Sandine Arabians offered me a ride at the only FEI ride in Victoria for 2010. I was down to ride Aloha Farina again. We went out for a light ride on the Saturday, and Farina felt so very fit.
Unfortunately Farina had a sore back. Marcia kindly arranged for me to ride another horse, Pyrenees Sapphire. Thank you to Tamara for giving up her ride, so that I could take Sapphire around the course. I was a lighter rider, which was preferred, although we had to weigh me up with lead - so that I could make the minimum weight on offer of 75kg.
I had to dash home in the evening and treat an ill horse with antibiotics - so I was quite busy in transit and not very social the Saturday evening. Esther kindly treated the mare the next day, whilst I was riding. (Note also - very happy the little girl made a full recovery.)
The FEI ride was 90km, over 3 legs. The first leg we were not used to the vet gate into hold procedure, and took 10 minutes too long. I rode with Sandy Horton, the owner of the horse that I was riding. He was riding a big tall and capable Anglo mare, Aloha Rain Dance. The horses were travelling well. Sapphire would blow as she traveled along, and this made me quite concerned. Sandy Horton said this was fine, and that she was going well. I trusted his judgement, and kept the pace up. I do not usually travel at pace, and it is a new skill to develop to judge my horse at a faster travelling speed.
On the second leg, Sapphire fell on her face, literally. I had her on too loose a rein, and she was stretching down and using her neck. She had a la-de-da moment on the flat terrain. I swear my feet nearly touched the ground as her head and neck disappeared from beneath me. Not quite sure how I stayed on, maybe good strong inner thighs from lots of riding. Her knee was grazed, but only lightly, not anywhere near the synovial fluid or knee capsule, and her head was grazed, all down the front.
She was not lame, so we kept on going, likely the best thing to have done.
At the vet check Sapphire was a little off, but fine. Jo Brock came along and did some muscle work, and fixed her neck. Then there was only 20km to go, nice and steady, we were in 3rd and 4th place, and had to hold our positions.
Sapphire was starting to tire - Sandy's horse was going well, however he promised that he would stick with me and get both horses through.
Two horses from the Castlebar camp snuck up on us in the last 2km. We chased them for a little while, and then took hold again. It was more important to get the horses through, than chase the line honours. They placed, only a minute or so ahead of us in time.
Sapphire vetted through, as did Sandy's horse. We placed a respectable 5th and 6th. We did the ride in just under five and half hours, including hold time. The winner did it in 5:02:31, and in second place was Jen Gilbertson, in 5:19:06. The 10 minutes lost in hold time early in the ride would make a great difference to the placings - a good learning exercise to take home from the first FEI ride.
It was great to see that Sapphire recovered really well the next day. Thanks to Sandine for a great ride on a fit horse. I was a little sore, my back and calf muscles were all strained from riding the fall on track. A good massage and a few hots baths soon fixed that!
Emma Holland has some pics for the ride - if I can find one I will publish it with this post.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Tom Quilty 2010
This year I rode the Manilla Tom Quilty, not on my own horse, but on a sweet horse with the name of Mt Eerwah Silver Mariner, know to most, and from hereon, as Petey. He is a horse owned by Jay Randle of Splendacrest Endurance Stables.
My preparations for Scrupulous had gone wrong - and he was not ready and fit enough to warrant making the long trip to NSW to compete. I missed having my show pony stallion at the event - there is something special about a stallion that all notice, they simply draw eyes and attention - however I will not digress.
Petey is a big striding grey, and very pleasant to have around. Very fit - he was still used for teaching many small children, as young as a 2yo boy having his first ride. Worth his weight in gold!
Petey had already done two 160km rides and is a seasoned horse. He gave me a nice quiet and steady start at the midnight ride. There were 300 plus horses milling around, the riders all keen for the silver buckle. It is very exciting at the start of a Quilty - I was rapt to be in the saddle and not watching on the sidelines - like the year prior!
The first two legs were very jarring, and there was a high vet out rate. Petey was solid - and Jay was happy with the timing of my ride - to instruction. I had a Japanese rider along to guide - however he wanted to move forward - faster than my pace, and ducked past when I had a toilet stop on the second leg! Petey missed his mate for a while, and then settled. He has a lovely forward way of moving, that just ate up the kilometers. On the second leg, I spotted the Splendacrest saddle blanket and gell pad on the ground. I carried these to the next checkpoint, concerned about the whereabouts and welfare of the Japanese man and his horse. When we got back to camp, the man had just not noticed that the saddle blanket had slipped, so all was well.
The next two legs were soft going, lovely tracks. Such a pity the heavens opened, as they always do for a Quilty. We were up to our fetlocks in mud for the next 70kms or so. Slipping and sliding, over what was a previously achievable course.
Still - we were through the vet checks and on to the final leg - 11kms. Petey felt great. The man at the weigh station said that Petey was as sound as sound as he crossed the line - that is how he felt too. To my surprise and disappointment, 7 minutes later he trotted out lame in the shoulder somewhere, in front of the vets. The panel said I was out.
Stunned - Petey felt so good - I wondered what I could have done to change this. My second vet out ever (The other being the Shahzada 400km marathon), I wondered why my luck would not allow me to take an elusive buckle home.
Completetion rates are usually around the 50% mark at these big rides - this one was no exception. I guess when we take one the bigger challenges - we expose ourselves to possible failure. 160km is a long way to ride on a horse, and luck toakes its part too.
So I will keep on trying - and someday I will lay claim to that elusive Quilty buckle.
Thanks to Jay for providing a great horse to ride on. Thanks to all those people that helped - in so many different ways. I could write volumes on the endurance people and how wonderful they are.
My preparations for Scrupulous had gone wrong - and he was not ready and fit enough to warrant making the long trip to NSW to compete. I missed having my show pony stallion at the event - there is something special about a stallion that all notice, they simply draw eyes and attention - however I will not digress.
Petey is a big striding grey, and very pleasant to have around. Very fit - he was still used for teaching many small children, as young as a 2yo boy having his first ride. Worth his weight in gold!
Petey had already done two 160km rides and is a seasoned horse. He gave me a nice quiet and steady start at the midnight ride. There were 300 plus horses milling around, the riders all keen for the silver buckle. It is very exciting at the start of a Quilty - I was rapt to be in the saddle and not watching on the sidelines - like the year prior!
The first two legs were very jarring, and there was a high vet out rate. Petey was solid - and Jay was happy with the timing of my ride - to instruction. I had a Japanese rider along to guide - however he wanted to move forward - faster than my pace, and ducked past when I had a toilet stop on the second leg! Petey missed his mate for a while, and then settled. He has a lovely forward way of moving, that just ate up the kilometers. On the second leg, I spotted the Splendacrest saddle blanket and gell pad on the ground. I carried these to the next checkpoint, concerned about the whereabouts and welfare of the Japanese man and his horse. When we got back to camp, the man had just not noticed that the saddle blanket had slipped, so all was well.
The next two legs were soft going, lovely tracks. Such a pity the heavens opened, as they always do for a Quilty. We were up to our fetlocks in mud for the next 70kms or so. Slipping and sliding, over what was a previously achievable course.
Still - we were through the vet checks and on to the final leg - 11kms. Petey felt great. The man at the weigh station said that Petey was as sound as sound as he crossed the line - that is how he felt too. To my surprise and disappointment, 7 minutes later he trotted out lame in the shoulder somewhere, in front of the vets. The panel said I was out.
Stunned - Petey felt so good - I wondered what I could have done to change this. My second vet out ever (The other being the Shahzada 400km marathon), I wondered why my luck would not allow me to take an elusive buckle home.
Completetion rates are usually around the 50% mark at these big rides - this one was no exception. I guess when we take one the bigger challenges - we expose ourselves to possible failure. 160km is a long way to ride on a horse, and luck toakes its part too.
So I will keep on trying - and someday I will lay claim to that elusive Quilty buckle.
Thanks to Jay for providing a great horse to ride on. Thanks to all those people that helped - in so many different ways. I could write volumes on the endurance people and how wonderful they are.
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