THE NOMAD EXPERIENCE

Live and ride with the nomadic people of MONGOLIA.

BY JILL NOVOTNY | PHOTOS DEB LEE CARSON

This August a new endurance riding event will offer participants a unique insight into the traditional nomad lifestyle and the role of horses in one of the oldest cultures in the world.

The event is run in conjunction with the Gobi Desert Cup, an extreme horseback endurance race held on the Mongolian steppe. The 300-mile course is ridden in six days by athletes from all over the world. Both the Gobi Desert Cup and the Nomad Experience were conceptualized as a way to bring social and economic empowerment to the local community and to promote the welfare of the local horses. In many aspects, the less extreme Nomad Experience sees the riders get closer to the culture and horsemen than is possible during the Gobi Desert Cup. The experience is underpinned by the nomad belief: Come to give.

The race creates work for over 60 people for up to a year, bringing empowerment to the local community. In addition, the competition hires and brings to the training center 160 horses from different Mongolian families.”

The camp is based in the Khentii province, the birthplace of Genghis Khan, about 200 miles from the capital of Mongolia. During the Nomad Experience, riders are accommodated in a traditional ger, a portable, round tent covered with skins or felt and used as a dwelling, among nomadic people with access to basic amenities and surrounded by the 160 horses in training for the Gobi Desert Cup. Riders return to the base camp each night to enjoy the generous nomad hospitality.

Held just before the Gobi Desert Cup, the overall experience and riding challenges during the Nomad Experience present an opportunity for riders to acclimate and build stamina, as well as to mentally prepare to ride someday in the Gobi Desert Cup. Or, for less experienced riders, it is a way to have a gentler experience in a less challenging riding environment but with similar rich cultural highlights. Each day, after a traditional breakfast at the camp, riders face various challenges along their daily ride, which range from endurance rides to faster, shorter trips. The itinerary includes getting an inside look at the nomad horse trainers in action, as well as the Nomad Games, a chance for participants to practice their Mongolian horsemanship skills, including barrel racing. The trip concludes with prize-giving over traditional Mongolian barbecue, and all riders are gifted a traditional Mongolian outfit.