Page 50 - Speedhorse Canada Spring 2020

RUN TO THE FINISH
“When I first tried riding Relay, it was hard,” continues Tyler, who is 5’ 9” and rides at about 160 pounds. “We train hard, and now with training and all the work I put into it, it comes easy.”
Or at least, easier.
“The most difficult part is knowing whether your horse is going to stand there or not – that’s the hard part,” he says. “When you come in for the exchange, you have momentum with you. You want to keep the momentum coming, so as soon as you pop off your first horse for the second horse, you try to keep it going. You jump for your second horse and go, you take
your third horse and go. You’re running off the flow of the game.”
Mental preparation eases the strain. Tyler has learned to bear down and focus.
“When I go out before the race, I keep my mind off the crowd and everything else,”
he says. “When I’m standing there waiting for the start, my main goal – all I’m thinking about – is to get on the back of the first horse. From there, I’m riding and I’m thinking about my next exchange, making sure everything’s right and trying
to stay on the lead. I love it.
It’s hard to explain, but there’s nothing like the adrenaline that comes with it.”
FEAR NOT
The preferred distance at most Relays is half a mile. That is one lap around a half-mile track, which means the rider goes 1 1 /2 miles.
“These guys train and train hard,” Howard says. “They lift weights, they run, they are athletes. They are the most athletic horsemen you’re ever going to see.”
So just what is it you see?
“Indian Relay is America’s first extreme sport,” says Ghost Bear. “There are all kinds of equine disciplines and sports. You’ve got polo, you’ve got jumping, dressage, rodeo
– you can throw all them in the mix. But until you see Indian Relay and experience the rush, the excitement, the adrenaline, you haven’t seen
It gets down to what horses are the best starters and what horses are the best finishers. At the end, you want a horse that will run through to the finish like you would with any racehorse.
50 SPEEDHORSE CANADA Spring 2020