THE Cahirvillahow CCI4*-L may have been one of the smaller classes on the card last weekend, but the victory was no less sweet for New Zealand Olympian Caroline Powell, who guided the talented gelding Tik Tok to an impressive wire-to-wire win.

Bred in Ireland by Claire Wood, the striking bay is by Ulysses M2S out of Ballinamurra Coors Light, and looks like a horse with a big future. Tik Tok, owned by long-time Powell supporter Jo West, was stepping up to this level for the very first time and will now head to Blenheim for the CCI4*-S eight and nine-year-old Championships next month.

The nine-year-old showed maturity beyond his years across all three phases. A polished dressage test earned them a leading score of 30.3, which they carried through the weekend. On Paul Brady’s cross-country track, they produced a bold and confident round, adding just 5.2 time penalties, before sealing the win in front of the Ground Jury of Andrew Bennie (NZL), Faith Ponsonby (IRL) and Vanda Stewart (IRL) on Sunday with a clear round.

“I’m really pleased with him,” said a delighted Powell afterwards. “It’s his first time at this level and he took it all in his stride.

"It’s also my first time here and we’ve had a great experience. Considering how little rain there has been, the going was as good as you could expect and the team really did their best for us.”

Behind them, it was Ireland’s Michael Ryan who climbed the leaderboard on the final day. Riding the Irish Sport Horse Claragh Mountain, Ryan produced a foot-perfect clear in the show jumping to move up from fourth after cross-country into second place overall. The 12-year-old gelding, by Puissance out of Cruising Jewel and bred by Michael Moore, is owned by Nicolas Pomeroy. Claragh Mountain’s performance also earned him the prize for Highest Placed Traditional Irish Horse, sponsored by B&B Equine Vets.

Consistent ISH

Third place went to another consistent Irish Sport Horse, Funny Guy (by Loughehoe Guy out of Oliver’s Lady), ridden by Joseph Murphy. Despite being the only combination to make the time across country, an unlucky pole in the show jumping dropped them from overnight second. For Murphy and owner Annette O’Callaghan, the result marks a strong step forward, as their first outing at this level in Millstreet ended in disappointment when they were eliminated after omitting a fence.

John Tilley enjoyed a busy weekend with two rides in the class. His best result came with Trend de La Cruise, who lowered just one pole on the final day to finish fourth. With his other mount, Licence to Cooley, he had been lying second after dressage but a glance-off at the Dobbs Oil Table at fence 16 cost them 20 penalties, and they eventually finished fifth.

Robbie Kearns and Pisco Sour were the only other combination to start the class and were going well until the TRM Triple Brush at fence 13, where after a refusal, Kearns called it a day.

The Cahirvillahow CCI4*-L may have been small in numbers, but it proved decisive for Powell and Tik Tok, who now head to Blenheim for next month’s Eight/Nine-year-old Championships.