Anne’s Mongol Derby III, Preparing for the Horses and the Journey Ahead

How does one prepare for Mongolian horses? That is one question I have an easy answer to, you don’t.

Here in the Netherlands, where I live, we do not have horses that come anything near the Mongolian horses. Not in size, not in temperament and not in strength. The Mongolian horses are bred for centuries for their habitat, work, and lifestyle. Nothing to be found like that near my home, sadly.

Meanwhile, I ride a lot of different horses. Big and small, and I take my trusty backpack anywhere. To me, the distance does not really count at the moment, however, the time in the saddle does. Four hours without sore muscles, five hours without sore muscles… And so on…

I’m preparing to take on 1000km on horseback. I lack in flexibility so that is mainly where my focus is now; yoga, stretching, some strength training but not too much (until more stretching and flexibility that is). And next to that, we ride. Trying out the gear you have, making sure that those pants really won’t rub on your tour in Mongolia because that would be the worst. Imagine having to deal with rubs and still have to ride 900km on horseback? Yeah…

By stretching and strengthening my body, I hope it will be easier for me should I suffer any falls and/or damage.

Another thing that can happen, is anything unexpected. The trick is to (try to) prepare for everything unexpected. I do this with mindfulness training. For me, I know I am pretty strong as long as I can keep my mind clear. I just need to keep my mind clear to be able to think of a way out, something that seems is easily overlooked. If there is something I am not looking forward to on the Mongolian steppe, it is a mental breakdown or the possibility of. And believe me, many people had one…

Thank you again for reading a part of my story and tagging along with me on this journey!

Want to help me to Mongolia? My fundraiser is in Dutch, but I surely will cover everything in English here as well.