THERE are eight Regions in the Association of Irish Riding Clubs, but only two were represented by title winners at last Sunday’s Connolly’s Red Mills/AIRC national show jumping championships at the Mullingar Equestrian Centre.

Four came from the West Region including Stracomer’s Clódagh Ní Bhrádaigh, who landed the RC80 Championship on the confusingly-named Ballyclogher Queen, and Tynagh’s Diane Baylis Maher, winner of the RC90 Championship with Lilly Dane. These were two well-filled classes.

Ní Bhrádaigh was one of six riders who made it through to the third-round jump-off of the RC80 Championship where, in 77.84, she finished nearest the optimum time of 71 seconds on Ballyclogher Queen, aka Fred (after Freddie Mercury), with Drumcoura’s Colleen McWeeney next closest on 78.49 with Arizona Silver Star.

The winning rider, who works as an administrator in an architect’s office, is in her fourth year as a member of Stracomer and keeps Fred, a six-year-old skewbald gelding, at Stracomer Stables, Bundoran, as do some other members of the club, which is based there. Presently, Ní Bhrádaigh only competes in Riding Club company, as she did with her retired piebald mare Haileys Comet, who has a foal at foot by the Connemara stallion Pilgrim de l’Egvonne.

“Fred is on his holidays, as he has had a busy time of it with the Festival and these championships,” said Ní Bhrádaigh, who spent some time grooming in the United States and particularly enjoyed the Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida. “I will bring him back for the Regional autumn/winter show jumping league. I’d like to acknowledge the great job Erin Fergus does as our club secretary, she’s very supportive, and the great job Elaine from the AIRC office did in pulling together these championships – she’s fantastic!”

Diane Baylis Maher and Lilly Dane, winners of the RC90 Championship at Mullingar \ Laurence Dunne jumpinaction.net

RC90 championship

Stracomer’s Shane McCabe had to settle for second in the RC90 Championship, as he and Lisbrogan Swatch recorded their third clear in the competition in 58.20, but were beaten by Tynagh’s Diane Baylis Maher on the home-bred Connemara mare Lilly Dane (56.57). Ard Lu’s Anna Kelsey, one of six through to the jump-off, also went clear a third time on Cavaliers Classic Clover in 59.30 to finish third.

Baylis Maher, who came over from England (where she had been working in a hunting yard) in 2000 and never went back, used to work as groom for the Galway Blazers, but now as a shop assistant, which gives her more time to enjoy her own horses, as well as look after her three children. Lilly Dane, a nine-year-old daughter of Kilmore Diamond, is out of the Rosscastle Fred mare Cregduff Rose.

“I had been out of the loop for a while and was going to join the SJI until a friend suggested I join Tynagh instead,” revealed Baylis Maher. “That was a year ago and I’m really enjoying being a member.

“Everyone is so friendly and loving – it has been brilliant. Over the past few weeks, we have been meeting up in Ballinasloe for training with Paraic Geraghty and that has been great.”