'He's just got better and better' - ex-racehorse Harbin switching saddles for Badminton challenge

Ex-racehorse Harbin will be the sole representative of his breed as he heads towards the business end of this weekend's MARS Badminton Horse Trials, one of the world's most significant equestrian events.

A flashy grey not untypical of his sire Verglas, the 15-year-old has lived an exotic life with Florida-based New Zealander Joe Meyer, who is back for the Gloucestershire competition after a gap spanning back to the year his mount was born.

Harbin was bred by Airlie Stud, the Rogers family's historic nursery in County Kildare, and was withdrawn from a date at the Goffs Orby Sale. He was then consigned by Johnny Hassett's The Bloodstock Connection at the 2012 Tattersalls Guineas Sale, making 40,000gns to William R Muir. He is out of a winning half-sister to Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud scorer-turned-sire Gamut, from the Derby-winning family of North Light.

The sale was, sadly, Harbin's best day relating to a racetrack. He moved to the yard of Ado McGuinness and made very little impression in three maidens in Ireland before finishing last in a mile and five-furlong handicap at Ayr, off a mark of just 53.

Luckily, Harbin's potential was spotted by Irish eventer and producer Terence White before, at the age of eight, he was picked up by Meyer and his wife Ruthie on behalf of their friend, Rebecca Brown. A return to Meyer in 2021 has seen Harbin made enough progress to take on 5* competitions, the most difficult tier in the sport.

Harbin is quite closely related to Gamut, seen here being pushed out by Kieren Fallon in the 2004 Grand Prix de Saint-CloudCredit: Aprh

Meyer, who competed for the New Zealand team in the 2008 Olympic Games, was pleased with Harbin's dressage score of 40.4, which leaves him work to do in catching the leaders but a decent performance in Saturday's cross-country leg should entitle him to a respectable finish after the showjumping on Sunday.

"I thought he actually really well pretty well for him, he's been marginal in his changes and apparently they weren't too bad," Meyer said. "He's a pretty hot, fizzy horse, the walk is always hard for us but he's just got better and better, he's a real trier."

Harbin entered 5* league when a fine 14th in the equivalent event in Kentucky last year and Meyer is enjoying the ride with him.

"It was all luck," he said. "He was with Terry White and then my wife sold him to Rebecca, she passed him into me, and so it's just been like that. I love having a thoroughbred, to be honest.

"It's just awesome to be here, his connections wanted to come and we've been to a lot of cool events in the States. If you've got a horse and can come to something like this, why not."

The odd retrained racehorse has done well at Badminton in the past including Arctic Soul, a son of Luso who also raced in Ireland and was third in 2016. Although Meyer reports Harbin to be "quite neurotic" in personality, they have formed a trusting partnership.

Joe Meyer with Harbin, the former Irish racehorse who has reached the top level in eventingCredit: @joemeyereventing Instagram

"He's very much like an overachiever," he said. "He tries very hard and when he doesn't want to do something it's…no. We've worked out a way around him, you've just got to know how to handle him."

Saturday's cross-country, which attracts a six-figure crowd and is one of the world's most attended sporting events, is thought to be of a particularly daunting design this time around, over four miles and 32 different obstacles including lakes and big ditches to negotiate.

"There's a lot of them, aren't there," Meyer said when asked about the fences. "It's not, like, horrendous but there's plenty of mistakes to be made!

"There's some kind ones too, so that's good. It's not completely in your face the whole time, but it's big and it's Badminton."

There are leading racing connections right at the top of the leaderboard already in JL Dublin, a member of the gold medal-winning Great British Olympic team in Paris for Tom McEwen who is part-owned by trainer Mark Johnston's wife Deirdre and Oliver Townend's Cooley Rosalent, an Irish Sport Horse who is out of the Borders National-winning Roselier mare Bellaney Jewel.

Goffs London Sale 2025

'He's just got better and better' - ex-racehorse Harbin switching saddles for Badminton challenge

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