Sitting about two metres off the ground with little to keep her from falling but a camel’s hump and a whole lot of trust, Katie Higgins knows a lot can change in a year.
Rewind 12 months and the idea of getting up close and personal with a camel was terrifying for the Dubai resident.
But today Ms Higgins, 29, is part of the UAE’s first all-female camel racing team.
Riding her trusted camel Jebel Ali, Ms Higgins competed in the first Female Camel Racing Series C1 Championship at Al Marmoom Camel Racing Track two weeks ago – less than 10 months after she rode a camel for the first time.
From an absolute fear of camels to complete adoration, it’s been the best experience of my life
Katie Higgins,
camel jockey
“It’s honestly mad to think where I’m at today,” she told The National.
“From an absolute fear of camels to complete adoration, it’s been the best experience of my life.
“I remember one time I was driving home from the beach and there was this camel mum and her baby. We had fruit in the car and they came right up to us and stuck their heads in the window.
"I was petrified and threw the fruit to shoo them away.
“Now, here I am sitting on a camel nearly every weekend making friends with them. They have such individual personalities.”
Crossing the finishing line fourth out of eight female riders, the Irish art teacher now has her sights set on a win when she gets back on the saddle on November 26.
Riding centre to train female camel jockeys
The Arabian Desert Camel Riding Centre, near Al Marmoom Heritage Village in Dubai, opened its doors in January and is described as the UAE's first licensed centre for camel riding, training and race preparation.
The centre, owned by Obaid Al Falasi, is managed by Linda Krockenberger.
Soon after it opened, Ms Higgins and Ms Krockenberger set up the UAE’s first camel racing team made up solely of women.
“It all came about after a chance meeting on social media,” she said.
“I’ve lived here since 2016 and was planning to move back to Ireland after a whirlwind year due to Covid-19.
“One of the things I wanted to tick off my bucket list was to ride a camel in the desert, but a solo ride, not the kind you see at desert safaris for tourists.
“I found Linda on Instagram, sent her a message and it just spiralled from there.
“I had her first proper desert ride on a camel in January, posted some pictures on my Instagram page and got so much interest. That’s essentially how we set up the race team, pure word of mouth.”
While the centre accepts male students and holds mixed classes on certain days, its primary focus is on training a women's team to participate in heritage races across the country.
The races generally take place between October and March and are separate from the races involving robot or male jockeys.
Some of the eight women on the team had horse-riding experience, but most were completely new to the sport.
Now, they train most mornings and evenings and cover between eight and 12 kilometres in each session.
Riders travel at speeds of up to 45 kilometres an hour, with only a small handle for support and a stick to help direct the camel.
Ms Higgins reflected on a bumpy start to her first race.
“Looking back at the video, I could see my poor camel needed to go to the toilet right at the start line, so essentially that slowed him down,” she said.
“The race itself lasted about three to four minutes, it was on a straight track and it just went by so quickly.
“When they are running fast it feels like a horse canter, so if you move with the camel it can be smooth.
“Trotting is the hard part. You sway from side to side and it’s hard to get in the rhythm of your camel. I haven’t fallen off yet, though, so that’s a bonus.”
The sport is dominated by men and Ms Higgins said she initially had to deal with her fair share of “funny looks and cutting remarks”.
But now, 10 months into her newfound passion, she is slowly gaining respect.
“Traditionally, men train camels, feed camels, race camels, it’s not something women do. So it’s just about proving yourself and I think we have done that,” she said.
“The more they have seen us control these huge animals and hold our own with them, they have started to come around.
“When we pass men and their camels in the desert now, they smile at us and ask us questions, they’re curious.”
Ms Higgins said the team would need to be patient to compete against male riders.
“It will take a while until we get to that, but let’s tackle one step at a time," she said.
Destroyer
Director: Karyn Kusama
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Toby Kebbell, Sebastian Stan
Rating: 3/5
UAE release: January 31
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Match info:
Real Betis v Sevilla, 10.45pm (UAE)
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPAD%20PRO%20(12.9%22%2C%202022)
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Planes grounded by coronavirus
British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30
Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong
Ai Seoul: Suspended all flights to China
Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March
Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February
South Korea's Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air: Suspend all flights
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final second leg:
Juventus 1 Ajax 2
Ajax advance 3-2 on aggregate
ENGLAND WORLD CUP SQUAD
Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Manchester City (0) v Liverpool (3)
Uefa Champions League, quarter-final, second leg
Where: Etihad Stadium
When: Tuesday, 10.45pm
Live on beIN Sports HD
Company%20Profile
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RESULT
Valencia 3
Kevin Gameiro 21', 51'
Ferran Torres 67'
Atlanta 4
Josip Llicic 3' (P), 43' (P), 71', 82'
Mumbai Indians 213/6 (20 ov)
Royal Challengers Bangalore 167/8 (20 ov)
Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
