“To say I was running
on adrenaline when we
got into that evening’s
camp would be an
understatement”
Image credit Saskia Marloh www.saskiamarloh.com
time I came off I held on for dear life;
even when I fell under the horse and felt
hooves coming down on my back and
legs. To say I was running on adrenaline
when we got into that evening’s camp
would be an understatement.
When the adrenaline had subsided
however, and I had a chance to reflect
on the day, my overwhelming feeling
was that of pride; not with myself for
surviving, but with Sarah for the way she
unquestionably put her own life at risk to
recover my horse.
It wasn’t the first or last time, during
the nine and a half days racing, that I
would look over at my fiancé and simply
think ‘wow’. A day after dealing with
the bucking bronco, the riding took us
through mosquito infested river valleys.
That evening when Sarah took off her
riding tights I was gobsmacked by the
state of her legs. Hundreds of insect
bites had swollen up and joined to form
one big inflamed mass. By far the worst
bites I had ever seen, later in the week
they would leave the entirety of Sarah’s
hamstrings black from bruising, but
not one word of complaint ever left her
lips. Nor had it during the first days of
racing when temperatures had reached
38 degrees and numerous riders had
to be put on drips for dehydration and
the race favourite pull out after she
collapsed with heat exhaustion for a
second time. Nor later in the race when,
in the mountains, we spent a full day in
the rain and near freezing temperatures
with riders fainting around us from
hypothermia.
It wasn’t just Sarah’s endurance that
impressed me. Her commitment to
ensuring each and every one of the 56
horses we used stayed safe and healthy
reflected her true passion for the
animals we rode. Even when one of her
horse’s sunk up to his belly in a swamp,
and I looked on uselessly in stunned
disbelieve, she refused to dismount and
gently encouraged the horse to keep
moving and get itself out of trouble.
During the whole ten days there was
only one moment where Sarah showed
any sign of ‘weakness’ and, although
it was hard to witness her distress, it
was oddly reassuring to be reminded
that some of the feminine vulnerability
October 2015 • Issue 25 • Everything Horse Magazine
that forms an important part of our
relationship was still intact. Sarah had
been suffering, as many people on the
race had, with digestive discomfort, but
on Day 6 was riding a particularly frisky
horse she was understandably keen not
to dismount until we reached the next
camp. Whilst she managed to grit her
teeth for more than 25km, eventually
she had to ‘quickly alight’ and, whilst
still holding onto the reins, let nature
take its course. Whilst I didn’t really
think anything of it, it clearly affected
Sarah and her morale and when we
arrived into camp, tired and exhausted
30 minutes later, she shed a few tears –
there was clearly a line she hadn’t wanted
to cross.
The ride wasn’t just about difficult
times testing our relationship’s strength
however and there were beautiful
moments we shared which will stay with
us for the rest of our lives. Of the breath
taking sunsets we saw, inspirational
nomads we met and stunning horses we
rode it was an encounter early on the
ride that I will remember most fondly.
On the first night of the race we didn’t
53