Monk and Lindsay Fisher Awarded Haggin Cup at 2019 Tevis

TheHorse.com - Posted by Marsha Hayes | Aug 19, 2019

The 17-year-old gelding finished ninth in the 100-mile Tevis Cup. This was his fifth consecutive Tevis, and he’s never finished out of the Top 10.

At the conclusion of the 2019 Tevis Cup, head ride veterinarian Mike Peralez, DVM, named ninth-place finisher Monk, ridden by Lindsay Fisher, DVM, of Napa, California, and owned by Chris Martin, of Penn Valley, California, the recipient of the Haggin Cup. The Haggin Cup is awarded to the finishing horse with the best condition during the Tevis awards banquet, in Auburn, California.

Peralez, who practices at Foothill Equine, in Arcadia, California, explained how the entire Tevis vet crew evaluated the Top 10 finishing horses. Each horse trots out and back, and then the rider or a designated handler runs alongside the horse around a chalk outlined 60-foot circle, allowing veterinarians to judge their impulsion and gait. The setup allows for spectators to view the judging, as well.

“We looked at soundness, metabolic recovery, and condition, and then we gathered and discussed our findings,” Peralez said The panel relayed their opinions to members of the Cup Committee. Committee members had also observed the horses and riders in action along the 100-mile trail.

Monk finished one hour and one minute behind Tevis Cup winner Sanoma Blakeley on RA Ares Bay. After trotting a small section of his first circle, Monk increased his speed and attempted to outpace his presenter, Ann Hall.

“I am definitely surprised and overwhelmed,” Fisher told the cheering crowd. She thanked Martin for pairing her with Monk back in 2008 when she was still in veterinary school. “I will always remember the first time I saw Monk, tied to the trailer, head down,” she recalled. “I had no way of knowing Monk would carry me all over the world competing in FEI endurance events.”

Now 17, Monk has completed five Tevis events in a row, always finishing in the Top 10. Monk’s ride time in 2019 was identical to his time in 2018, when he finished fourth. “Monk is a really special horse,” Fisher said. “I can’t describe what he means to me.”

The 2019 Tevis ended with a 53.8% completion rate, slightly better than most years. Peralez theorized that the ride’s later date this year might have given riders more training time, especially in a year with erratic weather.

The 65th Tevis will take place Aug. 1, 2020.

Outcry over death of horse at British endurance ride

Social media has erupted once more over the death of a horse at a endurance ride.

The UAE’s Ulla de Luc collapsed after a racing finish in the 120km** during the HH Sheikh Mohammed Festival at Euston Park in Suffolk yesterday afternoon (Sunday 18 August).

She was pronounced dead on the finish line minutes later. A video of the stricken 11-year-old being attended was viewed 50,000 times within 24 hours on the “Clean Endurance” Facebook page alone.

Debate became so heated on Endurance GB’s Facebook page that on Monday afternoon EGB removed an official announcement about the fatality. EGB said that while it understood “emotions are running high”, its social media policy had been breached by commenters “several” times.

In a statement, the Euston organising committee said: “It is with great sadness that we announce that Ulla De Luc, ridden by Ghanim Said Salim Al Owaisi (UAE) and owned by F3 Stables died while competing at Euston Park at 13.50pm on 18 August. A post-mortem will be carried out to ascertain the cause of death. At every FEI event, the maximum consideration is given to the safety and welfare of horses and competitors.”

Ulla was travelling at an average last loop speed of 28 kph – which is very fast for a British ride. The mare’s FEI record shows she had never been ridden in competition before by Al Owaisi, and had not completed a FEI ride since July 2018.

The mare is owned by the UAE’s premier F3 stables and was recently re-registered as trained by Ali Ghanim al Marri. Her previous trainer at the same stables, Khalifa Ghanim al Marri, has been provisionally suspended since February in connection with multiple prohibited substance positives returned by other horses in his care.

Ulla will be dope-tested as part of the compulsory post mortem. The official FEI vet did not attend the Sunday rides, but a FEI spokesman told H&H that sampling of other horses was undertaken by the veterinary commission.

The fatality has overshadowed the successful running at the same venue of the European endurance championships the previous day, in which Britain finished fifth of 11 teams. Spain took gold, France silver and Germany bronze. Rachael Atkinson (23rd; Tannasg Psyches Realm) and Annette Masterson (24th; Shoshana) were the first British riders home. Rachael’s daughter Kate (DNS Ronaldo) was 26th, while Sarah Rogerson (Warrens Hill Rubyn) also completed the 160km distance. Nicola Thorne (LM Bolena) was eliminated at vet gate three.


Read more at Horse & Hound

Mongolia: ‘He’s tougher than concrete’: 70-year-old cowboy wins world’s ‘longest race’

Credit: Sarah Farnsworth/Mongol Derby
Horseandhound.co.uk - Full Article

Becky Murray
17 August, 2019

A 70-year-old cowboy described as “tougher than a box of concrete” has become the oldest winner of the world’s “longest horse race”.

American cowboy Bob Long, from Idaho, was the winner of the 2019 Mongol Derby, in which riders navigate across 1,000km of the Mongolian steppe.

Bob crossed the line at 11.03am Mongolian time on Wednesday 14 August following his seven-day “demonstration of horsemanship, fortitude and navigational skill”.

A spokesman for the race said Bob changed horses 28 times throughout the race. At each vet check Bob’s horses “vetted cleanly”, meaning he received no veterinary time-penalties.

“Plenty of the 2019 riders received medical treatment for ‘minor’ injuries, such as a broken nose, concussion and dehydration – but not Bob, whose solo adventure across the steppe has been one of the most impressive performances seen in the history of the Derby,” said the spokesman.

“Bob’s life has been built around horses. He trained and sold broncs to fund his university education, rode and trained mules for packing and hunting, and worked with young appaloosas and quarter horses. He is a master at the competitive sport of extreme mountain trail riding, and has many awards in that discipline, the ideal preparation for the most extreme race of them all, the Mongol Derby...”

Read more here:
https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/hes-tougher-concrete-70-year-old-cowboy-wins-worlds-longest-race-694215

New Jerseyan, Heather Wallace to Officiate At Mongolian Horse Adventure the Gobi Desert Cup

Tapinto.net - Full Artice

By TAPINTO HORSES STAFF
August 15, 2019 at 8:00 AM

RED BANK, N.J. — Red Bank resident, Heather Wallace will be working for the second year as an official and photographer for the Gobi Desert Cup, Aug. 27 to Sept. 6 starting in the capital of Ulaanbaatar and traveling through the Gobi Desert.

Wallace is the writer and photographer for the blog, The Timid Rider, which focuses on the struggling confidence of a returning adult equestrian. She is the award-winning author of non-fiction titles Confessions of a Timid Rider, which details her insights about being an anxiety-ridden, but passionate equestrian and Girl Forward: A Tale of One Woman's Unlikely Adventure in Mongolia.

This year she will again be attending this unique endurance ride as the photographer and official media guru. She looks forward to strengthening her relationship with the local nomads and to further draw attention to their dwindling lifestyle through her storytelling on social media, in photography, and as a producer on a documentary being filmed this year...

Read more here:
https://www.tapinto.net/towns/holmdel-and-colts-neck/sections/horses/articles/new-jerseyan-heather-wallace-to-officiate-at-mongolian-horse-adventure-the-gobi-desert-cup-7

2019 Mongol Derby Day 8

TheAdventurists.com - Full Article

August 14, 2019
It was a beautiful sunrise on the steppe this morning, and the crew at finish camp was up at the crack of ridiculous, getting ready for the flourish of riders set to cross the line today. As trackers sprung to life across the board, eyes turned to the horizon hoping to catch that first glimpse of Mongol Derby’s 2019 champion. At the close of business last night, it was Bob (RL) parked just beyond HS27, a mere fifty-ish kilometers from the finish line, and Wiesman (WN) thirty-some kilometers behind him. The odds were in Bob’s favour, what with his stellar, consistent riding from Day 1; but who could forget Wiesman’s come from behind? He started the race on the back foot, picking up a vet penalty on Day 1 which placed him somewhere in the middle of the pack; yet he rode his way quickly back into the ranks past the front of the chasing pack to give Bob something to think about (if he was thinking about that at all; by all reports he is a single-minded machine when he’s on a roll.) More than one Derby has been won and lost on the basis of heart rate penalties, and since Bob had a 25-minute technical penalty looming, anything could happen. Similarly, Wiesman was skating on thin ice penalty-wise with two heart rate penalties, and a third could cost him not only the race, but a place in the top five. Head vet Jeremy offered some insight into the respective strategies of Bob and Wiesman: Wiesman, an experienced endurance racer, monitors his horse’s heart rate methodically, while Bob plays to his navigation strengths by riding the straight line as much as possible. Two excellent horsemen, two serious contenders, which one would take the top honours?...

Read more at:
https://www.theadventurists.com/adventures/mongol-derby/updates/#1

Mongolia: Free State man picks up silver medal in 'world's toughest horse race'

TimesLive.co.za - Full Article

15 August 2019 - 07:00
BY ERNEST MABUZA

South African Wiesman Nel, 40, came a remarkable second in the the 11th Mongol Derby, the competitors of which started finishing the 1,000km race on Wednesday.

There were 42 riders in the Mongol Derby endurance race this year, which is described as the world's longest and toughest horse race. They came from all over the world, including four from South Africa.

Nel, from Moolmanshoek private game reserve in the Free State, finished less than two hours behind the winner, American Robert Long.

Nel described the race, which began last Wednesday, as a great experience but said it was not easy, calling it "hardcore".

"You need to be fit for this. It's not for the faint-hearted. But what a great experience. Just to be out there and experience the hospitality of the Mongolians and their horses, their culture and the steppes has been a really great experience for me," he said...

Read more here:
https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2019-08-15-free-state-man-picks-up-silver-medal-in-worlds-toughest-horse-race/

Idaho’s Bob Long oldest to win Mongol Derby

TSLN.com - Full Article

August 14, 2019
Savanna Simmons

Bob Long had to pass a vet check at each horse station, including the very last, in which his horse’s heart rate had to be at or below 56 beats per minute within half an hour of his return in order to not receive a penalty. He received no vet penalties throughout the entire race.

While Robert Long celebrates a victory the 70-year-old has yet to realize the vast audience that closely tracked his progress in the United States. Long is the oldest man to win the Mongol Derby. The Wyomingite, who now resides in Idaho, finished the 1,000 km race, which is a nod to Genghis Khan’s horse messenger system, with the statement “My horse just won the Mongol Derby. It’s nothing, you just ride 650 miles on a death march. There’s nothing to it.”

The semi-feral Mongolian steppe horses are swapped out every 35 to 40 km and are vetted at each horse station. Long began a slow race, so much so that his partner Stephanie Nelson said they hadn’t really taken any photos of him (other than one of his involuntary dismount day one), so when he made his move and neared the front of the pack, the race organizers were scrambling for photos.

“They loved his demographic,” she said. “They thought he would ride two legs and fall off.”

The second-place rider South African Weisman Nel encountered a vet delay early in the race but managed to sneak up from behind to finish two hours after Long. Some of the 42 other riders are still making the trek to the finish line.

“Bob isn’t just the oldest, he has ridden better and stronger, camping out more than anyone else,” said Tom Morgan, founder of The Adventurists, the race organizers. “We opened up the course this year to make navigation a key skill again, and Bob absolutely nailed it. The man is tougher than a box of concrete...”

Read more here:
https://www.tsln.com/news/idahos-bob-long-oldest-to-win-mongol-derby/