MAXIM’s resident gains guru takes on the longest and toughest horse race in the world…
Alexa Does The Derby might sound more like an OnlyFans promotion, but unless the idea of riding semi wild horses across 1,000 km of Mongolian steppe gets you going, I’m sorry to disappoint.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Mongol was the nerve system of the largest empire in human history, and at its height, Genghis Khan’s mighty horse messenger system connected half the planet. Over the last decade this ancient network has been rebuilt to stage the world’s greatest equine adventure – the Mongol Derby. Each rider squares up to 1,000 km of Mongolian steppe on semi-wild horses, changing feisty steeds every 40 km. You navigate and survive on your own wits and skill, living amongst the herders carrying only five kilograms of what you deem absolutely necessary. For 10 days, it’s essentially you and your horse versus the wild.
From falling off and losing both my horse and ALL my gear in the first 30 mins of the race to battling heat exhaustion and riding through lightning storms to getting chased by wild dogs, getting shot at by tanks and getting lost in all the mountains ALL THE TIME, this race was by far the hardest thing I have ever done – both physically and mentally. Here’s a brief summary of what went down and the biggest life lessons I learnt along the way.
DON’T LOSE YOUR SHIT
When I think about the preparation for this race, undoubtedly the most time (and money) was spent on panic buying “essentials” that would make up our meagre 5kg of saddlebag carry on. I convinced myself that I absolutely needed to invest in a top of the line Leatherman complete with Firestarter and whistle, a dental thumb toothbrush with infused toothpaste good for 100 cleans and as many protein bars as would fit in whatever weight I had remaining – I don’t eat red meat and Mongolia doesn’t grow vegetables). The irony is not lost on me that the things which I focused on the most were the things I ended up using the least.
After my horse galloped off with everything including my spare underwear, I was left with the few items that had made it into my hydration pack – a knife (the only tool I could figure out how to use on the Leatherman), some strapping tape, sunscreen, pain meds and dehydrated wet wipes. I spit on the wet wipes for an instant shower, found a sharp stick on the ground to use for a toothpick and put hard, stale pieces of bread in my pockets where my sweat made them soft and somewhat edible. Amazing what you can live without when you have to.
ONE “STEPPE” IN FRONT OF THE OTHER
I’m not going to lie – the first two days of this race were so tough that I considered quitting. If you had asked me before the race what my worst case scenario would be, this was it – I’d lost all my kit and I’d ended up alone and at the back of the pack. The only way I could break this pity party up was to break it down. My race became a series of negotiations. “Just get to the next station and reassess. If you really can’t do it, you can quit.” “Just get to the next waypoint and reassess. If you really can’t do it, you can quit.” And then on the third day something quite extraordinary happened – I stopped thinking about quitting. If you’re always only focusing on the big picture goal, it can seem really overwhelming and out of reach. Breaking it down into bite size to-do’s makes the journey much more palatable.
GOTTA RISK IT FOR THE BISCUIT
One of the biggest risks of this race is the fact that you’re riding semi-wild horses. I had decided that my horse selection strategy was to ask for the “humble” ones. But on Day four, after losing part of my soul out on the steppe following a five-hour leg in 40-degree heat on a “humble” horse that decided to lie down in the middle of the road to eat grass with me on him, I decided that this was a terrible strategy. From here on in, just bring on the bolters and broncs. It was one of the best decisions I made. Watching the rodeo show unfold as the herders saddled up the “undomesticated” beasts was as equally terrifying as it was entertaining, but invariably once I managed to get on and was pointed in the right direction, these were the horses that reminded me why I’d signed up for the race in the first place. It also reminded me that sometimes you’ve got to be brave enough to step outside your comfort zone and take big risks to get bigger rewards.
THE SHORTCUT IS THE LONG GAME
Navigation was never going to be my strong point – I’m the person who loses their car in the car park. We had the option of using old school paper maps and/or a GPS that had all the specific waypoints pre-programmed. The maps essentially showed us how to navigate AROUND the mountains. The GPS waypoint showed us the “most direct” route. But it didn’t matter how many times I vowed that next time I would “stick to the f—king road”, I always got to the hill and naively kept following the arrow. It wasn’t until Day 10 and I was off my horse having to traverse down a sheer cliff face contemplating sudden death with every step that it dawned on me that both, in life and the race, you should never let yourself be seduced by a perceived shortcut. It’s very rarely as short, or as simple, as it seems.
LEARNING IS NEVER LOSING
Arriving at start camp, it was very clear that I was the least experienced rider by a long shot. These people were pros – from jockeys and jillaroos to horse breakers, polo cross players and the showjumping elite. I thought back to my original application and wondered how someone who had evented horses some 20 years ago had ended up in the mix. But none of that mattered in the long run. What mattered was being able to adapt to every challenge as it arose.
What mattered was being open minded enough to learn along the way. What mattered was the ability to keep going when the going got really tough. And maybe that’s the biggest lesson of them all – often we don’t know the things we are truly capable of doing, until we have to be capable of doing them. I may not have won the race, but I did win the Nomad Award for being the resilient little cockroach that just refused to die. As one Derby veteran said, just like life – you won’t always get the race that you want, you’ll get the race that you need. Giddy up! ■
ABOUT ALEXA
“Action Alexa” is an internationally published celebrity trainer, sports model and nutrition and lifestyle coach with over 15 years’ experience in the health and fitness industry, and has worked with NZ’s world champion rugby team, the All Blacks. She has qualified for the Ironman 70.3 World Champs and was named as one of the Five Toughest Trainers in Asia during her seven-year stint in an MMA gym in Hong Kong.
By ALEXA TOWERSEY
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