Rebecca with Estragon.

By Rebecca Radny

The 2017 FEI World Endurance Championships for Juniors and Young Riders occurred around two weeks ago in the beautiful medieval Italian town of Valeggio sul Mincio. Overall, it was a sensational experience and offered a valuable learning curve. Australia might not have had the World Championships that was perhaps expected (we were hoping for a team podium finish), but regardless of this all those who attended relished the friendliest and most supportive of team atmospheres, which will hopefully carry over into the Senior competition when we graduate from the Young Rider category.

Like any major competition, this occasion was not without its ‘rollercoaster’ moments of highs and lows. My campaign in Italy began two weeks out from the Championship, where I was using the time to reacquaint with my loaned horse, Estragon. Estragon is a veteran of the sport, and is extremely sound and competent having now completed his 10th FEI 120km** event from 10 starts. Estragon was training brilliantly- he felt bright, bold, and eager to exercise.

On our last training session before moving into the stables, Estragon sustained a small scratch on his off fore. Whilst this proved to be no problem over the next two days, an incident of rolling potentially bruised the wound and he became quite tender. With only one day to fix the problem before the compulsory pre-ride inspection, we called on the expertise of Team Vets in Dr. Narelle Cribbs and Dr. Anne Barnes to advise on where to go from here. They suggested regularly walking and icing to alleviate Estragon’s discomfort. Fortunately, after 24hours, Estragon flew through the pre-ride vet inspection, which cemented our start in the Championships the next day.

Rebecca with Estragon.

Sadly, fellow Australian Liberty Mercer did not have similar luck as her horse Turbulence had experienced an injury and would be scratching from the competition. This was devastating for Liberty and the team. However, this meant Australia could no longer field a Team (as a Team needs a minimum of 3 riders), so Tayla Hadzi and myself became Individual competitors.

The start of the competition is always the most nerve-wracking part- fresh, extremely fit horses are pumped and riders are ready to get out there and prove themselves. I positioned Estragon and myself towards the back of the pack- we were aiming for a steady completion of roughly 16km/h, a speed I had been advised by Estragon’s owner to be well within his capabilities.

Having had competed on Estragon before, I knew his strengths- a ground covering canter and eating and drinking well out on course and in the hold area- and his weakness- unmotivated to travel on his own. With this in mind, I settled in behind the Tunisian team and alongside riders who were thinking of travelling roughly the same pace as I had planned.

Estragon flew through the vet check with blistering quick recovery times in the first vet check, however Tayla and Oso Edith had unfortunately met a hurdle. They had been eliminated from the competition due to a mild lameness. This was extremely disappointing, but, again, Edith has fully recovered now and I am sure has her eyes set on another prestigious competition in the no too distant future.

The second leg was 33km and Estragon felt fantastic. Although the terrain was quite undulating and the ground was very concussive and riddled with decent sized pebbles, Estragon was taking it all in his stride. Still with our band of riders, we arrived in at the second vet check. With a crew made up of Italians and Australians there were a few language barriers, which led to Estragon being taken into the vet check too early.

Estragon was presented with a heart rate of 71, which was higher than the necessary 64. Having to turn around to re-strap was not a massive hindrance, as I was only aiming to successfully finish the ride and wasn’t aiming for blistering speeds. However, it did mean that when we were ready to go out on the third leg, the group I had been riding behind was too far ahead for me to viably catch up. Luckily, one rider was not too far behind and we rode the remaining 50km or so of the ride together.

The pair in action.

© Sportendurance Evo

Arriving at the finish line after 120km was a relieving feeling. Estragon had tired and was thankful for a rest. With an Australian flag clutched rather uncoordinatedly in my hand, we crossed the finish line and prepared for the final, extremely nerve-wracking vet check. As I waited under the vet marquee for the panel of vets to examine Estragon, I felt tears of mixed emotions roll uncontrollably down my face.

It had taken two long years to get to this point and I had so far cleared every hurdle. After what felt like an eternity, and with some joking over my fragile state, the vets announced Estragon was in fine form and we had successfully completed. Now, my tears were of relief.

Placing 52nd out of 55 finishers felt like I had won the gold medal. It was made all the more special with having so many people to share the amazing experience with whom I will be cherishing these memories for the rest of my life.

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