WE singled Dartans Atom Man out for special mention in our preview of the Northern Ireland Festival and he rewarded our faith in him by taking the show’s top accolade of Festival working hunter supreme champion in the Cavan Equestrian Centre last Sunday night.

Owned by Castlecomer’s Helena Hennessy Ruane and ridden by her daughter Aoibhinn, Dartans Atom Man had a very busy weekend, starting on Friday when heavy rain did its best to spoil the action in the outdoor grass rings. The 10-year-old chesnut gelding’s first engagement was in the 95cms performance working hunter pony class, which he won, going on to stand reserve supreme to the 85cms class winner, the Lucy Doyle-ridden Who’s Jardin B.

The performance working horse champion was Jordan Parr and Patricia Devlin’s stallion King who is by King Of Mourne out of a cob mare. Competing at his first overnight show, he was ridden by Heather Steele.

On Saturday, 18-year-old Ruane and Dartans Atom Man, recorded an excellent round of jumping to win the Horse of the Year Show 153cms working hunter pony qualifier by nine marks before going on to land the HOYS working hunter championship.

In his class, ‘Dexter’ finished in front of the Connemara gelding Creganna Dandini, a 15-year-old by Cashelbay Prince who was ridden by Lara Field for her mother Marjorie Hardiman, breeder of the bay. The reserve sash in the championship went to the Intermediate class winner, Darcy De Chanteloube. Ridden by Jessica Murphy for her mother, Melissa O’Connor Murphy, this 11-year-old French-bred gelding is by the Anglo European Studbook-registered Rotspons Prince MFS.

Dexter shone both on the flat and over jumps on Sunday. Firstly, Ruane and the chesnut won the 153cms open show hunter pony class where Chloe Connon finished second on her seven-year-old chesnut gelding, Captain Moonlight. The Co Kilkenny combination then claimed the honours in the show hunter pony championship where Murphy and Darcy De Chanteloube stood reserve.

There was then a change of codes and tack as Ruane and Dexter lined out for the Festival 153cms working hunter pony final, again topping the judges’ marks. Second place here went to Katie Wyse riding her mother Anna’s Connemara gelding Illaunurra Bay, a 12-year-old bay son of Castleside JJ.

In the evening performance, Ruane and Dartans Atom Man stood first reserve in the ridden pony championship behind Charlotte Smiley and Bernadette Lyons’ Dales pony, the 2007 Lowside Noble John gelding Copley Lane Ringo, who moved up from reserve last year, and Jessica Murphy with Darcy De Chanteloube.

Ruane and Dartans Atom Man then won the Festival working hunter pony supreme championship, and its £1,000 prize, with the reserve sash going to Anne Magee’s Macs Silver Cookee. The previous Wednesday, this six-year-old Silver Shadow gelding had won the final and league of the pony producers’ class at the Stepping Stones to Success series at Wexford Equestrian where he was ridden by Orla Cassidy.

To round off a magnificent weekend for the Ruanes, Dartans Atom Man, who is now Balmoral-bound, was then crowned overall Festival working hunter supreme champion over the horse title winner, Yvonne Pearson’s Cairnview Redwood Guy.