IN an astonishing come-from-behind effort, Mildura's Robert Scobie came within centimetres of claiming gold at the National Pony Racing Series in Randwick, Sydney over the weekend.
Wet conditions were less than ideal for Scobie and his gelding Darcy, who despite slipping at the beginning of the race came home extremely strong to finish second to Queensland's Emilia Savage, who led from the start on Aspen in the 650 metre race.
"From the jump, I thought I had no chance, but then we started to catch up and I knew we were in with a shot, Robert said.
"When we crossed the line, Emilia looked at me and asked if she'd won and I just shrugged my shoulders because I didn't know."
For the 14-year-old and his Australian Riding Pony, the high rainfall before and during the race proved to be a challenge.
Robert's mother Kerry said Darcy adjusted well to all the differences.
“In Mildura, we're used to such dry conditions, so Darcy really wasn't used to it, but he did really well," she said.
“Some training took place at the beach, so that was another surface and another challenge.
“We took a photo of that when a big jumbo jet flew by and he wasn't phased, just took it all in his stride."
To make it to this event, Scobie first raced at Moonee Valley last year on Cox Plate Eve.
In dry conditions, Scobie claimed first place, giving him an automatic entry to the prestigious event in Sydney.
With plenty of royalty in sight, Ms Scobie said she was quite awe-stricken, while Robert was a little less moved by the notoriety, but was still able to appreciate the magnitude of the event, which provided great insight into what goes on behind the scenes in professional horse racing.
“It's a great chance to get kids back into the industry and show them what's actually out there," Ms Scobie said.
“Even if Robert doesn't end up being a jockey, there's still all these amazing opportunities behind the scenes and that's what we got to see.
“The vet care, supplements, barrier attendants, strappers ... we went and had a look at Annabel Neasham's stables for every horse that she's got and there was two people.
“She had 120 horses in her stable including one of the king's horses, there's just so many people involved."
Neasham is widely renowned as one of the most influential trainers in the country.
Given he'd already worn Neasham's colours in Moonee Valley, Scobie was more than happy to don the same colours on the larger stage.
Mischievous and playful in nature, the Chaffey Secondary College student and Ms Scobie said training Darcy had taken a decent amount of effort.
“Probably one of the hardest horses to deal with because he's had previous owners ... sometimes he doesn't let me catch him, he runs laps, stops, stares and waits to see what I do," Robert said.
Ms Scobie said they'd trialled other events for Darcy before they'd landed at where they are now.
“He didn't like dressage and he really doesn't like show," she said.
“Not necessarily bred to go fast, but he likes to go fast ... we managed to find his niche."
