NEXT week, John Kennedy will become the first-ever Irish competitor to bring a team of four to the FEI Combined Ponies Driving World Championships at Le Pin au Haras in France.

It has been a long road to get there and the Tipperary native is now eagerly looking forward to taking on some of the big names in the sport. “It is thanks to a large team of people, especially my wife Jean (Rea) and Jan de Boer, that I am in this position,” Kennedy told The Irish Field.

The preparation for these championships is phenomenal, and you need the best ponies you can find to do the job. They need to be many things, but most of all they need to work well as a team.

Among the quintet (a team of four and one reserve) of Welsh Section A ponies travelling to France will be several that came from the yard of Dutchman Jan de Boer, a former world champion who needs no introduction.

“I’ve known Jan several years and we have become good friends. He comes to Ireland regularly to coach. He called me late last year. ‘Would you drive my ponies?’ he said. He knew I always wanted to drive a team, but this is Jan de Boer and ‘no one’ drives his ponies. I was lost for words.”

The Kennedys have a fabulous set-up at their base outside Grangecon in Co Wicklow and de Boer knows their incredible work ethic and the care and attention their ponies receive every day. “He had been here and saw how I looked after my ponies. We are as passionate as he is. He said to me: ‘You’ve had a lot of bad luck’. He was referring to a few accidents we’ve had. He told me he was going to be competing in horse pairs.”

A few weeks later, John Kennedy flew out to try these fabulous grey ponies, some of which had been gold medal winners in 2021 and 2023 as members of a team of carriage drivers representing Holland.

As an active member of the Irish carriage driving community for many years, Kennedy knew this was too good an offer to refuse. “Of course, I said yes!”

Best bloodlines

Once paperwork was complete, five ponies arrived at the Kennedys’ home. They boast some of the best Welsh bloodlines in the world. “Breeding is very important, and they carry the Shorebrooks line. One of them, the stallion Shorebrooks Hot ‘n Spicy, is one of the best there is.”

Despite having only one eye, he is a crucial member of the team. At only 12hh, these ponies will compete against some up to 14.2hh, so will need to be tough at their game.

John Kennedy and his wife Jea Rea pictured after winning at the All-Ireland Championships in Donard, Co Wicklow in 2022 \ Siobhan English Photography

They need to be six years or older to compete at international level. The training they receive is immense, and it takes time to learn the best traits of each pony. “I usually do single and pairs training, to get them going right. It is easier to fix problems that way. I often change them around too. Also, if a pony goes lame, you need one who can do everything. That is why you need five for a team.”

The five ponies are Shorebrooks Hole In One, Shorebrooks Hot ‘n Spicy, Shorebrooks Hot Tropic, Shorebrooks Such A Star and Windhoek’s Skip.

All 11 ponies currently at the base of J&J Competition Driving Ponies are either stallions or geldings. When asked about mares and their tendency to be temperamental, Kennedy said: “I refuse to have one here.”

Background

A self-employed engineer by profession, John Kennedy grew up on a dairy farm and got his first introduction to carriage driving through his wife, Jean Rea. She had started at a young age thanks to her father, Pat Rea, who did a lot of show driving.

“Jean grew up just down the road in Monard, near Limerick Junction. I used to socialise with her brother. We’d be heading out for the night, and she would be cleaning harnesses for the next day.” Eventually the pair clicked. The rest, as they say, is history.

Amongst several other Irish championships, Rea won the British novice single pony championship in 2005 with her pony, Teddy. “Back then, you had novice or open. Now you have so many classes available for all levels and all ages. We even have competitions for very small equines, like 10hh. We call that the VSE class.”

Once Kennedy began attending events, he was hooked. “I remember my first competition as groom was at Jackie Doherty’s. We used to go somewhere every week. We used to camp, or sleep in the jeep. Then we had a caravan. Eventually we graduated to a lorry with sleeping facilities.”

John Kennedy in action in the dressage phase with his team-of-four in Le Pin au Haras, France in July

Overseeing the sport across the border is the Northern Ireland Carriage Driving Association. In the Republic, the Horse Sport Ireland Carriage Driving section is responsible for holding events and ensuring they are well covered by insurance. “Between them, they hold national championships every year, either north or south.

“We only have about 40 members in the Republic. It is such a friendly sport, and we are always encouraging new members to join.”

Work commitments took them away from competitive carriage driving for a time. “I was working in the UK. I remember, on a Sunday we’d be carriage driving and at 8am the next morning, I’d be in Liverpool Street with thousands of people.”

They later had an apartment in Dublin. The couple got married in 2012 and moved to Wicklow in 2013. “We found this place and fell in love with it. One of the first ponies to come here was Teddy. He was a once-in-a-lifetime pony.”

Kennedy recalls the day he made his first purchase of a Welsh Section A, the smallest of all Welsh ponies. “We were in the UK looking at a Section C pony for Jean. She had lost Teddy to colic. The day she bought her new pony, William, I saw this little chesnut gelding over the stable door. I don’t know what came over me, but I had to have him.”

Named Supernova, he was soon joined by another that was sourced in Donegal. “I remember showing Supernova in-hand and people looking at me, wondering who this lad was.”

Already boasting some stables and an arena, their home has since been developed into a wonderful training facility for practicing all three phases in competitive carriage driving - dressage, marathon and cones.

Kennedy competed in his first pre-novice pony competition in Dualla, Co Tipperary in 2017 with a Welsh Section D called Jupiter. The following year, he finished second in the same division behind Kris Rohrssen, a young driver from Tipperary who went on to win gold at the FEI European Carriage Driving Championships for Children (u14) in 2021.

Just before Covid struck in 2020, John purchased another two ponies. By now he had graduated from singles to pony pairs. He qualified for the British Carriage Driving Championships in 2022 and finished a creditable runner-up in the open pony pairs. On this occasion Rea was groom.

As well as helping to manoeuvre the carriage, the groom or ‘back-stepper’ also serves as a tactician, keeping an eye on the clock and the time to beat and letting the driver know if they need to speed up or can slow down. One groom is required for a single or pairs event, while two are required for a team of four.

Several other people have groomed for the couple in recent years, including Jean’s niece Avril Rea who also events at junior level.

John Kennedy in action in the marathon phase with his team-of-four in Bornhem, Belgium in July

Serious accident

In June 2023, Kennedy won the pony pairs at a two-star in Chepstow. His wife was also runner-up in the novice pony division.

Six months later, he had a serious accident at home that left him on the sidelines for many months. “I was training at home. Out of the blue one of my ponies took off. I tried to stop him by running him into boxes. I came off and the carriage went on its side. He drove the gate off the hinges and headed down the road. Luckily the reins got caught in the wheel and he stopped.”

The pony got one little cut over his eye, but the pilot suffered several broken ribs. Kennedy had no choice but to rest up, but not one for being idle he ordered a team carriage from Belgium, such was his determination to – one day – have a team of four in competition.

The pair took some time out from competition in 2024, but were on hand to help at the All-Ireland in Punchestown.

At this point they had accumulated a nice group of ponies, but nothing could have prepared them for the kind offer from Jan de Boer in November of last year.

In a bid to learn more about the sport, Kennedy spent a few weeks in Holland. “Jan has given me a fantastic opportunity, so I went over to see how they train. I learned so much.”

In order to line-out for the world championships in France, Kennedy had to qualify at two competitions at three-star level. As a warm-up he used a few two-star events with pony pairs and a two-star with his team to build up to his first-ever three-star. That was in Saumur, France last May.

“In order to qualify, I needed two dressage scores of 65 or less. I got 67.75. I always say if I am beaten it’s because I wasn’t good enough - no other reason. I am always trying to improve.

“We then had to find two more competitions in Europe. Due to Brexit and associated tariffs, we no longer compete in the UK.”

Kennedy and his team next headed to Le Pin au Haras in early July. “I think we upset them there as I got a score of 55.82, which was fractions behind the eventual winner. At this level, dressage is so important as everyone is fast in the marathon.”

Kennedy’s last chance to qualify was in Bornhem, Belgium in mid-July. Their dressage score of 61.85 was good enough, but had it not been for the quick thinking of his wife in the last phase, it could have been a disaster. “I was really under pressure and nearly went through a wrong cone, only for Jean calling me out. The whole year of training would have been gone.”

Logistics

With two qualifying scores in the bag, John Kennedy knew his name would be secure on the start list next week. He says this is thanks to a large team of people.

“There are so many people involved in getting me to these championships, probably about 30 in total.”

Among those heading to France are Tipperary-based Janos Foldszin and his wife, Aniko Lorincz, who will groom for the dressage and cones phases. Kennedy’s wife will groom for all phases, and Gareth Quinn will step in for the marathon. “Rory McCarthy also helps us, as does John Goodwin, and we have Rosemary Rouse who is a great member of the team here in the yard. For safety, it is crucial that there is someone here all the time when I am training.”

After a 6am start to feed, training is a big part of the day, as is management of the ponies. “They all get out to graze every day. This is important.”

In terms of logistics for these championships, it takes quite a bit of planning. They will have three carriages - one for dressage and cones, one for the marathon, and one for training. Then there are multiple sets of harnesses, haylage, feed, 16 bridles, various bits and some 32 sets of boots. They also bring electric bikes, and their own luggage. Not to mention five ponies. That all fits into one lorry and trailer. “Jean will make sure everything is in top order. She has been in the sport a long time and has a great eye for detail.”

As for the competition itself, once the trot-up is complete next Wednesday, it will be all systems go. Dressage takes place on Friday, followed by the marathon on Saturday over some eight kilometres. The final phase, the cones, takes place on Sunday.

“You’ll have the best teams in the world there, and a paddy thrown in. The ponies won’t look out of place,” Kennedy concluded.