GREENVALLEY members won two of the individual titles at last Sunday’s Connolly’s Red Mills/Association of Irish Riding Clubs’ national dressage championships in Mullingar Equestrian.
The first of the pair to strike was Ruth Abbott who topped the combined scores in the Preliminary 2 championship on the traditionally-bred Irish Sport Horse gelding CCS Bansky Moon (148.99%), a 14-year-old grey son of Hillviewfarm Superstar. Here, Thornton’s Leah Wigmore filled the reserve slot in the 31-runner class on the 17-year-old chesnut mare Jessie Jay.
The Greenvalley double came up in the Preliminary 1 championship through the efforts of Susanne Cunningham who scored 137.50% on board the 11-year-old skewbald gelding Doogary Dude. The home-based Hannah Martin, who was on the fourth-placed Mullingar team, finished reserve with the 10-year-old grey gelding Prince Darcy (134.53).
Comprehensive
As mentioned elsewhere, Thomastown and District’s Charlotte Clear partnered Ramesses B to win the Elementary championship on 137.67%.
John Gavin finished close up in reserve on his ISH gelding Holywell Spark (137.08), an eight-year-old Cobra bay. The Ashbrook member then went on to record a comprehensive success in the young horse championship on board the ISH gelding Holywell Knight.
Home-bred by Gavin, this four-year-old Contendro bay scored 151.86% to easily see off the reserve, Carrownurlaur Dom (134.10), a five-year-old Connemara gelding by Glencarrig Ri who was ridden by Warrington’s Roisin McGrath. Gavin may enter Holywell Knight in a leg or two of the Horse Sport Ireland/Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine dressage development series, which gets underway later this month at Marlton, or he may compete him in some AIRC North East Region jumping shows over the autumn.
From a young horse to one of the older animals registered with the AIRC, the 22-year-old Arab gelding Juno Tintreach whose owner-rider, Friary’s Jackie Dow, had to settle for second (138.79%) in the well-supported Preliminary 3 championship. The winner was Waterford’s Fidelma Curran, who scored 139.27 with her 18-year-old Palomino gelding Ballyadam Philip.
In this class, Tara Hill’s Liisa Rantamaki claimed the Treo Eile-sponsored prize for the day’s highest-placed thoroughbred when 18th on her home-bred gelding Bobby Cool (130.07). Fellow Tara Hill member Miia Ruuskanen finished third on this eight-year-old grey in the racehorse to riding horse class at the Dublin Horse Show last month.
New champions
Christa Dillon and Niamh Macken, members of the fourth-placed Mullingar team, finished reserve in the Medium and Novice championships respectively.
On 131.76%, the club’s grading officer Dillon and her ISH gelding Blackhill Kilcoltrim, a 14-year-old Contador roan, finished second to the new Medium champions, Foxborough’s Siofra Pratt and her ISH mare Ballarin My Grace (134.15), an 11-year-old Kings Master chesnut who has 277 Dressage Ireland points to her credit.
Macken, who is secretary of Mullingar, partnered her Irish Draught gelding Diamond King Henry, a nine-year-old bay by King Alton, to fill the reserve slot (139.64%) in the Novice championship behind Inishowen’s Cate O’Neill on board her traditionally-bred ISH mare Shanaghan Grace (140.81), a 10-year-old brown daughter of Oke Boy.
The two non-championship classes were won by Border Counties’ Edel Cunningham on the 12-year-old Connemara stallion Rio (131.99% in the RCP2 (open)) and Killcarrick’s Anna Marie Curry on her 15-year-old home-bred ISH mare Ely Pixie (138.72 in the RCP3 (open)).