ELIZABETH Power paid her first visit to Tullymurry last Saturday and the trip proved worthwhile as she recorded a second CNC1* victory within a week on Caroline Bjoerk’s DSL The Entertainer.

The Meath rider missed the entrance to the venue on her initial trip up Ballydugan Road and she wasn’t the only first-timer led astray by signs left in place from the Tyrella season. Meanwhile, others were held up in traffic as huge crowds converged on the popular agricultural show in nearby Castlewellan.

Happily, once everyone got to Tullymurry they could calm down as a very relaxed atmosphere prevailed and it’s difficult to stay annoyed for long when greeted by a member of the extended Turley family who are always so good-humoured and obliging.

Overnight rain had been welcomed by all, the only downside to the day being the fact that regional secretary Dora Beacom had been unable to clear the wait list for the event for which entries closed ahead of schedule due to the demand for places.

As usual, David and Elaine O’Connor managed to combine their roles as co-hosts, course-builders, etc with riding, Elaine faring the better when sixth in the EI100 class on her mare Frenchfort Swatch Beauty, on whom she won the EI90 class at Glaslough last month.

The cross-country course here was first designed and built by Tony McManmon since when he and David O’Connor have improved it year on year.

On Saturday, there were few problems on the one-star track, most coming at the three-part Dublin Dyke, which came up early at three, and the two-part butterfly of a skinny to a drop at 10.

The water at four proved to be the most influential fence on the pre-novice track, although there was a black flag option, while there were a number of technical eliminations over the EI90 course. There were just two fallers during the afternoon.

Just two riders broke below the 30-penalty barrier following David Patterson’s judging of the dressage phase of the 29-runner CNC1*, Power with DSL The Entertainer, whose completion score of 29.5 included four cross-country time penalties, and Jane McClean.

The latter, who is trained by Power’s mother Mags and keeps her horse, Mosstown Calleto, at their Summerhill yard, had a fence down show jumping and then picked up 0.4 of a cross-country time penalty for a total of 33.9. The previous weekend, McClean and the eight-year-old Cascaletto St Ghyvan Z gelding qualified for the Pony Club combined training section at the Dublin Horse Show.

“I’m delighted for the horse, and his owner, that he won again today,” said Power when discussing the six-year-old DSL The Entertainer, an Omar half-brother to Ard Cluedo (by Luidam). “It was hard to get into a rhythm on the cross-country here but he coped with it well.

“It wasn’t ideal having to turn him out again so soon after Kilguilkey but as I am going to be in Aachen next weekend and at Gatcombe at the end of the month, I needed to get him out. I’ll also have to get another novice run into him if we’re to get to Millstreet.

“I haven’t heard from Caroline since she headed off to climb Mount Elbus so I have no idea whether she knows the horse won last week or not. Whenever she gets the news of this double she’ll be delighted.”

TIME PENALTY

Only one rider managed to get home within the time in this class and that was Orlagh Kelly who finished third with Elsarco. However, while it didn’t affect their placing, the combination’s total of 35.5 did include one show jumping time penalty.

Craigavon’s Conall McGrath recorded his first Eventing Ireland success when he completed on his dressage score (39) with BLS Linvara in the CNCJ1*. The seven-year-old Limmerick mare was bred in Co Armagh by Mark English out of Ballylough Special Affects (by Big Sink Hope).

McGrath is another who has been mixing EI competitions with Pony Club activities and the previous weekend was a member of the Iveagh team which qualified for the show jumping section of The Pony Club championships in Cholmondeley Castle next month.

Also on that team is Hollie Smith who finished second here with Baby Roller. The Gilford pairing led after dressage (31.5) and were clear show jumping but took it handy on the final leg where they accrued 12.4 time penalties.

Clare Steele topped the leaderboard on 28 penalties after dressage in the seven-runner O/CNC1* with R Junior and maintained that position in spite of one show jumping penalty.

However, she dropped down to fourth when picking up 16.4 time penalties on the final leg with the home-bred bay leaving the way open for husband Jonny to win as he renewed his partnership with Katrina Mackie’s Mr Green. That nine-year-old Harlequin du Carel gelding had a completion score of 36.8 which included 6.8 cross-country time penalties.

The Steeles were among those who returned to Tullymurry on Sunday for the Go-As-You-Please.

Tara Dixon, daughter of British Olympian Karen Dixon, notched up her first EI success when landing the two-runner CNCP2* on the Connemara gelding Carracanada Kieran, a 10-year-old dun by Loughlum Sadat. The combination added 4.4 cross-country time penalties to their winning flatwork mark of 32.8.