To Finish is To Win!

Endurance riding is all about your crew. Even if you´re only a crew of two, you and your horse, you need to have built a good relationship over time so that you are both prepared for your endurance race.

The beauty of any equine discipline is that you can start at any age. It´s not limited to the young and it´s not like other sports where you feel the spot light is on you (if you´re not comfortable with being in the limelight) and it most definitely can include the whole family or friends.

As I already mentioned (!) I have an Appaloosa stallion, the realisation of my childhood dream. These horses come with history, lots of potent history of great runs across the plains being chased by cavalry for days. (You can learn more at History of the Appaloosa ) So why could this horse not compete in Endurance? Hey, the question is rhetoric, I´m not one to be told no!

The sport is dominated by Arabs, because there are lots of them. But any horse, with the right training and diet can compete. Heck, even Mules compete and do very well.

I started on an 18 year-old Pure Spanish Mare who I had rescued 7 years earlier and who has major stifle problems due to bad treatment. People laughed at me when I told them what I was going to do. Chiclanera, my horse, had been fed on stale white bread and bad treatment for years before I rescued her. She freaked at her own shadow and had a completely disjointed canter due to her old injuries.

A baby at only 5 years old when he started competing, Heart will hopefully have a long career in Endurance ahead of him. With the right diet, care and exercise he will again show you don´t need an Arab to compete. We also do it BAREFOOT.

TEAM SPIRIT collecting our 2nd place trophy for the VI Raid de Correo Postal October 17th 2009.

This event takes place with teams of 6 horses/6 riders covering 230 km´s in one day. For all of our team it was the first time of entering this event, so to finish second was a fabulous result.

Where did the name come from? Spirit of the Wind - the Ghost Wind Stallions, the ancestry of our Appaloosa´s and for what it means to work as a happy well-oiled cohesive machine hence Team Spirit.

Francisco, with our two youngest members of Team Spirit, Alejandro and Enrique.

A great sport for the whole family to enjoy and suitable for any competent rider prepared to make the sacrifice from age 10 upwards. We train horses for resistance and stamina - and also riders!

If you don´t like the spot light of jumping or dressage but want to do something more than just hack out with your horse, this is the sport for you.

For a small insight into some of the equipment we use for endurance riding, both the horses and riders, take a look at the Equipment page