IPS Summer Championships

THE Irish Pony Society held its Summer Championships show in Northern Ireland for the first time last Wednesday and Thursday week at Castle Irvine, Necarne, a venue which seems to have been extremely popular with all those who attended.

There was a damp start to Wednesday morning but this didn’t dampen the spirits of the participants or the organisers who were facing into a programme of over 120 classes and around 50 championships – all leading to the crowning of the show’s TopSpec supreme champion at the close of Thursday’s evening performance in the Indoor Arena.

For the duration of the championships, that Indoor Arena was sponsored by the Co Kildare country house hotel Barberstown Castle whose owner, Amanda Torrens, had the pleasure of seeing her British-bred gelding, Leave It To You, first claim the Snooty Fox Interiors show hunter title on Sunday evening before being crowned supreme champion under a delighted Katie Wyse.

Now 15 years of age, Leave It To You (aka Bart) joined Team Torrens seven years ago and, since then, has been produced by Amanda’s sister Gillian at her Greenacres Equestrian Centre in Convoy, Co Donegal. He has been a multiple champion over the years and, this season alone, was champion riding horse at Balmoral in May under Rachel Moore who also partnered him to win his Horse Of the Year Show qualifier at the Royal Highland Show the following month.

Moore was also on board the bay when he won the riding horse championship on day two of the Tattersalls Ireland July Show while, when he was brought into to the adjoining field, he won his show hunter class at the Kildare/North Leinster Area show where Katie Wyse was in the saddle.

Leave It To You has twice been crowned champion at the Dublin Horse Show – winning the show hunter pony title in 2018 (under Eva McClurg) and the riding horse championship in 2019 (under Jamie Smyth). He is heading back to the RDS next week to defend his title but this time with Moore on board.

Leave It To You, who is a son of the Advanced eventer Brief Encounter out of the Dallas mare Barbarella, suffered one reversal last week when having to settle for reserve in the Prestige championship to the 158cms winner, Ballarin Bada Bing.

This six-year-old Campaign Swing gelding was also ridden for her mother Helena Hennessy Ruane by Aoibhinn Ruane to land Saturday evening’s supreme novice championship and Sunday evening’s Legacy Wealth Management Intermediate championship. Brian Murphy partnered the bay to claim the HOYS small hunter qualifier.

Emily Widger’s Wycroft Gatsby, a seven-year-old British-bred gelding by Cusop Dimension who stood reserve to Leave It To You in the open show hunter championship, was partnered by the owner’s daughter, Hannah Mackey, when claiming the GG Rosettes overall show pony champion title on Thursday evening.