Category: News

The VERA committee would like to thank Bek Williamson for all her dedication and hard work in the role of point score registrar.

We are very sorry to lose a valued member of the team that makes VERA run. We understand her need to resign at this point in time.

We wish Bek and her family all the best in the future.

Maintenance work on the VERA website is now complete. The site is faster, easier to navigate on mobile, and has a few new additions worth a look:

• A new New to Endurance guide — everything from what endurance riding is, through to a printable ride-day packing list and strapping kit checklist, all in one place.
• Expanded Get Involved pages covering every way to take part: riding, volunteering, organising a ride, vetting at a ride, sponsoring, or supplying goods and services.
• Clearer Committee Contacts, now split by role so it’s easier to find the right person.

The web address is unchanged — vicera.com.au — so existing bookmarks and links will continue to work.

If you notice anything that looks broken or out of place, please get in touch via the Contact page.

AERA has introduced a new Concussion Policy to bring endurance safety procedures into line with the standards required by the Australian Institute of Sport.

What you need to know

• Mandatory stand-down — anyone with a suspected concussion will be stood down from competition for a minimum of 21 days.
• Return to competition — to ride again, you must provide a clearance certificate from a GP or hospital doctor to your DA Secretary.
• Trial phase — this is a manual trial process, running for 6 to 12 months from the announcement (June 2026) to collect accurate national data.
• Updated forms — Chief Stewards now report incidents using the newly updated Form 15 and Form 38. Please discard all old copies of Form 15.

Where to find the official documents

The official Concussion Protocol, flow chart and Concussion Recognition Tool are published by AERA — see AERA Rules & Policies, and the updated incident forms on the AERA forms page.

Stay safe out on the track!

The AERA Management Committee has reviewed the requirements for temperature logs for horses attending endurance events, with the aim of a minimum national standard.

The new standard

On the recommendation of the AERA Biosecurity Sub-committee, for all horses at all affiliated endurance events the responsible member must complete and present an AERA standard Horse Health Declaration that includes a minimum four-day temperature log for each horse. The log must cover the 3 days before travelling to the event, plus the day of travel, with that day’s temperature taken before travel begins.

What this means

• The minimum national standard is temperatures for the 3 days before departure, plus the temperature on the day of departure.
• If you are travelling for two or more days, temperatures must also be logged for the following travel days and while at the ride base, up to pre-ride vetting.
• Ride Organisers include any additional temperature-log requirements in their Event Biosecurity Plan, to allow for longer travel times and days at the ride base before pre-ride vetting.

The change took effect from 1 November, and an updated Horse Health Declaration form is available from AERA Online and the AERA forms page. Ride Organisers can also see the AERA Biosecurity Plan template.