SHORELINE — Sydell “Sis” Polin recently returned from the United Arab Emirates, which took her two traveling days’ to reach.
Quite the feat, considering the excursion was not exactly a vacation.
The destination was where the 42-year resident saw her son-in-law, former Lake Forest Park resident Dennis Summers, compete for the United States Equestrian Federation at the 2005 FEI World Endurance Championship on Jan. 27.
Her daughter, Susan Summers, a Shorewood High School graduate, who also competes actively in endurance racing, was part of his crew.
“They said they would go there to race,” Polin said. “And I said I would go too.”
The competition was held at the newly built Dubai International Endurance City in Dubai, UAE, where Polin stayed in a beach resort for 10 days. Her daughter and son-in-law were housed in a bungalow, two miles from the resort.
Polin’s youngest daughter, Susan Summers, 45, has been involved in endurance racing for about 20 years. Judges do not evaluate who is the quickest rider in endurance racing, Polin said, but evaluate the condition of the horse, who is monitored between each lap.
A year ago, Polin’s daughter told her that she and her husband, Dennis Summers, also 45, wanted to qualify for the United States Equestrian Federation to compete in United Arab Emirates.
When both made the team, Polin’s daughter and son-in-law drove from their home in Gifford, Wash., with their two horses, to a training camp in Florida. They left in November and remained in Florida for six weeks.
The horses were then shipped from Florida to New Jersey, where they were kept for 30 hours, then flown to New York, where they boarded a cargo plane for the trip to United Arab Emirates.
The United States Equestrian Federation team was eventually whittled down from the initial 15 members. The four teams and two individuals who represented the U.S. in the World Endurance Championship was named prior to the race, and the remainder were to compete at the President’s Cup on Feb. 17, in which Polin’s daughter competed.
“She is a well-known endurance rider, someone said she is an icon in the Northwest,” Polin said about her daughter. “It is also unusual to have a husband and wife team.”
Polin flew from Seattle to London to United Arab Emirates, which took her two days traveling. Once she arrived, Polin said she was “entertained royally.” At the welcoming party, held in the desert, there were carpets on the desert floor, cushions next to low tables, and plenty of food.
The FEI World Endurance Championship started in the dark, Polin said. She was able to discern which rider was her son-in-law because his horse was white and most others were black, and also because after each lap he would jump off the horse and run to the check-in post beside his horse.
During the 100-mile race, riders must bring in their horses to be evaluated after each of six laps.
“My son-in-law did well until the fifth lap; the team did not do too well,” Polin said. “Of 185 riders, 41 finished.”
Polin said it was unusual for competitors to have relatives present at the race, since spectators cannot actually see the race, but can only view the horse and rider when they stop for evaluations.
“It is not exactly a spectator sport,” Polin said. “There were not even very many families, but mostly the people involved.”
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