The range of activities that an off-track Thoroughbred can do in retirement is wide and one of the more unique disciplines where you may find a retired racehorse is competitive trail riding. The Ontario Competitive Trail Riding Association lists several events with its organization: Endurance Riding, Limited Distance, Set Speed, Competitive Trail Rides and Ride ‘n Tie.
An endurance ride is an equestrian athletic event for riders with any breed of horse covering a course within a specified maximum time. The event is somewhat like a cross-country event over different terrains and conditions. It may be best described as a cross-country contest with horses traveling 80 to 160 km in one day. Under most organizations’ rules, the equine must be at least 5-years-old to compete.
Laura Wilson from Merrickville, ON has been riding for 25 years and was just 15 when she bought her first retired racehorse. These days she has a pair of former Woodbine runners who may have not been the fastest horses at the track, but they are thriving in long distance trail rides.
One of those is Mobilia who trailed the field in most of her six career races but has been a remarkable addition to Wilson’s family.
“I adopted Mobilia in April 2013 and started training her right away,” said Wilson about the mare by former Ontario sire Mobil. “I even rode her in my wedding in May 2013. I started doing competitive trail riding on her later that year at 12 mile distances.”
Mobilia, found through LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, completed her first 50-mile endurance ride in 2015 and finished a respectable seventh. Last season, the mare completed the same event with an 11-year-old girl riding.
“Mobilia has given my kids and my friends’ kids a lot of confidence and has won them many ribbons and trophies in Competitive Trail Riding, Set Speed and Endurance,” said Wilson. “Mobilia has won lots of first places in 25-mile Set Speed events at the bronze and silver level.”
Unlike Endurance events, Set Speed and Competitive Trail Riding events have a minimum time requirement.
In all OCTRA disciplines, the horses are subject to a veterinarian exam before each event and at several points during an Endurance event. Pulse recovery is one of the most important indicators of physical condition in both the human and equine athlete. A pulse criterion is set by the head vet; usually at Endurance events the pulse parameter is 64 bpm.
Wilson has since adopted another former Woodbine runner, English Lord, a son of English Channel who won $9,000 on the track including a race at Fort Erie.
“Since Mobilia has done so well I went back to LongRun and told them what I was looking for and they set me up with English Lord.
“The two of them are doing exceptionally well and both ‘pulse’ very low at all the rides. I’m looking forward to this year and I am working toward completing a 100-mile pioneer ride in the end of July.”
