![\"Loafing](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20241215_014701750_iOS-1200x800.jpg\")
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Former racehorse Loafing, with longtime stable hand and now owner Lucy Bolton, trains for his new career in eventing. Photo: Britt Grovenor Photography.<\/p>\n
Competitions are never over for some retiring racehorses.<\/p>\n
Loafing, or Arnold when not wearing his racing colours, has been a mainstay of Thoroughbred Park for nearly five years. He\u2019s competed in 32 events, won three, finished as a placegetter four times, and tallied $66,000 prizemoney in the sport of kings.<\/p>\n
But after retiring, he\u2019s now on track to compete in a new discipline with long-term stable hand and now owner Lucy Bolton.<\/p>\n
For Lucy, getting to work with a horse she\u2019s known for so long is a privilege.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was lucky enough to work with Loafing his entire racing career in Canberra. I got to know his unique personality,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Lucy started her equine career working for Canberra trainer Keith Dryden when she was 17.<\/p>\n
She first met the galloper about five years ago. His good nature quickly won her over and he became her favourite. She even learned to gallop on him.<\/p>\n
After years of helping to look after Loafing, Lucy said Keith came to her about rehoming the gelding \u2013 an offer for which she was incredibly grateful.<\/p>\n
\u201cLearning to ride trackwork was pretty special. Then when he was going to retire as a racehorse, I was very lucky to be able to take him home with me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Now Arnold lives in a paddock in Lyons. And after being given a short spell by Lucy, he\u2019s started the hard yards training in eventing where horse and rider compete in dressage, cross-country and show jumping.<\/p>\n
![\"Loafing](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250814_221306171_iOS-1200x800.jpg\")
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Training a racehorse for a new discipline isn\u2019t an easy task, but it\u2019s rewarding says Lucy Bolton on board Arnold. Photo: Britt Grovenor Photography.<\/p>\n
Lucy said it made sense to take Arnold into eventing competitions because they already shared a bond.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe comes to me when I call, he enjoys being ridden, and physically he\u2019s looking great thanks to regular farrier visits and body work,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was such an amazing showcase for retired thoroughbreds and a special milestone for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arnold and Lucy competed in their first eventing competitions together recently in Harden and Wagga Wagga. And despite the unfamiliar discipline, performed well.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe placed 15 out of 30 \u2026 I was very pleased with the result. He was very calm in the new environment,\u201d Lucy said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a win that he was happy to go out there. Happy to do his dressage tests, he did a clear showjumping round and cantered around the cross-country course beautifully.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Loafing](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/image1-1.jpeg\")
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Arnold and Lucy all dressed up for dressage. Photo: Lucy Bolton.<\/p>\n
Retired racehorses might be disciplined animals, but rehoming or retraining them isn\u2019t always easy. Acclimatising them to new competitions or environments can be hard work.<\/p>\n
But Lucy seems confident her bond with Arnold will overcome those challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a big life change for the racehorse, going from stable 24\/7 to a completely new environment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cRacehorses get fed a lot of grain and high-energy feeds, so it takes their bodies a long time to adapt to the new life, the new place, the new feed.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a promising start to their eventing competitions, Lucy and Arnold\u2019s next challenge is scheduled for late October at the Canberra Horse Trials.<\/p>\n