We thought it would be a great opportunity to explore the background of this spectacular race, and highlight the cultural fabric that underpins this event. 

We knew that we couldn’t cross the river ahead so our route would be an indirect one and would take us a little longer....

Jimbo and I had made it through a hurricane of biblical winds and joined up with Paul

We got bucked off, got lost, suffered sunburn and heat stroke one day and hypothermia another...

Day five began with me in extreme pain. I saddled up, keen to ignore it...

Derby riders often push themselves to the very brink, and sometimes help comes when they least expect it.

This may be the world’s longest, toughest horse race but it’s really a full-on cultural immersion.

Did we mention a million times that the Derby is physically and mentally challenging?

Sometimes riders hit the Mongolian version of the adventure jackpot

As the Derby progresses, the riders find themselves in that exhausted, surreal state where the ordinary becomes extraordinary.

Coming into HS2 at the end of Day 1, I was riding in a big group and most people decided to stay there rather than risk going on, but Alice, Marie and I got on our steeds and off we went.

Start camp survived, training rides tested, the riders line up on Day 1 of racing not knowing what the next ten days may bring.