Mongol Derby
I've heard from Long Riders in the past who have taken amazing treks on horseback. To be in The Long Riders Guild, one has to have "ridden more than 1,000 continuous miles on a single equestrian journey." That's no small feat!
Yesterday, a friend emailed me about The Mongol Derby, an extreme horse race this summer (starting Aug 22) in Mongolia. 25 riders are going to race 1000 kilometers through Mongolia. They'll be riding those strong, tough Mongolian horses and changing horses every 30 to 40 km. The website makes it sound downright dangerous, which if you could imagine, it probably is. I know I'd love to ride in Mongolia, but trust me, when I go it will be a much more leisurely ride.
Labels: Darley Newman, Equitrekking, Mongol Derby, Mongolia
posted by Darley Newman @ 11:04 AM
13 Comments
13 Comments:
Hi,
I am one of the 26 riders competing in this race. Great to see that there is so much interest in what we are doing. If anyone is interested, my riders website is http://theflyingnomad.net.
Cheers,
Hannah Ritchie
I am mongolian national living in D.C. metro area with my family, if you decide to travel to Mongolia, you may contact me for info on nuances associated with the travel to Mongolia at bolor276@yahoo.com
Remember, that sometimes, tourist agencies can be rip offs!
Best wishes,
Bolormaa
Good luck Hannah and thanks Bolormaa. I'm in the DC area too and may take you up on that offer. I'd love to visit Mongolia.
Darley, if you're also interested in horses, I know a mongolian guy, who works as a 'horse handler'? at Charlestown WV horse races, I think, he had a lot of experience with horses growing up in Mongolian countryside, he promised us a tour of his job site, when we go there next time, if you want, you can join us. It's about slightly more then an hour drive from here. But we don't know yet when we'll go, probaly one weekend this summer. You may e-mail me, if you have questions about horses, Mongolia etc.
Darley,
I would highly encourage you to do a little reading on this event before assisting in any promotion of it. Long Riders themselves are petitioning that it be stopped: www.thelongridersguild.com/mongolia.htm
Please research this event before endorsing it. This will doubtless result in countless horse injuries and death and does not abide by ANY of the basic tenets of endurance racing. In no way should live animals be involved in this ridiculous publicity stunt to provide some kind of "entertainment" to someone with more money than sense. Both AERC (American Endurance Riders Conference) and The Long Riders Guild have spoken out strongly against this horse death race.
If you want to participate in extreme sports, fine, go risk your own life. But don't drag in an animal and force it on to injury, exhaustion, or death for your own purposes.
I just finished looking at the web site that is promoting this race and it was extremely disapointing to see that there are some major mistakes in the information provided...including a map which shows the route of the race with the arrow pointing in the wrong direction! As a horsewoman and a person that has lived in Mongolia for a number of years, I would be more concerned with the organizers of the event providing accurate information to the participants than the actual race itself.
Thanks anonymous, eventer79, Erika and everyone for sharing this helpful information on this controversial event. It's important to get the facts!
What, are you kidding? Hannah, the *interest* you think you see is HORROR that this is even happening. Darley, "responsible journalism" - look it up, then look up ". Random readers, this race is potentially deadly for the horses (I don't care about the riders, it's their own da*n fault), a burden on the Mongolian herding families, and an ethical lapse on the part of the "charity" involved. Bad Idea.
... then look up "Catoosa."
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/06/mercy_corps_mongolian_horse_ra.html
This event bears no resemblance to horse racing as Mongolians know the term. It is an unfortunate amalgam of the aura of Mongolian horseracing (over long distances) and reviving the notion of the Mongolian "pony express" created to enhance communication within the Mongol Empire in the 13th/14th centuries.
Not to worry about the horses, they will be fine. They are in no more danger than the danger they face every day on the steppe. Carrying a babbling idiot, seated backwards, for 40k is not a big deal to a Mongol pony. Carrying a reasonable fit (if sadly, terminally bored) young rider with more dollars than sense is a piece of cake.
Unless these riders adapt very quickly to the gait and temperment of the ponies, they won't last but a few days of riding 40k per day. No one's butt skin is that thick.
My concern is the carnival atmosphere associated with this "race", the embarrassing hyperbole, the "ginned up" challenges and dangers. What concerns me is that the looney tunes at PETA will get their vegan teeth into this issue and it will ultimately reflect badly on Mongolia and Mercy Corps.
Ms. Ritchie: Why are there no Mongols "racing" alongside you? Why is your contribution to charity just money? Can't you spare a week before the "race" and go do some physical work at a Mercy Corps site digging wells or toilets? Rich westerners (and we are ALL rich comparetively) are often free with cash (particularly if they've raised it from family and friends as donations) but chary of actually giving of their time and sweat, particularly if it time and sweat isn't fun and adventurous.
The idea, overall, of re-creating the stage to stage riding of ancient times is perfectly valid. But it doesn't need to be done with such silly hyperbole.
Again, Ms. Ritchie... would you NOT go on this adventure if it instead was billed as a team effort (with Mongols riding too). It would be just as challenging physically, but wouldn't spark such negative reactions. How important is this "race" aspect in light of the criticism it has drawn and the misunderstandings it has generated?
It is awesome that (Mongol "Derby") Long distance horse run competition is going to take place in Mongolia, taking example of old tradition of Mongolian Messenger Relay (Morin Urtuu). Mongolia is perfect place to organise such riding competition.
Seattle Mongolian
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