DEIRDRE BOURNS is an owner who has proven she knows how to pick a potentially special horse; and then what it takes to produce one.

She and the rest of the Bourns Sport Horse team have spent many years building up a business that now has bases in Ireland, Belgium, and the USA.

Currently enjoying the sunshine in Florida, Deirdre took some time out to tell us how it all began and what it took to get there.

“I am a farmer’s daughter so I was brought up with lots of stock, some ponies and donkeys. I rode with the Iveagh Pony Club, hunted and produced show ponies for WD Irwin from Portadown. These early days taught me the value of good horse management and the benefits of flat work.

“When I got older and went to college, I was busy with the books and the horses had to go. While studying for my PhD in Trinity, I met a certain farmer (Richard Bourns) who persuaded me to come back to farming and in 1979, we married.

“The Bourns family have been involved in horses for generations. We have two sons, Andrew and Christopher, who enjoyed, as I did, the Pony Club and hunting. Show jumping became quite a favourite with the boys and in particular Andrew. A couple of early wins while he was just nine years old gave us all the show jumping bug!

“Winning the 138cms Championship at the RDS at the age of 11 meant there was no turning back!

“These days we have three main locations for our horse production business; Lisbeg Farms Ireland, where we keep the youngstock. The horses range from foals to the four-year-olds. They are broken by Garry Guyatt, a wonderful ‘old school’ horseman and ridden by Thomas Fahy, a new member of BSH Team.

“Secondly, we have a base in Lommel, Belgium. These are the developing team headed up by Jenny Rankin, Naoise Wilson and Ronan Guckian.

“The horses range from five-year-olds to nine-year-olds. These horses compete at many of the top shows in Europe. In 2019 they will begin their outdoor season in Oliva, Spain. From there they will go to Lanaken for the Spring Tour. After that we have a brilliant line up of International shows, and some Nations Cups.

“This year we have a very strong group of eight-year-olds and then we have Benny’s Legacy, the star of the stable, jumping five-star Grands Prix and the Global Champions Tour.

“Finally we have Lisbeg South in Wellington, Florida, headed up by Andrew Bourns and Lisa O’Sullivan. Lisa jumped national Grands Prix in Ireland before joining our team in Wellington. Her experience and dedication makes her invaluable to our business in the USA. Wellington is the horse capital of the world and we are lucky to have a fantastic farm, within hacking distance to the show.

“I enjoy spending the winter months watching Andrew and his team train horses and riders. We have a large group of clients who are loyal customers buying many of the horses that have been educated through our system.

“I take great pride in following the success of the horses which we have produced. At the moment, we have a super selection of horses jumping 1.40m to 1.50m based in Wellington,” explained Deirdre.

FINDING THE HORSES

“Since my accident, I have reduced the number of broodmares to one, I have also taken some embryos from my top jumping mares. We do buy some youngsters but overall we prefer to buy horses that are already jumping in the sport.

“The criteria when we are viewing a potential purchase are; a good temperament in the barn, around people and in the ring is essential. You have five or six years to work with these horses; a twitchy belligerent horse wears every one out and is hard to sell (no matter how talented). Stable vices are a no-no.

“Conformation and good feet are key. I think a good kind eye and pleasant disposition tells you a lot.

“For the youngsters, loose schooling is the main means of selection. Good technique is desirable but not entirely essential. As long as a horse is flexible behind, looks loose and elastic from the lower half of it is back to its tail, this can overrule any shortcomings in technique in front.

“A good technique is a plus, but as long as the horse looks relaxed, soft and manoeuvrable, and achieves the height of its jump early, is open through the shoulder and neck, and all of the above must look natural.

“Choosing the competition horse really depends on what you need it for. We aim for horses that will compete at the top end of the sport.

“We prefer to spot our horses at shows. When we do spot a horse, with a rider who we trust, we will travel to the owner’s stable and try the horse in its own arena, or the owner will bring the horse to our arena. We will regularly rent a show centre and try a number of horses in one day.

“Aptitude is essential. A horse’s ability to be trained, his ability to learn, ability to respond to his rider and his ability while doing so.

“Conformation and good feet are essential; if these are not correct we may not try the horse. During the trial, we evaluate the walk, trot and canter. The balance and, depending on his age, his ability to do flying changes. Severe gait deficits are noted and usually avoided.

“We do not jump the horse any higher than the level of training he has had. We take a lot of information from our rider on the feel he gets, is the horse comfortable? Does he have a good canter? All of these matters are discussed after the first trial.

“The jump on that second trial is further evaluated. We like to see a horse that is quick off the ground, makes a good pair behind, lands and goes and is quick to establish a balanced canter after the fence.

“He must be brave, we avoid horses that stall off the ground or look into fences. Spooky horses are not suitable for our customers so we will not buy them.

“Horses need to be careful so if a horse knocks a lot of fences or taps all of them, the trial is over. Hopefully backed up by results and vet reports, we can find a good horse.”

FOND MEMORIES

So after many years in the business, which moments stand out for her?

“I have many fond memories from the Dublin Horse Show. To mention just a few, the first is Andrew and Little Black Magic winning the 138cms championship when Andrew was just 11-years old.

“Then years later when Andrew and Roundthorn Madios jumped clear in the Dublin Grand Prix; Jenny Rankin winning the six-year-old Championship on my darling Beachill Lucia. In 2016 Jenny won four classes riding my horses.

“More recently, I was delighted to watch Sergio Alvarez Moya ride my mare MHS Attraction in her first four-star Grand Prix when she was just eight years old, and Jenny Rankin jumping a clear round in Chantilly GCT five-star show on Benny’s Legacy.”

So what advice does Deirdre have for someone thinking of becoming an owner?

“My advice to anyone wishing to become involved in sport horse ownership is to go for it! It is a wonderful sport which can be enjoyed by all the family. It requires commitment as horses are a full-time sport, they need to be cared for 24/7 every day of the year.

“Try to link in with a professional that you can trust to advise you on horse purchases and management. Then enjoy!”

An aeriel view of Bourns Sport Horses' 10-acre farm - Lisbeg South - in Wellington, Florida

CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE

With regard to the governing bodies of the sport is there any way, she can see that things could be improved?

“Facilities for the sport horse section, particularly in the West are in need of revamping. The development of a centre of excellence involving all the different branches, dressage, eventing and show jumping would be a huge advantage.

“There is a disconnect between breeders and owners who have purchased horses in sales, elite sales and on a farm. In Germany, at any national Grand Prix, there would be a wall of breeders around the ring watching the jumping.

“They would discuss with each other the benefits and the problems with the various stallions. If there could be some Government incentive to bridge this gap to encourage breeders to use the top stallions of the world and to keep performance mares, I believe the number of top Grand Prix show jumpers bred in this country could increase.

“We need to combine our passions for breeding and competing to produce a better horse – look at MHS Going Global, one of the best show jumping horses in the world!”

Having the experience of working out of three bases in three different countries, what, does Deirdre see, as the main differences between them?

“Our main farm, home and head office is in Galway. Our developing team of horses are in Europe, travelling to shows and we have a base for them to train and rest in Belgium. Lisbeg South is in Wellington, Florida.

“The main difference between the different barns is the cost of production. This is mainly affected by the different horses each barn produces.

“From my perspective, my heart is in Lisbeg Ireland, where we produce our young horses and set them on the way to being top Grand Prix horses.

“The costs here are quite reasonable and we have fantastic facilities. All our horses spend time at Lisbeg, enjoying the green grass.

“It is essential that our horses show in Europe and the increased costs are compensated by the access to international two and three-star shows all year round thus ensuring our horses get a great range of education.

“In Wellington, the costs are very high and as a result, we have to be very selective to pick the correct horses to send to there, it is not a venue for producing young horses. Wellington is really the show room for our horses.

“At Bourns Sport Horses, we are a world class competition team specialising in the production of quality horses.

“We pride ourselves in selling world class horses around the globe and training talented up and coming riders. We provide specialised care in an established system supported by the best of resources and a dynamic team.

“We are driven by our passion for the horses, the sport of show jumping and for winning,” concluded Deirdre.