BETTER known in jumping circles, Pony Tales was keen to hear from Co Galway show jumper, Sorcha North, after her name appeared in the results of the bumper in Thurles last Friday aboard the six-year-old Shake The Bag.

Sorcha and her husband Mark Byrne run Northbrook Farm in Aughrim, near Ballinasloe, as well as the hugely successful Equine Engineering business. The racing experiment started seven years ago, when Mark started to buy thoroughbred foals. The first of those was Sarah Beara, who Sorcha broke and backed before she went on to have a great career. “I named her after my best friend, who died of a heart attack in her sleep when I was 21, so the horse is kind of special and sentimental, which is a bad idea with a racehorse!”

Last June, when Sarah Beara was getting close to returning to trainer Sam Curling after her break at home, Mark suggested that Sorcha start to ride her and get her fit on their gallops, which is used to train the sport horses. “I got absolutely addicted,” Sorcha said, “then Mark said wouldn’t it be cool if you could get a license to just ride her in one race. She’s named after your best friend and we never want to sell her. I agreed and Mark did my application.”

Sorcha did ride Sarah Beara over chase fences at Curling’s Tipperary base before her assessment at RACE, which she passed with flying colours, but sadly never got to ride her on the track, as she suffered a crashing fall in Limerick at Christmas, which she thankfully survived, but has since been retired for the breeding paddock.

“We own another horse, Shake The Bag, who Sam let me ride in the bumper last week. It was a big day and kind of the blind leading the blind, as it was her first run too, but I know her well having had her at home. I didn’t give her a particularly good ride, because I was a bit naive, thinking I was going to go out and have this great result. I quickly realised you sort of need a run under your belt first.

“I made a few mistakes with my stirrup length and I wasn’t quick enough off the mark at the start… but it was an amazing experience, so we hopefully get to race again in a couple of weeks! I’m absolutely addicted now. I am still very much a show jumper, but racing is certainly going to be a big part of me now,” Sorcha added.