Australian Missy Morgan won this year's Mongol Derby. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
Australian mother of four Missy Morgan is an adventurer at heart. When the opportunity came to set family duties aside for 10 days and tackle a 1000km horse race across the Mongolian steppe, she did just that. Not only did Missy complete the journey in eight days – she was the first to cross the finish line.
Missy Morgan completed the 1000km race in eight days to claim victory. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
The fourteenth edition of the Mongol Derby, acclaimed as the world’s longest and toughest horse race, took place earlier this year across Mongolia’s vast and rugged steppe. This year’s race continued its tradition of pushing the boundaries of human endurance, with riders displaying extraordinary resilience, skill, and determination.
Following eight days of intense competition, Melbourne-born and South African-based Missy Morgan took this year’s crown, closely followed by previous winner and Mongol Derby veteran, Perth-based Sam Jones, who won back in 2014.
Rounding off the top five and crossing the line on day nine were fellow Melburnian Josh Dales, Adelaide-based Grace Neuhaus, and Texan and National Finals Rodeo pickup man Josh Edwards, who all finished joint third.
1000KM IN THE SADDLE
Inspired by the ancient horse messenger system of Genghis Khan, the Mongol Derby covers a 1,000km course, with riders facing up to 200km a day in the saddle, making it the ultimate test of equestrian endurance. The course challenges riders with a diverse range of terrain, from giant sand dunes to freezing mountain passes. Competitors change horses approximately every 35km at checkpoints scattered throughout the Mongolian steppe, navigating the changing and challenging terrain on over 28 different semi-wild horses, each with its own unique temperament.
The race honours Mongolian traditions, with local families hosting checkpoints and providing up to 1,500 of their prized horses, highlighting the deep bond between the nomadic people and their animals. Horse welfare is central to both the local culture and race organisers, with rigorous veterinary checks before, during, and after the race.
Veterinary teams meticulously examine every horse at each checkpoint, and where needed, between checkpoints. Riders are penalised for any infringements or signs of mistreatment. Horses must maintain a heart rate below 56 bpm within half an hour of arrival at a checkpoint, be hydrated, and show no signs of distress. Rider weight is limited to 85kg, and luggage can be no more than 5kg.
“Horse welfare is central to
both the local culture
and race organisers.”
Veterinary teams meticulously examine every horse at each checkpoint. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
Missy, running second here, rode with others for the first four days of the Mongol Derby. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
THE 2024 WINNER
Missy Morgan, 45, was born into a horsey family in Western Victoria, where her mum was an eventer and her dad and brothers played polo.
“I did eventing and show jumping as a kid,” explains Missy. “These days, I’m a dressage rider. I have four competition horses and just compete whenever I can, which is not that often because I’ve got four children and life is busy. I try and make it to the big South African championships and a couple of the bigger shows throughout the year.”
Missy has been based in South Africa for 20 years. “I was working in Botswana at a horse safari place, and then I went to visit a couple of friends in South Africa and ended up getting together with my future husband-to-be. I tried to go back to Australia, and he came over and asked me to come back.”
Missy rides her dressage horses nearly every day, but the Mongol Derby was her first endurance event. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
Missy says that while she’s ridden all her life, the Mongol Derby was her first foray into endurance riding. “I’ve never done an endurance race before. A good Irish friend of mine did the Mongol Derby in 2022. I probably didn’t unpack it nearly enough with him, but it sounded really fun. My oldest is now 16 and I’ve been doing ‘mummy things’ and ‘home things’, but I’m a bit of an adventurer at heart… and so I just thought it sounded cool.”
REALITY BITES
Three months out, and the reality of what Missy was about to undertake started to hit. “I had dinner with some English friends, and they were raising their eyebrows and telling me some of the realities of these races, and I went, ‘Holy hell, this is really serious!’”
Missy says her husband was apprehensive. “We talked about it… he travels across Africa a lot and gets to go and do adventurous things, so it was only fair that I could do the same.”
Missy took up yoga, Pilates, some weight training and a little bit of running as part of her fitness preparation but says the game-changer was spending time with endurance rider Wiesman Nel who did the Mongol Derby in 2019. “I went and did two days training with him, and it was just wonderful. He told me all about it and that for me was a complete game-changer. I think if I hadn’t done that – and maybe that’s just when you get a bit older you work a bit smarter – I wouldn’t have been as prepared.”
Missy rode alone for the final four days of the race. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
Missy anticipated the unknown physical demands of a 1000km ride would be the biggest challenge. “I don’t know how you can train for 12-13 hours a day in the saddle. I’m naturally fairly fit and I am horse-fit; I ride my dressage horses nearly every day. But I was worried about the physical demands and also falling off and getting hurt. As a rider I’ve been in the situation of coming off and having to get back in the saddle plenty of times, but it’s obviously an issue when you’ve got 1000km to ride and you’re a mum!”
However, in the end Missy didn’t find the physical demands overwhelming – instead, the biggest challenge was the isolation.
GOING IT ALONE
“The hardest thing for me, and something I wasn’t prepared for, was to ride on my own. I knew there’d be parts where I’d be on my own, but after day four when the two people I was riding with received penalties and I had to go on at the front alone… no one caught me after that, so I rode for four days on my own,” she explains.
Along the race route, participants are often supported by welcoming locals. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
Missy says the time alone in the saddle wasn’t the issue; in fact, it was a nice change of pace from her chaotic life. However, it was making independent decisions – especially regarding where to camp at night if a day ended and she was between checkpoints – that was the biggest challenge.
“If you’re not at a horse checkpoint overnight, you’ve got to go up to people and do sign language to ask, ‘Can I stay with you?’. You’re essentially going into someone’s family, you hope, but if not, you’re going into a bit of unknown space and you’ve got stay the night and hope they will maybe give you something to eat!
“That was the toughest thing
for me, the vulnerability…”
Missy sharing a quiet moment with one of her equine partners. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
“I had one night where there was a ger [a Mongolian nomadic dwelling] ahead, but something just didn’t feel right. And so I went and camped by the river on my own with the horse. It turned out that was a good decision, as there had been a group of men drinking at that particular ger and the event organisers would have probably moved me as it wouldn’t have been safe – that scenario is obviously one to avoid, no matter what country you’re in.”
Missy says that making those tough calls independently was quite a milestone for her. “That was the toughest thing for me. It wasn’t a physical ailment or even loneliness… it was the vulnerability that came with riding alone. I wasn’t used to that.”
GOOD NAVIGATION
Travelling between checkpoints with no marked road meant that navigation was a key part of the race – and Missy explains this was one of her strong points.
“I went to a school where I was in the mountains for a year and that definitely stood me in good stead. My navigation was good. I also probably had a bit of common sense that where the map would denote a marshy area… the region had come out of very wet winter, so it was wetter than normal, but this also meant these marshy areas were shrinking every day… so you could cut corners at times. A lot of people went right around, but I’d look ahead and make decisions as I went.”
Missy says the horses provided by the locals were incredible – but at the same time, an “absolute mixed bag”.
“The Naadam horses, which are their racehorses, were amazing. If you were lucky enough to get them, they were well handled and fit. They’ve actually introduced Thoroughbreds into these bloodlines recently, so there were a couple that probably had a little bit of Thoroughbred in them, which was so nice because they had a longer stride.
“Then you’ve got some absolute adorable, but fat ‘pancakes’,” laughs Missy. “We had to describe our horses as we came into each checkpoint. For example, I had ‘Ice cream with chocolate chips’ and ‘Pancakes with maple syrup’ because they were just the sweetest, fattest, laziest things. You’d think, ‘How am I going to get 35km out of this pony?
Missy crossed the finish line in eight days to claim victory in the 2024 Mongol Derby. Image by Kathy Gabriel.
“And then you had some that had barely had a saddle on; it took three guys 15 minutes to saddle one of my horses. The officials kept saying I should redraw… but I’d just gotten off a lazy one and I thought ‘no way am I redrawing, I want this one!’ You just point them in the direction and go, but then you must manage them. No one has 35 kilometres of galloping in them; you let them run for three or four kilometres and then you manage them.
“You had to judge each horse you were riding. For the ones that did not have 35km at any decent pace in their legs, I would quickly formulate a much trickier but shorter route over a mountain, where I was on foot leading the horse instead. It was going to be quicker than me trying to trot or canter 35km around.
“I did two very hairy climbs that no one else attempted. For one of those, it was the last day and I was in front… I knew if someone else had drawn a quicker horse, which they did, they would have caught me for sure if I’d gone the long way.”
THE FINISH LINE
The race passes through 29 horse stations and 68 checkpoints, with the last located at a river 800m from the finish line. By that point, Missy knew she was going to win.
“I sat with my horse by the river, knowing no one was close behind me. I had 1% on my phone remaining and I left a voice note to my kids and my husband; I cracked up crying, saying, ‘I’m here and I’ve done it!’
“You’re actually elated,” continues Missy of the feeling she had crossing the finish line. “It’s not just relief… it’s so cool, you’re like, ‘I actually did this!’ For me it’s about the experience not the race.”
Missy’s tip for anyone else thinking of tackling the Mongol Derby is that gaining the right information and undertaking good preparation prior is paramount. “But most importantly, you need an excited and adventurous mindset, and you need to be ready for challenges to be thrown at you… be ready to change and adapt!” EQ
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