Extreme horse racing: Where man and beast both run

The extreme sport of 'ride and tie' inspired modern triathlons.

from the October 9, 2007 edition

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"As I get older and slower, I find younger and faster partners," laughs John Osterweis, who has been at it since 1983 and is now in his mid-60s. "It's still competitive."

His partner today is Dennis Rinde, who placed in the top 10 in the Boston Marathon twice in the 1980s. Here in Cool he runs 70 to 80 percent of the 22-mile race. They manage to place third out of 13 teams here, despite falling behind due to a broken bridle. They might have fallen further behind if fellow competitor, Mrs. Ruprecht, hadn't stopped – losing time for her own team – to help them.

Behavior like Ruprecht's is not uncommon. Warren Hellman's team also gave up several places here when he spotted a horse who'd broken loose and become tangled in barbed wire.

"There was no question that we'd stop and go back to see if we could help," says Mr. Hellman. A nearly 25-year veteran of the sport now in his 70s, he says that ride and tiers often make sacrifices like this. "You're not only dependent on your partner and your horse, but on the others in the race if you get into trouble," he explains.

If someone becomes overly competitive, vet checks safeguard horses from being overridden. In races 20 miles or longer, horses pass through at least one vet check during the race and afterwards they must be declared fit to continue or the team gets disqualified.

The camaraderie is fitting for a sport where contestants tow horses in trailers for hours, or days, to events, and pay $100 race fees – all for the glory of winning a horse blanket or water bottle. The only cash prizes are for the world championship, where the top prize is $1,000.

"People will say you're crazy," says Lieberman. "But they use it, I think, in a positive way.... Not that you're just off, but that you're doing something very special that most people are unable to do."

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