Former racehorse Loafing, with longtime stable hand and now owner Lucy Bolton, trains for his new career in eventing. Photo: Britt Grovenor Photography.
Competitions are never over for some retiring racehorses.
Loafing, or Arnold when not wearing his racing colours, has been a mainstay of Thoroughbred Park for nearly five years. He’s competed in 32 events, won three, finished as a placegetter four times, and tallied $66,000 prizemoney in the sport of kings.
But after retiring, he’s now on track to compete in a new discipline with long-term stable hand and now owner Lucy Bolton.
For Lucy, getting to work with a horse she’s known for so long is a privilege.
“I was lucky enough to work with Loafing his entire racing career in Canberra. I got to know his unique personality,” she said.
Lucy started her equine career working for Canberra trainer Keith Dryden when she was 17.
She first met the galloper about five years ago. His good nature quickly won her over and he became her favourite. She even learned to gallop on him.
After years of helping to look after Loafing, Lucy said Keith came to her about rehoming the gelding – an offer for which she was incredibly grateful.
“Learning to ride trackwork was pretty special. Then when he was going to retire as a racehorse, I was very lucky to be able to take him home with me,” she said.
Now Arnold lives in a paddock in Lyons. And after being given a short spell by Lucy, he’s started the hard yards training in eventing where horse and rider compete in dressage, cross-country and show jumping.
Training a racehorse for a new discipline isn’t an easy task, but it’s rewarding says Lucy Bolton on board Arnold. Photo: Britt Grovenor Photography.
Lucy said it made sense to take Arnold into eventing competitions because they already shared a bond.
“He comes to me when I call, he enjoys being ridden, and physically he’s looking great thanks to regular farrier visits and body work,” she said.
“It was such an amazing showcase for retired thoroughbreds and a special milestone for us.”
Arnold and Lucy competed in their first eventing competitions together recently in Harden and Wagga Wagga. And despite the unfamiliar discipline, performed well.
“He placed 15 out of 30 … I was very pleased with the result. He was very calm in the new environment,” Lucy said.
“It was a win that he was happy to go out there. Happy to do his dressage tests, he did a clear showjumping round and cantered around the cross-country course beautifully.”
Arnold and Lucy all dressed up for dressage. Photo: Lucy Bolton.
Retired racehorses might be disciplined animals, but rehoming or retraining them isn’t always easy. Acclimatising them to new competitions or environments can be hard work.
But Lucy seems confident her bond with Arnold will overcome those challenges.
“It’s a big life change for the racehorse, going from stable 24/7 to a completely new environment,” she said.
“Racehorses get fed a lot of grain and high-energy feeds, so it takes their bodies a long time to adapt to the new life, the new place, the new feed.”
After a promising start to their eventing competitions, Lucy and Arnold’s next challenge is scheduled for late October at the Canberra Horse Trials.
