Rider update - Baz and Joe and the unfortunate reed stack - INJURYWANG!

As we draw within three months of the mighty Derby, rider preparations are stepping up a gear across the board. Here we mention a few updates of note, more to stoke the fires of rabid competitiveness than anything else.

 

 South African dynamic duo [Barry Armitage and Joe Dawson](http://www.barryarmitage.com/ "The Ride"), look, on paper, to have the perfect preparation for the Mongol Derby under their hats. How? Baz and Joe and half way through a superb TV project called The Ride, in which they reconstruct a series of ambitious historic rides. Chapter two of The Ride is a remarkable approximation of the derby itself, a 950km pony express-style dash from Cape Town to Grahamstown, attempting to reconstruct the astonishing feat of Sir Harry Smith (Harry ‘Whackalong’ Smite) in 1835 to shore up the British Colonial garrison and ‘save’ Grahamstown. No doubt [Horatio ](http://adventure6.theadventurists.com/ "Horatio- explorer, Anglophile, idiot") would approve. So Baz and Joe ought to be totally at home with the Derby’s format, and the demands of being in the saddle, at speed, all day, evey day. Suddenly they look pretty competitive, no?

 

Well, possibly not. On Sunday, day two of their attempt, one of the horses took fright at an innocent clump of reeds and shied so violently that Barry hit the deck. (Such is the danger of a very fit, unfamiliar horse, as any Derbyist or horseman will tell you). He is staring down the barrel of some ligament damage and a couple of weeks of daytime TV while he heals up and The Ride recommences. Whilst all at Derby HQ wish him a speedy recovery, some of the less chivalrous readers may wish to plant some more spooky steeds between Cape Town and Grahamstown next month....

Another rider on the bench is fellow South African Kevin Price-Moor, who probably wishes he had also hit the deck, having instead hit the saddle repeatedly when his young mount went a bit Western and bucked himself inside out, with rather eye-watering consequences for Kev. He’s fine, just don’t make him laugh. Or sneeze. Definitely not sneeze.

Plenty of other riders have been leaving dust trails in their wake. [Frederique Schut](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=frederique-schut1 "Frederique's website") is over in the UK training at a polo yard and getting in many happy hours in the saddle, whilst working on a Dutch language TV commission about her Derby attempt. Cara Barnes has completed several hundred competitive endurance kilometres and still never seems to be out of breath. Tough cookie alert. Ronald van der Velden has taken delivery of his horses and is well and truly back in the saddle, and a notable mention to [Regina Bueno Ros](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=regina-bueno-ros "Regina's website") who has taken to riding bareback just to show everyone what a hardnut she is. 

Horse Hero favourite [Borja](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=borja-horse-hero "Borja's's website") has held a terrifically successful fundraiser and appears to have met a lot of beautiful young women. Great work, B. Hong Kong merchant David Ha has already lost several kilos in the quest for Derby fitness, and has committed to multi-day training rides with fellow countrymen Tommy Tsui and Jason Tse, from his ranch in XinJiang province. David has also sponsored a couple of his grooms to take part, the ethnic Mongols Sanbayier and Bayinmuenke.

We wish all the riders a relatively injury-free next few months. Though do send any more psychedelic bruises and scrapes to the Derby inbox, we love getting your news, however grim...

MPatz- now with added death defying capabilities

It’s an open secret that our Pre-Race Trainer, Maggie Pattinson, is a lady of many talents. In pursuit of a few more strings to her bow, we packed her off to darkest Herefordshire to attend the [Surviving Adventure](http://www.prometheusmedical.co.uk/courses/Surviving-Adventure "Surviving Adventure") Course run by Derby Medical Partners Prometheus Medical. Now, the Adventurists don’t do adventure training (that’s what founder Tom would call an oxymoron), but if we did, this weekend of blood, guts, special effects and stretcher bearing would be a pretty close approximation of what we’d come up with. Jokes aside, when you have a high enough risk appetite to ride the Mongol Derby, you probably already know a thing or two about how to look after yourself and make risks manageable. No? Well consider getting yourself on the Surviving Adventure course then! Here’s what MPatz had to say....

*“Apart from the fact that a dodgy knee was a little hindrance when hiking through Sierra Leone at night – rescuing bomb blast victims and guiding them through the undergrowth, over the river, ravine and armed border guards to the waiting helicopter - it was an amazing weekend. I was desperate from someone to go into cardiac arrest or chop a limb off whilst commuting into London on Monday – ‘cause I can DEAL with it!*

*Joking aside:*

* · fantastic location from all points of view, comfort (much needed after an exhausting day),wonderful catering from Charlie, grounds with everything needed for the vast array of casualty situations *

*· Brilliant Instructors (Scouse, Digger, Mike and Glynn) – brutal, funny and so very experienced in just an endless list of situations*

* · Course Content – very little time in the classroom, very practical and memorable thanks to the brilliant make up and actors (one of the students commented that she had once done a 30 day med course and remembered none of it – this she said, she wouldn’t forget) and unless you get concussion and resulting amnesia I seriously think it was unforgettable!â€*

So there you have it- in an event where risk comes at you from all directions (and if you finish unscathed there’s always the wrestling match at the finish line to duff you up a bit), we’ve only gone and added another safe pair of hands to the back-up crew.

Prometheus Medical will be sending out three of their very finest and most intrepid expedition doctors to support the Mongol Derby 2011. I will be introducing these champs, people who really have saved lives in some of the remotest and most hostile conditions imaginable, in a future blog post. We are proud to call them our official medical partners. Best ever quote from a Prometheus doctor? That would be Dr Jez Smith at the start line of the inaugural Mongol Derby in 2009. Facing a line-up of nervy Derbyists, two of whom had already hit the deck almost before landing in the saddle, he calmy reminded them that “if you really do yourself a mischief we’ve got enough sedatives on board to keep you under until Seoul. Good luck!â€

Borja, Horse Hero- bienvenidos!

You may have read our earlier posts trumpeting our fabulous competition run in conjunction with Online Media Partner [Horse Hero](http://horsehero.com/mongolderby). Well, lots of lovely horsey and heroic folks cast their votes and crowned the rather splendid Borja Jimenez their choice to ride the Mongol Derby this summer and share his experiences with our accumulated audiences.

  

While we kick off his spivvy bilingual web page on the Derby website, take a gander at his [interview](http://horsehero.com/mongolderby), complete with audio guide to the all-important question of how to say his name. A mini-series of video diaries, and perhaps some training over in the UK with our fabulous pre-race trainer [ Maggie](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?page=training), is in the pipeline. And, further incentive, if that were needed, to come to the [Adventurists Film Festival ](http://filmfestival.theadventurists.com/) at the glorious Royal Geographical Society, he’ll be putting in an appearance on the big day too! Get your tickets early senoritaas!

“Just call me ma’am”

 A couple of weeks back I was able to fulfil an early-adulthood ambition.  It’s an ill-disguised fetish I have for very shiny leather, and it was with equally ill-disguised glee that I decamped to Knightsbridge to entertain an audience of officers of the Household Cavalry - bit-burnishers and boot-polishers par excellence. As Head of Tack Cleaning at Adventurists Towers I felt this was a duty I was almost born to discharge; to return with some sage leather-care advice for [Horatio](http://adventure6.theadventurists.com/ "Horatio. Burn his lapiz blazer, but do make sure his tack is clean"), if nothing else. He does like his bridlework to be just so.     They were every bit as glossy as I had hoped, and over a princely lunch I was able to regale these fine gentlemen with tales of high adventure and horsemanship from the original harbingers of mounted doom, the Mongols.  We all agreed that to showcase Her Majesty’s very own elite mounted guard out in the steppe this summer would be something of a coup. All digits and gleaming spurs are crossed for a jackbooted and cuirassed contingent on the Derby this summer.  I promised them a discount if they agreed to do one 40kms leg in ceremonial dress.  In fact, if anyone even manages to get near one of the native Mongolian horses in all that clobber, I’ll be eating some leather of my own.          This is me meeting Spartacus, apparently the biggest horse in the country and a very famous drum horse. He has has own [ Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_Cavalry), which makes him more famous than me. Too big to boss around when it came to photo-shoot duties, that's for sure. He loved me really! I have left the photo full height to give you a nice idea of what 20 hands look like. 20 hands of horse, obviously, for in this photo there are only two.

“Sold off that family member....”

Sometimes, getting what you want requires a little sacrifice.  We at the Derby applaud that wholeheartedly.  Indeed, in pursuit of Derby Glory we have watched, wrapt, as glamorous types forsook their favourite lipliner and stuck their sorry butt cheeks back together with duct tape.  True story.  Imagine our froideur, then, on seeing the following email clunk into the Derby-box...

Subject- “Sold off that family memberâ€

Body- "Kate- ready to sign up now.  Look forward to hearing from you.  Kevin."

The vendor in question is the latest South African kid on the start grid, Kevin Price-Moor.  A dairy farmer-cum-international polocrosse player-cum endurance rider, it seems our curds and whey-heavy equestrian marathon might be tailor-made for him.

The Lord Giveth (for example a buyer for your Great Aunt Mildred), and the Lord Taketh Away. Every Derby dropout is a crushing disappointment, and as is to be expected in such a high-risk, and also purse-cobweb-inducing, event, part of the process.  One out-bowing which drew hang-dog expressions right across Adventurists HQ (female branch, UK branch), was the news from a certain [Upcoming Actor](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/celebritynews/8291749/Another-British-superhero-Henry-Cavill-to-play-Superman.html "Upcoming Superhero")’s assistant that he had now Come Up, and had a rather pressing project in the pipeline which would now, sadly, clash with his Derby ambitions.  Sigh.  Is it a bird?  Is it a plane?  Is it fair? NO.  If you are a superhero, and you would be interested in taking part, there is now a saddle going spare.  Sniff...

Nose, Grindstone....

It’s not all [taking sherry with the Flower of our Youth](index.php?mode=blog09&sub=addedit_blog&teamid=6114&blogid=36207 "Katy's Household Cavalry Visit"), this job. For countless generations, March has been the time to hire vets. Adhering strictly to this noble tradition, I have been hiring many vets this month. And talking about how to logisticate them when out in Mongolia, leapfrogging them seamlessly up the course to receive horses and riders at the 25 horse stations.

 

For vetting is just chapter one of their varied and critical role in the Mongol Derby. They need to be tough and able to rough it, just like our sturdy riders and horses. They need to be able to operate a satellite phone, a tracking device, work with an interpreter, stomach some, frankly, bad-ass off-road driving and still keep a steady hand to catheterise a cow or anaesthetise an eagle, as well as looking after our 1,000 Derby horses.

A flurry of enthusiastic vet volunteers have been in touch, and I will be introducing these heroes in more detail on the website in the coming months.

Other current organisational activities include, but are not limited to;

- designing saddles - studying flight schedules - designing kit and merchandise - courting TV companies - writing a media plan and researching expedition media technology

Meanwhile, in Mongolia, Our Man in Mongolia Jon is busy preparing for a rather exciting reconnaissance trip to a previously uncharted Adventurist territory, in search of the ambrosial finish line location. He knows very well the criteria; a nice spot for a bonfire, and unicorns. Watch this space...

If you missed our last recce, you can have a look at our [picture story](hhttp://mongolderby.theadventurists.com/index.php?page=derby-news-recce1-in-pictures "The January Recce in pictures").

If you then decide you love our picture stories, have a look at the [first in our series](http://mongolderby10.theadventurists.com/index.php?page=derby-news-2010-in-pictures-1 "Derby 2010 in pictures"), a summary of the 2010 Derby .

 

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Katy is the Mongol Derby Chief and a veteran of the inaugural Derby in 2009.  She will be sending regular updates as she and the chaps on the ground in Mongolia magic the Mongol Derby 2011 into life. You can follow the Derby on [Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/ "facebook") and [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/ "Twitter") or check the Derby website and this blog for more over the coming weeks...

Meet the next generation!

*Entries continue to clunk hopefully into the Mongol Derby inbox and we are thrilled with the standard of entrants and breadth of interest that the Derby has attracted.  Planning for the third edition of the world’s longest and toughest horse race is well underway, and as hard as the Adventurists are working, our efforts are at least matched by the lucky few who have already claimed their places on the start line in August 2011.  So, without further ado, it’s time to meet some of those early birds and find out what they have been up to by way of preparation so far....* - - - - - -

[](index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=sophia-mangalee1 "Sophia's rider site")Sophia Mangalee, 27, is the marketing manager for Monmouth Park Racecourse, in New Jersey, USA, and has used her skills in promotion to great advantage already, securing airtime with NBC amongst others, and some committed sponsors.  She has also secured the support of her local Gold’s Gym and is delighted to report her first muscles during her most recent [blog post](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=sophia-mangalee1&page=blog "Sophia's blog").  Hats off to you Sophia!  A multiple marathon runner as well as an experienced track work rider, Sophia is already looking like a competitive entry for the 2011 race.     - - - - - -

[](index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=frederique-schut1 "Frederique's rider site")Frederique Schut and Ronald van der Velden  form our first ever Dutch contingent, and it seems there is a strong chance of them riding as a team!  Frederique is a freelance writer and has already kicked off a charming [blog](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?mode=teamwebsites&name=frederique-schut1&page=blog "Frederique's blog").  She has been busy securing sponsors and boasts an impressive cache already, including some energy boosting supplements from performance nutritionists Maxifuel.  No doubt the Derby with it’s physical demands and dietary restrictions will prove to be an excellent testing ground for those....her riding training is coming along apace and she has a polo-based ‘boot camp’ planned in the UK later in the year.  [ - - - - - -

]()Meanwhile, her boyfriend Ronald has been focusing on the more mental aspects of preparation for this unique test; he’s been brushing up on his Mongolian history and geography (bound to score him points with the locals, and with our very own reconnaissance team in-country), and researching the food.  Due to be reunited with his horses in a month’s time, he is using this period to build his fitness out of the saddle.  With a wealth of outdoor and military experience as well as being an accomplished polo player, Ronald will bring some valuable skills to the steppe, as well as the post-race polo match....  - - - - - -

 Leading the South African raid is Paul Erskine, who no-one could accuse of taking the challenge too lightly.  He has already dropped 7kgs in weight, is riding 100kms a week, and will be making a series of competitive 80kms endurance starts over the coming months on some serious horses, including the champion Caspar.  Paul is no stranger to extreme conditions, having climbed Kilimanjaro, sledded with huskies in the Arctic, and survived the trading floor as a successful commodities trader!  He is loving his training and has the bit well and truly between his teeth. - - - - - -

 Also representing South Africa is Craig Egberink, a farmer and polocrosse player who has already sought the counsel of 2009 Derby Champion Charles van Wyk (thanks Charles, good sell!).  Craig is a lifelong horseman who completed an instructors course in all equestrian disciplines during his military service.  He has taken to endurance racing over the past three years, and his interest in our most exacting endurance race, the Mongol Derby, has blossomed in that time.  Having covered just under 1,000kms in competitive endurance racing, he’ll be doubling his total in one fell swoop in Mongolia this summer.  - - - - - -

 Our first ever Latin American contestant is the lovely Regina Bueno Ros of Mexico City.  Having charmed the selection committee with enough energy to fuel the whole of Bristol and secured her place, Regina promptly went off the radar and disappeared to Nepal for some climbing, trekking and spiritual replenishment.  With a background in showjumping and, if her equestrian reference is to be believed, bombing around the countryside to the despair of her Argentine instructor, Regina has a passion for “adventure, danger, nature and horsesâ€.  The Derby team will be looking to satisfy all of these passions simultaneously.    - - - - - -

 Representing the USA is Cara Barnes, who despite describing herself as a 'gadabout' in her application for the Derby, is both an accomplished horsewoman, great outdoors enthusiast and an experienced traveller, and has ridden horses in Zimbabwe, Argentina, Iceland, and enjoyed that ultimate test of riding and gumption, hunting in Ireland! From the day she secured her place she has been training for the Derby, and sent in this photo from her latest training ride in Utah, riding regular partner Millennium. Expect a series of 'Millennium shots' from even more staggering locations as the Derby approaches. When I called to interview her she was stuck with her trailer, trainer, nine horses and six dogs in a blizzard in the Arizona desert on the outward leg of another training ride....so no doubting her dedication to the Derby! Hope you made it out Cara.... 

 

 

 

 

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* So as you can see, an exciting line-up already developing, and more fine folks clamouring to join the adventure every day. Stay tuned to this blog for a regular(ish) round up of what our brave riders have been up to in the quest for Derby glory, and if you have a favourite, why not sponsor them?** Love and leather,*

*Katy, Derby HQ, Bristol*

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Katy is the Mongol Derby Chief and a veteran of the inaugural Derby in 2009.  She will be sending regular updates as she and the chaps on the ground in Mongolia magic the Mongol Derby 2011 into life. You can follow the Derby on[Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/ "facebook") and [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/ "Twitter") or check the Derby website and this blog for more over the coming weeks...

  

From Russia with Love

*Written by Katy Willings, Mongol Derby Chief, Moscow Airport, Terminal F, Russia *

This from Moscow Airport’s Terminal F, where I am sitting out a 14 hour stopover en route to Ulaanbaatar, and eagerly awaiting a full initiation into Adventurists HQ, Mongolia branch.  I am desperately trying to make an $8 thimbleful of coffee and a $7 glass of water last all day, whilst furtively consuming the wasabi peanuts I sagely hoarded in my hand luggage in the event that Moscow’s cuisine proved disappointing, or, as is the case, out of my price range. I’d pass up the coffee AND the water (and the waitress folding napkins maniacally to my right, and the bespectacled gent belching cavernously dead ahead), but this banquette is the first comfy seat I have found since being spat off the plane at 5am, and for that I’ll cough up.  I have dozed very uncontentedly on the airport lounge seats which have been precision engineered so as to be impossible to rest on, leaving you with either a dead arm, dead shoulder, or just dead from the neck down.  In conclusion, I hate airports, and flying.  Have just cracked open the single malt I bought at Heathrow as a present for Mr Jon, Our Man In Mongolia, and topped up my coffee to eke it out a bit longer.  This is just the kind of resourceful behaviour required to organise and manage the world’s premier Chinggis Khaan approved equine adventure. Now to Derby business.  As just established, I am in Mongolia in January for course mapping and logistical preparation.  Whilst partner Jon focuses on what the rider will see, I am going to be thinking like a horse, and between us we’re aiming to find a new route which is spectacular, challenging, but still intuitive and safe for the 1000 horses involved in the event this summer.  It’s all about an acceptable level of risk, primarily for the horses, though from experience riding in 2009 they looked after me much more than I did them, and so perhaps indirectly for the riders too. We have had a fantastic veterinary record in the first two events which you can read all about [here](http://mongolderby11.theadventurists.com/index.php?page=vetreports "Vet reports") and a very important part of this is that we are not asking anything of the horses which they do not know how to handle, either as wily native beasts or as horses in their home territory.  In fact, the natural capabilities of horses is something I have been thinking about a lot recently; you can [click here](http://www.horsehero.com/editorial?feat=58718 "Keeping the Horse in Horsemanship ") to read an article I wrote on the subject for Horse Hero, and I reckon Mongolia is an amazing place to test them out.  I don’t mind betting that their skills are quite localised; some will be confident swimming deep rivers, others can cross a mountain pass without dropping their shopping, and others can canter all day along rolling steppe without blowing out a candle.  If I am right, then we need to keep horse selection as localised as possible. Confident horses running on glycogen, not adrenaline, should come in wit great heart rates and a beaming, triumphant rider begging the herders to sell him. Happy horses, vets, herders and riders!  

The right course and the right horses are just two bits of a very extensive jigsaw of horse welfare - I have tried to get them all on a page for the first time [here](http://mongolderby.theadventurists.com/index.php?page=moreinfo_horses "Horse welfare") - but these two are the focus on my current trip.

 In other news, the [Horse Hero competition](http://www.horsehero.com/mongolderby "Win a free place on the Mongol Derby 2011 with Horse Hero") has launched, and meanie that I am, I have demanded video format entries so that riders ‘audition’ for the privilege of riding in the race.  I cannot wait to see the entries and hope we find a proper character to fly the flag for Horse Hero!  Entries are open until Jan 24th so you still have time to get your camera out... Oh, and I was woken by a rather exciting phonecall of a Monday morning before Christmas, and will be presenting my mapping efforts to none other than the Household Cavalry on my return to the field.  I am hoping to entice a few military entrants with our unique recipe of horses, mutton and duct tape, and will be making overtures to this effect.  Hold on to your furry hats, chaps!

 Yours in a whisky mist, Willings.