Equestrianists.com - Full Article
Holly Conyers
1st August 2025
All those Derby dreams are finally starting to feel alarmingly real. Our 45 contenders for the 2025 Mongol Derby crown are now safely bedded down for their first evening out on the steppe in Mongol Derby Start Camp. In just three days’ time on Monday 4 August, they’ll be exploding off the start line of the 2025 Mongol Derby. Ahead of them lies a weekend of action-packed Derby bootcamp, led by our crack team of Derby veterans and crew. Start Camp Day 1 may not have involved much more than a lengthy bus ride and rider weigh-in, but a couple of hopefuls are already facing the first challenge to their Derby campaign: the perils of the Ulaanbaatar airport lost luggage system.
Our jockeys rose bright and early this morning, gathering together in Ulaanbaatar to hail their first ride of the Derby: the bus to Start Camp. A good test of the reserves of endurance and patience to be drawn on in the 10 days to come, all passed with flying colours. Photographer Kathy was on hand to document the first moments of their Derby journey. Uta Hesterberg (UHE) reported feeling “excited, nervous, petrified and elated” – a pretty accurate summary of the classic pre-Derby jitters. Our 2022 joint Gaucho Derby champion Anna Boden (ABO) was an exception. Introducing herself rather confidently as “rank: legend”, she leaped on the bus while expressing her hope to minimise the saddle sores this time round...
Read more here:
https://equestrianists.com/updates/mongol-derby-2025-pre-race-training-day-1-the-red-carpet-rolls-out/
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