Courses for horses

By early afternoon, the temperature had climbed to a sweltering 36 C, and all laborers on the future site of the Olympic equestrian course - people and horses alike - were drenched in sweat.

In just over a month, a 56,000-sq-m golf course in Hong Kong near the Beas River will have been transformed into a state-of-the-art equestrian cross-country course, and a work of supreme artistry.

This afternoon, David Evans, an experienced British course builder, was busy carving fanciful shapes into shoulder-high blocks of wood: pandas, frogs, dragons and rats. These figurines will become part of the fences used in the cross-country course.

Evans, 43, was wielding a chain saw and wearing boots and heavy leggings, despite the afternoon heat.

He stopped for a moment to examine and explain his work.

"I try to incorporate a little bit of local culture into my designs. For example, this is the Chinese Year of the Rat, so we have rats, and of course, dragons and pandas."

He said he was now applying the "finishing touches", but his consideration of local culture had begun far earlier - from the initial selection of materials. "We used plenty of bamboo," he says, "which is a celebrated local building material."

A giant wooden frog squatted not far from the first water jump looked like it was ready to spring forward at any moment. Evans carefully transforms utilitarian fences into objects that resemble site-specific art installations.

Elsewhere on the course, his longtime partner of 20 years, British course designer Michael Etherington-Smith, was giving a tour of the course to a group of reporters from a German TV station.

Etherington-Smith, 53, is so far the only cross-country course designer to officiate at two Olympic Games - Sydney 2000 and Beijing 2008.

He says that his work is both utilitarian and distinctive.

"It's like painting - every painter has got his or her personal style which is hard to describe through words but is instantly recognizable."

He has made seven separate trips to Hong Kong to oversee the construction of the Olympic course, and prowled the length of the field dozens of times to carefully inspect the topography. "With all that undulating terrain, the course is visually fascinating," he says.

The more technical aspects of Etherington-Smith's craft may not be apparent to television audiences, but they will make a great difference to the athletes competing on the field.

"We have designed the route to maximize the use of tree shade. The competition will be held either in early morning or in late afternoon, and the shade will be much longer at that time than now," he says.

Another tiny detail that could impact the horses' performance is evident in the design of the water jump. Water reflects sunlight, which could harm the horses' eyes.

"We calculated the angle of the sunlight at that particular time of the day, and we try to picture which way the horses will jump into the water," the designer says. "Then we place the jumps to avoid sunlight getting into the eyes of the horses."

The biggest challenge for the two, as well as the horses when they come to Hong Kong in early August, is the weather. "If it's not the heat, then it's 45 inches of rain," says the designer, referring to the prolonged downpour in mid-June that was reportedly the heaviest in Hong Kong in 100 years.

To prepare the surface of the equestrian course, the entire expanse of the field has been dug up from 80 cm above. Extensive drainage systems were installed, and any rainwater will be channeled to the sea through underground pipes.

Both men draw upon their extensive experience as riders to inform their craftsmanship.

Evans began riding at the age of 9, and trained competitively for a decade.

Etherington-Smith started riding at 14 and competed professionally for a dozen years.

"I had been riding regular horses and bad horses. And I know the physical capabilities of different types of horses," Etherington-Smith says.

These lessons have been put to good use in the design of the Olympic course.

"My design will provide enough of a test for the top riders and horses, while at the same time offering an opportunity to those who are less experienced, or are simply not having a great day," he says.

The partnership between the two men goes back 20 years.

Both hail from the United Kingdom. The designer comes from the middle of England, near Banbury; the builder lives just outside of Oxford.

According to Etherington-Smith, the duo first met in an event that Evans' father ran. "At the time I was looking for someone to do the course building, and I found Dave who had everything I asked for."

Both men say their aim now is to deliver the whole package - an Olympic equestrian cross-country course that is both fantastic to use and appealing to spectators and television viewers.

"I've been trying to integrate the main features of the land into my design, to give it a natural, good flow," Etherington-Smith says.

Meanwhile, Evans' idiosyncratic carvings are the bright threads on Etherington-Smith's expansive green tapestry.

"Dave and I, we are basically in a team relationship," says Etherington-Smith. Then he adds, half-jokingly, "Although, I still have the final decision."

(China Daily 07/07/2008 page8)