Classic Eventing Nation

Spend a Day Abroad with Cornelia Dorr

By on Aug 2, 2022 7:00 am -

Cornelia Dorr and Daytona Beach 8. Photo by Shelby Allen.

With an exciting Young Rider career and kick off as a professional, Cornelia Dorr has had an exciting season, most recently picking up a top 10 finish in the CCIO4* at Avenches in July. We hear Cornelia’s aiming for a little event that begins with a B in September, so we thought it high time to catch up with her as she’s currently based in the UK with McNab Eventing. Cornelia has earmarked this year as an educational opportunity to further her riding and horsemanship.

We’re also following along with Cornelia live today as she takes over our Instagram story! Give us a follow at @goeventing to see snapshots from her day.

Cornelia fills us in on a “normal” day on the yard:

First Things First

Around 6:15, I wake up and first things first – I grab coffee and a light breakfast.

Coffee to kick off the day is a necessity. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

By 6:45 I’m heading to the car to drive to the yard. Claire, my groom, and I take turns having the car at night, so sometimes she picks me up, and other times I pick her up. We have our cute, bright blue Volkswagen named Darcy! Kevin [McNab] has two flats that everyone on the yard lives in. Claire is in one and I am in the other.

We arrive by 7:00, where we start normal morning chores: feed, hay, clean stalls. Daytona wears the Activo-Med blanket first thing every morning, so we get that on her and started while she eats. With four horses and two people the chores go quickly.

Between Cornelia and her groom Claire, chores speed by! Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

By 8:00, I am normally getting on my first ride of the day, which is typically Daytona. I always try to ride her first, as she is my best horse and we both prefer to start our day that way. She goes outside after she’s done being ridden, around 9:00. While I ride Daytona, Claire turns the other horses out and gets the next one ready for me.

Best way to kick off the day with your top horse. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

From 9:00 to 1:00 I ride the rest of the horses. They come in to get worked and then normally go back outside until 2/2:30 when we bring them in for the night.

Currently based with McNab Eventing, Cornelia and her horses are enjoying a facility with amenities specific to training. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

By 3:00 it’s time for afternoon chores: clean stalls and feed hay.

Settled in for the night, the horses enjoy roomy boxes. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

Around 4:30, Daytona either goes on the treadmill or gets hand walked, depending on what she did with her ride that day. By 5:00, we’re feeding for the evening, and by 7:00 we’re all finished at the barn and I’m heading to the gym to finish my day. I alternate between yoga, abs, and weight lifting.

The feed room at McNab Eventing. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

Both horse and rider fitness is important! Spending time in the gym, Cornelia makes sure to put the work in. Photo by Cornelia Dorr.

Monday Video: Colleen Loach’s Winning Weekend in Jumper Land

By on Aug 1, 2022 4:00 pm -

It was a very successful weekend in jumper land for Canada’s Colleen Loach and her own, Amanda Bernhard and Peter Barry’s FE Golden Eye. They spent the weekend at the International Bromont Hunter/Jumper show and cleaned up across the Grand Prix divisions, winning the $15,000 Modified Grand Prix on Friday and following that with another win on Sunday in the $50,000 Grand Prix. That’s not a bad payday at the end of the weekend!

The now 10-year-old “Goldie” first caught our eye just three years ago when she was slotted as Colleen’s mount for the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. This is her second year competing at the Advanced/4* level and earlier this spring she placed sixth in the formidable Lexington CCI4*S held alongside the Kentucky Three-Day Event.

It turns out that Goldie is gelding of many talents, not only finding success as an eventer and in the show jumping ring as well — he’s also a great lesson pony for a very lucky kid!

Check out their dazzling Grand Prix round (if the embedded post below does not show up for you, you can view the post on Instagram here):

Will we see this pair representing Canada at the World Championships next month? It’s very possible! Colleen has been long-listed with both Goldie and stablemate Vermont, Colleen’s other very successful young up-and-comer. Both formidable horses are also entered in the Nations Cup leg to be held at Bromont in a few weeks, so if I had to speculate, I’d personally bet we’ll see Colleen riding one for Team Canada at the Nations Cup and the other for the World Championships in Pratoni.

Go Colleen and Go Canada!

The Barnstaple USEA Educational Program and Classic Three-Day Event Announcement

By on Aug 1, 2022 1:30 pm -

Looking to expand your knowledge of and experience in a Classic Three-Day event? You’ll want to mark your calendars for this one!

Picture from Lauren Romanelli’s Facebook Page.

Coming this November (16th-20th) in Morriston, Florida, Barnstaple will be hosting an educational program and unrecognized competition (starter through training) with the purpose of using the Classic Three-Day format to further the education of both the competitors and auditors. Professionals such as Peter Gray, Max Corcoran, Leslie Law, Kyle Carter, Lauren Nicholson, Buck Davidson, Jr., Sinead Halpin, Tik Maynard, Dorothy Crowell, and Sarah Kozumplik will be hosting demonstrations and talks in order for participants to have the opportunity to learn from some of the top professionals in the industry. Participants will then be able to apply that knowledge to their own preparations for the unrecognized event.

Sitting down to talk with the event’s Education Coordinator Dorothy Crowell, it is clear that this program and competition was formed around the passion for the education of the event horse and rider.

“Riders with Classic Three-Day experience have to learn how to schedule fitness, lessons, and vet and farrier to coordinate with the Three-Day. They need to learn TPR, how to properly, and efficiently cool their horses, how to wrap legs, ice after hard work, and know their horses legs so they can tell if something is different – even in a dark stall. They need to understand their horse’s minds, so they know when to ask the hard questions and when to back off, learn to train their horses in hand in order to be ready for the jog, understand how important time off is, as well as the importance of long walks when bringing them back into work. They need to learn how vital their own fitness is, both physical and mental. These are imperative horsemanship skills whether your goal is to ride at the next local Horse Trial, or for the U.S. Team!” Dorothy explained.

To further help riders, and the larger equine community, The Barnstaple USEA Educational Program and Classic Three-Day Event is working with small businesses in a one-time-only rider sponsorship program. Additionally, the event gives back to beneficiaries such as The Liz Cochran Memorial Groom’s Award and The Ocala Horse Alliance’s Black Stallion Reading Project.

“I am so excited about the talented professionals attaching their name to an educational program that gives back to both riders and the community,” Dorothy expressed.

With pre-registration up and running, keep a close eye on Barnstaple’s website for more information and further announcements.

Conversations at the Finish Line: Your 2022 Mongol Derby Winners!

By on Aug 1, 2022 11:30 am -

Deirdre Griffith (USA) and Willemien Jooste (SA) crossed the finish line of the 2022 Mongol Derby two days ago as unplanned partners. The two riders hadn’t anticipated riding together, but had unexpectedly met up to ride out to camp on Day 2 of the race, and never turned back.

I had a chance to talk with both riders to hear about their experience, the highs and the lows of the Derby, key takeaways, and helpful tips for future participants. A big thank you to Erik Cooper of The Equestrianists for connecting us.

Both Deirdre and Willemien immediately expressed their gratitude of having the partnership to support them through the race. “It’s helpful to have another person to help navigate and make decisions, but also to keep you smiling, to keep that optimism,” Willemien stated. Deirdre shared similar sentiments, expressing “It would have been hard to do alone. And the horses go better when they’re together.”

The partnership between Deirdre and Willemien served them well, combining the two riders’ experience with packing and distance rides with navigation practice. Both Deirdre and Willemien come from horse-related backgrounds.

Deirdre, of Jackson, WY, grew up riding English and in Pony Club, which she mentioned was a wonderful upbringing with horses. During her time in high school at the Thacher School in California, Deirdre was introduced to and involved in everything horse related: rodeo, gymkhana, and eventually, packing.

Packing horses turned into Deirdre’s passion, which she continued through her time in undergraduate and graduate school at the Colorado State University. Continuing to work on ranches and on packing trips through her time in school, Deirdre moved to Wyoming after graduation to work as a wrangler on these pack trips.

While these experiences uniquely prepared Deirdre to take on the Mongol Derby, preparing for the race didn’t come without nerves. With a determination to set and achieve a goal, have something to focus and train on, and show her young children that they too can achieve goals they set, Deirdre’s focus, experience, and resiliency set her up for success.

Willemien has a horse background as well, although had come back from a riding hiatus to participate in the Derby. Growing up on a farm in South Africa with horses, cattle, and dogs, Willemien is no stranger to working around animals. That said, Willemien hadn’t been riding much when she saw the Mongol Derby on social media.

Seeing the Derby for the first time on social media in 2019 immediately captivated Willemien. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” she reflected. “I applied out of a moment of weakness, I guess!”

In preparation to further train for the Derby, Willemien began her endurance riding endeavors in 2021, which helped in fitness for riding long distances. It certainly was useful practice, as crossing 1000km of Mongolian steppe is no easy feat.

Despite years of experience and practice in preparation for the Derby, both riders stressed the importance of navigation time and time again – “You’re not just following a line on a GPS… navigation is complex, and plays a big factor of where you need to go to save your horse’s energy while getting as far as possible,” Willemien states. “Although we had a GPS, it is even more important to be able to read a map, to understand elevation, and to ask “is it worth it?” to go over or around an obstacle,” Deirdre suggests. So, future participants beware: practice with those maps!!

While each rider sets off in the Derby as an individual, they are by no means alone. Neither Deirdre nor Willemien had been to Mongolia previously, yet felt so welcomed and accepted from the first day.

“We stayed many nights with families in their gers,” Willemien reflected. “It is remarkable how everyone works as a team. When you come in from a long ride, no matter how terrible you feel, you are met with people that are happy to see you, and happy to help.”

“What really struck me was the generosity [of the families] to take in complete strangers and give us the food off of their tables, and space in their gers,” Deirdre commented.

Even thought the riders were facing the challenge alone, each of them on riding their own race, and on their own horse, help and encouragement were never far away. From the friendships built between riders, the welcoming atmosphere created by the families along the steppe, the support, care, and attention to detail from the vets, medics, and coordinators working to organize the race, and each and every friend and family member back home cheering for their person, each rider was riding with a group of people rooting for their success.

Are you interested in taking part in the longest and toughest horse race in the world? If so, head over to The Equestrianists website to sign up for future races.

Weekend Winners: Horse Park of New Jersey + Hunt Club Farms

By on Aug 1, 2022 9:30 am -

It was a lighter competition weekend here in the mid-summer eventing lull, though we’re seeing a few pairs coming back into action as the fall season prep begins to ramp up. The Horse Park of New Jersey added an Advanced to its offerings to help provide options for riders seeking a pipe-opener at the level, so quite a few top pairs were out for a stretch. We’ll next see many of these heavy hitters out at Great Meadow International later this month (and may have glimpsed a World Championships pair or two over the weekend!).

This week’s Unofficial Low Score Award was earned in the Open Novice B at New Jersey by Delaney Emerson and Caroline Martin’s Redfield Lavei, who won the division on a 23.3. If you’re in the market, Redfield Lavei is for sale!

Horse Park of New Jersey H.T. (Allentown, NJ): [Website] [Final Scores]

Advanced: Buck Davidson and Electric Lux (43.4)
Open Intermediate A: Buck Davidson and Stracathro Solitary Minstrel (35.2)
Open Intermediate B: Boyd Martin and Tsetserleg (35.5)
Open Preliminary A: Hannah Sue Hollberg and Capitol HIM (26.6)
Open Preliminary B: Jil Thomas-Smith and Bon Vivant DSF (29.7)
Open Preliminary C: Madeline Hartsock and Global FX (30.3)
Open Modified A: Ashley Adams and Quicksilver Gräns (27.6)
Open Modified B: Jennie Brannigan and Adagio’s Nobility (28.6)
Open Training: Caroline Honeycutt and Beall Spring Seahawk (26.8)
Training Rider A: Christa Schmidt and Karate Kid (33.1)
Training Rider B: Marine Cassou and Castleturvin Mungo (33.7)
Novice Rider A: Jamie Merrill and Addi (26.7)
Novice Rider B: Karen D’Lauro and Diamond Striker (24.2)
Novice Rider C: Liz Woodfield and GL Rudbeckia (29.8)
Open Novice A: Ryan Wood and Cooley Cadbury (28.1)
Open Novice B: Delaney Emerson and Redfield Lavei (23.3)
Beginner Novice Rider A: Ingrid Johnson and Resplendence (27.2)
Beginner Novice Rider B: Luba Abrams and Huey (25.9)
Open Beginner Novice: Macie Brook and Windchase Andromeda (29.1)

Hunt Club Farms H.T. (Berryville, VA): [Website] [Final Scores]

Open Preliminary: Martin Douzant and Harthill Diamond (27.2)
Preliminary Rider: Jessie Schwartz and WHF Kitaro (36.4)
Modified A: Martin Douzant and Silver Ruby (29.8)
Modified B: Arden Wildasin and Wanama (33.7)
Open Training: Martin Douzant and Clifton’s Patriot (26.7)
Training Rider: Claire Allen and Get Serious (28.3)
Novice Rider A: Isabella Soon and Tap the Moment (31.8)
Novice Rider B: Coree Reuter-McNamara and Another Concerto (27.8)
Novice Rider C: Faith Genkinger and Nuclear Code (34.2)
Open Novice A: Quidley Kellermann and Cruising Along (26.8)
Open Novice B: Katerina Pecinovsky and Affirminator (33.6)
Beginner Novice Rider A: Bekah Bartley and Plain Brown Wrap (31.9)
Beginner Novice Rider B: Ella Genkinger and Soup of the Day (27.5)
Open Beginner Novice: Mike Pendleton and Clive Christian (30.0)
YEH 4 Year Old: Keara Schmidt and Quality TNT (80.500)
YEH 5 Year Old: Lucia Strini and Dassett Evermore (86.200)
Starter: Laura Kiff and Give Me A Chance (27.7)

Monday News & Notes from FutureTrack

By on Aug 1, 2022 8:58 am -

 

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Huge congratulations to the British Junior and Young Rider teams, who took decisive team golds in their European Championships over the weekend at Hartpury in Gloucestershire. There’s always something extra special about a home win, and it’s particularly heartening (though perhaps not for anyone from any other countries) to see that the next generation of riders is every bit as formidable as the current upper echelons in this country. To give you an update on the medal tallies so far, Great Britain currently holds Olympic gold, WEG gold, and European golds at Senior, Young Rider, and Junior levels. We’d be fairly confident they can add the Pony Europeans gold to that this week, too.

US Weekend Action: 

Horse Park of New Jersey H.T. (Allentown, NJ): [Website] [Results]

Hunt Club Farms H.T. (Berryville, VA): [Website] [Results]

UK Weekend Results:

Hambro Sport Horses Burgham International CCI4*-S (Morpeth, UK): [Results]

FEI Eventing European Championships for Young Riders (Hartpury, UK): [Website] [Results]

Voltaire Design Bicton Arena (2): [Results]

Glamis Castle Area Festival: [Results]

Global Eventing Round-Up:

Kilguilkey House International CCI4*-L/CCI4*-S (Cork Co, Ireland): [Website] [Entries/Times]

Your Morning Reading List:

We’re inching ever closer to October’s Young Horse World Championships in Le Lion d’Angers, and that means that the race for the Holekamp/Turner grant is hotting up. There are two exciting seven-year-olds newly qualified to fight for this lucrative bit of funding, and plenty who are close to completing their required MERs for the event – catch up on who’s in contention here.

I don’t know about you, but my favourite part of an eventing day is carbing up at the burger van at the end of it all. But I’m far from the first person to benefit from the unbridled joys of eating things in bread – and as it turns out, in medieval times, that was actually the main philosophy behind feeding horses. [The great equine bake-off of 1593]

We’re deeply saddened to hear the news that Anneli Drummond-Hay – the first-ever winner of Burghley – has died, age 84. This extraordinary powerhouse of a women was shortlisted for the Olympics in all three disciplines, and proved to a world that wasn’t quite as accepting of women at the top level that they could do anything the men could do – and often better. [We owe her a great debt]

We talk a lot about the potential concerns of wormer resistance – but antibiotics resistance in horses, too, can be a major concern. Just as in humans, overuse of antibiotics can cause bacteria to evolve and adapt, minimising the impact of medicating and potentially leading to veterinary crises that are considerably harder to deal with. [Find out how to minimise risk here]

The FutureTrack Follow:

 

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We’ve featured 20-year-old Alice Casburn on EN a number of times in the past for her great successes with the homebred Topspin II, with whom she stepped up to five-star last season and completed Badminton this year. The horse is the grandson of Alice’s mother’s former Advanced horse, which is about as pony novel chic as it gets, and over the weekend, they represented Great Britain at the Young Rider European Championships, taking team gold and individual bronze for their efforts. Give her a follow to see what adventures they go on next — we hear there are some exciting ones planned for the latter half of the season!

Morning Viewing:

Relive the action from the Young Rider Europeans cross-country day at Hartpury:

Brazilian Team Announced for World Championships at Pratoni

By on Jul 31, 2022 9:00 am -

Ruy Fonseca and Ballypatrick SRS. Photo by Shannon Brinkman.

And so it begins! The Brazilian team is the first to be named for this year’s World Championships, which will be held from September 13–19 in Pratoni del Vivaro, southwest of Rome. Due to their relative shortage of horses and riders in this championship cycle, their team announcement was dependant on their final combination – Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Kilcoltrim Kit Kat – gaining the required MER, which they accomplished in this weekend’s CCI4*-S at Burgham. Though we expect to see some further announcements over the next couple of weeks, teams will have until September 5th to make their final entries and reveal their teams.

The team is made up of the following riders and horses:

  • Carlos Parro and Goliath, an eleven-year-old KWPN gelding (Chello III VDL x Octa, by Belisar). Owned by EMTEC Laboratories and the rider.
  • Marcelo Tosi and Glenfly, a seventeen-year-old Thoroughbred gelding (Presenting x Dorans Glen, by Over the River). Owned by the rider.
  • Marcio Carvalho Jorge and Kilcoltrim Kit Kat, a thirteen-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (Waldo van Dungen x Kilcoltrim Kitten, by Ghareeb). Owned by Alison and Helen Mordaunt and Alistair and Annabel Vere Nicoll.
  • Ruy Fonseca and Ballypatrick SRS, an eleven-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding (Pacino x Ballypatrick Romance, by Clover Hill). Owned by Renata Rabello Costa and the rider.

There’s considerable championship experience among the four named combinations: Carlos and Goliath represented Brazil at the Tokyo Olympics and also competed in Pratoni’s test event in May, and Marcelo and Glenfly were part of the team at Tokyo in 2021 and at the World Equestrian Games in Tryon in 2018. Ruy and Ballypatrick SRS were part of the Brazilian team at the 2019 Pan American Games, when the horse was just eight, while Kilcoltrim Kit Kat, who joined Marcio’s string just this season, has had no previous championship experience but has completed several four-stars.

Sunday Links

By on Jul 31, 2022 12:01 am -

Ariel Grald and Forrest Gump 124. Photo by Abby Powell.

We’ve been eagerly awaiting a glimpse of the entries for the FEI Nations Cup at Bromont, which take place in less than three weeks, from August 18-20. The only leg taking place outside of Europe, it won’t be the most hotly contested Nations Cup we’ve ever seen, since there will likely be just three teams and it also takes place a the week before Great Meadow International which will be Team USA’s final mandatory outing before the World Championships this fall. However, Bromont puts on a spectacular event and always attracts top competition no matter the time.

For the U.S., current CCI4O-S entries include the likes of Ariel Grald, Liz Halliday-Sharp, Lillian Heard, and Colleen Rutledge amongst others. Check them out! Entries don’t close until 8/12, so we’ll likely some more trickle in and of course we’re anxiously awaiting the naming of teams!

U.S. Weekend Action

Horse Park of New Jersey H.T. (Allentown, NJ): [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Live Scores] [Volunteer]

Hunt Club Farms H.T. (Berryville, VA): [Website] [Scoring] [Live Scores] [Volunteer]

Major International Events

Hambro Sport Horses Burgham International CCI4*-S (Morpeth, UK): [Entries/Times/Scoring]

FEI Eventing European Championships for Young Riders (Hartpury, UK): [Website] [Entries/Times/Scoring] [Live Stream – FEI YouTube] [Live Stream – ClipMyHorse.TV]

Kilguilkey House International CCI4*-L/CCI4*-S (Cork Co, Ireland): [Website] [Entries/Times]

Sunday Links:

12 secrets of top equestrian team managers – and what we can learn from them too

Current Contenders for The Holekamp/Turner YEH Lion d’Angers Grant

How to Ride a Jump on a Mound • Help Your Horse Recover From Intense Work

Long-term survival of mutant gene could be explained by dressage benefits

Groom picks horse to be his ‘best man’ – and the happy couple take him on honeymoon

Sunday Video: Here’s a quick roundness refresher:

2021 Blair Winner True Blue Too Euthanised after Fall in Burgham Cross-Country Warm-Up

By on Jul 30, 2022 12:10 pm -

Rosie Fry and True Blue Too II en route to victory at Blair. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

We’re desperately sad to report that Rosie Fry‘s True Blue Too II has been euthanised after falling in the cross-country warm-up at Northumberland’s Burgham International Horse Trials today. The gelding, who was owned and bred by Rosie’s aunt, Di White-Hamilton, had been contesting the CCI4*-S class.

The team at Burgham have released a statement about the incident on social media:

“It is with great sadness with which we announce that the horse True Blue Too, ridden by Rosie Fry (GBR) and owned by Mr and Mrs White-Hamilton, was put down on humane grounds as the result of a fatal accident at Burgham International Horse Trials, Alnwick, United Kingdom, CCI4*-S, at 1.30pm on 30 July 2022. True Blue Too, an 11-year-old gelding, fell in the cross-country warm-up,” it reads.

“Veterinarians immediately attended to the horse, providing all veterinary care, and full medical attention was given to the rider, Rosie Fry, who was transported to hospital for further observation. At every FEI event the maximum consideration is given to the safety and welfare of horses and riders. The organising committee of Burgham and the FEI are sending all our thoughts to those connected with this horse.”

True Blue Too won the CCI4*-L at Blair Castle last year at just ten years old, giving his longtime rider a career-best result, and stepped up to CCI5* at Badminton this year, finishing 47th. His run at Burgham had been intended as part of an autumn campaign towards Burghley. Our thoughts are with Rosie, Di, and the rest of the team around this much-loved family horse.

Rosie and True Blue Too moments after winning at Blair. Photo by Tilly Berendt.

You’re Missing Out on These Hilariously Insane Missives from the 2022 Mongol Derby Blogs

By on Jul 30, 2022 9:00 am -

Photo courtesty of The Mongol Derby.

One of the best parts of following the Mongol Derby is the hilarity (and intensity) that ensues via The Equestrianists’ daily blogs. Each evening, the team rehashes the events of the day — and its the wild, beautiful Mongolian Steppe, a lot of sh*t happens out there — to update followers on the happenings across the 1000km/600mi track.

I pulled a few quotes from the past few days’ blogs to give you a glimpse — you may not find them as hilarious as I did, but they certainly up the fan experience for me!

Note, riders are referred to in the blogs by initials – you can find a full rider list here and a live tracking map here.

First things first, congratulations to our WINNERS!

Expect more finishers today and tomorrow as the race wraps up.

From Day 7’s blog, “Battle of the Sexes”:

“After yesterday’s damp start, riders awoke this morning to another sunny day on the steppe. This may sound more appealing to those of us sat at home, but spells trouble for the riders: the hotter it is, the more watering holes you need to find for your noble steeds, and for yourself. Heart rates are higher, everyone’s hot and bothered and riders begin to smell a little “ripe”, according to some vets at HS19 (which at this stage of their stint on the steppe we imagine is a little rich coming from them).”

“CWA shared some of his horse selection tips this evening: ask the herder, obey them unless in strong disagreement, and take a look from behind. If belly is wider than bum, they’re a bit too porky for this gig.”

“Tobias Endress (TEN) was looking a little lovestruck out on the steppe today, spotted at HS17 clinging somewhat possessively to a majestic chestnut beast who had ferried him there from HS16. His tips for those looking for love? “Listen to the herder…He saw me and pointed at this horse. It was a match made in heaven.” TED vetted out safely and was soon reluctantly prised away from his new beau to head to the horse lines in search of a replacement.”

From Day 6’s blog, “Run for the Hills“:

“TAT experienced a bit of equine melodrama, wisely electing to return her first pick to the horse lines, a fiesty palomino with a bit of an aversion to being saddled. Moving on to a spicy grey, her first attempt at mounting ended in a swift bump back down to earth. Entirely unfazed and clearly tough as nails, she clambered back on and exploded out of HS17, travelling at quite the pace to HS18. This lady has an eye for the firecrackers.”

Photo courtesy of The Mongol Derby.

“By the time SEN, HFA, FHA and KDA arrived, the scene was a little chaotic. A herder was galloping furiously around the horse lines attempting to collar a loose horse, just as the group rode in. Nothing to see here, ladies.”

From Day 5’s blog, “Hump Day“:

“BDO continues to defy medical expectations and sensible advice on her “roughest day yet” as she traverses the steppe with a boundless grim determination and a set of broken ribs, MFI is now rocking a fetching purple broken thumb, and Annie Hackett’s (AHA) knee appears to have come up against some sort of emergency cheese grater stashed in her jodhpurs. Hump day indeed.”

“Lena Haug (LHA) was pleased with her choice of horse, eyeing him up as the herder presented him to his jockey: “Looks like a sweet boy, a little wild in the eye, I’m excited,” blissfully ignorant to the sounds of her steed snorting like a dragon out of shot. Heidi Falzon (HFA) meanwhile was beaming while standing unusually close to a beast which looked like he had trotted straight out of the ice age, such was his resemblance to a Prezwalski’s horse of old. His temperament did suggest he’d been around the block once or twice, standing docile as a lamb while HFA took full advantage of finally coming into contact with a horse allowing himself to be cuddled. The hope was that he would, however, transform into a “little rocket” as soon as she clambered onboard.”

“Renee Senter (RSE) and Julie Wolfert (JWO) were feeling positive, although they appeared slightly confused about which day it was and were unable to elaborate on their navigational tactics beyond going “the right way.” Pressed on their masterplan, they divulged that this involved heading “whichever way all the other riders go.” They have apparently learned their lesson from yesterday after their sightseeing tour en route into HS11, and have graciously decided to give their fellow riders a chance to shine in the navigational department.”

Photo courtesy of The Mongol Derby.

From Day 4’s blog, “The Eye of the Storm“:

“2019 Mongol Derby veteran MFE woke up on his birthday (our third Derby birthday so far – we can’t really think of anywhere we’d rather spend the day either) to a stroke of extraordinary luck: after losing his horse complete with all his gear outside of HS7 yesterday, a herder appeared as if by magic, dragging the reluctant steed in his wake. He was later spotted trundling towards HS10 at a brisk trot, grinning from ear to ear on an improbably chunky but businesslike chestnut. Happy Birthday, MFE: the Derby Gods are smiling on you.”

“KGA was spotted ripping across the steppe towards HS9 on a little grey rocket, her cowgirl antics from yesterday having done her no harm. She remains committed to picking the buckiest broncos of the bunch, charming herder after herder with her suicidal enthusiasm.”

“CWA and PHE waited until HS12 to make their move: suddenly, they broke away from the pack, and wasted no time in legging it to HS13, trying to put some distance between them and their stunned former riding buddies. Word on the steppe is the odour emanating from PHE’s boots may be enough to keep the chasing pack at bay. Ingenious tactics.”

To keep up with more daily blogs like these, click here and don’t forget to tune in to see who takes home the coveted top prize of surviving!