Though Mariea joined the Park Police to be with the
horses, she is a gun-toting police officer first. And yet this level 3 certified ARIA instructor has turned down department promotions because “if you go from private to sergeant, you hang up your boots and go out on patrol.”
THE GOLDEN FRIESIAN
TIED TO A TREE IN AWOODED GLEN, surrounded by Arabians, the buckskin, black-maned horse stood tall at 16.1. With his striking good looks and comfortable stance in his environment, what was this big-bodied boy doing at the world’s toughest endurance ride, the Western States Endurance Ride—the Tevis Cup—the mother of all endurance rides? Prepare to have your stereotypes busted up. This is a
half Friesian and he was going to race in 100 miles over the top of the snow dotted Sierra Mountains, down into canyons with temperatures over 100, and complete his ride in the pitch dark. Oh, and did we mention that he only has one eye? It turns out that Golden Knight (barn name is G) belongs on the endurance trail. In the last three years, this nine-year-old has finished in the top ten of every 50 and 100 mile ride in which he competed and he has won “best condition” at more than one. He has completed eight 100- mile rides, which he usually finishes in 12 to 16 hours. His career miles add up to near 2,000. Last year he won the American Endurance Ride Conference’s Western Region Lightweight (combined rider’s body weight and tack is 161 to 185 lbs) Division. G’s Friesian sire Knight Invader is by Warn. His dam is a
Quarter Horse / Arabian cross. Still, would you expect the horse whose breeding is not known for its stamina and endurance to be so successful? “Even though he is big, he has good endurance and
cardiac recovery, nearly exceeding Arabians on every level,” says Nicole Chappell of Roseville, California, who bred Golden Knight and three other Friesian-Arabian crosses. Her reference to Arabians is because worldwide that breed makes up the vast majority of endurance horses. “My horse’s resting heart rate is so low and relaxed that I can gallop into a ride vet check and his heart will be at 60 beats a minute (the sought after number) within a minute or two. Normally his heart rate stays in the high 40s, low 50s when he’s at a check point. I ride him with a heart rate monitor and as we are going he will be 40 beats per minute lower than my friends’ Arabians.” Nicole, 35, who rode her first endurance ride when
she was eleven, was looking for a big horse after she lost her 16 hand Arabian in an accident. She is 5’ 10. Friesians seemed like a good bet because of their success in trotting
Top right: Nicole Chappell and Golden Knight, a half Friesian with one eye. Photo ©
Endurance.net
“When G was two months old, a fluke, fast thunderstorm blew through the pasture and somehow he scratched his left eye, removing the lens.”
races. If she bred a Friesian cross, she could cross train with dressage and have a pretty horse to ride down the trail. G and Nicole’s weekly training includes dressage three
days a week and trail conditioning the remainder. “The cross training is what keeps the horses long term sound for endurance, especially the big one. I haven’t had front end issues,” says Nicole who has three times ridden on the U.S. Equestrian Team for endurance. “On the trail I keep him in a frame so he’s not pounding
on his front legs. His best gait is his big trot, but he has nice canter and it’s developing. In training he goes 10 to 15 miles in the canter,” she explains. “These days FEI endurance is more cantering. But since
the trails in California are all hills and many single track trails, we can’t canter the whole way. I haven’t competed FEI with him because you’re not allowed to wear spurs and I need spurs right now. It’s not that he’s lazy. He’s not a hill worker and doesn’t want to work that hard. I watch his heart rate and he should reach 200 beats per minute on the hills. When he reaches 140 he wants to take a break.” However, G loves his job in fact and takes good care of himself on the trail. He is always willing to eat everything in sight and drinks like a camel, which are important attributes critical to a successful endurance horse. “He’s competitive and wants to go. At the race start I need someone to hold him when I get on because he’s a little frisky, but he’s fairly business-like.” Yet he does all this with just one eye. When G was two
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