DECEMBER 2019 THE RIDER /33 From Retraining to Pre-Training: Kendal Lehari Transforms Remember Gizmo Into an Eventer for the 2019 Thoroughbred Makeover Our makeover


favourite TV shows have


taught us many things, like how to French tuck our shirts or add Greek yogurt to our guacamole


(okay,


“Queer Eye” might be our only favourite TV makeover show). But how many trans- formations can you name that forgo a flashy new hair- cut and instead outfit the makeover-ee with a brand new career? For Kendal Lehari of


Uxbridge, ON, makeovers represent a second chance for talented Thoroughbreds coming off the track. The EC certified Eventing Com- petition Coach Specialist entered the 2019 Thorough- bred Makeover, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America, where she turned a former racehorse


Kendal hopes that Mitchell will one day be her partner on the Canadian Eventing Team at major games. Photo Credit: Ian Woodley


eventing, who has now gone on to compete at Young Rid- ers CCI 2*-L with his owner, Elise Hicks! This program is a great way to start a young horse and showcase their potential. Mitchell is a big, im-


pressive 17.1hh four-year- old gelding by Giant Gizmo. He was sourced through Franz Crean, as were most of my other Thoroughbreds. Franz trained at Woodbine for years and is a trusted family friend, so he knows what we look for in a horse and calls when something interesting


pops up.


Kendal Lehari of Uxbridge, ON, transformed an off-the-track Thoroughbred into an eventer during the 2019 Thoroughbred Makeover, which culminated in a three-day competition from Oct. 2-5, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. Photo Credit: Ian Woodley


Mitchell had been trained by Bob Tiller, whom my mom had worked for doing winter layups when I was younger. This proved to be very ben- eficial for my riding career, because I would help my mom ride the Thorough- breds as they were getting ready for the track. This was an amazing opportunity to learn how to ride a Thor- oughbred and young horses. As soon as we went


Kendal discovered Mitchell, whose race name had been Remember Gizmo, through the help of a family friend who worked in the racing business. Photo Credit: Kendal Lehari


into the stuff of eventing dreams. The Thoroughbred


Makeover is a competition featuring hundreds of Thor- oughbreds who have each had 10 months or less of re- training after retiring from their racing careers. The ad- venture culminates in three days of competition across 10 different disciplines, with


entries vying for a share of $100,000 in prize money and the title of America’s Most Wanted Thorough- bred.


From Oct. 2-5, 2019


at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, Kendal revealed the transformation of her ex-racehorse, Re- member


they did in the 2019 Thor- oughbred Makeover


in


Kendal’s own words! A few weeks ago, I


Gizmo


(“Mitchell”), to the world. Read on to find out how


traveled to Lexington to compete in the Thorough- bred Makeover with my horse, Mitchell (race name “Remember Gizmo”). This was my second time com- peting there: I also finished fourth in 2016 on Max Power (“Coltnamedsue”) in


to pick Mitchell up, we knew he was special. The grooms loved him and Bob said I was blessed to be al- lowed to buy him... this was definitely a first! It turns out they were right, this guy is the real deal. He is so tal- ented and nice to ride, plus he has a great work ethic. I knew from the first time I sat on him that he was the horse I’ve been looking for to help get me where I want to go (to represent Canada in eventing at major games). I decided after the first cou- ple rides that he had a very good shot of winning the Makeover, so I gave him time off until I left for Florida in January to keep his eligibility. One of the rules when


you plan to compete in the Makeover is that you can’t do more than 15 retraining rides prior to December 1st of the year preceding the


Makeover. The horses also have to have raced or have a published work. This way the horses are all competing on a fairly level playing field. (See the complete rules here.) You can choose to compete your makeover horse in two disciplines out of eventing, show jumping, hunters, fox hunters, polo, dressage, ranch, trail, barrels and freestyle. Some people (like myself) choose to com- pete in the disciplines they’re most comfortable. A few braver people choose to learn about a new sport and compete in it. You also have the option to post your horse for sale. This is a great op- portunity to have multiple buyers and sellers in one place.


The Makeover is a


fun, different experience from our normal competi- tions. For example, the scor- ing is different for the


tion is really giving all Thor- oughbreds a second chance. It has already started to make a difference in the in- dustry and I think it’s just going to keep benefiting everyone. It’s pretty amaz- ing that around 500 Thor- oughbreds who have had less than a year of retraining can perform so well and professionally in so many sports. It really shows how versatile, trainable and tal- ented Thoroughbreds really are!


Mitchell competed


very successfully at the pre- training level all season, so I went in thinking we had the best chance competing in eventing, and show jump- ing was my second choice. It turned out we excelled in show jumping and had some costly mistakes in the event- ing... you never know with horses! Competing in event- ing the first day really


is not only a fellow Ontario eventer and Makeover com- petitor, but also the top placed amateur in dressage, and he finished third over- all!


Finale day is run in


the indoor arena. There is a lot of atmosphere with the jumbotron, spectators and trade


fair. This was


Mitchell’s first time jump- ing inside, so I wasn’t sure how he would handle it. He jumped around really well and quite boldly. We ended up finishing fourth out of 95 horses! Mitchell also won Best Conditioned Horse in show jumping. I have Pu- rina feeds and Omega Alpha supplements to thank for making sure he looked and felt his best going into the competition. This was a great ex-


perience to see how Mitchell would react at an away show and perform


Kendal (left) took a quick trip to the famed racetrack Keeneland on her day off from competition, joined by Frank Tucker (middle) and Jim Phillips (right). Photo Credit: Kendal Lehari


The 2019 Thoroughbred Makeover as seen through Mitchell’s ears. Photo Credit: Kendal Lehari


jumping phases. Each jump receives a mark rather than just scoring faults. Another difference is that the 10 dif- ferent disciplines are com- peting and stabling together. It’s really cool to meet peo- ple from all over North America and hear about how they trained their horse for their discipline, how they sourced it, to learn about the disciplines they’re competing in and then watch them compete! The variety of Thor-


oughbreds competing was also very interesting. Horses that I may not pick out for eventing may make fantastic polo horses. This competi-


helped take the edge off him for the show jumping com- petition, so I had a much nicer, more rideable round from the day before. We managed to get in the top five for show jumping, which secured us a spot in Saturday’s finale – and guarantees prize money! Friday was a day off


from competition, so I joined Jim Phillips and Frank Tucker to experience more of the Thoroughbred scene at Keeneland, watch- ing the morning works and races. I saw quite a few Thoroughbreds I would have happily taken home! Huge shout out to Jim, who


with atmosphere. I’m very excited to see what the fu- ture holds for us as we move up the levels!


Story courtesy of


Equestrian Canada, www.equestrian.ca


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