Riding On Vacation: Langkawi, Malaysia and Cambodia

At Perdana Stables, Langkawi
with my guide Abu Ubaidah

Finding a good place to go riding on the road isn't difficult these days.  Horses are expensive to keep and as real estate prices rise dud establishments don't hang around long.  Although I don't own a horse myself anymore and only ride when on vacation, I like a quality mount.  It's not that I need the thrill of galloping full speed, it's just not fun if I feel bad for the horse and think I should be carrying him home.
If you have worked with horses professionally you know the kind of poor animals I mean.  You often see them on the beaches in places like Mexico, Costa Rica and the Caribbean.  They stand fully tacked-up in the sun all day waiting for overweight tourists with no experience to come along and gallop them as fast as they can go.  The horses are skinny and exhausted and return heaving with heart rates in the danger zone.  This is a distressing sight.
Recently I walked out of a resort where the horses were skin and bone.  They were kicking their feed bins at 8:00 am. in the morning and some pinned their ears as I approached.  They hadn't been fed and food obviously wasn't coming.  They were eating their own small, tight, hard droppings of manure.  The woman, an expat, who managed the barn said she has been away on vacation and blamed her staff of local guys for not taking care of the horses properly.  I was willing to bet she hadn't left a check for the feed merchant or anyone else before she left.  Telling her the horses were all in poor condition and I couldn't feature the stable on my blog wasn't easy.  Since I'd driven a long way out of town it was dissappointing but in my gut was glad I'd stood up and said no, it was the right thing to do and the first time it had happened to me.
For the reasons mentioned I am usually skeptical when I see any stable near a beach resort that offers trail rides.  The Perdana Stables, near Seven Wells Waterfall on Langkawi Island, Malaysia was not that kind of place and has nothing but well earned five star reviews on Tripadvisor.  A serious and professional, family run ranch, I was pleasantly surprised when I dropped in early one morning to check it out before booking anything.

Treadmill

There was a horse working at an incline on a treadmill being monitored by a young man.  You don't often see that at riding schools.  I walked to the back of the barn looking for the office telling stable hands I was interested in riding.  A handsome, fit man wearing a farriers apron directed me to the office.  I later learnt he was the owner and managing director, Muhammad Hamzah Abdulla.  Real horsemen shoe their own horses, and I was impressed.  Naturally I scoped out the condition of the horses on the way in.  A woman was giving a child a private lesson in a covered round yard.  I could tell everyone had been working in the barn for a couple of hours at least before I arrived, that's a good sign and I was ready to ride immediately. The young man, turned out to be the owner's son Abu Ubaidah, and had the treadmill horse in a wash bay when I came out.  He was reading its heart rate.  A big believer in heart rate monitoring, I was a fan already.
The Adulla's not only operate a purebred Arabian stud farm but compete internationally in endurance racing.

Heart Rate Monitor

Their Arabian Stallion

The barn had large airy stalls open to yards on the backside due to the hot, humid climate.  By the time I grabbed some cash from the car and signed the usual papers my mount was saddled.  I hadn't specifically asked for an Arabian because I was saving that for a Dubai dessert ride but this would have been the place. They gave me an Argentinian Criollo which was fine because I know the breed well from having managed strings of polo ponies.  I admire them greatly as they are long suffering and will take just about anything.  It was a pleasure looking after them in Indio, Palm Desert, California and in the Hamptons, Long Island.  The first work visa I obtained was as a polo groom and those horses taught me more than any others ever have. When there is only one of you and 7 of them in a string, you need to work together not at odds.  You soon learn their pecking order and how they think.  They teach you that whispering is not a pile of dung.  The Criolle, is much like the Australian stock horse so the leap wasn't too hard.  They get their sure-footedness from being born on the range and running with the herd until they're about three, developing lots of their natural instincts which is what makes them so good at polo. Unfortunately not many are handled by whispers and tend to shut off from people.  If you walk through the polo barns they usually pin their ears and turn their heads away having been mistreated.

The Polo Club Long Island, New York 1993

My ride Benga was nice.  Abu Ubaidah mounted an Arabian he used in endurance races and we set off through a little bit of jungle to the beach.  We came across some water buffalo foraging in thick but frightened them before I could get a picture.  Riding on the beach is the one thing I really miss about Australia as we used to train our thoroughbred racehorses on the beach; first galloping on the firm sand near the water and then swimming them to get some cardio work and cool off.  They would come out and flop down in the white sand to roll on a long lead, then jump up squealing and kicking, those were the best days of my life.

The day was hazy and the tourists not yet up so the beach was empty and great for riding.  Abu Ubaidah named after a companion to the prophet Muhammad, expressed a desire to compete in the United Arab Emirates one day as they are famous for endurance racing.  On January 11, Dubai hosted the HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Endurance Cup, an event I regret not having stayed to see.

I recommend Perdana Stables: www.langkawi-islandhorses.com

On the trail ride at Perdana Stables

Riding In Cambodia
I wish now that I had known about The Happy Ranch Horse Farm in Siem Reap, Angkor, the Kingdom of Cambodia long before leaving for Langkawi.  I found their brochure late in my stay and they couldn't fit me in. I like to experience different local breeds such as an Andalusian in Spain, an Arabian in UAE and a Gypsy Cob I thoroughly enjoyed riding in Scotland.  Happy Ranch offers a regional type horse.  I'd never heard of a Cambodian horse or pony, as it is generally a small, hard working farm animal.  However on the "Breeds Currently Recorded On The Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources "  Cambodia does show a horse but indicates having received no population data for the breed.  It is being crossed with bigger imported horses, supposedly some Arabians, and maybe at risk of being bred out.  The pony requires limiting the amount of weight carried and 'everyone wants a bigger horse,' for many tourists it is essential. The HRHF horses are between 13 to 15 hands high.

I didn't personally visit The Happy Ranch Horse Farm but these are pictures of the same type of horses which I saw at the ruins.  They look interesting and I love smaller horses.

The Happy Ranch trail ride journeys through rural villages, a great way to see the authentic Khmer lifestyle. Mr. Sary Pann started the ranch when he returned to Cambodia to retire.  He had escaped the Pol Pot regime and moved to California for 30 years where he developed a love for horses.
I never knew there was a Cambodian type of horse or even if it was a breed but I'm always pleased to see someone keeping a unique strain alive.  The horses looked well cared for in the brochure and websites and the trails offered sound simple marvelous: traditional villages, rice fields, lotus flower ponds and temple ruins away from the crowds of tourists.

 

Ankor Wat Ruins

I'm just glad to learn there is such a thing as a Cambodian horse.  The country has been a long time in recovery from civil war but well, well worth a visit.  If I ever get back I will be checking out HRHF first thing, it also has nothing but five star reviews on Tripadvisor.

The Happy Ranch Horse Farm: info@thehappyranch.com  Look it up on youtube too.
Pictures of the ruins.