The Championship is the oldest endurance ride in Australia, first established in the Hawkesbury district in 1966.

The ride’s aim is to commemorate colossal distances travelled by horses and riders to deliver mail, go to the doctor or lend assistance to those that lived on isolated properties before the overland telegraph and transport systems.

Gail Fisher, Sue Warren and Mette Sutton took two days to drive down with their horses, and in total six local riders tackled the challenging course.

The event began at midnight on Friday, and according to the riders on the trail when the sunlight finally broke the views from the second leg were magnificent – the trail looks over the Wirrina Cove Golf Resort, and the ocean.

Due to the mountainous terrains of the track on the Fleurieu Peninsula, and heavy rain just days before and even during the ride, the second leg was perhaps the most difficult of the event.

One rider reported that it felt like they, and their horse, were being pelted with golf balls as they traversed the second leg.

The worst weather came at the end of the third leg of the event however, as the track was exposed over hills coming off the mountain ranges.

The ride was finished in darkness on Saturday evening, around 10pm local time, with five of the six local riders and their horses successfully making the completion vet check.