Tag Archives: horse riding

THE LONG RIDER documentary feature coming to Canadian cinemas June 24

Opening in Canadian cinemas next week (June 24), the new feature-length documentary film, THE LONG RIDER, follows a young man’s journey on horseback from Canada, through the continental United States, Mexico, Central America then into South America on his way to his country of birth, Brazil.When Filipe Masetti Leite leaves his adoptive home of Canada, he sets out on an epic quest to ride from Calgary, Alberta, to his family’s home in Brazil – and later beyond – entirely on horseback. Inspired by Aimé Tschiffely’s legendary 1925 equestrian journey from Argentina to New York, Filipe’s 8-year odyssey of over 25,000 kms across twelve international borders, sees him and his trusty mounts battle intense heat, drought, speeding transport trucks, nature’s wrath and corrupt border guards on his history-making long ride home.

Apart from being a world-renowned Long Rider, Filipe is an award-winning journalist, and best-selling author. The Brazilian-born cowboy is the youngest person in the world to cross the Americas on horseback. In 2020 he was chosen as the Calgary Stampede’s Grand Marshal and ‘white-hatted’ by Mayor Naheed Nenshi. He is the author of the best-sellers, Long Ride Home (soon to be a motion picture) and Long Ride to the End of the World, published in Portuguese (Harper Collins) and English, soon to be released in Spanish. He is a regular contributor to The Toronto Star, a frequent guest on Rede Globo’s Fantastico, Brazil’s most watched Sunday night television show, and is writing his third memoir, Last Long Ride.Culled from over 500 hours of never-before-seen footage, the documentary deals with the issue of chronic loneliness and the insensitive, restrictive and frustrating nature of international borders, but regardless of all that, it’s an inspiring and emotional story of the most daring and epic proportions.

The Long Rider has been 10 years in the making. Shot almost entirely by Filipe on his cross-continental long ride, and directed by award-winning filmmaker Sean Cisterna, who went to the same high school as the cowboy, the duo seemed destined to bring this epic story to life.  The kindness of humanity is on display in The Long Rider, made evident through the extraordinary strangers who helped Filipe along his journey. In these challenging times, The Long Rider offers hope and inspiration, one hoof at a time.“Filipe made an historically important equestrian journey, overcame tremendous challenges, suffered in the saddle physically and emotionally, and after a Herculean effort, rode into his beloved hometown in triumph”.  – Cuchullaine O’Reilly, Founder of the Long Riders’ Guild and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Being a pony-club brat from childhood, this film fascinated me…could I ever have undertaken such a ride? Of course not, but I have such respect for Filipe and his beautiful loyal horses, Frenchie, Bruiser, Dude plus several others throughout the journey. So many disasters along the way including Frenchie (the palomino) getting hit by a truck in the middle of nowhere during a thunder storm that required serious veterinary treatment and a long period of recuperation that kept the trek on-hold for several weeks.Filipe and the producers have been asked so many questions during this pre-release publicity tour, such as…

Q: How long did it take to film The Long Rider?
A: The journey portion of the documentary took place over 8 years, and the interviews were collected over the course of 1 year. With all that footage, the editing process took almost 2 years.

Q: What countries was The Long Rider filmed in?
A: The Long Rider was filmed in 13 different countries – Canada, the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. In addition, the interview segments with the Long Rider’s Guild founder Cuchullaine O’Reilly was filmed in France.

Q: How about the horses’ well-being?
A: Filipe, an experienced rider and equestrian competitor who rode with his father since he was a baby, spent two years speaking to Long Riders around the world to learn how to properly travel on horseback. Through the Long Riders Guild, the world’s first international association of equestrian explorers and long-distance travelers, Filipe was also awarded the opportunity to participate in Stan Walchuk’s wilderness riding clinic in Northern British Columbia. Filipe always had his animals’ health in mind, travelling only thirty kilometres a day, taking lots of rest days, and never pushing them.Q: Was there a film crew travelling with Filipe the entire time?
A: No, for the most part, the journey footage seen in The Long Rider was captured by Filipe himself using a tripod, or by locals and friends that he encountered along the way.

In fact, the scenery itself was another “character” in the film – towering mountain ranges, snowy forests and winding highways, hot dry deserts, swampy marshes, and hard stony plains. And so many welcoming, smiling faces as Filipe and the horses clip-clopped into tiny villages and towns, some of which weren’t even on the maps. The emotional toll taken on the young man was also shown as part of the film – audiences are privy to Filipe’s joys, fears, frustrations and anger, the loss of his long-time girlfriend whose support was so valuable, then meeting the woman who was to become his wife towards the end of the ride all bring a sense of intimacy and triumph.

The Long Rider is due for release the last week of June and early July in cinemas across the country. The first pair of boots he wore on his Long Ride (below) are on display at the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto…..…and two statues, more than five meters tall, have been erected in Brazil to celebrate his feat. The documentary has already won several awards and received Official Selection status in various international film festivals.Credits
Mythic Productions & Mojo Global Arts presents The Long Rider in association with NC2 Media
Directed & produced by Sean Cisterna
Executive Producers: Filipe Masetti Leite, Peter Hawkins, Arnon Melo, Sonya Di Rienzo, and Aeschylus Poulos
Director of Photography: Filipe Masetti Leite
Interview Cinematography: Carl Elster and Ingrid Vido
Editor: Lee Walker

Follow Filipe on Instagram @filipemasetti

ACTOR, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR, HORSE-LOVER SHELLEY PETERSON SITS HIGH IN THE SADDLE AS SHE LAUNCHES HER 9TH NOVEL

Throughout the 80s and 90s, I’d become a fan of Canadian film and tv actress, SHELLEY PETERSON. She appeared in all the major hit tv shows like Night Heat, E.N.G., the anthology series Alfred Hitchcock Presents, the comedy Dog House and another fave of mine, Twice in a Lifetime (2000). In 2007, Shelley appeared in the scary, spooky thriller Dead Silence alongside one of my favourite Australian actors, Ryan Kwanten, who starred with Aussie superstar Aaron Petersen in the original Mystery Road movie.  During all this time, Shelley was not only married to politician and future Ontario premier, David Peterson, she also raised a family and started writing books for Young Adults based on her love of horses. Oh, and by the way, she continued riding and owns a horse facility north of Toronto. Talk about an over-achiever and a great success story!

Her books are beautifully crafted novels targeting the tween/teen/young adult readership and focuses on horse-lovers and their adventures with their 4-legged best friends.  Her latest book is THE JAGGED CIRCLE which Shelley is currently promoting and hopefully will soon be able to do the usual meet-n-greet reading events with her fans as the province opens up after 15 months of Covid lockdown. I recently spoke with Shelley where we discovered our mutual love of horses, sharing our pony club stories from way-back…Cover final, Jagged Circle copy (1)Congratulations on the publication of your latest Y/A novel The Jagged Circle. You’ve written 9 books now involving horses so you must have been a pony club girl from way back…yes?  Yes, you’re right. I went to Pony Club in London, Ontario. We had wonderful teachers who were thorough and demanding. For example, we were timed taking our bridles apart, cleaning and oiling them, then putting them back together. We learned every part of a horse, how to look after them from top to bottom, including how to feed and groom them. The riding part was just as demanding, but more fun!  My favourite teacher was Dorinda Brickenden Greenway, who was an international show jumper. I admire her so much that I put her in ‘The Jagged Circle’ as a judge in the March Madness Steeplechase.

I gather you’ve always ridden throughout your adult life, too, and now own a fabulous horse facility, Fox Ridge – can you tell us about it and how it allows you to fulfil any childhood dreams?  I’ve been extremely lucky to have been around horses all my life. I had horses as a child in our backyard barn in London and then married a man whose father had a farm with Hereford cows. Pete loved horses and knew more about them than anybody else I’ve ever met. He’s a character in many of my books as Pete Pierson. He bought me my foundation mare, Sandpiper, and I’m now raising her great-grandchildren in Caledon where we live at Fox Ridge. I can think of nothing more fulfilling than guiding the journey from wobbly-legged new-born foal to a responsive, calm, willing adult horse.thumbnailI read a brief synopsis of one of your earlier books, Dancer, which was inspired by your then-teenage daughter. I must admit, the story could have been written about me, too. I was the class geek back home in Australia, and instead of 2-legged friends, I had a whole herd of 4-legged ones at the local stables. Have you found that your books offer comfort and validation to your predominantly tween and teenage female readers? And have you received “fan mail” reflecting that?  Absolutely. Readers’ emails and letters warm my heart and keep me writing. Each of my novels deals with a real issue (or several issues) that kids face, and each person will take what they need out of my books. If something that happens in one of my novels reflects a reader’s personal situation, I hope they’ll find strength and inspiration by how my characters cope with it. Otherwise, it’s just part of the story.sundancer (2)When you were acting on a regular basis, you appeared in 2 of my favourite Canadian tv series, E.N.G. and Night Heat. Do you miss those days or are they now just very fond memories?  I loved the world of theatre, television and film, and it was good to be a part of it. It’s very tough work, regardless of the glamourous perception of it, but very rewarding as well. The magic of theatre cannot be replicated elsewhere, and I revisited it in my novel, ‘Stagestruck’. One day I might go back to it as a little old lady, but for now I prefer allowing my imagination the freedom to create stories as opposed to acting them through other writers’ characters and dialogue.th (2)Being the wife of a politician must have been demanding – did you find horse-riding offered you relaxation and an outlet to de-stress?  Horses only relate to you when you set aside your stress. They actually turn away if you bring your troubles to the barn. As soon as you understand that, things go well. Through any turmoil in my life—being the wife of a politician, raising children, having a stressful career– horses have always demanded that I put my mental garbage in a sack and leave it metaphorically at the barn door.

Riding horse Prospero with grand-daughter Willow

Riding horse Prospero with grand-daughter Willow

The Jagged Circle is the second book in your Jockey Girl series and this time your heroine, Evangeline Gibb, is up to her stirrups in solving a murder while training her steeplechaser, Kazzam, for a big race. Can you give us any more clues as to how Evangeline does…with the helping the police solve the crime as well as the race?  Before the story begins, her grandmother Mary has been training Evie and Kazzam over jumps, and there’s already a very strong bond of trust between horse and rider which allows them to escalate their training over cross-country jumps with Piers Anders. And Evie’s love of her little sister, along with her curiosity and grit, won’t allow her to stop delving into the mysteries until they’re solved. The story takes place over a very short time, going from the boredom of being alone at Spring break to action overload as the drama unfolds. One reader told me he needed a nap when he finished reading my book!

Do you have social media where fans can follow you and learn more about your books?  I have a website, www.shelleypeterson.com  and a Facebook page “ShelleyPetersonBooks”. My publisher is Dundurn Press and I’m on their website as well. Any questions can be sent to me directly via my website, and I’ll answer them as soon as I get back from the barn.thumbnail (1)Thank you so much for sharing your life and loves, Shelley, and I know my readers will be checking out ALL your books which are available from Amazon as well as through your own website.  You can also visit the Dundurn Press website and social media: @dundurnpress
THE JAGGED CIRCLE by Shelley Peterson
Paperback ISBN: 9781459746947 • $14.99
eBook ISBN: 9781459746961 • $8.99willow riding Robyn

“WILD AT HEART” TAKES READERS ON AN EXCITING RIDE WITH 3 AUSTRALIAN BRUMBIES & 1 BRAVE HORSEWOMAN

Having all this Covid lockdown time to explore online stories from home (Australia), I was thrilled when I came across a Facebook post announcing the launch of an exciting new book, Wild at Heart, by French-born Aliénor le Gouvello, who undertook an intense and challenging solo journey stretching an extraordinary 5,330kms from Healesville in Victoria (the s.e. corner of the country) up to Cooktown in the tropical far north of Queensland; she had three horses that were once wild brumbies (the Aussie equivalent of mustangs) as her only  companions.151677445_3743509249096164_5844396051903961977_nThroughout her grueling trek across some of Australia’s most spectacular terrain, Aliénor battled both isolation and the harsh elements, but she forged a close bond with her horses Roxanne, River & Cooper, as well as experiencing unexpected life-changing discoveries. Surrounded by wildlife that included deadly spiders, snakes and crocodiles, she also suffered tropical illnesses and injuries but pushed on to complete the ride and join an exclusive club of those few who have triumphed before her. Her sturdy bush horses all live with her now in peaceful  retirement on her cattle station in outback Queensland.59788288_2167293760051062_5017374520239980544_nAs a child, Aliénor dreamed of travelling and having adventures around the world. When she decided to take on the Bicentennial National Trail – Australia’s longest non-motorized, self-reliant trek – she had already completed a horseback trek in Mongolia as well as a sidecar motorbike expedition across Asia and Europe from Siberia to Paris. At the time of making the decision to mount up and trek the breadth of Australia, she was working in an aboriginal community near Uluru (the giant red monolith in the heart of the country) in the Australian Central Desert. She had recently fallen in love with Australia’s wild brumbies and hatched a plan for her most ambitious solo expedition to date; the adventure would also draw attention to the plight of Australia’s wild horses. The horses were originally brought in with the settlers, helping build the country and even taken with the troops to fight wars abroad; they are part of the country’s heritage and culture. Australia now has the largest population of wild horses in the world. They have adapted to all sorts of environments and can be found all across Australia. Their plight has been controversial in the media when the government has resorted to aerial culling as a mean to manage their population, a cruel method that leaves horses to bleed to death for days. Alienor’s trek was dedicated to bring a light on these very resilient horses and promote better management of them.  These tough equines were perfectly showcased in The Man From Snowy River movie from back in the 80s – if you get a chance, do watch it and witness some of the most exciting horse chases ever recorded on film.29572387_1613619402085170_1085232860379005776_nAs Aliénor said in a recent ABC television news interview about her book, “It was the longest and most challenging trek I’ve done so far but also the most rewarding and amazing experience I have had with horses,” she said. “I pushed my limits further than I could have imagined, you discover strengths you didn’t even know you have.”  Wild at Heart tells of her physical and mental challenges of being a lone traveler and having to be so self-sufficient along with caring for her horses along the deserted track but the book contains some spectacular photographs, courtesy of world-renowned adventure photographer Cat Vinton.

Since her book launched last month, she’s been busy attending bookstore meet-n-greets (yes, Australia has mostly come out of Covid lockdown and gatherings are permitted) and giving numerous media interviews; in fact, Aliénor has become something of a “folk hero” and a champion of the brumbies.165438475_3828394140607674_6649526619257448360_n 169076026_3845201365593618_8839215924954813680_nInternational sales of her book are available from the Book Depository website (yes, they ship around the world):  https://www.bookdepository.com/Wild-at-Heart-Alienor-le-Gouvello-Cat-Vinton/9781922419200
Watch for my article/review in the June issue of THE RIDER newspaper (www.therider.com) and you can follow Wild at Heart on on social media at:  www.facebook.com/wild.at.heart.australia

WILD AT HEART
By Aliénor le Gouvello, Photographs by Cat Vinton
Format: Paperback | 288 pages
Publication date: 30 March, 2021
Published by Affirm Press, Mulgrave, VIC, Australia
ISBN10 1922419206
ISBN13 978192241920022310472_1447770742003371_766571780966721878_n

GIDDY-UP AND DANCE! ODYSSEO HORSES MESMERIZE AT MEDIA DAY

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of attending the media preview of Cavalia’s “ODYSSEO” show featuring 70+ horses and dozens of riders, trainers and gymnasts performing under the big top down in Toronto’s portlands.

20150407_132204 20150407_132420We all crammed into the press area and pulled out cameras and spent 55 minutes clicking and rolling as the horses jumped, galloped, and danced to haunting live music, many horses working without reins or any sort of tack – it was amazing to watch how gently and calmly the trainers worked with them.

20150407_133420 20150407_133835(0) 20150407_134020There are many vignettes featuring medieval style dressage (above), and energetic cowboy rough-riding (below) demonstrated….

20150407_135340 20150407_135445 20150407_135703It was difficult to capture the fast galloping trick riders (above) but soon the mood changed once again….

20150407_140127 20150407_140145Wow….they filled the giant arena with water, turning the scene into a beautiful waterfall pool where the horses danced like 4-legged water sprites.

20150407_140815 20150407_140910 20150407_1409273 years ago, I attended Odysseo when the show first came to town. But on Tuesday, I still got the chills watching these breathtaking beasties charge around, perfectly choreographed. Congratulations to Artistic Director Normand Latourelle for maintaining such a high standard of professionalism and inspiration. And bravo to all the creative team, the riders and trainers, the musicians and the beautiful vocalist who brought the “middle earth” vibe,  and those astounding gymnasts who jumped, bounced, climbed around the arena with such energy and gusto.

20150407_141402 20150407_141424Equine artist, Bruce K. Lawes (http://bklawesart.com/) came with me to shoot additional photos and he was in horse heaven!

20150407_143154 20150407_143513 20150407_143225 20150407_143211Local horsewoman, Amanda from Mississauga, rode in the show, too. (below)

20150407_142245And here’s the amazing trainer who worked with 12 “free” horses earlier in the show.

20150407_142446 20150407_142448

20150407_133219So if you love horses, if you enjoy theatre, if you’re passionate about dance – you MUST visit ODYSSEO while it’s here in Toronto. The show has already been extended for another two weeks so check your newspapers or visit their website for show times and ticket information: http://cavalia.net/en/odysseo/tickets-info/toronto-can

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