Home / Equestrian sports / Skijoring
For everyone: leisure and amateur
Skijoring is a winter sport in which a galloping horse pulls a skier on a rope. The name comes from the Norwegian word for "ski driving".
| Group | For everyone: leisure and amateur |
|---|---|
| Also called | ski joring, skikjoring, skikjoering, equine skijoring |
| Olympic | no |
| Governing body | Skijor International (North America) |
| Where it is popular | Horse skijoring is popular in Switzerland, France and the Nordic countries, as well as in the USA and Canada. |
A team is usually a horse, a rider and a skier. Holding the rope, the skier tackles a snow course with jumps and gates, and at some events also grabs rings on the way. Missed gates or dropped rings add penalty time, and the fastest team wins. In St. Moritz, Switzerland, there is a special version where the horse runs without a rider and the skier steers it along a 2,700 m course.
It takes fast, level-headed horses that are not afraid of snow or crowds. In St. Moritz, skiers are pulled by Thoroughbreds that can reach up to 50 km/h.
The skier needs alpine skis, a tow rope, a helmet and a back protector. The rider must wear a helmet too.
The best-known events are White Turf on the frozen lake of St. Moritz (three Sundays in February) and Leadville Ski Joring on the main street of Leadville, Colorado (March).
This is a sport for experienced adults: the skier must be a strong alpine skier and the rider must gallop confidently. Children should first learn skiing and riding separately at clubs, then try slow towing under a coach's supervision.
Horse skijoring was shown as a demonstration event at the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org, stmoritz.com, leadvilletwinlakes.com, techinsider.ru