A girl. A free horse. One impossible race.
Sanoma Blakeley grew up on horses. She completed her first 25-mile endurance race at seven years old, her first 50-mile race at eight, and her first Tevis Cup at twelve — the minimum age allowed to enter. Winning it was always the dream. But dreams don't come cheap, and champions aren't supposed to look like Sanoma.
Goober — an Arabian horse acquired for free on Craigslist — was hardly anyone's idea of a champion. Wild, spirited, and full of personality, he had a habit of opening gates to let all the horses loose in the nearby town. But Sanoma's family took him in, and over years of patient training he became a family favorite and a remarkable competitor with extraordinary heart. Sanoma describes their bond as almost like siblings.
The Tevis Cup is not a race. It's a survival test. One hundred miles through the Sierra Nevada — over 19,000 feet of elevation gain, three steep grueling canyons, crossing the shoulder-high American River — all within 24 hours. Frequent vet checks can pull a horse from the race at any moment. To finish is to win. To win is something else entirely.
After 16 hours, Sanoma and Goober were sprinting all-out under a black sky — neck and neck with a three-time champion of the race.
In the end, Sanoma finished about a horse length ahead, galloping across the finish line at 5:15 in the morning — becoming the youngest female Tevis Cup champion in history. She was 18 years old. The story made CNN and dozens of outlets worldwide.
The horse cost nothing. The dream was worth everything.