WHEN racing was taking place at Downpatrick on Monday, one of the town’s native sons, Danny McMenamin, was in action at Cartmel where he won the concluding handicap chase on the Laura Morgan-trained Achille Des Rocs.

Three days earlier, riding the seven-year-old Califet mare Wudya for Joel Parkinson and Sue Smith, he won the near two-and-a-half-mile handicap chase at Sedgefield where there were wins for the former Caroline McCaldin-trained Saint Polo and Gerald Quinn’s former charge Getaway Vic.

Other horses previously trained locally to have won over jumps across the water recently were Breaking Cover (ex Warren Ewing) and My Girl Katie (ex Noel Kelly), who both scored at Newton Abbot last Thursday week.

At home on the flat, the remarkable Banbridge, who was placed twice in three starts in four-year-old point-to-point maidens in 2020 when trained by Colin McKeever for Wilson Dennison, landed the mile and six maiden at Gowran on Tuesday. Since he first ran unplaced in a bumper as a five-year-old, the Doyen gelding has been trained by Joseph O’Brien for Ronnie Bartlett.

Also on the flat, but on the jockey front, Oisin Orr recorded a double on Saturday at Beverley as did Patsy Cosgrave at Chepstow which he followed up with a single win two days later at Epsom.

On the breeding front, there was a win for the Andrew McNally-bred five-year-old mare Mo Ghille Mar (Zoffany – First Love, by Galileo) at Down Royal on Friday evening with the Tony Martin-trained Bruant justifying 3/1 favouritism at Downpatrick on Monday in the colours of the Elizabeth Carson Racing Syndicate.

SADLY, I have to refer to another death this week, that of Northern Ireland businessman, property developer, through the Killultagh group of companies, and friend of racing and all equestrian pursuits, Frank Boyd.

It’s many years since I walked around Rademon with Frank who, I felt might not have shared the same outright passion for horses as his wife Rose and children but was deeply committed to supporting them in all matters equine, even when it came to being a parking steward at the Killultagh, Old Rock & Chichester point-to-points.

He was, of course, invariably present when Rose led in one of the many winners she owned outright or with others such as the great Hurricane Fly plus Killultagh Storm and Killultagh Vic who were bred by Frank.

I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere condolences to Rose, daughters Fiona, Aisling, Megan and Sinead and son Brendan.

IT has been a busy and varied period for the team at Down Royal racecourse over the past few weeks. On Sunday, August 9th, they hosted the canine event Dog Royal, staged in partnership with Gain Elite.

Last Friday, it was the Musgrave NI Race Evening and yesterday it was Grant Thornton Race Evening at the track. Today, it’s Space Safari evening when the only dogs allowed on course are the assistance dog variety.

Meanwhile Downpatrick’s Ladies Day meeting on Monday attracted a huge crowd including Mayobridge’s Nicola Grant, winner of the Best Dressed Lady award, and Dromara’s Martin Walker, the day’s Best Dressed Gentleman.

The marketing team are running a competition on Facebook for six indoor general admission tickets to Downpatrick’s next meeting on Friday, September 18th.

THE Northern Region of Eventing Ireland held a second one-day event of the season last Saturday at the Dennison family’s lovely Loughanmore estate where among those competing was Killyleagh-based Irish international Joseph Murphy, a twin brother of Co Westmeath trainer Ciaran Murphy.

This weekend, Joseph rides the 15-year-old German Sport Horse gelding Calmaro in the five-star competition at the Burghley international horse trials where Ireland will also be represented by England-based Dromore native Susie Berry who is double handed though the 14-year-old ISH mare Clever Trick and the year-older ISH gelding John The Bull.

HOPEFULLY the rain will stay away for today’ St Patrick’s Coast Endurance Ride, which starts and finishes at Downpatrick racecourse, and, of course, the Whip and Collar Driving Club’s Marie Curie Cancer Care fund-raising charity picnic drive on Tyrella Beach.

Never slow off the mark, we weren’t at all surprised to learn that Judy Mawwell of Baileys Horse Feeds, who is referred to as “our most faithful and generous sponsor” on the ride’s Facebook page, was packed up and ready for today’s action early this week.