Meet My Endurance Horse: Sizedoesntmatter

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Sizedoesntmatter, aka “Dakar”
15-year-old Arabian gelding
owned by Gwen Hall

• 2605 AERC miles
• 3 Top Ten Tevis finishes (4th in 2014, 2nd in 2015, and 8th in 2019)
• 2017 AERC National Championship 100 in Colorado
• USA team starters for the 2018 World Equestrian Games Endurance Championship in Tryon North Carolina
• AERC Decade Team.
• 2021 AERC National Championship 100 in Montana

Some 11 years ago Gwen Hall was looking for a horse to buy for endurance, though she hadn’t sat on a horse in 20 years. “I was that typical middle-aged female-getting-back-into-horses kind of thing,” Gwen says. “I was a former ultra-marathoner, and I’ve been through 2 knee arthroscopies, and various other things, so I knew my time with that was probably done. And I’d heard about Tevis, because of the Western States Run, and thought that looked really cool.”

Joanne Pavlis helped Gwen get back into riding, and then took her to Arapahoe racetrack in Colorado to look at Arabians. Gwen walked into the stall of the gray 4-year-old Sizedoesntmatter, and that was pretty much that. “He was just so calm and we just clicked. So I brought him home, and we haven’t looked back.”

Gwen credits his trainer at the track, Jerry Partin, with Dakar’s easy transition from the track to the trails. “Jerry was just a fantastic horseman, and just did such great work mentally with him. The horse had a brain.”

Gwen spent much of that winter getting to know her new horse and working on their partnership. “We would go out on hacks with a halter and a lead rope.

“But then I discovered at his first endurance ride that I really had bought a racehorse. I thought I was going to die! If it hadn’t been for two now very good friends who parked one horse in front of me and one horse behind me, I think I would be dead.

“But once we kind of got that initial partnership, then I worked with a trainer, Taffy Plaisted, who is a phenomenal dressage trainer. She did a great job training horses. She doesn’t focus on the rider, but she teaches you how to teach your horse. And it made such a huge difference in his way of going, and all those pieces just came together for us.”

From Dakar’s first endurance ride at age 5 through his 11th season at age 15, Gwen and Dakar have reached the top rung of the sport. Their record includes 3 Top Ten Tevis finishes, 2 AERC 100-mile National Championship titles, and making the USA Team for the World Equestrian Games Endurance Championship in the fiasco that was Tryon, North Carolina.

When asked what makes Dakar so special, it’s hard for Gwen to put into words.
“It’s hard to verbalize, honestly,” she says. “We just click. We’re a good team. Any challenge I have put in front of this horse in the time I have owned him, he not only meets but he exceeds my expectations. It doesn’t matter what I’ve done with him. He tries. He wants to do well.

“He’s lucky in that he’s naturally gifted as an athlete. And he really has a very calm demeanor. He’s a thinker. But he has that spark within, I guess the heart. I’ve had the pleasure of riding a lot of horses over the last 10 years, but he’s just got that special something, that at least with me, it works.

“I thank Dick Reed, who sold him to me off the track, for working with me on his purchase.

“And if little things like that hadn’t happened, I never would have bought Dakar.

“I really don’t have the words to express what works, what I’d look for in another horse like him, because I don’t think I’m ever going to find that. To use a cliche, he is my unicorn. And I thank god every day that he’s part of my life. 

 

 

 

Meet My Endurance Horses: Poete and Poetrie

Poete and Poetrie are 2 of 5 USA team Endurance horses owned by Holly Corcoran and headed to San Rossore, Italy, for the May 22 Longines FEI Endurance World Championship. Poete will be ridden by Holly; Poetrie will be ridden by Hanna Weightman.



By Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Poete
14-year-old Arabian gelding
By Bandjo de Falgas X Poetikka, by Statistic
Bred by Asgard Arabians

24 of 28 AERC starts, 1855 miles in 9 seasons
8 of 9 AERC 100s

Poetrie
10-year-old Arabian mare
By Syndicat X Poetikka, by Statistic
Bred by Asgard Arabians

22 of 25 AERC starts, 1200 miles in 4 seasons
4 of 5 AERC 100s

Both owned by Holly Corcoran

Holly tells the story of how she got Poete and Poetrie.

“Both Poete and Poetrie were bred by the Sayvetz family at Asgard Arabians in West Virginia. They are purebred Arabians and are both out of the Statistic daughter Poetikka. 

“I took on Poete at 4 years old as a training prospect in cooperation with Asgard but as I started work with him, I just fell in love with him as a horse, not to mention his amazing, awesome athletic ability. So instead of working with Asgard to sell him, I acquired him. 

“I always knew he had great potential and he is just so fun (and sometimes difficult) to ride and he has proven me right. 

“Knowing how much I loved Poete and admired his abilities, when his ¾ sister was available, I purchased Poetrie as a 4-year-old.  Initially she was really tough and quite reactive, but given time and training, she has turned out to be an awesome horse. 

“Poete and Poetrie are both athletic and capable. They can both be quite strong willed, and I find it best not to argue with them but to re-direct. 

“Poete loves loves loves to canter and to pass horses.  So at the beginning of the ride this is where it takes negotiation or finding our “bubble”. 

“Poetrie is very matter-of-fact, hard working and takes herself quite seriously (sometimes I have to laugh) but she takes AMAZING care of herself. Nothing gets in the way of her eating and drinking to the extent she will tell me if she wants to pull over and drink out of a puddle or stream or grab a bite of grass.

“I think the “coolest” ride for Poete, Poetrie and I was the January 2020 Broxton ride where I went into it planning to ride the 100 on Poete day one and Poetrie in the 75 day two. 

“First I had been working on my own fitness to get to where  I felt confident I could do it, then it took making sure I had  great crew for the horses, and I took very good care of myself (ie, electrolytes, hydration, eating, etc). 

“Poete and I won the 100 during a race off in the rain.  When we turned the bend in the trail and I asked him to GO I could barely see due to the rain. I was praying he didn’t spook at something as he blasted into the light.  He won and earned BC! 

“So I was able to get to bed at a decent time to get up  early to ride Poetrie in the 75. We started the ride with her half sister, Lorienn and Canadian young rider, Charlotte Tremblay, but Lorienn forged and bruised her heel at mile 60. 

“Poetrie and I continued on alone and won with over a 4 hour lead over the 2nd place horses! 

“Poetrie is incredibly smooth to ride and takes little out of me so I had to ride in the order I did since Poete can be very tough!

“I am so grateful to be representing the USA in Italy at the World Endurance Championships. This has been my goal since 2008 and I am so excited to have earned the criteria for selection. This year it was based upon points and finishing, so both horses had two first place finishes in 100-mile rides over the last selection period starting June 2019. 

“It is very challenging with all of the COVID and EHV-1 criteria for us and the horses, plus we are making our own arrangements, so it has definitely been an education! I just can’t wait to get there and get on the horse, then everything will flow from there!"


**Late Breaking News: Due to bad luck and bad timing, Poetrie developed a slight lameness, which will prevent her and Hanna from going to Italy.

 

 

Meet My Endurance Horse - Treasured Moments

Treasured Moments is one of 5 USA team Endurance horses headed to San Rossore, Italy, for the May 22 Longines FEI Endurance World Championship


by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Treasured Moments
11-year-old Arabian mare
DA Adios X Hidden Treasure, by RD Five Star
bred by CreRun Farm
owned by Heather & Jeremy Reynolds
ridden by Jeremy Reynolds 


1550 AERC miles
3 Tevis Cup starts/finishes
2017 Haggin Cup winner

Treasured Moments could have been a top racehorse but for the year she was born. “She was really fast on the track but was in the stable that had the top three mares that year and she was number 3,” says Heather Reynolds.

Jeremy had shod her on the track as a late 2-year-old and fell in love with her. Since the mare was #3, the Reynolds were able to buy her as a 3-year-old. Racing’s loss, Endurance’s gain.

The mare has finished 23 of her 26 AERC starts over 7 seasons, and completed 9 100-mile rides. That includes 3 Tevis Cup completions with 3 different passengers. Her first 100-mile ride was the 2017 Tevis Cup with Jeremy; she not only finished third but came away with the Haggin Cup.

“What’s special about Treasure,” Heather says, “is her laid back, willing but competitive nature. She is ridden in a simple rope halter. She did the 2017 Tevis in a rope halter with a single rein so that Jeremy could hop on and off easily to run. She is all business. She’s not neurotic, but she’s not patient.” This versatile mare has carried 11 different riders in competition.

Besides the pinnacle of her third place and Haggin Cup in Tevis, another highlight is that she has the fastest 3 qualifying times securing her slot on the USA team. Jeremy will be aboard for the 160-km race in San Rossore May 22; this is his third time on the USA team and the 9th time competing abroad.


“We are really excited to go to Italy,” Heather says. “Treasure is training really well, she’s super sound and has the right mind to handle the pressure, and she’s already competed abroad.”

Meet My Endurance Horse: Jailhouse Waylon

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Jailhouse Waylon, aka “Bubba”
6-year-old Standardbred gelding
Trotter
owned by Anita Rees

100 LD Miles
100 Endurance Miles
2020’s AERC High Mileage Standardbred

Jailhouse Waylon was bred to impress on the racetrack, but he was injured in race training and made only one start. Anita Rees obtained him in the fall of 2018 as a 4-year-old from a friend who has a Standardbred adoption program.

“He’d been adopted out and returned 3 times in about 2 years,” Anita says. “I wasn't exactly looking, but my endurance gelding was rehabbing from an injury so I told her I'd take Bubba. Who can resist a free horse?”

Bubba hadn’t been hard to start under saddle, and he was broke to ride (“sort of”) when Anita got him. She describes him today as very easy going, such a pleasure to ride, especially compared to her horse Shag who is insanely competitive.

Bubba debuted in endurance in 2020, and he completed all 6 of his starts, 4 LDs and 2 50s. With COVID affecting the ride season across the country, Anita felt lucky to be able to do 6 rides with him. The combined 200 miles resulted in Jailhouse Waylon being crowned as AERC’s 2020 high-mileage Standardbred, a breed competition award sponsored by the United States Trotting Association (USTA).

Anita’s most memorable ride aboard Bubba (so far) was their first 50-mile ride in the October Spook Run in Indiana. Anita had agreed to accompany a friend Sarah attempting to finish her and her horse’s first 50. They rode conservatively to get both horses through the ride, and all was well until the vet check at 40 miles, where Sarah rider-optioned from feeling ill. Anita picks up the story from there.

“We had a 50 minute hold with just 10 miles to go. I knew it would be dark before we finished, which normally wouldn't be any big deal except when the Ride Manager came over and said there were tornado warnings - as in ‘take shelter NOW’ warnings. Yikes!

“We’d been hearing some thunder off in the distance, and it had been raining a little on and off for most of the ride.

“Bubba was under my canopy. Eating. He never stopped eating the entire hold and had been passing the vet checks fine.

“If I was smart I should have pulled after hearing that forecast, but I figured it was only 10 more miles, and if a tornado did come through we'd have just as much chance surviving it in the woods as parked in the middle of a field. Seemed like logical reasoning at the time, anyway.

“Bubba reluctantly picked his head up from the feed so we could get tacked up. I also slipped off his bridle and rode him in a halter that last loop. Another first.

“He was not thrilled to go out into the storm, but he did it anyway. The first few miles the wind was so bad, the rain was almost horizontal. There were branches coming down all over, and even a few small trees.

“And lightning. Almost non-stop lightning, which in one way was good because I could see the trail markers, since by that time it was pretty dark.

“The trail was so slick and muddy it was hard to do more than walk in most places, and at more than one point I was seriously questioning my judgement about taking a young horse on his first 50 out in those conditions. What if he tied up? What if a tree fell on us? What if he slipped and broke a leg?

“But we slogged through and finally came to a section of gravel road we'd done on the loop before. Bubba knew camp was close and broke into his big Standardbred road trot.”

Anita and Bubba finished the ride (and finished Top Ten, by attrition) with a half hour to spare, and got the Turtle award, which Anita doesn’t even remember. She was just thrilled to finish with a sound, willing, and confident horse. “Such a great feeling, I was so proud of this young guy!”

Even though it rained through the night and the temperature dropped 30 degrees, Bubba stayed warm and dry under his shelter at his trailer, and he ate non-stop.

You probably get the picture: Bubba LOVES to eat. “He's now known at the rides as that horse who brings a huge cooler full of nothing but carrots. He'll easily eat 40 or 50 pounds of carrots in a weekend. And more if I had them.”

He’s a very personable horse. “He acts more like a puppy than a horse sometimes - an 1100 pound puppy who gets into everything. He’s super friendly, always the first horse to come up and offer help when we're working on fences or doing things in the pasture. He also plays with his tongue and makes silly faces (it's a Standardbred thing).”

Anita started riding endurance in the early 1990s, and started riding Standardbreds around a decade ago. She’s had 7 over the years and sings their praises.

“Standardbreds are such an under-appreciated breed,” Anita says. “Most off the track are very easy to transition to new careers under saddle. They're tough, athletic, and sensible. Bonus if you do get one off the track, since most have years of slow jogging for conditioning.

“They make great endurance horses and we're gradually seeing more Standardbreds at the rides.”

For more information on adopting a Standardbred, see:
https://www.facebook.com/notes/team-standardbred-distance-riders/list-of-standardbred-adoption-agencies/929252320938799/

** Top photo by Noelle Snyder

Meet My Endurance Horse: Mershann

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Mershann
15-year-old Arabian gelding
by Merlann X Mah Roshan, by Ibn Raffinee
owned by Nina Bomar

3595 Endurance miles

It was not love at first sight when Nina first laid eyes on 4-year-old "Cheeky."

"My longtime farrier had told me about him," Nina says. "He had a client who needed to downsize and she had bred/raised him and wanted to be sure he went to a good home. My farrier told me to go get him.

"I drove out with my trailer, and when I got there, I wasn’t impressed. He was scrawny, skinny, and pretty lifeless. I felt sorry for him. He had never been in a trailer, and I figured if I couldn’t get him in, that would be my excuse for not taking him. I opened the trailer door and he practically ran me down to get inside. I truly believe that he chose me!"

After Nina got him home, her friend came by to see the 'new horse.' It was not love at first sight for her, either. "I remember her saying... why did you take him, he’s not a very good looking horse? She kept repeating herself almost as if she was in shock that I took him."

But the gelding just got more beautiful as the days, weeks, and months went by. He loved the trails and Nina ponied him everywhere in the hills above Malibu, California.

"He turned out to be a very smart and loyal companion... strong too! We finished the Virginia City 100 and the Tevis 100, though unfortunately we were pulled for thumps at the Tevis during the finish vetting, which was pretty devastating considering he got all A’s on his vet card. It was a great disappointment but he has redeemed himself many times over since.

"He’s a great multi-day horse, having completed many XP Rides. This year we were set to get our decade team award! Not sure that will happen with the lack of SoCal rides.

"He’s a joy to be around. He’s quiet and a thinker and he likes to do things right. He’s a great traveler and super independent. I love him with all my heart."

Meet My Endurance Horse: Frosty Oak Mackenzie

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Frosty Oak Mackenzie
16-year-old Cleveland Bay/Thoroughbred mare
owned by Jessica Isbrecht

125 LD Miles
50 Endurance miles

Mackenzie led a pretty sheltered life in New Jersey until two years ago when Jessica and her partner Byron took up their Digital Nomadic travels across the United States. “She's seen so many things traveling around the country since then,” Jessica said.

Jessica has brought the mare along slowly and carefully, and the pair started competing in endurance together in 2018; they’ve completed Limited Distance rides in Maine, California, Idaho, and, most recently, Mackenzie’s first 50 in Oregon.  

Mackenzie was injured as a weanling and spent six months on stall rest, and Jessica thinks this may have impaired her social development. “She has never quite known how to act around other horses. In 2018 she was beat up by a group of mares she was boarded with. She was kicked in the stifle, among other places. It was a long recovery. Since then she's been very defensive of her space around unfamiliar horses. She is a master of the ‘mare glare’ and is beginning to get a reputation at endurance rides! 

“Her public persona aside, she's a very sweet and intelligent mare. She's a real people-lover, always curious to meet you and show off her smile trick. She loves food so I've incorporated positive reinforcement or clicker training into our riding. She seems to enjoy puzzling out obstacles but will paw or hold her front leg up to express frustration if I've confused her. 

“One of her favorite things seems to be following along at liberty on the trail when I ride River, her companion. Sometimes she lags behind to grab a snack, then canters to catch up, occasionally throwing in some joyful bucks. She's very competitive and loves racing with River too. 

“Just recently, she was following loosely on a trail in Montana when we had to navigate a particularly tricky fallen tree. After inspecting it for a minute, she decided she didn't like the look of it, turned and walked 50 feet downhill and followed a stream bed until it was clear enough to come back uphill to rejoin us on the trail. I'm always impressed when she demonstrates problem solving skills like this. 

“She's a very special horse, not only because of her unusual breeding but because of the bond we share.

“She means the world to me not just because of her winning personality  but because I inherited her from my mother in 2013 after she was taken by cancer. Mom loved her so much! I feel like a piece of my mom's spirit lives on in Mackenzie.”

Meet My Endurance Horse: Fire Mt Malabar

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

Fire Mt Malabar
21-year-old Arabian gelding
owned by Lee Pearce
ridden by Lee Pearce and Naomi Preston
bred by Sue Robinson

8210 AERC Miles
48 Best Condition awards
2019 AERC Hall of Fame Equine

Knucklehead. Nutcase. Idiot. Wacko. Those were a few of the choice descriptions used for this gelding early in his endurance career. Watching him steadily trot down the endurance trail now with focus and poise, it’s hard to believe he’s the same horse.

In his early 50-mile endurance rides, Malabar tried to run off the first 25 miles. He’d occasionally throw in a spook, and he just was so powerful and fast, and on a 16-hand horse for an as-yet-to-be-experienced heavyweight rider, that can be a bit intimidating. “He was so hot, and he scared the hell out of me,” Lee says.


But over the years, and over the thousands of miles, they became a super team. After 2 seasons of conservative riding, the next year they picked up speed… and started picking up Best Condition awards. In 2011, they won AERC’s National Best Condition award. In 2016, Lee and Malabar passed 5000 miles together. By the end of 2016, they had 43 BC awards together.

Naomi started riding Malabar in 2017 at age 18. That year, Malabar compled over 900 miles, including back-to-back Pioneer 5-day rides at the Grand Canyon and Outlaw and the Virgin. Over the next two 900+ mile seasons, they added another 5 Best Condition awards.


You might say Malabar got a ‘second wind’ in his career with a lightweight rider, but you can’t ignore his genetics that most obviously have contributed to a super endurance horse. Out of the mare Malabar Dawn, he’s by the legendary endurance stallion Sierra Fadwah, whose get have well over 120,000 endurance miles.

And Malabar isn’t done yet!

Meet My Endurance Horse: ALA August Haziz

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

ALA August Haziz
19-year-old half Arabian gelding
owned by Carol Brand

Sire: Black Pure Egyptian Arabian
Dam: Sweet pinto mare, part Welch part Thoroughbred, 1/4 Arabian
Bred by: Amy Heward
Foaled: August 16, 2000 (of course in August!)
Color: Black Tobiano Pinto

AERC Miles: 2566
LD Miles: 295

"We purchased August in Jan. 2007 as an unbroken 7-year-old for an endurance prospect for resale," Carol says. "We had him started under saddle and I began riding him on LDs that spring. I really liked him and he was doing well. I was thinking I had found my next horse and took him off the sales list.

"The following summer we had a client come to look at endurance prospects. I did not show her August....but she spotted him in the herd and started asking about him. Long story short...she bought him for the price of a year's worth of hay for the whole ranch...and I had to let him go. I cried...and then I cried off and on for the next two years.

"Then I called..
August was not the horse for her and she was willing to sell him back!
We traded two other horses for him and I got him back!!

"Over the years, August has become my one and only mount. We have now retired from buying, selling and raising endurance horses and he's my only horse.

"August is the kindest horse I have ever known. I believe he really likes me and looks out for me. He has been a wonderful endurance horse. We have done 100s and we have done LDs. Now we love trail riding and exploring the Owyhees.

"Now as he is about to turn 20 in August, and I will turn 71 in August, he is my perfect "little old lady horse".

August is always dressed in his formal evening attire. He is the personification of Mr. Carson, the butler on Downton Abby.

"I have never seen him roll in the mud. He is somehow always clean and dignified. He is the leader of his small herd, keeping everyone in line in his kind but forceful way.

"He's my horse, and I love him...and he loves me too!"

Meet My Endurance Horse: DWA Saruq

by Merri Melde-Endurance.net

DWA Saruq
17-year-old Arabian gelding
owned by Connie Holloway

This horse is a character. On the trail he can be lazy, or he can be a rocket on the verge of running off. He can be very aloof, or he can come up to you expecting attention and a treat. He can be Mr. Cranky Pants if you wake him up from a nap to go for a ride (one should really try to avoid that!). He can swing his head around like a club; I heard he broke a previous riders nose. He’ll snarl at other horses on the trail if they try to pass him - we think that’s a stink eye tactic he used on the race track.

If DWA Saruq were a human, he’d be George Thorogood, with a cigar hanging out of his sneering mouth, singing “Bad to the Bone.“ He’s a fun ride.

Bred by DWA Arabians, he’s by DWA Ziffalat out of the Sabson mare DWA Ebony Star. He’s got 2755 endurance miles, most of those with Connie aboard, including the Big Horn 100. He made the cover of Endurance News in 2018.