Posted on 04/27/2008 4:01:39 AM PDT by Help!
snip ...Frodo Baggins hit fence 5, the Flower Basket, at high speed and had a rotational fall. The course was held for an hour and a half while Ashker was stabilized, and she was airlifted to the University of Kentucky Hospital. She has sustained injuries but is conscious and able to move her extremities. She is being cared for by the emergency and trauma services at UK. Vets attended to Frodo Baggins for some time, and he was transported off the course to Hagyard Equine Medical Institute just across Ironworks Pike from the Kentucky Horse Park [later euthanized]
snip
Heidi White and Northern Spy, who’d been in second place. They went easily around the course until the final water complex, the Duck Marsh, where White met the fourth of the ducks with too much pace. Northern Spy scrambled over, decapitating the duck, and White fell, although she remounted and finished and is in 31st.
Corinne Ashton and Dobbin had been in fifth place, but Ashton fell at the second duck in the final water complex. According to announcer Nigel Casserley, Ashton was having some sort of tack malfunction that might have contributed to her fall.
Tara Ziegler fell from Buckingham Place when he only cleared the first rail of the open corner at fence 16, the Double Diamonds. Buckingham Place then decided to jump out of the diamond, and Ziegler remounted, but was later eliminated
snip
The final three riders of the day—Dutton, Martin and Bradley—had a long hold while Ashker and Frodo Baggins were attended to. When Martin finally took to the course, he had a fall of his own at the brush into the Head of the Lake. Although he stood up and walked off, he did not remount.
(Excerpt) Read more at chronofhorse.com ...
Laine Ashker sustained injuries but was conscious, talking and able to move all extremities. Ashker has a fractured vertebrae and lost teeth
Her horse Frodo Baggins was given intravenous fluids and supportive medications for shock and pain. Further tests showed that Frodo Baggins had sustained a fracture at the base of his skull, as well as severe lung injury. As the prognosis was very poor, a representative of the family concurred that euthanasia was the most humane option for the horse.
Ashker, age 24, had earned her red coat as a member of the US international team was was thought headed for the Olympics.
I heard of this horse. I went looking and found he was a black thoroughbred from New Zealand, and was the main Dark Rider’s horse in the Lord of the Rings.
From an article “Frodo is a 16.2 hand black New Zealand Thoroughbred. He was purchased five years ago by my supportive mother and grandmother after I saw three pictures of him over the internet and realized that I’d always wanted a New Zealand Thoroughbred! Although Frodo had never done a stitch of eventing in New Zealand, he was no stranger to success and more importantly, vast audiences. As I soon discovered, Frodo was the main Dark Rider’s horse in the first of the blockbusters, The Lord of the Rings. In addition to filming the movie over a course of eight months, he also paraded around New Zealand for fans, met the prime minister of New Zealand, and even walked down the red carpet at the premiere of the film with Elijah Woods himself!”
She must be so incredibly sad about this.
Within the last year Laine Ashker lost not only this horse, but also her horse Eight Saint James Place staggered and then fell over and died almost instantly while being vetted after completing XC at Jersey Fresh last year under very hot and humid conditions) http://www.laineashker.blogspot.com/
http://laineashker.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2007-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2008-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=32
In addition, her good friend Eleanor Brennan, age 21, died as a result of injuries sustained in a fall on cross-country at the Florida International 3-Day Event and Ocala Fall Horse Trials at the Florida Horse Park in Ocala, Florida during the past year. It was a misjudgement in striding at the second to last jump on the CCI**. Her horse, Mister Barnabus, was also fatally injured. The horse was fine and jumping well before the accident. With the distace to the jump that they found, he wasn’t able to get his legs out of the way. It was a rotational fall and then the horse fell on the rider.) http://www.eleanorbrennaneventing.com/)
Here is a link to a pic of him.
http://rk3de.com/photo_gallery_photo_view.php?id=521
Gee, only three more and she'll be an ace!
This sport is particularly hard on horses. Why can't they just show them in the ring like the saddlebred folks do?
But trophies are nice and if you have enough money, horses are like dorritos - they'll always make more.
Dang... sounds like a bad day at the Rolex.
The cross country phase of eventing IS very dangerous, you only have to take a look at the jumps to see that. They’re big, solid, and often have deep coffins under them.
Haven’t found pictures yet of the particular jumps or horses&riders involved here.
The part about the horse appearing in LoTR adds another element. http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080426/SPORTS/80426015
May Laine Ashker recover well, and may Frodo Baggins rest in peace.
Help... this quote is not from that link. Can you respost the source for this?
The link at the top is Chronical of the Horse which is where the snip comes from.
I just posted a link below to the Louiville paper reference due to copyright concerns.
Don’t get me started on the saddlebreds.
Wearing “high heel platform shoes” and all.
Actually I have many friends who do eventing.
My daughter did it some when in Pony Club.
That siad, it does take a horse of iron to compete at
the **** (4-star) level.
No - the update that the horse was euthanized is not in that original article either.
Which place did you get that from?
Here is the link to the virtual course walk for
Kentucky Horse Park - Rolex.
http://www.rk3de.org/virtual_course.php
When the map comes up you can click on each number
to see the actual jump.
Not sure if this is the original, but here is a link to the news from Chronicle of the horse:
http://www.chronofhorse.com/index.php?cat=40511032791602&News_ID=1132704083135808
“Further tests showed that Frodo Baggins had sustained a fracture at the base of his skull, as well as a severe lung injury. As the prognosis was very poor, a representative of the family concurred that euthanasia was the most humane option for the horse.”
They have also euthanized Quiet Man who was also injured in a fall at Rolex:
“Upon re-examination, the veterinarians discovered more damage to the right front shoulder than previously thought. “There were several pieces of the fracture, and it was determined that the prognosis was poor for athletic performance or comfort, and they made the decision for humane euthanasia, which was performed this morning,” Kohn said.”
http://www.chronofhorse.com/index.php?cat=40511032791602&News_ID=1132704083920683
Here is the “rest of the story” on Quiet Man
http://www.chronofhorse.com/index.php?cat=1211404080896588&ShowArticle_ID=1132704083231920
The Quiet Man, ridden by Sarah Hansel, was injured in a fall over Fence 13 (the Footbridge) on cross-country. The horse fell on the landing side of the fence and was lame in the right front leg.
The Quiet Man was transported by horse ambulance to Hagyard Equine Medical Institute. X-rays showed that the horse had sustained a fracture of the right distal scapula.
Dr. Catherine Kohn announced today, April 27, that specialists at the Hagyard Equine Medical Institute had re-examined Sarah Hansel’s mount The Quiet Man, who was injured in a fall on cross-country at the Rolex Kentucky CCI**** on April 26.
Upon re-examination, the veterinarians discovered more damage to the right front shoulder than previously thought. “There were several pieces of the fracture, and it was determined that the prognosis was poor for athletic performance or comfort. They made the decision for humane euthanasia, which was performed this morning,” Kohn said.
Apparently the rider was more injured than earlier reported:
Equestrian, Olympic Hopeful Severely Injured In Crash
‘Lord Of The Rings” Horse Euthanized
http://www.wesh.com/sports/16037285/detail.html
OCALA, Fla. — An equestrian rider who made Ocala, Fla., her practice area was injured Saturday when her horse ran into a fence at the Rolex Three-Day Event in Lexington, Ky.
Laine Ashker, 24, suffered collapsed lungs, multiple broken ribs, a badly broken jaw, and a broken clavicle and scapula.
snip
Laine was airlifted from the Kentucky Horse Park to the University of Kentucky hospital, where she was in critical condition Monday afternoon, according to her Web site, http://laineashker.blogspot.com/.
“Our first concern is still [Laine’s] damaged lungs and restoring adequate respiratory function to them,” a posting dated 1 p.m. Monday said. “We are happy to report improvement on that front; although Laine is still breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.”
It added that the next procedure will be to reset her broken jaw.
“Given the degree and complexity of the fracture, it is going to be a difficult operation,” Monday’s posting said. “So, that is our next big hurdle.”
“There’s been no other thing but horses in Laine’s life,” her mother Valerie Ashker said. “She loves them.”
Valerie, who was at the Rolex Three-Day, said watching the accident was extremely difficult.
“It was probably one of the worst things you could imagine feeling, to watch your child in that state, and you be helpless,” Valerie said.
In an early April interview, Laine admitted that she participates in a dangerous sport, but said that she did not let fear keep her from her passion.
“You never want to think about what can happen because then you ride like that,” she said. “Then those things happen when you ride panicked, when you ride with fear.”
Fall of Laine Ashker and Frodo Baggins
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mU0Gv9DoBg
The person who falls off in this one was Heidi White
who broke her arm.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZJWAK3EVOc
There is a new story and still pic of the fall here:
http://www.kentucky.com/254/story/389828.html
Very scary
Thanks... that is a scary picture. Don’t have time to watch the videos this morning and not sure I want to.... but thanks for posting... I’ll think about it tonight.
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