CAROL Armstrong got her first taste of producing horses when her parents bought her a young pony, Daisy Bell, when she was 14 years old.

Having learned to ride at Moy Riding Centre, little did she know that from these beginnings she would go on to become well-known for breeding and producing many talented sport horses.

“I grew up on the Watson family farm in Cornascriebe, Co Armagh, where my parents and brother John run a suckler herd as well as breeding ewes and pedigree charolais cattle,” Carol told The Irish Field.

“The Cornascriebe cattle herd was established in 1976 and, as children, we were all involved in breeding and showing the cattle, so I’d say this is where my interest in breeding began.

“After school, I went to Queen’s University to study computer science and at that time I continued to compete, but just at riding club level. I graduated in 1989, and once I had secured a job, I set about pursuing my dream of breeding and producing competition horses.

“With the help of my father James, and family friend John Brophy from Co Kilkenny we sourced a young well-bred filly. This three-year-old was Trixie Belle, by Diamonds are Trumps out of Trixie Lady (Bahrain). We decided to put her to Renkum Englishman. We got a filly foal, and she went on to be the first horse to carry the Cornascriebe prefix: Cornascriebe Lady.

“We kept Cornascriebe Lady, and when she was three put her in foal to Ballinvella which produced another filly, Cornascriebe Vella. In turn, when she was three I put her to Cavalier Royale and the filly foal Cornascriebe Cavella was the result.”

Quality

These became the foundation mares of Carol’s breeding programme and through careful and patient planning over the past 30 years, the Cornascriebe prefix has become well established and is associated with quality sport horses.

Some of her success stories include Cornascriebe Cava Diamond (Cavalier Royale - Cornascriebe Diamond) who jumped to 1.40m; Cornascriebe Glenpatrick (Womanizer - Cornascriebe Royale) who topped the Go For Gold sale in 2016 when sold to Ellie Guy Eventing for €160,000. He is now competing at three-star level with Briton Ben Edwards; and Cornascriebe Bluella (Plot Blue - Cornascriebe Cavella) who won the HSI Northern region foal qualifier in 2015 and went on to top the Goresbridge October sale in 2018.

“I tend to let them have a foal and then break them in. I take them in for a bit of loose jumping at two and a half, rising three, then lunge them with tack on and I have a man who long-reins them for me.

“I think it is good for them to go away to him at this age, they get to experience somewhere new. It’s all education for them. It’s quite good for them to ‘leave home’ for five weeks. When they return, I back them and they go out to the field for the whole summer. When they come back in, all the really hard work is done, and they are ready for the next phase to be ridden and start going to small training shows during their four-year-old year.

“Once they are happy I will send them on to a professional rider to compete in the young event horse leagues. Over the past four or five years, I’ve used Johnny Mulligan and Emma Jackson for the eventers and Catherine Thornton for the jumpers.

“I tend to start them in the young event horse classes because I find them to be a little bit more rounded.

“For the four-year-old show jumping classes, the fences are a bit big. Horses need to be jumping 1.10m by May and I think that’s a bit too hard on them; whereas with the eventing classes they are only doing 90cms or slightly bigger.

“I’ve had horses do the five-year-old HSI classes that have done the young event horse classes at four. I prefer to wait and introduce it gradually. I find I’m doing less and less competing with them as four-year-olds, maybe just a few training shows.

“One I sold to Jessica McConnell just recently, Cornascriebe Derryinver (Derryinver Luxury Cruise - Cornascriebe Cavella, by Cavalier Royale) is going very well and was double clear last Saturday in the five-year-old Youngster Tour class.”

Carol Armstraong's home-bred Cornascriebe Glenpatrick topped the 2016 Go For Gold sale when sold for €160,000 \ Tadhg Ryan Bit-Media

Satisfaction

“Several years ago I sold a four-year-old filly to the Lebet family in Switzerland. They then came back and bought three more. They leave them here for me to produce. They said just treat them like you would your own and send them out when they are broken and riding well.

“It’s very satisfying to know people trust you enough to take an animal they have invested in through its formative years. The way horses are handled from foal to four years is so important.

“I get the most satisfaction from teaching them to be confident and happy and fully prepared to take on what is ahead of them. In the past I have ridden up to 1.30m competitively, but now I tend to send the five-year-olds to riders I know will bring them on the way I would like.

“The Lebet family bought Cornascriebe Blue (Plot Blue - Cornascriebe Cavella) as a foal and when I had her riding well in the January of her four-year-old year, she then went to Catherine for 10 weeks before going to them at the end of April.

“I currently have only one very nice three-year-old filly by Orestus out of the Diamond Serpent mare, she’s just been broken and gone out to the field. Unusually, I have nothing to ride this year. I had two colts four years ago that were sold as foals.

“I have a few two-year-olds in the field; one by Emerald out of Cornascriebe Oresta, who is nine now, and another by Air Jordan out of the Cavella mare. He actually belongs to the Swiss family I mentioned, he will stay here until he is four.

“The Emerald filly I think is very special so I will back her next year and then decide if I’ll sell or keep her. She’s very nice, but I know I can’t keep them all. Last year I only had one colt foal by Orestus out of Cornacriebe Fortuna (Numero Uno) and he was sold at the Mayo Roscommon Breeders’ Sale last October to Dermott Considine in Co Meath who will aim him for the elite three-year-old sales.”

“I have three fillies and one colt foal this year. One is out of Cornascriebe Fortuna by Orestus, she was born on St Patrick’s Day. Out of the Cavella mare I have a VDL Corporal colt; the Diamond Serpent mare had an Orestus filly on May 1st and the filly I have that was born the other day is by Pegase van’t Ruytershof out of Cornascriebe Royale. The plan will be to keep at least one of the fillies to produce and maybe retain as the next broodmare.”