I NEED a wider lens,” quipped race caller Will O’Keefe after Vintage Vinnie and Dan Nevin had jumped nine fences in last Saturday’s Maryland Hunt Cup having stormed clear of their eight rivals from the drop of the flag.

Things did not get any easier for O’Keefe from that point on in his bid to describe what effectively became two distinct contests for racegoers, as the pair further increased their advantage in the four-mile contest, so much so that they entered the home straight two fences clear of their pursuers, to ultimately prevail by no fewer than 112 lengths.

The success was certainly a spectacular way for the 20-year-old Nevin to introduce himself to a new American audience on what was his first competitive ride since crossing the Atlantic.

Irish amateurs have been in big demand in recent years in America with trainers there regularly turning to the point-to-point fields here as a rich source of riding talent, with the Kilkenny native following fellow point-to-point regulars such as Steven Clements, Roger Quinlan, Eddie Keating and Aaron Sinnott, who have been brought across the Atlantic for periods in recent years.

His own burgeoning career in the saddle had certainly been taking off on these shores this season before Covid intervened once again, as he benefitted from the support of Harley Dunne and Tom Power amongst others.

Look outside

However, like so many of his colleagues in the qualified riders ranks, a second interrupted season in succession forced him to look outside the point-to-point fields for more short-term opportunities, with Nevin’s own opening coming courtesy of American trainer Keri Brion during her recent high-profile stint in this country.

“Keri approached me in Ireland and gave me the opportunity to come over and I jumped at it,” explained Nevin who has partnered two winners point-to-pointing this season.

“When the opportunity came about there was no point-to-pointing taking place and I was only getting the odd ride here and there on the track, so I spoke to Harley (Dunne) about it and straight away he told me to go and do it.

“It was something that he had the chance to do before and he never did it and regrets it big time.

“I obviously spoke to Tom Power too and straight away he also said to go. To be fair to the two of them now they were very supportive of me coming over and it just seemed to be the right time to give it a go with the way things were with the point-to-points back home.”

He had already made his mind up before becoming a part of history at Cork racecourse at the beginning of last month when he guided Brion’s 25/1 shot Scorpion’s Revenge to become the first American-trained winner in the National Hunt sphere on Irish soil as they came home in front in the colours of leading owner Irvin Naylor – a success which was also a personal highlight for Nevin as it saw him open his account under rules.

“I flew out two days after I rode the winner for Keri, so it was a great start to the trip over here and also for the horse’s owners Mr and Mrs Naylor too who are a big part of racing over here. It really was the perfect start,” he added.

On American soil, the $60,000 Maryland Hunt Cup itself is one of the most prestigious races in National Hunt racing there.

Taking place over timber fences unique to America, some measuring five foot in height, the race has a rich history which stretches back to 1894 and has been won in the past by subsequent Aintree National heroes Ben Nevis and Jay Trump.

Remarkably, it was a first ride stateside for the Kilkenny rider as he added his name to the 123 previous winners of the coveted prize, with Brion again responsible for securing his ride aboard Vintage Vinnie for Joe Davies, the trainer who sent out the late Senior Senator to win three of the last four runnings of the race.

“Joe had been on to Keri about a month before I came over looking for an amateur and Keri said it to me when we were talking about coming over. There was nobody down to ride the horse so Keri put my name forward to him.“I went and schooled him on the Thursday before the race and Joe just said I could ride him. He was stuck for someone and I was over there so he used me while he could.”

Vintage Vinnie, who had started his career by winning his maiden point-to-point at Lingstown when under the care of Colin Bowe, blazed a trail in a performance which saw him smash the course record which had stood for almost two decades.

Tricky horse

“It was a funny one because he is a tricky horse and basically Joe (Davies) just told me to drop my hands and go out and enjoy it,” he explained having also received advice from another point-to-point regular from these shores, the now America-based Eddie Keating.

“Eddie met up with me on the Thursday after I schooled the horse and walked the track with me. He had ridden in the race twice before and finished second and third. He has good form around there and walking the track with him gave me a good confidence booster going out to ride.

“He told me exactly what to do, where I should be jumping the fences, where to get breathers into the horse, and I did exactly what he said.

“I was kind of going a bit too fast but that is the way to ride the horse he loves being ridden that way.

“I’m sure that the boys in behind thought that I was crazy going off at that speed but Joe knows what he is doing so I listened to him and it worked out in the end, thank God.

“It was my first ride here so it was massive. I thought winning for the Naylors in the bumper at Cork was a big weight off my shoulders but getting over here and doing that in the first couple of days has been a massive achievement.”

It has certainly proven to be a remarkable start to his three-month stint stateside with Brion, who has now established her own team at the Fair Hill training centre in Maryland.

Nevin will return home later in the summer ahead of what everyone certainly hopes will be a trouble free new pointing campaign in the autumn, as he looks to fulfill the high hopes that both Harley Dunne and Tom Power have for his future in the saddle.