.

You must start Endurance riding as an Intro / Novice before going thru the grades. Your horse must also follow this sequence, whereby you are limited initially in the distance and speed you can ride.

Endurance Riding

Endurance Riding typically covers distances ranging from 20km to 160km, and in competitive situations is a "first past the post" race as long as your horse "vets" through.

Horse and riders complete a course by following a marked trail which may consist of tape or ribbons tied on branches, arrows on trees, posts etc and or road markers.

Endurance provides opportunities for horse/rider combinations with a truly wide range of ability, from the ultra competitive to the fun rider, to be involved and enjoy the sport of long distance riding.

A season runs from August 1 to July 31, and is generally made up of a combination of fun or pleasure / intro rides, competitive rides, CEI 1*, 2* rides, Island and National Championships and National Points and Km awards.

All endurance events are run under the auspice of rules and regulations set down by the national body, Endurance New Zealand which is a discipline of Equestrian Sport NZ.

What happens on the day?

1. Register. This is where you fill in a registration form, pay your money and receive a rider number/bib and at AWEC rides submit your logbook or Day Vet Card (DVC).

2. Pre Vet. Remember to take your logbook or DVC and wear your rider number/bib, then proceed to the vet ring where you present your horse, in a halter, unsaddled, for vet inspection. The vet will take the horses’ heart rate, look him over and get you to trot him out, in hand, generally straight up and around a cone and back. Your horse must be sound and have a heart rate of 64 or below in order to be able to start. You leave your logbook/DVC with vet ring personnel.

3. Ride brief. The ride brief will generally be given 5 - 10 minutes prior to the start. Be ready to ride. A Ride brief outlines the course and highlights parts of the ride worthy of note, obstacles, tricky bits etc. You will be given your ride times - minimums for novices and maximums for the open division. Check official time and adjust your watch.

Note: IF you get a chance, read the ride brief prior to the ride, and take note of your ride time.

4. The Start. Endurance riding is an all in affair. However, 15 minutes is allowed for you to actually cross the start line if you do not wish to start with the pack. This enables riders that wish to set off quietly, at their own pace, to do so.

5. The Ride. Follow the marked trail and enjoy. Keep your attention on the markers, signs etc, if you haven’t seen any for a while, you may have missed a turn. Backtrack to find the trail, if you miss a section of the course you must complete it or risk disqualification. Also be sure to observe your novice riding time as coming in early will see you disqualified.

6. The Finish. As you cross the line, at the completion of the ride you MUST be mounted, your logbook or DVC will be handed back to you with your vetting time. Your vet in time is a maximum of 30 minutes after your arrival (at the finish line) time. Do not exceed the allowed time before presentation to the vet ring, but you can vet in early if your horse’s heart rate is below 64 bpm.

7. Strapping. This is the process whereby you prepare your horse for the post ride vet check. Washing, cooling, getting the heart rate back to 64 beats per minute, or less, cleaning up. Don't forget to pick out the feet.

8. Post Vet. This is the final vet check. Remember to take your logbook/DVC with you. In the vet ring the process is the same as for the pre vet. A successful horse will be sound, has a heart rate of 64 bpm or less, and will be judged by the vet as being fit to continue.

9. Qualification You have followed the marked trail, ridden to your novice time and vetted through.

Its prize giving, you have your certificate & qualifying ribbon, it's all over. You've qualified at your first Endurance ride. Congratulations. Hope to see you at the next one!

Strapping: Here’s a quick run-down on strapping and how to get your horses heart rate down. For more detailed information read our leaflet, “Strapping – the art of getting your horse’s heart rate down”.

WATER ON . . .The very least you can do to drop your horses heart rate and help him recover from the exertion of the ride just completed, is to pour on cold water/sponge him down and scrape off the water.

Use a dipper to gently pour the water along either side of the neck, the shoulders, wither and saddle & girth area.

If a horse is very hot, gently throw/pour water down between the horse’s back legs and all big vein areas and scrape off until the temperature in this area drops too. You should also sponge off the head/ face area if the horse is trying to rub - some horses will not settle and allow their heart rate to drop until the cause of the itching has been dealt with.

WATER OFF . . .Use firm strokes with a horse scraper to remove the water from his coat. Keep pouring the water on & scraping it off until you can feel that the horse’s skin temperature has dropped and he is no longer hot. Try not to let water sit on a hot horse as it will create a thermal layer and heat the horse – the opposite of what you are wanting.

NO FEED... Although it is okay to allow your horse to have a few mouthfuls of grass and some water at this point, don’t let him have a large amount of either and definitely no grain/feed until the vetting procedure is over

CHECK HEART RATE...Once the water that you are scraping off the horse has cooled, check the heart rate with a (borrowed) heart rate monitor or stethoscope to ensure that the rate is 64 beats per minute, or less. Use a towel to dry the coat all over and walk the horse quietly towards the vetting area. Check the heart rate again before taking your horse into the vetting enclosure and letting the helpers know that you are ready to have the vet check done.

The best you can do to help your horse recover quickly from a ride is to walk in quietly for the last several hundred metres prior to the finish line if you can. Resist the urge to race in as this will only gain you a few minutes and an excited horse. Train your horse to ignore others passing by and maintain a steady pace at this point and you will have a better behaved horse at the finish, and a lot less work for strapping.

If you are at all interested in learning more about Endurance Riding and the Auckland Woodhill Endurance Club check out the committee page for contacts.