TWO male riders topped the scores in the graded Preliminary classes at last Sunday’s Dressage Ireland Eastern Region show at Marlton Stud.
There were 13 starters in the DI6 judged by Paula Geiger (List 3) whose overall leaderboard was headed by Gerald Bloomer on board the Dutch Warmblood gelding Ready To Shine AVO (72.69%), a four-year-old from the first crop of the 2016 Ferdeaux stallion Las Vegas (PSG/Inter I). The tall bay was bred in The Netherlands by Anna Van Oort out of Vinesse AVO (by Ronaldo) whose previous produce includes the Lord Leatherdale gelding King Leatherdale O (PSG/Inter I).
“I bought this fellow as a three-year-old,” revealed Bloomer. “He was quite an insecure youngster and has been produced very slowly this year; Marlton was his first Dressage Ireland show. I think he’s a hugely talented individual and a very exciting horse for the future.”
Nine combinations appeared before Lindsey Ilona Brady (List 4) in the DI5A where she awarded her highest score (72.50) to Ardeo Sport Horses’ stable jockey Finn O’Gara and the unregistered ‘Johnny’ who officially goes by the name Rathmorrisey Independence.
Traditionally-bred in Co Galway by John Healy, this five-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding is by the Irish Draught stallion Welcome Grandpa.
The grey is the first foal on the Irish Horse Register out of the unraced Tradmagic, a daughter of the US stallion Traditionally, who is dam also of five Weatherbys-registered foals, one of whom, the Approve gelding Concur, won twice on the flat.
Top two
There were nine starters also in the Brady-judged Novice DI21 where Sonya McCormack recorded the top two scores on Annemarie Walsh’s ISH gelding Oakfield Jappeloup (72.24), a six-year-old grey by Rebel Mountain, and her own Oldenburg mare Sosha Jakama (69.14), a four-year-old daughter of Taurus. Paula Geiger (List 3) had only three combinations to assess in the second Novice class, the DI27A, where the highest score was achieved by Bee Sykes on the Hanoverian gelding Con Caballito (69.83), a 14-year-old son of Christ.
Geiger judged both Elementary classes. Topping her overall leaderboard in the DI52 was Fiona Huber with the ISH mare Ballinteskin De Reve (69.03), her 10-year-old Hermes De Reve bay. Iris Walshe finished second (68.61) here on Olaf Van Lange Weeren, the six-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding by Hennessey on whom she scored 69.11 to see off her sole rival in the DI55.
Two combinations also appeared before Geiger in the second of the Medium classes, the DI67, where Samara Anne Mulder recorded the higher score (65.15) on board Ellen Carroll’s KWPN-registered gelding Igor W, a liver chesnut 10-year-old by Amazing Star. Michael Moore (List 2A) faced double that number of starters in the DI65 where his winner was Daphne Lush riding her traditionally-bred ISH gelding Millpoint Carnival (66.56), a 15-year-old chesnut by Millpoint Odin.
Moore’s winner of the sole Advanced Medium class, in which there were three starters, was Cael Shanahan with Suzanne Kendrick’s Anglo European Studbook-registered gelding Santana (66.36), a seven-year-old black son of Wish Upon A Star.
There were two starters in both Junior Preliminary classes. The Brady-judged DI5A was won by Sadie Sandys on Castletown Lux For Joy (67.14) while Maddison Roche topped the scores in the DI6 with Littleman (67.31). Ella Kidd recorded an uncontested double in the Junior Novice classes on board the ISH gelding Sandyhill Aladdin, a six-year-old Winningmood bay.
The final fixture in the Eastern Region for 2025, the annual Christmas show, will be held at Marlton Stud on Saturday, December 13th.