35 – North Island Champs Kuratau
As I mentioned Lace had not really appreciated being on holiday. So I brought her back into work mid December. The truck was going to the New Year’s Kohuratahi ride so we went along too and did the 40km on Saturday afternoon. My first time to this epic ride situated at the end of what is known as The Forgotten Highway.
It was very hot and we were riding in the heat of the day so I wore the Chilla vest to keep cool. We took it easy with the hills and the heat and had a lovely ride. Although we did have a bit of trouble with water, yes there was plenty… if your horse was used to drinking from farm dams, but if not then getting down to them in any safe way wasn’t really feasible. There was too much chance that the horses would see it as part of the track, a stream crossing rather than a trough and jump in! We didn’t want to get stuck. But eventually we came to a beautiful little waterfall with a rocky pool above it.
Next day I was crewing for Kerry and Emma. As the day heated up again I organised a ride for a few of us not riding to a point on the course near a wool-shed where we could set up some troughs. We didn’t want others having the same water problems we had been having.
Three weeks later it was the North Island champs at Kuratau, always one of our favourite courses. As Lace had been in work for only six weeks I entered her in the 60km to have a ride. I had no intention of racing it, just going for fun.
The forecast for the weekend was not good and Saturday was happily looking the better option. I needed to wear a raincoat for the first loop but not the second.
I dutifully let the front runners get well ahead, not starting with the first group but riding out with the second. I really did not want to ride with the leaders in a 60km championship, this is the speed event and often hotly contested. Of course Lace didn’t know of my plan! I kept her away from the “pointy end” and just let her truck around enjoying ourselves. But like I say, Lace didn’t know the plan so I see that we did the first loop at just under 17km/h and the second at 18! Hmmm, I guess that goes part way to explaining why on the second loop I ended up catching up with the main bunch. Lace’s “Let’s just enjoy ourselves” does seem to be a bit faster than most! One rider had made a break on the field and was well ahead, and then there was this group of four horses, that we had now become part of.
Once I caught up with them I tried desperately to let them get away, “you guys go on, I’ll close the gate.” But no, Lace would soon catch them up again. Close another gate and walk for a bit, no they’re still not going fast enough! Before long we’re at the last gate, less than five kilometres from home and it seems that the other riders are just stuffing around. So there we are, a beautiful flat paddock, last gate closed, and they’re trotting!??? At the end of the 60km championship event??? And this was for 2nd place! Well ok, I wasn’t going to, but if none of you guys are going to do anything…. So Lace and I set off across the paddock at an easy canter. I was pretty sure it wouldn’t last, that they would come to their senses and make a race of it, I could just about feel them thinking “Hang on, that’s a good horse and she’s getting away.” Sure enough after a couple of hundred metres they all shot past. It was a sign of how far Lace had come since those early days that she was ok with letting them go without us, though I wouldn’t say happy! We ended up sixth, which was more than I had planned or expected.
The next day the weather was absolutely disgusting. Driving, heavy rain, buckets being blown across base, Ezy-ups destroying themselves if people didn’t get them down in time. A miserable day to ride, and pretty crap for crewing too. We discovered that the exhaust for the massive generator was a good place to stand, sure it stunk of diesel fumes, but it was warm! None of our raincoats was managing to actually be waterproof and we were wearing pretty much all our clothes – this was mid-summer! We had not packed for cold. Wet, yes, but not freezing wet.
Emma was riding Mark’s Craig Royston O’Ryan in the Junior 120 so Richard got the ride on Shimar. Emma and O’Ryan ended up winning after a spectacular gallop finish. There were no photos… the weather was too crap.
The next day the weather was still revolting and we actually decided to go home via SH 1 as the Western Bi-pass route we normally go doesn’t get much traffic and was therefore not a good proposition in such bad conditions! At one point not far from base there was about a foot of water flowing over the road!
