On July the 5th the Equitana in Mannheim, Germany, was the location where a world record was set in the Guinness Book of Records for quadrille riding with 132 Friesian horses.
A logistic challenge
Coordinator Mischa Mauritz says that this event in Mannheim required a whole year of organisation by seven people. ‘It was an enormous challenge in terms of logistics. To set this record we needed 140 Friesian horses and we have travelled 116,000km between us to get here. We had arranged for 2.5 tons of hay and 15,000 litres of water to cater for the horses.’
In memory of Melissa Sims
The idea to set a record dates back to just over a year ago. The famous American, but Germany-based quadrille rider Melissa Sims passed away and the members of the Ostsee Quadrille came up with the idea to organise an event to commemorate her. ‘We felt we wanted to do something that had never been done before, breaking a world record’, Mauritz explains.
Selection
An appeal for participants resulted in 189 combinations who all sent in videos and photos hoping to be selected on the team for the record attempt. ‘The minimum age requirement for riders was 18 and for horses 6’, Mauritz states. ‘The final selection was done by two trainers, one of the factors was character. We wanted calm horses that have no problem with large audiences and applause.’
