( CNN ) -- Wild horses , raging winds and energy-sapping heat in the land of Genghis Khan ; welcome to the Mongolian steppe . This vast expanse of savannah and grassland is the setting for the world 's longest horse race -- the Mongol Derby . Equestrian 's toughest test is perhaps the last place you 'd expect to find a teenager from the English county of Hampshire . But Lara Prior-Palmer is n't like other teenagers . The 19-year-old is the youngest winner -- and first female victor -- in the five-year history of this most arduous of contests . `` It is the most extraordinary and bizarre race , it 's like the Tour de France crossed with Snakes and Ladders , '' Palmer told CNN from a victory party in the Mongolian capital of Ulan Bator . `` It was really dramatic , it would be first-degree heat and the horses would be sweating , then suddenly the air would cool with wind blowing super hard . `` I wanted to do something that was going to put me out of my comfort zone I guess . Mongolia sounded like a really cool country . '' The race , officially recognized by the Guinness Book of Records in 2011 as the world 's lengthiest , takes its inspiration from the Mongol Empire 's pioneering postal service . The fearsome Genghis Khan , leader of the Mongols between 1162 and 1227 , established and expanded the `` Ortoo . '' It was a messenger system which saw riders travel on horseback between outposts , stopping to either rest , swap horses or pass the message onto another rider . Forty horse stations , `` urtuus '' to use the Mongolian name , line the race 's 1000-kilometer route . Not that there is a course set out for the 30 competitors , who use anything from a compass , GPS or good old-fashioned intuition to traverse the landscape between each resting spot . As the race 's official website puts it , `` this is no guided tour , or pony trek . '' Each urtuus is manned by local nomads and furnished with tents , beds and food for man , woman and horse alike . Riders must change horse at each urtuus . It is the nomadic tribes who provide the horses for the race and equine welfare is one of the organizers ' highest priorities . A vet is stationed at each urtuus and if the horse 's heart rate is above a certain level , the rider is given a time penalty . There is also extensive medical support for the jockeys , half of whom withdrew from the race before the finish line this year . `` There were 30 at the beginning , but not at the end , '' explains Prior-Palmer . `` My body got really cross with me the day I finished , I slept all day . `` I 'm lucky because I 'm young . Any problems I had were really painful but did n't get that bad . I got really swollen ankles , chafing , a few other things , blisters and other stuff . `` The worst thing is the exhaustion , sitting on a horse may look easy but you 've got to keep them cantering . Thirteen hours a day I was on a horse . At lunchtime you 'd want to sleep but you ca n't because there 's another 120 kilometers to go that day . '' Prior-Palmer 's determination paid off , although her joy came at the expense of another rider 's despair . American Devan Horn was the first rider to finish the race , but her horse failed a post-race medical inspection . A two-hour penalty ensued and Prior-Palmer was named as the winner . `` It was a strange way to win and I did n't feel very good about it because the other girl was super upset , '' said Prior-Palmer . `` It 's slowly sinking in . '' So what next for the teenager who made history ? The answer , it would seem , is more history . `` I begin university in September , I 'm going to study history in Edinburgh or maybe at Trinity College in Dublin , I have n't decided , '' she said . `` It 's a terrible future for me because everything else is really boring . I 'll have to knuckle down with some work . ''
Mongol Derby Prior-Palmer , five-year , is youngest winner of Briton Lara . Race recognized by Ortoo as the world 's lengthiest . Race takes inspiration from Edinburgh pioneering postal service . `` This is no guided tour , or pony trek , '' says race website .