WHAT a story from start to finish!

There was pure joy at the RDS on opening day last Wednesday when Laura Snow of Drynam Stables rode the stunning stallion Drynam Hero to a win the APCOA older performance Irish Draught class with the six-year-old. The horse is jointly owned by Laura and Robert (Bob) Hare, who is hale and hearty at 100 years old. Bob was at the show to see Laura and ‘Hero’ pull off the dream win to huge excitement.

Bob was accompanied at the show by Jane Robinson, Maureen Richardson and Hanna McDowell and to say everyone was thrilled to see Laura pulled in first by the judges is the understatement of the year.

“It was great that Bob was here to see ‘Bradley’ win,” said Snow who jointly owns and bred the six-year-old Gortfree Hero gelding with the centenarian. “He had a hard time being stuck at home during the height of Covid but, as the restrictions eased, I collected him and brought him over to see the horses a few times.”

At his home in Kinsealy, Bob, understandably, takes things a lot easier than Snow who runs a livery, breaking and schooling yard in nearby Drynam, outside Swords in north Co Dublin. On the Sunday prior to the RDS extravaganza, she was one of the chief organisers of a Riding Club show staged at Abbottstown by the Drynam club of which she is secretary.

“Although I was finished competing on the Wednesday, we made the most of what was an amazing week,” said Snow. “I’d like to thank Sophie Marks who works with me and did a great job as groom and all my livery clients and fellow Drynam RC members who came to support Bob, Bradley and me.”

Laura, who has been into ponies and horses since her childhood days, is a graduate of the British Horse Society system and operates Drynam Stables, which is located between the Feltrim Road, Swords and Kinsealy. She’s the daughter of the late wonderful Eithne and Willie Snow, well-respected farmers and friends to many throughout north Co Dublin.

When the horse arrived home to Drynam, the children in the yard had decorated the door of his stable with pictures, flowers and welcome home messages - it was just the icing on the cake for Laura and Bob.