BASIL Valentine, who last rode between the flags during the 2002/2003 campaign, was the easy winner of the Kildare Foxhounds’ members, subscribers and hunt staff race at their point-to-point in Punchestown last Sunday.

In winning this non-thoroughbred hunt race on Kilcormick, Valentine was bringing up a ‘double’ for the bay’s owner/trainer Peter Maher who had earlier saddled Albert Weld’s Enniskillen (Benny Walsh) to win the confined farmers’ race for the third year in a row.

Just eight days earlier, Kilcormick was partnered by Kildare member and flat jockey Gary Carroll when competing in the Golden Button Challenge in Gloucestershire.

Although he was unseated in the Challenge, Carroll re-mounted to finish in 15th place. Kilcormick is a 13-year-old gelding by the Irish Sport Horse sire Puissance out of a mare by the American thoroughbred Horos.

Greatly adding to the atmosphere on a very good day, the race was over six fences of the point-to-point course.

There were three ladies among the 12 riders with Camilla Grey, whose photograph appeared in last week’s Irish Horse World section of this paper, just getting up close home to take second ahead of Linda Gillespie who was mounted on the smallest horse in the line-up, the 15.1hh Aint It So Alfie.

Among the also-rans was Keith Banks Broderick who has been a professional whipper-in with the Kildares for the past two seasons but is now returning home to Co Galway.

Fergus Lawlor was most disappointed to fall at the final fence with Mario having completed the Golden Button Challenge in 27th place with the same horse.