THE ridden Connemara ponies at the RDS featured some outstanding examples of the breed as huge crowds lined the rings watching the iconic ponies going through their paces in glorious sunshine before Sweden’s Madeleine Beckman and the UK’s Heather Prescott.
The four and five-year-old mares and geldings (O.12) class was won by Rakerin Bobby (Westonhouse Strabo Bobby-Gurrane Joy), owned by Ria O’Callaghan from Athenry and bred by Tomas Keane from Gort.
The gelding was ridden by her sister Aine who admitted to “being stuck for words’’ to describe her joy at winning in Dublin. Ria bought him at Gort Mart and added: “we never dreamed of this.”
The blue rosette was awarded to Rachel Moore from Co.Down who celebrated her birthday riding the well-balanced four-year-old mare Copperbeech Polly, owned by Tomas and Fiona Grimes from Ballinrobe, Co.Mayo.
Owners Patrice and Ted Byrne from Wicklow, with their daughters Emma and Meabh, exhibited their nine-year-old grey mare Glencroft Aruba (Patty’s Bastion-Glen Lady 2nd), bred by Joseph O’Neill from Leenane, who etched her name in the Horse Show history books by winning three classes. Ridden by Meabh Byrne, she won the class for riders (O.10 & U.17), Aruba also won this section in 2016 and 2014.
Blackwoodland Quince, owned by Anita Kelly and ridden by Lilly Kelly from Rathgar in Dublin, was runner-up.
Stylish Ride
Little May owned by Kieran and Rosaleen McGrath from Hazelrock Stud in Claregalway got a stylish ride from young Dean McGrath to collect third prize.
Glencroft Aruba won her second red of the day (O.17), ridden this time by Emma Byrne.
Ciara and Rufina Shiel Mullen’s Assagart Delight and Ciara Mullen from Malahide took the blue rosette with another Dublin regular Alicia Devlin Byrne on Susan Gageby Denham’s Bertraghboy Heaven in third.
In the ownership of his rider, Sandra Burton from Lancashire and Joe Burke from Cloonisle Stud in Galway, the nine-year-old Banks Timber (Teglestrup Duke-Banks Squares Do Do by Grange Surf Sparrow), bred by Peter Bank-Mikkelsen in Denmark won the four-year-old and over stallion class ahead of Carracanda River, ridden by Kirstin McDonagh from Westport.
“Timber” was imported into Ireland by Seamus Hynds of Tullanna Stud in Moate, Co Westmeath, as a two-year-old on the advice of Nina Gustafson from Lofty Stud in Sweden. Burke said of the new champion: “He won approximately 15 Supreme Championships in two years’ showing and this season has won at Royal Highland, Royal International, and now Royal Dublin.”
As the judges awarded Banks Timber Supreme Champion Connemara Pony of 2017, Glencroft Aruba and Emma Byrne, a granddaughter the late Michael Roche of Assagart fame, stood Reserve and proudly collected their third sash of day.