TARA Hayes was the rider on form on day two of the fourth leg of the Leinster Region’s Ark Equine Derby spring/summer league which was staged at Redhills last Sunday.

Hayes topped the scoreboard three times during the session and amazingly landed both Advanced Medium classes, judged by Vida Tansey (List 1) and Michael Moore (List 2), on 70% with her mother Fiona’s 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Ferrero K.

The Category 2 Kildare rider initiated her treble in the five-runner Tansey-judged Medium DI M77 on Irish Sport Horse mare Sandora BS (66.57), a seven-year-old by Spielberg. There were eight starters in the second Medium class (BD M73) which was judged by Jillie Rogers and won comfortably by Category 3 rider Finn O’Gara with Karen Bennett’s Dutch Warmblood gelding Jinger (75.29), a nine-year-old chesnut by Negro.

Rogers (List 3) also judged the Elementary BD E43 won by Category 3 rider Emma Kieran with Lorli Higgins’ traditionally home-bred 13-year-old Ashfield Romeo mare Mystical Meg (74.31%).

Uncontested

There was an uncontested double for Rachel Carr and the 14-year-old ISH mare Calliaghstown Silver Doolin in the two FEI Junior tests, for Oscar O’Connor and the 13-year-old Top Hero 2 in the FEI pony tests and for Maeve Deverell riding the home-bred Radolin gelding Annaharvey Dunowen in the FEI children on horses tests.

Before Vida Tansey, Jennifer Heffernan and her Dutch Warmblood gelding De Keizer KN faced two rivals on their way to winning (67.06) the FEI Prix St George but they put on a solo performance when landing the FEI Intermediate I on 65.59. Tansey’s day started with the eight-runner Elementary DI E56A where she awarded her top score (67.90) to Miia Ruuskanen and her ISH gelding Happy Gilmore, a 13-year-old Lux Z half-brother to the Warrenstown You 2 mare, Cash Crisis (CCI3*).

There was just one entry in each of the three FEI age classes judged by Michael Moore – Killian Gaffney and his five-year-old Gleneden Justified (75%), the same rider with the year older My Bishophill Rolex (70) and Sorrell Klatzko with her home-bred seven-year-old Gladiator (73.94).

Following the withdrawal of his sole opponent, John Gavin had little trouble winning the DI young horse test for five-year-olds with another home-bred, Holywell Contender (77.80).