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Ardent Rival(aka Sir Edwin)
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This big flat horse, had four wins over his career, accumulating in wins of $4,200, over the other side of the world in New Zeland.
This horse gave me my first insight (and soon to become love) of the ex racehorse.
By the time Rival and I found each other, when I was 15, he had already travelled from New Zeland (where he was bred) to Australia, to Singapore, to Hong Kong, and then to the UK. This horse had seen A LOT!
Rival was a 'on loan' horse, and I persisted with him for a year, but unfortunately his brain could not handle the every day life of not going up and down the gallops, which was a BIG shame as this horse was so kind, and so sweet to handle. He was a stunning animal, that caught the attention of people as he passed.
I did a little bit of showing with Rival and our biggest achievment was completing a whole entire dressage test without me falling off!
Rival was a very good 'first' ex racer as he taught me that each horse is very different and there are some things you just have to do to get the best out of a horse. For him, it was allowing him to run free in the arena before work, turning him out whatever the weather and when getting on him at a show my mum would walk him around in circles and my dad would leg me up, just like being at the races.
Rival now enjoys his life where he is happiest; in the field with his friends, where he is enjoying a very much earned retirement. |
