MANAWATU FARMING LIFESTYLES December 2018
cardio workouts — attended Pilates classes and went mountain biking. “We tested all kinds of different gear; jodhpurs, socks, gloves, jerseys and jackets, stirrups, seat-savers — you name it,” said Stephanie. “We were trying to find what would be most comfortable for the length of time we would be in the saddle, and we spent hours riding, trying to prepare ourselves for what we would be experiencing in Mongolia.” When Stephanie and Kasmira arrived in Mongolia’s capital city, Ulaanbaatar, they met all the other riders before the race. Riders were driven out to the Gobi Desert in several old Soviet-era vans and had a short training ride on arrival at their first camp that evening. Another training ride followed the next day to give riders a chance to get to know the horses and practice the vetting process before the race. Kasmira said once the race began, no two days were exactly the same. “Some days we were riding to a new campsite and having lunch out on the track. Other days we were looping back to the same campsite for another night, so we would also have lunch back at the base.” The Mongolian herders watched the horses at night to ensure as few as possible tried to run home. Some of the horses had been brought in from more than 100km away to be a part of the race, and naturally wanted to get back to their herd. Each morning the herders brought the horses in to saddle them up with the rider’s individual gear. Locals were employed to cook meals for the
riders and also to pack up and move campsites too. “On the first day of racing, we were blessed by a monk, which was quite special, and the ride did not start out as overly competitive, with everyone seeming keen to enjoy the ride with new found friends,” said Stephanie. “On about the third or fourth day, the leaderboard was released and the following day saw a noticeable shift in racing. The scoreboard leaders obviously feeling that the stakes had been raised. “Vet checks at lunchtime and at the end of the day’s riding were always a little tense; everyone hoping we had done everything we needed to do to get the horse home sound, and able to recover within the allowed 30 minutes before their heart rate was taken. “Kaz and I rode with the US team most days and had a great time joking and laughing, and learning all about endurance riding from these seasoned pros.” Stephanie and Kasmira found the horses to be hard workers. “They are really very neat little horses,” said Stephanie. Kasmira said most of her horses were really good as well. “I had a couple of slowish ones and some really fast ones too who just wanted to go.” Riders had a new horse each day of riding — six in total. “I had one extra as the horse we used for the two training days was supposed to be our horses on the first race day. But my little guy had other plans, and he apparently ran home overnight,” said Stephanie. There were many race highlights for the riders, which included
The horses were hard workers
meeting other like-minded people, the landscape and the horses. “One of the Australia mums had a horse on the last day that seemed to keep bolting away from the group, the first time he shot off from the bunch, she was not quite as far back as halfway, but we heard ‘coming through’ as he burst through the group of riders and disappeared, leaving a dust cloud behind him. You knew where he had gone because of the trail of dust rising up in his wake — it was like a cartoon.” After six days in the saddle, Kasmira and Stephanie crossed the finish line
together completing an adventure of a lifetime. “Even now it’s hard to get our heads around the scale of that accomplishment,” said Stephanie. Kasmira said it was an amazing feeling to cross the finish line. Although Stephanie and Kasmira don’t plan to compete in another Gobi Desert Cup, they have set themselves other equestrian goals. “However, I would definitely want to go back to Mongolia at some stage as it is a pretty extraordinary country,” said Kasmira.
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Riders had a new horse to ride each day
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