Crewing in the forest

Opening Ceremony

It was a tough day at the office for the Australian team, who finished the teams event in 6th place . The course proved to be challenging but the weather was the sleeper. Mild and cloudy early, and warmer for the horses than it appeared , the day ended with heavy rain and very heavy going on the last leg.

On the day we were simply not good enough. The Australian Horses were ridden to their capacity , but the Europeans , on their home soil were much stronger.Peter Toft , anticipating the weather deteriorating , led the ride on the legendary Electra BBP Murdoch for legs 2 and 3. Sadly, Peter became unwell on the fourth leg , and the lead evaporated.

The fourth leg was the decision maker for the Australian Team. Meg Wade had made up some time after a careful start to be in 18th place off leg 3, but slipped to 30th place off leg 4 Peters lead was also overrun on this leg slipping from first to 37th , you don't have to stop for long to lose it all at this level. Penny Toft slipped 15 places on leg 4 , and Brooke Sample slipped 9 places.

The team of four rode on steadily in the deteriorating conditions to finish 6th in the teams competition. Jen Gilbertson , riding Harriett , rode for a steady completion ,and finished in 55th place.

The result had its upside , as we made a solid 100% completion in the best tradition of Australian Endurance..

©Mal Caldwell AES Media

Brooke finishes in a wet , miserable empty stadium with just the team stalwarts and his strappers waiting for him.