WALKERS

We will cover roughly 200km in six days, with a rest day in the middle. You need to be fit!

During the week you will come across varied terrain, with average distances between 25 to 35 km a day, so we recommend you do your preparation on varied terrain as well - hills included as well as different surfaces (road, farmland, beach etc).

Do some Multi-day Treks wherever you can, and some long days of walking, plus other ways of getting or staying fit (biking, running, gym, yoga, pilates etc). Any kind of fitness helps - particularly cardio.

The fitter you are the more you will enjoy your days exploring this beautiful part of New Zealand sharing the fun with other walkers, mountain bikers and horse riders.

Enjoy the prep work. We are looking forward to seeing you in March.

 Thank you Brigitte Anderson for the tips!

Look after your feet

This is particularly important for the walkers!

We strongly suggest that you are used to wearing your hiking boots/shoes as there is nothing worse than getting sore feet or even blisters on trek from breaking in new shoes, so if you need new shoes/boots - buy them now and wear them in!

To avoid blisters:

• Make sure your footwear is well worn in

• Try to keep your feet dry

• Wear socks made with fibres that draw moisture away from your skin - try to avoid 100% cotton and go for wool or man-made fibres.

• Lace your shoes snugly - pinching (too tight) or rubbing (too loose) can cause issues

• Ensure your shoes are the right size - sometimes half to one size bigger is better.

• Keep your toenails short. Your toes should not touch the front of your boot - this can cause black toenails from the pressure of your toes hitting the front of your boots.

  If you do get blisters, attend to them straight away -carry some plasters for en route patch ups and head to our lovely Medics when you get back to camp for some extra assistance.

Aching feet is often caused by an incorrect step - make sure you are touching your heel to the ground first, rolling forward through the foot and pushing off with your toes.

There may be stream crossings, or places where your feet will get wet - many choose to bring a pair of sandals/aqua shoes that they can wear for these occasions.

After a day in your shoes/boots it might help to loosen up the feet by rolling them over a tennis ball. Or pay a visit the Massage Team!

RIDERS

Preparing you and your HOrse for the trek for Life

As there have been enquiries regarding this subject, the following is offered as a general guide.

This trek runs over 6 days with a rest day in the middle. Riding for up to 6 hours a day, even at a leisurely pace, means both you and your horse needs to be fit and well-conditioned to their gear. Factors influencing the horse’s needs might include age and breed as well as rider strengths and weaknesses. Given there will be many differing individual circumstances and training facilities available, the following can only be a general guide to preparing your horse.

HORSES ARE KEPT IN COMMUNAL PADDOCKS. If your horse does not respect tape or does not cope in a herd environment then this trek is probably not suitable for your horse. We do not have the facilities to yard individual horses.

No Rigs or Stallions - you will be asked to remove your horse.

We do not recommend this trek for full Clydesdales - unfortunately they are just not built for this kind of endurance riding.

Physical Fitness

The amount of time spent on getting your horse fit will depend on how often you are able to work it. For example, 20-30 minutes of walk/trot/canter 6 days a week will get most horses adequately fit for this event in 6-8 weeks, but if you can only ride your horse on weekends, and perhaps once during the week, then those rides will need to be for minimum 2-3 hours.

Options for exercise:

1.     Riding. Trekking is the best option for obvious reasons. Walk/Trot/Canter over farm, roads, tracks, beach etc. try and change up the terrain and avoid only flat work. Try to work up a sweat.

2.     Walkers are useful if available. Up to 2 hours. (1 hour each way)

3.     Lunging in paddock or round yard. 15-30 min at a walk and trot. Get a sweat up

4.     Sand Arena. Walk - trot - canter.

It is highly recommended that you and your horse do at least one multi-day trek as you prepare for the Trek for Life. This will help you prepare for the rigours of early mornings, long hours in the saddle and your ability to carry gear.

Obviously riding your horse over varied terrain is what you and your horse will experience during the Trek, so ideally this is what you should be doing most of. While riding you should focus on schooling your mount to a brisk walk but giving yourself a comfortable ride at the same time - dawdling for 30km while easy on you is not ideal for the Tailing Charlies! Where possible this should be done in company with others. Depending on your horse’s temperament, cantering should be used with caution in your fitness program. Generally speaking, your horse needs to be ridden for 2-3 hours, at least 2-3 times a week for 6-8 weeks prior to the trek. Your horse needs to be comfortable with: crowds (horses in front and behind), bogs, hills, bridges, water crossings, beach riding, gates - this is a useful tool if you don’t want to get on and off your horse, quad bikes and side-by-sides, tying up etc.

We place a lot of importance on the fitness of our horse, but rider fitness is also very important. Your horse is doing some miles, and varied terrains can be hard work, so you need to be able to ride light. When you as a rider become tired, it can change the way you carry yourself in the saddle, which can not only affect your horses ability to do their job, but it can also affect the way your gear impacts on your horse and can lead to pressure points, rubs and saddle sores. When both horse and rider are tired - accidents can happen and you could find yourself missing out on some amazing days in the saddle.

Please ensure that your horse is suited to trekking and is able to comfortably carry you for hundreds of kilometres over hills and valleys. We want to avoid as many injuries as possible!

• We realise that smaller horses are often preferred as they are easier manage for things like mounting and dismounting, however please be kind and realise that they do some hard yards! There are always plenty of able-bodied Marshalls to assist you if needed, and other Trekkers are happy to assist by holding your horse for you as you utilise banks/logs/trees/gates/etc to gain some inches.

• You also need to carry more gear than you would normally do if you were just heading out for a couple of hours riding. Water bottles, snacks, wet weather gear and other layers, cameras etc all contribute weight for your horse to carry.

• Horses are not accepted on the trek younger than 4 years old - and our vets prefer if they are older to ensure their joints are up to the long hours of trekking

The responsibility of your horse's welfare lies directly with you as the horse's Owner/Rider.

It is up to you as the Rider to ensure that your horse is physically fit, sound and healthy and conditioned to the gear you will be riding in.

We cannot stress this enough!

first aid kit

While we have a Trek Vet, we recommend that all riders carry a basic First Aid Kit for the week to help deal with minor issues. Suggestions include (but are not limited to):

• Ointments/Salves/Creams to apply to minor cuts/grazes/rubs e.g. Inflammol, Filtabac, Mānuka Honey etc

• Anti-inflammatories to give for the sore muscles and joints e.g. Bute if you can access it

• Vet Wrap and some basic dressings - vaseline gauze, gamgee, padded bandages etc

• Iodine wash is useful to prevent dirt build up under the saddle/girth

• Duct tape / cable ties for emergency repairs

• Hoof pickConditioning to Gear

Saddle fit is critical. And it can change through the week. Bring different saddle blankets and girths as your ability to change these to adapt to changes in your horses shape will make a huge difference to their comfort levels. Please also ensure you fit and use saddle bags before the Trek to make sure your horse is used to them and that you know how attach them properly so they do not cause any rubs or pressure points.

The vulnerable areas are the girth area, withers and back of saddle (lumbar region). While these might be seen as superficial, they can have serious consequences - a bit like having a blisters on your feet while hiking.

Think about the gear you will use on the trek and be sure it to use it on your horse when you ride. Conditioning your mount to its gear is just as important as physical fitness. Riding for 6 days, compared to a 2-3 day weekend trek, represents a significant step up. Rubbing and chafing results from excessive movement of gear over skin.

1.     Always work your horse in the gear it will use during trekking.

2.     Ensure girths are tight enough to avoid excessive or unnecessary saddle movement at all times. Remember to check this constantly throughout the day, and loosen off when resting

3.     Keep extra weight on saddle to minimum and evenly spread over both sides.

4.     Remember to be light in the saddle. Stand in your stirrups slightly and lean forward going up hill. Conversely, secure your seat and lean back slightly when going down hill. These are times when the potential for saddle movement is at its greatest.

5.     Ensure there is no potential for saddle contact with withers.

6.     Wash down areas under saddle and girth thoroughly after riding.

Feeding

Make sure your horse arrives in good condition. If your horse arrives thin, it will struggle to maintain or put on condition through the week as the Trek is very demanding. This is particularly important for horses travelling a significant distance - so make sure you factor breaks and feed into your travel plans. A pre-Trek inspection by your Vet is highly recommended, as they may pick up on things that could make a difference, and whilst there you can ensure your Tetanus shots are up to date, and preferably Strangles too.

Horses digestive systems are adapted to digesting high fibre diets. Pasture or pasture derived supplements (hay/silage) are the mainstay diet for most NZ pleasure horses. Seek professional advice when choosing prepared grain based convenience foods to supplement your horses base diet. Ensure adequate roughage at all times. Diet can affect your horse’s health and temperament. Vitamins and electrolytes have their place, but they should be appropriately chosen to supplement the base diet. Trekking horses should be calm and relaxed so avoid undoing good training with inappropriate feeding. Studies have shown that horses are built to function with a full stomach - this can reduce the risk of stomach ulcers etc.

The feed provided by the Trek for Life will be along the lines of FibrePro and Dunstan Coolfeed. It is recommended you begin introducing these to your horses diet at least 6 weeks prior to the March Trek to let them acclimatise.

Paddock hay will also be provided where necessary.

Shoeing

Unless your horse is really used to being barefoot over varied terrains for long periods of time, and you as the rider are adept and experienced with knowing how to use Hoof Boots and when the appropriate time to use/remove them is, then we strongly recommend and suggest that your horses are shod.

There is a bit of gravel road riding

We recommend that you shoe your horses at least 6 weeks before the Trek, especially if they are not normally shod to allow them to adjust, and then have them replaced just before you come on Trek.

Although we do have a Trek Farrier in case a horse looses a shoe etc. it is not his job to shoe your horse upon arrival or half way during trek when your horse gets sore - as this can be too late!

WOrming & Vaccinations

Please make sure that all horses are up to date with their worming. We recommend worming approximately 4-6 weeks prior to Trek to be safe. See your local vet for advice.

It is also strongly recommended that horses are up to date with their Tetanus and Strangles Vaccinations - please bring a copy of this to Registration if you have this.