October 2022 Issue

EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN October 2022 Page 27 Local Trainer Finishes Third in World’s ‘Longest and Toughest’ Horse Race some older, thinner horses that were so fit but didn’t look like they would be much and chubbier horses that could go and go but it varied. They usually had a certain look. You could tell they were a regularly ridden horse and they were real fit and ready. Some of the horses that looked the most unimpressive could carry you over most anything.” King recalled one incident that demonstrated how proud the herders are of their horses. “He was so excited I had chosen one of his horses that he rode with me on his motorcycle for the first five kilometers cheering me on. He wanted to see his horse run,” she said. Flexible Approach King’s experience as a train- er specializing in problem horses led her to take a flexible approach with the horses. “Just get on and just guide the horses without try- ing to control anything. Even the ones that were feisty and skittish when you were trying to put the tack on, once you got moving, within a pretty short while they were settled in and going nicely,” she said. “What I found most ben- eficial, I was really comfort- able with the horses and really comfortable with not being in control. If you feel this horse needs to run, let him run and point him in the right direction and well, figure it out when he settles down,” King said. “The riders that struggled with that, that wanted to control the speed and direction and everything, they were fighting a lot more and had more challenges. The horses knew the terrain better than I did so we got along good when I just let them do their thing.” One of the big things King focuses on in training is building a relationship with the horse, which is difficult when you only have a short time with each mount. “I didn’t feel the same connection as if I were physically in a training program, but there was a certain connection in that the horses were so attuned to the rider, so sensitive, and when you were present there with them, they were right there with me. The riding connection was so strong, but it was different on the ground - they were often quite skittish,” she said. Most of the ride was done at a trot or canter. “It really depend- ed on the horse. Some would just hold a lope for kilometer after kilometer. It was kind of an art to figure out what that horse was good at,” King said. “The horses were way beyond my expecta- tion. Their surefootedness and what they could run across and how far they could go, it blew me away.” King’s philosophy as a trainer was reinforced by her time in Mongolia. “So many of the experiences that I have, in terms of how I relate to horses, involve giving the horse their freedom and working from that. The less that I try to control the more synergy that can be created,” she said. “I really love doing my best to understand the mind of the horse and what makes them tick.” The interaction between people and horses is unique in Mongolia. ”It’s one of the last places where the relationship be- tween horses and people is really symbiotic. They really need each other. The horses need the move- ment of the people into different grazing lands and providing some extra care and managing the herd size so that it works on the land, and the people use the horses for working, food and for milk,” King said. The first two finishers were Mongolian riders. A total of five riders, including King, who led the race for a time, finished on the afternoon of the eighth day of the ten-day race. Roughly half of the 42 entries failed to complete the race. King was actually the fourth rider in on the eighth day of the race but was placed third after two horses tied for second place. “The two second place riders and I raced to the finish line. They were neck and neck, I was a few minutes behind,” King said. King does not have plans to run the race again, but she is grateful for the experience. “I would do it just for the joyous moments being out there with the horse and the big space,” she said. “When I finished riding, I could have just kept going.” King has been living in Mex- ico for the past year and a half where she works with her Azteca horse. She has worked with Arabians for endurance riding and with mustangs. She is known in the mid-Atlantic region for operating Honey Brook Stables in Honey Brook, PA, which is also the Farm Campus for HorseClass. Several trainers work from the facility and King returns to the farm every few months for clinics and to video segments for the educational website HorseClass. com. Before and during the race, King was fundraising for Equi- tarian Initiative, an organization that provides veterinary care for working horses around the world. “We raised over $22,000 between what my community at HorseClass gave through our GoFundMe campaign at https:// gofund.me/01264acf and an additional $7,000-plus through a percentage of proceeds given through a special sale we did at HorseClass during the race days,” King said. “The work of Equitar- ian Initiative is close to my heart, as I grew up around working horses and continue to see them everyday living in Mexico. I love to bring awareness to their work wherever I can.” (Continued from page 9)