I have a new appreciation for the the jockeys who ride horses by the tens at the flat tracks.

They have to be in some of the best shape of any human being on the planet. They have to be strong physically and mentally to be able to get through a day at the track, not to just deal with the rigors of riding or dealing with people but also the strength to not fall off the horse when the wire comes!!!!

The reason I say this is because the Finns talked me into racing a horse under saddle!!!!!!!!! That's right...under saddle. An English saddle of all things.... I took one look at my trusty steed and I knew I was in for a treat! It wasn't that he looked scary or mean or anything like that it was just that I realized just what I had got myself into.

It was only an exhibition race between myself and some former Finnish Olympians, where we were to go behind the starting gate and race one lap of the track. Not that bad, I thought. Well, let me tell you, that the walk from the barn area to the track was enough for me! My legs were burning already as you have to stand up in the irons the whole time. Then they said to go to the track for the introductions. So, we headed for the track, legs burning, and started to trot towards the grandstand. The pain in my legs was such that it felt I had done 100 squats in a row without stopping or breathing!!!!!

Then I got some relief, as my horse went into a run (how fitting). When he was galloping I could sit down a little on his back to give my legs a break, so this was actually a good thing!!!! I figured that at the very least if I was in too much pain I would just make him gallop and things would be alright. Now, with my legs feeling a little better, we headed for the backstretch and to the starting gate. It was 100 metres away and I was wondering how I was going to be able to go that far, let alone the length of the stretch again, or the one lap or the distance back to the paddock area. I was in trouble, my legs were hurting so bad and we were only just behind the gate.

In true competitive fashion, I let him trot right out of the gate, and we had the lead immediately around the first turn. I thought that this was too easy, even though my legs were now throbbing and the sweat was pouring down my face and I was panting like never before, I had the lead and what else could I ask for. Up the backside I go trotting up a storm, still hurting, but still with the lead with a lady tight on my heels. Breathing heavily through my mouth and beginning to lose feeling in my legs, I drifted off the rail a bit, just enough to let her through and the lead was gone and my competitive spirit partly dashed by intense sweating and burning lungs and, oh yeah, THE PAIN. Around the last turn, I was still in second, but the new leader looked strong and the rider looked very relaxed. I knew the win was out of the question but I thought maybe I could hold on for second if I could just stay on for the last 80 metres. I took a deep breath and held it until the wire where I had been picked up for second by another Olympian. Story of my trip - couldn't even win an exhibition race!!!!!!

When I hit the wire, the weirdest feeling I have ever had... I couldn't feel a thing from my waste down to my toes!!!!! Not funny. I thought I was a goner, I was going to fall off right in front of all 4,000 onlookers. I cant describe in words how it felt. I had to keep looking down at my lower half to make sure everything was there. I needed to get stopped or hit the gallop or something before I collapsed. I tried pulling him off his feet so he would gallop but do you think he would? No way. I didn't have any strength left to pull on him as he could now see the paddock way up in front of him and he tried to take off again. I summoned all the will I had left inside of me and got him to stop. Thank the good Lord, I could sit down and relieve my legs!!!!! I'll bet it took us 10 minutes to walk back to the paddock area, that was just a few hundred feet away. The immediate pain was gone, though, as I sit here writing, I am reminded of the ordeal everytime I move!!!!!

I wasn't the only "rider" having difficulty, as the other guy in the race fell off right after the finish and ended up with some bumps and bruises. I don't think he had had much practice with any horses as he looked like he was scared stiff as we walked to the track. I think the idea is good but I think they should just use jog carts or racebikes next time to avoid wiping out the entire Finnish National team!!!!

Lahti is a beautiful track, and the facilities are some of the best in Finland. The track is very fast, a lot like Mikkeli where Varenne still holds the world record for a 5/8 track. I finally had a couple good horses to drive but couldn't do any good as it took most of the day for my body to recover. That's my excuse anyway!! The first one was looked like a win but the horse made a break at the top of the stretch, and then I had one that got a good trip (second over) but couldn't convert. Oh yeah, I also had another career first, I found myself hung out three wide for an entire race (two and a half laps) only to make a charge, that looked as if I might clear, down the backside and we made a break.....Not sure about that one! Whether I drove to hard down the backside or the poor little fella was just pissed at the drive!!!!!!

What a week! We were treated first class by horsemen and racetracks alike and had an exceptional time traveling from track to track and city to city. Although, we are still here until the volcano lets us out, it has been a trip that I would hope anyone would accept if asked, as I would jump at the opportunity again!!!!!!