Sunday, August 25, 2013

Sleeper reconnoiters for USA at world championships test event


Leonard Liesens Photo
NJ.com - Full Article

By Nancy Jaffer/For The Star-Ledger
on August 25, 2013

Competition is a prime focus for endurance rider Meg Sleeper, but she didn't go to France last week to win; she went to scout.
The Frenchtown resident was aboard a borrowed horse, Tikis Twistyr, for the 2014 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games' test event, run against the scenic background of rugged Mont Saint-Michel, verdant fields and broad beaches in Normandy. She was among 58 riders from 35 countries who toured the 129.3-kilometer course.

Unfortunately, her mount was "sort of a longshot" and wasn't at optimum fitness. She got pulled at the end of the ride (the condition of the horses is checked periodically along the route and after the finish). A ribbon wasn't the mission,though. Sleeper, a veteran of five world championships who is a candidate for the U.S. WEG team, was there to scope out the conditions.

A veterinary cardiologist at the University of Pennsylvania, Sleeper's assignment now is to write a report about what she encountered on the ride. It will be used to help prepare the U.S. squad that competes next August when everyone is going for the medals...

Read more here:
http://www.nj.com/sports/njsports/index.ssf/2013/08/post_82.html

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