Discovering The Long Riders Guild
| Discovering the Long Riders The equestrian world is a mix of diverse people. All with varying beliefs, goals and desires. Different backgrounds, cultures, and geographical locations lead us all in various directions but regardless of who, what, where or when, there is one binding element, one guiding star...the horse. In my own journey - I find it is the horse, the pony, the donkey, the mule - their presence, their name, that place, that smell I always remember far longer than the people. In general I have often felt the animal has had far more meaningful things to say than their human counterparts, speaking on their behalf. But every now and then I am caught off guard and find myself listening to, or reading words and philosophies that inject an oxygen that, not until breathed, is one reminded of how acclimatized to stale air we can become. |  Robin & Louella Hanbury-Tenison - contributed to the body of equestrian travel literature and made historically significant rides on several continents. Author of "White Horses over France" "A Ride along The Great Wall", "Spanish Pilgrimage", and "Fragile Eden". |
A visit inside The Long Riders' Guild website will introduce you to the amazing men and women who have ridden horses in search of mounted adventure in every conceivable country and climate, ranging from Africa to Antarctica. For the first time ever, a host of these Long Riders have shared their "Stories From the Road" to inspire and amuse you. You may ride alongside Equestrian Expeditions currently out on the road or watch those preparing to set off into the unknown.
 Jeremy James - added to the body of equestrian travel literature and made two unique journeys in Eastern Europe. Author of "Saddletramp" and "Vagabond" and "Debt of Honour - the story of the International League for the Protection of Horses." | The Long Riders' Guild is the world's only international association of equestrian explorers and long distance equestrian travellers. It began with five equestrian explorers from three countries. Today they have Members in 39 countries, all of whom have ridden a minimum of 1,000 continuous miles on an equestrian journey. There are countless attributes that separate the Long Riders Guild from so many equine organizations - membership does not include fees or meetings. On Merit alone after an individual has ridden a minimum of one thousand miles an invitation to become a member of the guild is offered. There are no trophies or rosettes. All they will receive is the respect accorded by their fellow equestrian explorers, a respect earned by a elite group of men and women scattered around the globe, all of whom chose to saddle up their horse and set out on a life-changing equestrian journey. Every major equestrian explorer alive today belongs to The Guild, including Hadji Shamsuddin of Afghanistan, who recently rode a thousand miles through that war-zone, Jean-Louis Gouraud of France, who rode 3,000 miles from Paris to Moscow, Claudia Gottet of Switzerland, who rode 8,000 miles from Arabia to the Alps, Adnan Azzam of Syria, who rode 10,000 miles from Madrid to Mecca, and Vladimir Fissenko of Russia, who rode 19,000 miles from Patagonia to Alaska. |
Additionally, more than fifty of these extraordinary Long Riders are also Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society.
At two-thousand plus pages, and still growing, and having now been visited by more than a million people world-wide, The Long Riders' Guild website www.thelongridersguild.com is the repository of the largest collection of equestrian travel information in human history.
The Guild has documented the journeys of many of the great Historical Long Riders including Lord Byron, Charles Darwin and Oscar Wilde, all of whom were enthusiastic equestrian travellers. http://www.thelongridersguild.com/historical.htm
Moreover, The Guild supports dozens of modern equestrian expeditions including Australian Long Rider Tim Cope, who just rode 6,000 miles alone from Mongolia to Europe in the hoof prints of Genghis Khan, English Long Rider Steve McCutcheon, who is riding 10,000 miles from Delhi, India to Peking, China and South African Long Rider Billy Benchley, who is riding the length of the African continent. http://www.thelongridersguild.com/Expeditions.htm
| Additionally The Guild's publishing arm, Horse Travel Books, currently publishes more than a hundred equestrian travel titles in eight languages, making it the world's premier source of equestrian exploration wisdom. When The Guild completed the initial work on its Long Rider Literary Collection, they began a new project entitled Classic Travel Books. The purpose of this collection is to make the world's most important travel books available at an affordable price. Many of the world's great travellers, past and present, are now represented in this exciting new collection. The Guild has now launched a new project. Entitled The Long Riders' Guild Academic Foundation, its mission is to provide an academic forum for scientists to share their wisdom with equestrian experts. Every type of horse related knowledge is being investigated and published at this exciting new website, whose motto is "Science not Superstition." The Guild's latest equestrian effort has been to create a new alliance of equestrian researchers, writers, editors, publishers and webmasters so as to distribute The Guild's research findings on an unprecedented international level. The participants in this exciting exercise are involved in equestrian journalism in England, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. |  Basha O'Reilly - attended the first meeting of The Long Riders' Guild, located and visited equestrian travelers throughout Europe, designed The Long Riders' Guild website and rode from Russia to England. Author of "Count Pompeii - Stallion of the Steppes". |
Because The Long Riders' Guild website is two-thousand plus pages and rapidly growing, it is easy to stumble into this combination museum, library, caravan safari, tack room and coffee shop, only to find yourself emerging hours later, as the website is full of stories, expedition news, etc. Yet one section takes precedence and that is the section which explains the mission of The Guild - http://www.thelongridersguild.com/what_is_the_long_riders.htm
Here is a excerpt which for me sets this organization apart from so many. It is not the size of the site, the number of visitors or members but the Long Riders' Guild's core values, that regardless of our involvement with equines reminds us all what is truly important.
 | "As Long Riders we categorically believe equestrian travel has no frontiers, political or otherwise. It is the heritage of every nation. Though we individually originate in every imaginable country, we as a group represent no specific nation. We will not be simplified by categories into sex, creed, allegiance to one horse breed, or lines drawn on a map. We are comrades of the saddle whose agreed upon international language is "horse." We believe the only valid definition of a Long Rider should be courage in the face of danger, resolve in the presence of hardship, and continual compassion for our horses. Further, we acknowledge the inherent bodily perils involved in equestrian travel to both horse and rider. Yet we in no way condone or sponsor any expedition that knowingly subjects its mounts to needless suffering. The Long Riders' Guild has no obsession with mileage. |
Though our members have set an assortment of world records during the course of their equestrian travels, we do not encourage a needless quest for kilometers, nor the lightning flash crossing of continents. We encourage our members instead to undertake a life-changing equestrian journey that explores not only the unknown portions of the world, but their own souls as well. Indeed, being a Long Rider is more than just a matter of miles. It is a question of honour, dignity and behaviour"
Photographs courtsey of The Long Riders' Guild
http://www.thelongridersguild.com
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