The Irish Field supported the event as media partner.

Heralded as a fantastic turn out and another great initiative by the hosts, it certainly proved its worth hands down. The purpose of this seminar was to provide an information and discussion forum for all connected with the sport of show jumping. The presentations were followed by questions and answers which provided interesting interaction between presenters and the floor.

The SJC has served its sport well with a history of contributing at both national and international levels, but it can also boast of another great home run with organising this seminar. Spring Tour coordinator Sheila White spearheaded the operation and attracted a quality line-up to give their slant on life coaching, lameness from a veterinary surgeon’s perspective, correct shoeing, nutrition, health and safety issues and insurance advice. And this was just the morning agenda.

This was not only a great information day, but it was also very enjoyable and at €40, which included lunch and membership of the SJC for 2014, it was good value for money.

Under the chairmanship of Dr Noel Cawley, who to his credit covered the role for the whole day, the audience was treated to an awakening by life coach Jim Hickey. His presentation, which centred on awareness and self-belief, focused on an area ignored by most people.

The topic on the face of it would have been alien to a large number in the room, but it would be fair to say that many will have taken away something from his philosophy. His A-Z to peak performance in the ring attracted great audience participation and for many will be food for thought when either next competing or taking a more positive approach to personal improvement in general.

Recently retired Team Ireland veterinary surgeon Marcus Swail gave his thoughts on lameness and, with his trademark clarity, expanded on the progress in diagnosis and the advances in assessing lameness in horses.

As recently as 20 years ago most horses presenting with leg or hoof problems which had no rationale for its occurrence were automatically suffering from navicular and therefore not curable. However, time has advanced and now with the possibility of utilising advanced imaging technologies such as MRI and expanded thinking, the diagnosis and prognosis has become more defined, allowing practitioners to treat the symptoms specifically.

He also produced excellent images which demonstrated the impact on a horse’s limbs whilst jumping and the various areas in the hoof which can be attributed to causing lameness.

This was followed by a presentation from master farrier Jeremy Stanley, who in the same vein concentrated his presentation on the importance of correct shoeing and its impact on lameness and performance. He is currently chairman of the Irish Masters Farriers Association and demonstrated not only his personal passion for his craft, but his vast experience.

He was able to show clear pointers as to how providing good assessment of a situation and in turn the correct solution and preventative measures can remedy problems.

This section of the seminar culminated with an insight of the philosophy behind the Connolly’s Red Mill approach to nutrition. Sabrina Barnwell graduated from UCD in 2004 in veterinary medicine and developed a particular interest in breeding and stud medicine.

Turning her interest to the area of nutrition in recent times, she highlighted the importance of sourcing the best of ingredients. She explained that ensuring the correct balance of proteins and vitamins is essential to proper digestion and maintains overall animal health. Without doubt a very important component which again concurred with the previous two speakers in relation to its impact on performance.

INFORMATION

With an inordinate amount of information imparted, well-known and respected course builder Tom Holden and Gary Johnson of Wexford Insurances, specialists providers to the equestrian market, brought the morning session to a close.

Donning his professional hat, the former talked about the very serious issues surrounding health and safety. Again another clear and succinct presentation which not only covered all the obvious dos and don’ts, but the alarming responsibility one has at shows for one’s own safety and that of others.

He outlined the increasing risks of injury due to lack of observance of relatively simple rules which can go a long way to avoiding serious accidents. However, incidents which do occur are coming under the spotlight in respect of the health and safety measures being taken by venue owners, horse owners, riders, grooms and the public.

Underwriters are becoming much more vigilant in respect of claims and the measures taken to prevent injury. On the other hand, and of equal importance, the need to obtain adequate cover was highlighted.

After lunch, speakers Billy Twomey, David Broome and Lt Col Gerry Mullins took part in a two-hour open discussion forum that is covered separately.

The successful day ended with a presentation from Tiernan Gill of the Gill Group regarding driving licences and various regulations concerning the transport of equines. Another clear and detailed presentation described how a regular car licence is not sufficient for pulling a horsebox, while a lot of equestrians do not realise that tachographs are compulsory if your truck is fitted with either an analogue or digital machine.

He also explained how, since January 2008, anyone who drives a vehicle carrying horses on journeys over 65kms in connection with an economic activity will have to hold a certificate in equine transport.

Gill’s advice was to have all paperwork in order and have it professionally stored in your vehicle. He warned that checkpoints are being increased and that there is also a concern that insurance companies will not pay out on claims if drivers aren’t complying with the law.

WHAT THEY SAID

People don’t come to Ireland because your showcase horses are not doing the business. Think of the qualities you need. The cost of producing horses is the same for good and bad ones. – David Broome.

More emphasis should be on how riders are producing horses and making them seem better. How are we going to make these middle of the road horses better? – Billy Twomey.

The prize money is fantastic, but five and six-year-old horses are getting the legs jumped off them. – Billy Twomey.

The recording of breeding needs to be improved so we can see what lines are successful. – Gerry Mullins.

Riders need a business head too. If you can give a return, you’ll get owners. – Gerry Mullins.

I’ve never seen young Irish riders like we have at the moment and that’s credit to the trainers like Ian Fearon and the system we have here. If you have good horses here, people will make money. – Gerry Mullins.

Individually we’ve got to act and do something ourselves rather than wait for someone to sort it out. – Billy Twomey.

In some cases we are pricing ourselves out of it in Ireland. – Gerry Mullins.

Foreigners have a perception that horses aren’t good enough in Ireland. Quality is the best word of mouth. We need to get ourselves more marketable, more presentable and market the middle of the road horses. – Billy Twomey.

I still think it’s improving in Ireland. Using IrishSport.TV I watched all of the young horse classes in Cavan and saw some really nice horses. – Billy Twomey.

I’m not in favour of back boots. Organisations need to be strict about the boots in young horse classes. – Billy Twomey.

Horses have to be able to be ridden. It’s what he wins from an eight-year-old onwards that counts; never mind before. Nobody expects a nice young horse to win classes because he’s jumping for experience. Give it a sound foundation of experience. – David Broome.

Riders need to make the step from being naturally gifted to becoming more disciplined. Maybe the likes of Ian Fearon can filter his training down. – Billy Twomey.

We took our eye off the ball and people stopped coming here. We need to look into it seriously; look at the other markets in China, Iran, etc. The likes of Holland, Germany and Belgium are all pushing themselves forward in these countries and we’re sitting on our hands waiting for it to come to us. We’re on the fringe of Europe and need to work for it. – Gerry Mullins.

I’ve vetted a lot of horses being exported. Both the number and standard of horses we’re exporting has improved a lot in the last two to three years. Things are improving and we are turning a corner. – Marcus Swail.

EXPERT VIEWS

The afternoon session was largely dedicated to a discussion forum with a top-class panel of Billy Twomey, David Broome and Lt Col Gerry Mullins. After chairman Dr Noel Cawley introduced each speaker giving a background into their successful careers, they spoke openly about their introduction to the show jumping world, their thoughts on the sport and how it can be improved.

Although keen for the audience to take something positive home, they were realistic and agreed that there’s a need for the industry to be more professional and for horses to be more rideable to suit the amateur markets.

They were all in agreement that while there is great money on offer for the numerous young horse classes in Ireland, horses are being asked too much too early in their careers. It was their general consensus that the horses to take out of these classes aren’t always the winners, but a horse who is being educated properly through the classes and still has the ability to improve with age.

The use of hind boots in these classes was also discussed and again the panel agreed that stricter policies should be in place. Ideally, they would rather not see the use of hind boots allowed in the young horse classes.

The three speakers also believe that because Irish riders are so talented, they are often able to make a difficult horse seem good. When they are then purchased by an amateur, they are unrideable. More work needs to be put into the basic training of a horse at a young age.

How riders deal with owners was also discussed at length. With each panellist having long-term owners, they were able to offer great advice on communicating and treating owners correctly.

DAVID BROOME

Broome was first up and entertained the large crowd as he recalled the early days of his career, buying ponies for £60 and earning the entry money at each show that he and his sister Liz attended. He explained that if they didn’t win prize money in the classes, they would go in the musical chairs and that’s where he learnt a lot of “ring craft”.

He spoke about his first Grade A horse, Wildfire, who quickly went from being a horse with a reputation for stopping before Broome turned him into an Olympic Games-shortlisted mount.

However, his “favourite horse” was Sportsman, whom he purchased from the late Frank Kernan. He described how “bells rang, lights flashed and I had to have him” after seeing him jump for the first time. He was shown five world-class horses that day and the “hardest problem was buying Sportsman without Frank knowing he was the one” he wanted.

“The sport is slightly different these days. The jumps have changed and I don’t give too much credit to the course builders,” said Broome. “They’re the ones carrying the fences around and they’re using lighter materials – lighter poles and lighter cups. Everything that a horse needed courage to jump isn’t there – it’s just poles.

“At Dublin, in particular, you could ride at fences and your horse backed-off. That was easier to ride. I don’t believe jumps are bigger, but training and breeding is better.

“Sadly, that’s where the Irish horse was at its best – with courage. The character of the Irish horse is something you can’t breed anywhere else.”

He suggested that Irish breeders should look to the likes of the Dutch, Belgians and Germans to try to learn from their breeding policies. In those countries, they specialise in breeding for specific disciplines.

“There’s no need to invent the wheel. Go and have a look at what people are doing and copy it,” he encouraged.

“There’s something in the blood of the Irish horse that is exceptional. You owe it to yourselves and everyone else to get it back.”

Broome also offered advice on dealing with owners, saying: “Keep your owners involved – communicate as much as you can, especially when you’ve had a bad round. Be straight with them.”

He also said that riders “can’t be dictated to” about which shows horses attend, but need to make a plan and be clear with their owners.

GERRY MULLINS

Lt Col Gerry Mullins took over and said how he has been “going to forums like these for a long time” and that the same questions are still being asked. He said that Ireland has gone from being a “place to buy horses” to attracting less and less foreign buyers “and that’s a pity”.

He believes that Ireland currently has one of the “best crop of riders” but they need good sponsors and to be well-organised. He spoke about how there are seven Irish riders in the top-100 of the world, adding: “We’re very good at producing riders. They have to be riding very good horses to be there (in the top-100). I don’t see them riding many Irish horses and coming here to source horses.”

Mullins agreed with Broome about the changes in the modern sport concerning lighter poles, tighter times, distance problems, adding that “athleticism and blood of horses is important”.

He also agreed that Irish breeders should look to northern European countries and “have a clear idea of what we are breeding”. Mullins encouraged young breeders to “have their say” by getting involved with the Irish Horse Board.

“If we want to have a sport, we need the horses,” he said before referring to Rich Fellers’ decision to look to Europe for his horses. “There’s no point pointing the finger at him; point it at us. He knows the market.”

Like the others, Mullins agreed that the international amateur market is very important for the industry. He spoke about the amateurs who ride on the Global Champions Tour who “aren’t like the amateurs here” in that they are jumping up to 1.40m, while he said that the “professional’s job in the States is to serve amateurs”. They are the ones with the money.

Regarding owners, he added: “It’s how you deal with them – not only in the ring.” He encouraged riders to communicate more with their owners and offer them advice.

Speaking about the production of horses, Mullins continued: “Good riders here ride the end off the horses. I like to buy one that will improve.”

He added that horses need to be more rideable so you “don’t need a professional” to ride them, while he feels that large prize funds for young horse classes “puts too much pressure on young horses”. He added: “I like to see them given time to develop. I’d prefer to see a system where a horse is judged on characteristics I like.”

Among the characteristics he listed were temperament, soundness, a good length of stride and change of lead. The last-named is particularly important for his amateur clients, who he says feel they are paying enough money to expect a horse to be able to change the lead easily.

“There is money and a good living outside of Ireland. I’ve a partner in Germany selling 60 to 80 horses a year. Why are they not coming here? We can’t blame them.

“We still produce some good horses, but I don’t see Irish horses at the top shows enough. We need to ask ourselves why not.”

BILLY TWOMEY

The final member of the panel to speak was top Irish rider Billy Twomey, who opened by talking about his early career in ponies at his mother Jill’s and aunt Avril’s Hitchmough’s Riding School.

After enjoying success in the 148cms, he was “bitten by the bug”. He was fortunate that a lady at the riding school was interested in investing in a young rider horse. Eager to learn more, he contacted Albert Voorn and asked if he could train with him for a winter.

Although the strict routine and almost obsessive professionalism was difficult to adjust to, Twomey soon found himself enjoying the discipline of the yard.

“I started to enjoy the routine and he was giving me a lot of help,” said Twomey. “I learnt a lot from Albert. He was a perfectionist. To me, coming out of Ireland at that time, being able to grab the routine and professionalism was great.”

He then spent five to six years with Michael Whitaker after he “picked up the phone and begged and pleaded” for a job. “I was paid £150 a week and I worked like a slave.”

It was during his time with Whitaker that he got his break on a horse called Conquest and they went on to be part of Ireland’s winning Aga Khan Trophy team in 2000.

“He’s the horse that spring boarded me,” recalled Twomey, who then rented a yard in Leicester and became associated with Sue and Ed Davies. “They’ve been with me for 15 years. They’re great owners and have helped me to where I am today.

“You’ve gotta put yourself out there and make yourself look like you want to be the best you can. Look after and communicate with owners. Keep them on side and informed.”

Twomey then spoke about the purchase of two Irish horses, though the “rideability was all over the place” with one. Under stable rider Anthony Condon, he improved quickly and was sold to America.

The more recent purchase was Codarco and Twomey said: “I think he’s outstanding. He has an Irish book but is from foreign parents. He’s one for the future. He’s owned by Sue and Ed Davies and hopefully he will compete for Ireland on Nations Cup teams.”

Twomey is very proud of his association with Condon, a rider he described as very talented and hard-working. Another rider who he is still involved with is Bertram Allen.

“He is an example of the many talented riders we have in Ireland,” said Twomey. “He’s a really good rider for the future. He has a good brain and is disciplined in his work.”