14/08/2019
We've been pretty quiet on this page this year. All building up to very exciting weekend ahead
Sarah Rogerson, 31, set to ride for Britain as European Endurance Championship returns to UK after 26 years. Abergavenny-based vet named as British Team Vet
Endurance GB has announced that 31-year-old Chepstow-based rider Sarah Rogerson will be on the British team who will compete at the FEI CH-EU-E 160km European Championships at Euston Park in Suffolk on 17 August 2019.
Sarah’s team place with her horse Warrens Hill Rubyn was announced following a final assessment of horses at Warwick International School of Riding on Sunday 4th August.
Commenting on her team place Sarah Rogerson who works as a data scientist for a water consultancy, said: “I'm proud to be competing at the Europeans for Team GB and will be aiming to lead by example with dignity and passion for my horse and my sport. I have competed at Euston Park a number of times over the years, I know the course well, which parts of the course to respect and where to pick up the pace.”
She said competing at a home-based Championship made selection this year extra special. “The endurance community in this country is pretty amazing, so it will be very nice to share the experience with other riders and supporters of the sport on home soil.”
Although based in Chepstow, Sarah keeps her horses at her parents’ yard, Woodside Endurance, Woolaston, Gloucestershire and trains in the hills on the Welsh borders and around the Forest of Dean. All the family are involved in the sport of endurance riding and
Sarah’s mother Mary Stubbs, father Steve Rogerson and her twin sister Rachael will also be crewing her during the 160km (100-mile) competition.
Sarah has been involved in the sport for more than 20 years.
“I love the challenge of endurance - a tough sport, the freedom and energy of a seriously fit horse, the lifelong memories of the very good days.
“It’s very much a family thing. My sister and I started competing when we were younger and I have many happy memories of crewing for my mum with my dad and sister.”
Now the tables have turned and Sarah relies on her family for support with competing at the highest level of the sport.
“My mum helps out a lot with the day to day feeding and care which allows me to focus on fitting in training.
“I try to get two decent work outs in a week at the moment, mostly high intensity, hill work or longer canter work. Other than that we do a bit of schooling and short hacks to keep the brain focused. The area we are in is good for hills, but now it's summer it's a bit more challenging to find soft going so a lot of the training sessions are courtesy of local racehorse trainers.
“As well as riding I run two to three times a week and have a session with a personal trainer once a week.”
Rubyn was bred by Lesley Dunn at Warrens Hill Arabians near Monmouth and was given to Sarah and her sister Rachael for their 18th birthday. The athletic 15.2 grey Arab started his international career in 2014 in France and after a year out, Sarah began focussing him on the 2019 Europeans.
“As well as being athletic and strong, I think it's his personality that makes Rubyn stand out. He loves himself and he loves his sport. He has that rare balance of drive and heart, but total (almost) professional attitude. Some days at home I have to take a deep breath before getting on, but at a race he knows exactly what to do.”
Rubyn only has one eye after an accident as a younger but this doesn’t detract from his performance.
Sarah explains: “It doesn't seem to bother him, he's just had to learn to trust us that little bit more and doesn't detract too much from his pretty face.
“As a rider I like to think I am calm but confident. I like to ride a tactical race with a solid plan, but I listen to my horse and think and adjust to what's going on. It's important in a championship
that your horse trusts you to make the right decisions, there's a very fine line between perfection and failure.”
Sarah has competed over the course at Euston Park seven times and says: “Rubyn likes a flat fast course. I don't think any 160km is easy, and Euston has it's own challenges with some deceptively tough sections.
“I plan to start slowly and get everything working before I let him go at cruising speed. I'll reassess throughout the day, but my job is to preserve his energy in the first part of the ride and let him dictate more towards the end. The key element will be the additional buzz at the venue which the horses pick up on. I just need to keep a level head and stick to my game plan.
“I genuinely think we have a chance of a team medal. There are some very strong and consistent combinations in the squad.
“A team medal is about being as accurate and precise as possible, we've all done the hard work so it's about avoiding silly mistakes and not having regrets about things that could have been different.”
Sarah’s crew at the Championships will be her sister, Rachael Cratchley, mother, Mary Stubbs, father, Steve Rogerson, best friend Rose Yates and fellow rider Nikki Malcolm.
Abergavenny-based vet Georgina Vaughan of the Abbey Equine Clinic has joined the Endurance GB International Management Team as British Team Vet for the Championships following in the footsteps of former practice partner Rod Fisher who was Team Vet to the British Endurance Team before moving on to look after the successful British Paralympic dressage team.
This is the first FEI European Endurance Championship to be held in the UK since the 1993 Championships at Southwell in Nottinghamshire, where Britain won both team and individual gold medals. The Championship is part of the HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum UK Endurance Festival (15th-19th August 2019). The event, which also features the Pony Club National Championships, and an FEI CEIO2* 120km Nations Cup competition as well as national rides is organised by the HPower Group and sponsored by Meydan. The event is expected to attract riders from around 40 countries with more than 600 horses taking part over the four days.
