This award recognizes an achievement that represents the foundation on which AERC was formed by acknowledging a rider who over a long period of time has kept an equine sound and actively competing. The Decade Team recognizes those equine and rider teams who completed at least one endurance ride (50 miles or more) each year for 10 years. This would not have to be consecutive years, and the rider must be an AERC member each of the 10 years. This award was established by AERC member Karen Chaton and became an official AERC award in 2012.

Decade Teams will be determined at the close of each ride year, and the AERC office will send out a certificate and a patch. Once their eligibility has been certified, one option is to honor your equine with a Decade Team-embroidered blanket (Blanket Order Form) or commemorative jacket (Online Decade Team Jacket Order or by mail Jacket Order Form).

Congratulations to the following Decade Teams! Want to have your essay and photo included? Send in an essay (any length (or fill out the questionnaire, available here (Word doc), and send it with a photo to endurancenews@aerc.org.