Vincent Delaney Festival, Rhyl

THE trouble with constant marketing is that sometimes the actual product falls short of the build-up. Yet again the Vincent Delaney Festival delivered.

Trotting ‘fans’, as they are known in America, converged upon the resort town of Rhyl to see blue-blooded pacers do battle for the prestigious title ‘VDM Winner’. Dubliner Clive Kavanagh won the Hanover Shoe Farms two-year-old colts with Hunt Me Down. The Gilvear family from Scotland won the Diamond Creek Farm fillies’ division with Queenstown.

We haven’t got a Prestbury Cup yet, but for lovers of stats, the score was Ireland 10 Britain 7, in terms of winners trained.

Clive was interviewed by the excellent Mandy Stanley. He explained: “We were going to send him to Harrisburg (leading sale), but decided to keep him. This is special because we own the dam Robyn Camden, who also won a VDM and we bred him ourselves.”

Christy ‘Hopper’ Foran and Calvin Broughan are key players on Clive’s team also. The winner is still an entire horse.

Patriarch

The win by Queenstown was emotional for Gordon Gilvear and family, as they recently lost the patriarch of the clan, John Gilvear. Clive Kavanagh has his horses in some order at the moment and Shes Hungry brought up an unusual owner/trainer/driver double in winning the Woodlands Stud four-year-old fillies’ race.

The race was a result for the layers, as the McAleer mare Coalford Annabelle was 1/3. With hindsight, Shes Hungry had been getting closer to Annabelle in recent runs and this was her night. The time of 1.55.2 is a track record for mares.

The domination of the three-year-old and four-year-old ranks by the Kane/Ball/Grabber syndicate continues. The three-year-old fillies was ‘Ayrodrome first, the rest nowhere’, or an official 21 lengths. The time of 1.56.9 is a new British record for three-year-old fillies. Patrick Kane jnr drove both Ayrodrome and Ayroplane. By contrast, her older brother Ayroplane had to graft for his win in the Lisadell Equine Hospital four-year-old male division. The useful Rhyds Super Cool (James Haythornthwaite) kept the Meath runner parked and, for a while, it looked like his unbeaten run was going to be punctured.

The son of Stay Hungry and Talk Time showed guts to wear down Super Cool. American racing will suit a grinder like Ayroplane. “He never saw the rail,” said proud part-owner John Ball. A 1.56.5 was the clock on a night of fast going.

Ayroplane became the first horse ever to win his VDM division at two, three and four.

Highlight

The highlight of day one is the Bernie Kelly Memorial Ladies’ Race. You wouldn’t want to cross any of these ‘ladies’. They hit the first bend like Charlton Heston in Ben Hur.

Following a frenetic 1min and 57 secs, the valiant Catch Twenty Two, driven by Laura Frendo of Malta, held on grimly from 1/2 shot Lou Sweet Mix driven by Miia Salominen of Finland.

Punters were tearing up form books as Laura was last in the same race in 2025! The race was sponsored by The Hambletonian Society, so important in the USA.

It was nice to see Team Meadowbranch in full force at the VDM. With regally-bred youngsters and the best equipment that money can buy, they bring much to the party. John Richardson, as main trainer, took a view that there isn’t much point in going to a VDM meeting unless you have top-class stock and, in recent years, they stayed away.

The fact that the Meadowbranch horsebox (suitably luxurious) travelled full was a sign that JR liked their chances. On the track, John is driving like he has got his mojo back.

For the record, John trained and drove three winners over the festival. Wayne McNevin’s RD Five Star won heat and final of the three-year-old colts, while the classy Catch My Halo Hanover won her heat in the two-year-olds and was second from a horrible draw in the final.

Opening double

Jonny Cowden is holding his own well against the top drivers here and in the UK. The North Belfast man drove a double on the opening night with Aines Story for Neville Martin and Jason Legget from Fermanagh and Wots A Wosh for Gui McCullough from North Down. Australian podcast Campbell’s Comments ran a microphone and a Go Pro (camera) from Jonny’s helmet.

Jonny has represented Ireland as a driver, but is 200/1 to appear in the Eurovision Song Contest based on the short repertoire he sang to Aines Story. (See VDM Facebook page).

Usually this column carries news of another Harry Knows rout. On this occasion it was not to be, as the English champion Giant Pyla, driven by the Scottish pilot Will Greenhorn, proved too tough to pass.

If the race was run again tomorrow, would Patrick Kane jnr tuck in behind Giant Pyla for longer? It all happens in the two-minute game of chess. The race was a mile and a half and another new British record on the night.

Never mind British records, officials and connections alike are claiming a world record for a coloured mare on a half-mile track for Limerick man Johnny Cross’ remarkable Sweet Royalty.

Quite often those who breed for colour leave behind the important speed genes. Not so, Sweet Royalty, who has the gait and temperament to compete with higher grade ‘bays’, as the skewbald-lovers term non-skewbalds.

Bernard Nicholson of Cootehill trains and gave the mare a confident drive to win. The rumour mill has it that Johhny has refused a King’s ransom for this mare already and her win in 1.56.9 will only boost her value.

The McAleers from St Margarets performed a fine training performance to bring Northern Pride back from a gruelling defeat in Ballabuidhe to a win in 1.59 (last half 56 seconds) in the free-for-all. Troy McAleer held the reins.

Imperial Bubbles was the only winner of the two days sired by a wholly British or Irish-based stallion, namely Doonbeg.

He is owned by Brian Park. Rocker Laidler was out of luck in the classics, but picked up a graded race with Always B Molly.

Immodesto (Oisin Quill) and Krack Marancourt (Simon Duggan) ran mid-division in the middle grade trot won by Kandice Tillaye and Richard Haythornthwaite.

As usual, Derek Delaney and family laid on some show. The Offaly-based stallion broker organised a paid-for tour for international guests, which took in Belfast for Fleadh week, Clarkes Carriages of Dublin and Conwy Castle in Wales amongst other things.

Heather Wilder of Pennsylvania was her knowledgeable self on winners’ circle interviews. Veteran US race caller Roger Huston (84) brought his unique catchphrases to the event, while Darren Owen was as professional as ever.