Reiturlaub in Namibia
Distanzritt
Ein anspruchsvoller und schneller Reiturlaub in Namibia von Ingeborg Hernes. Sie werden im Gelände der Okapuka Horse Safaris das Training für den Distanzritt intensiv vorbereiten.
Reiten Sie mit einer Herde Oryxantilopen um die Wette im Okapuka Wildtierreservat nördlich von Windhoek und genießen Sie die Atmosphäre eines komfortablen Hotels – hier finden Sie „the best of both worlds“.
Die Ritte von Okapuka werden so gestaltet, dass Ihnen so viel Abwechslung wie möglich geboten werden kann. Hier können Sie in einer außerordentlich spektakulären Landschaft reiten und sehr nahe an das Wild herankommen. Bei einigen unserer Ritte reiten Sie in den Bergen mit atemberaubender Landschaft, wo es allerdings wenig Wild zu sehen gibt. An anderen Tagen reiten Sie entlang uralter Wild-Pfade durch die Savanne und sie entdecken Herden von Antilopen, Giraffen und Zebras – obwohl Okapuka ein großes Reservat ist, können wir während der sieben Reittage meistens die meisten Tiere finden, die hier leben. Nichtsdestotrotz ist es schon ein faszinierendes Erlebnis einfach nur ein Teil dieser unglaublichen Umgebung zu werden.
Distanzreiten
…ist ein Sport für jeden fitten Reiter: es gibt Ritte für jedes Niveau und Alter, von 20km-Freizeitritten bis zur Königsdistanz von 160km an einem Tag sowie längeren Distanzen über mehrere Tage. Lesen Sie mehr über das Distanzreiten unten (in englisch) oder auf der Website der deutschen reiterlichen Vereinigung (FN):
http://www.pferd-aktuell.de/Disziplinen/Distanzreiten/Portraet/-.132/Portraet.htm
What is endurance riding
Endurance riding is one of the newest and perhaps the fastest growing branch of equestrianism. Although organised endurance rides were held in the US as early as the mid- 1800s, the modern sport of endurance riding really began in the in 1955 when the Tevis Cup, a one day 100 mile ride from Squaw Valley, Nevada to Auburn California, was first run. Other rides followed and the first national endurance riding association, the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) was founded in 1972.
Endurance riding is defined by the AERC as “An athletic event with the same horse and rider covering a measured course within a specified maximum time.” Endurance rides in Namibia are races which vary in distance between 30 and 160 km and are covered in a single day. The horse with the fastest time is the winner providing the
horse meets the ‘fit to continue’ criteria as determined by a veterinary staff. The horses are monitored by veterinarians throughout the ride at predetermined check points and will be withdrawn from the ride if they are judged to be unsound or metabolically unfit. Each ride has mandatory rests or ‘holds’ for the horses throughout the ride. Some rides are longer than 160 km but are completed over a period of several days with the horses typically covering 80 km per day.
Although endurance rides are technically ‘races’ many (if not most) riders participate for completion rather than placing. And although endurance rides are often hotly contested, at every level of endurance the welfare of the horse is paramount, with the strictest veterinary checks of all horse sports, and awards for best condition often being regarded as important as winning. For many people the unofficial motto of the sport ‘To finish is to win’ sums up the satisfaction they feel bringing their horse home sound and healthy.
The first endurance ride in Namibia was held in 1966 between Veldduin and Maroelaboom. The first endurance ride club in Namibia was established in 1978 at Grootfontein and was called “Otjiwanda Uithouritklub”. After the withdrawal of the South African Defence Force in 1989 endurance riding stopped in Namibia.
After the Namibian Independence the Grootfontein Endurance Ride Club was established in 1990 and the first endurance ride was held on 13 April 1990 at Kranzfontein near Grootfontein. In 1992 the first Namibian Championships were held at Gobabis. Ever since the endurance sport has grown tremendously and we now have more than 200 members and seven clubs. More important than the numbers however, is the quality improvement that Namibia Endurance Riding have experienced.