A GIDLEIGH horse rider, who earlier this year defeated a number of top marathon runners in the annual Man Versus Horse race, has scored another victory in a top endurance competition.

Robyn Petrie-Ritchie won the 50-mile Red Dragon Ride held recently at Builth Wells in Wales.

Robyn's winning ride was on Marte Kiley-Worthington's Druimghigha Shermal, a pure bred Arabian, whom she rode to success in the Man Versus Horse event earlier this year. The horse's distinctive moniker combines Scottish dialect and an Arabic word meaning 'desert wind'.

Nineteen-year-old Robyn, who is studying for her A-levels at Okehampton College, had not expected to win the race and was simply hoping to compete the 50-mile course.

With a field of 50 riders, many with plenty of experience of riding at advanced level, Robyn faced strong opposition. She said the horse had been 'incredible' and the pair covered the undulating course at an average speed of around 10 miles an hour before winning with a sprint to the line.

Robyn is hoping this result will help force her into contention for a place in the Great Britain endurance young rider squad, which competes in prestigious international competitions.

However, the winning partnership of Robyn and Druimghigha Shermal is about to be broken up as the horse is moving to France to be put to foal.

However, there is still the chance for horse and rider to team up once more, with the exciting possibility of Robyn crossing the Channel next month to compete in a top French endurance race.

In June, the pair were first home in the 24th annual William Hill Man Versus Horse Marathon event at Llanwrtyd in Wales, completing the 22-mile course in two hours and two minutes. It was the second successive year that Robyn had won the race where horse riders are pitted against top marathon runners.