Harness racer Crystal Hackett has emerged relatively unscathed, but now an internet sensation, after her heroics at Auckland's Alexandra Park over the weekend.
Hackett had just guided debutant Buddy Guy to victory in race eight on the card on Friday, when the two-year-old spooked and bolted, tipping the driver from her sulky and dragging her along the ground for several seconds, until she could regain control.
Footage of her ordeal took social media by storm, but Hackett assured Checkpoint both she and the horse were none the worse for wear - except for her badly grass-stained racing pants.
"I was a bit stiff the next day," she said. "I had a few aches and pains, but you just get moving and they've gone away now.
"Very lucky I'm young and bounce back quickly.
"Buddy's fine, he came through it well. He wouldn't even know it happened, he's happy out in the paddock being a horse - he's good as gold."
Hackett explained hanging onto the reins was part of her training to ensure the loose horse did not cause damage to himself or those around him.
"With the sulky behind the horse, it's just another thing that the horse can get caught on, if they get loose," she said. "If he got loose and ran out the gate, the sulky could hook on the fence and get stuck, and he hurts himself.
"It's mainly a safety precaution for the horse and it's easier to stop the horse, if you've still got hold of the reins."
The incident occurred as they headed back to scale after their race victory and Buddy Guy caught sight of the clerk-of-the-course's horse.
"I felt him have a look at that horse and duck sideways, and thought, 'Oh, this isn't good'," Hackett recalled. "The sulky kicked up and I thought, 'Oh, this really isn't good'.
Crystal Hackett was dragged for several seconds by Buddy Guy, but emerged relatively unscathed. Photo: Trackside
"The clerk-of-the-course usually catches the runaway horses, so I knew, if I let go, there was no way we would catch Buddy Guy.
"I had to just keep hanging on, which is what we're taught to do at a young age - hang on as tight as you can for as long as you can, as long as no-one's going to get hurt."
Hackett was no stranger to this predicament - she was also dragged during a race at Hawera in January.
Miraculously, not only did she escape harm on this occasion, she went on to win the very next race with Maro Mackendon.
"It ended up being quite a good night at the office."
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