92 SIDELINES MARCH 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
E
V
E
N
T
I
N
G
Neville Bardos –
“Super” Horse of the Year
By Lauren R. Giannini
By now the name of this Australian Thoroughbred, who
failed as a racehorse and succeeded in the demanding
equestrian triathlon known as three-day eventing sounds
familiar: Neville Bardos, the 2011 USEF Horse of the Year
(HOTY), rose literally like the mythical Phoenix from the
devastating fre that held him captive for 45 minutes and
claimed the lives of six horses on Memorial Day last year at
True Prospect Farm (PA).
Boyd Martin rushed into the blazing barn and found
his horse barely alive, but still on his feet. Galvanized
by adrenaline, triggered by what could be described as a
desperately dangerous attempt to rescue a beloved horse,
Boyd dragged Neville out by his cribbing collar, helped
by Phillip Dutton. As strong as these two athletes are, it’s
a miracle that they managed to muscle more than one-
half ton of equine to safety; but they weren’t leaving that
doomed barn without the horse.
Neville Bardos had suffered severe trauma from smoke
and heat inhalation that damaged his breathing apparatus
from nostrils to lungs, as well as causing peripheral injuries.
From the rattle when he breathed, vets at New Bolton
weren’t sure that Neville would live. But there is something
about the heart of a horse, especially a Thoroughbred
with generations of speed and courage – perhaps it was
Neville’s quirky streak that made him act street tough, that
defant ‘oh yeah’ in the face of any authority that dares to
say, ‘so sorry but you can’t do this’…
Boyd Martin suspected that under the bluster there lurked
a world class horse; but even he had to feel staggered by
the indomitable will that Neville demonstrated as he defed
the New Bolton experts and started to heal more rapidly
than anyone imagined possible. Oh, there were trips to
the hyperbaric oxygen chamber and all sorts of therapeutic
treatments; but the fact is that this horse wanted to get well.
He wanted to go back to work and a bit over three months
later, this failed racehorse with ‘tude put in yet another
world class performance to claim seventh place at the Land Rover
Burghley CCI**** where he blasted his way into everyone’s hearts
by owning that testing cross-country course.
Horse of the Year… absolutely!
Horse and rider: It takes two to tango with four-stars.
Neville Bardos and Boyd Martin, USA, walk through the turn for
the return jog during the all important veterinary inspection the
day before three-day eventing started at the 2010 Alltech World
Equestrian Games at Kentucky Horse Park
All photos by Lauren R. Giannini
Neville and
Boyd fnished
10th, the
best of the
Americans,
jumped double
clear rounds
on the cross-
country and
show jumping
courses at the
2010 World
Equestrian
Games
Champions: Neville Bardos and Boyd Martin at 2009 Fair
Hill International ran clear on the championship cross-country
undaunted by the rain and gloppy mud at Neville’s frst three-
star - and won. In April 2010, Neville fnished fourth in his four-
star debut at Rolex Kentucky, ran double clear at 2010 WEG,
survived the deadly fre in May 2011 and three months later the
miracle super horse ran 7th at Burghley