THERE was a very poor turn-out of older members at last Saturday’s Irish Pony Club national dressage day in Spruce Lodge but, on the plus side, numbers continue to grow at under 12 and under 10 level.

“The numbers were disappointing but there were a lot of things going on last weekend,” said the IPC’s chairman of dressage and combined training, Kate Harvey. “Also some of the older members had just completed their Leaving Certificate and were out of the country.

“We had 45 riders competing, most of whom did two tests each, but this was the second year in which there was a drop in numbers which is not a good trend. However, we had a lot of under 10 and under 12 riders which is positive for the future of the sport.”

The facilities provided by Joan Keogh at her Co Wicklow establishment are second to none and the whole venue looked super with flowers all around on Saturday as competitors arrived on site. Thanks to their efforts, and, of course, those of the organisers, Spruce Lodge was left in an immaculate condition as the same competitors departed later in the day.

The tests were all ridden in the large outdoor sand arena but, for logistical reasons, competitors warmed up indoors. It was very warm so around midday, riders were informed that they could not only warm up without jackets but could compete without them as well.

Among those who provided vital assistance to Harvey in running this national dressage day were Marie and Dick Hennessy plus their daughter Maeve who looked after the entries, scoring and results. TRI Equestrian sponsored the prizes, many of which were won by members of the Killinick Branch.

Two landed the honours at their levels, Oscar O’Connor (Under 10) and Naoise Ward (Intermediate). Judge Lynne Cassidy awarded O’Connor a score of 68.75% for his work in the Pre Novice IPC Dressage Test (2013) on his mother Susan’s Brookhouse Chuckler gelding Birtley Rainbow Quest, while the eight-year-old scored 68.25 to place second with Trefriw Pepsi.

Nine-year-old Lara Field, representing Galway Mid County, also had two rides in this nine-runner class, finishing third on Glandrine Pied Piper (67.25) and fourth with Creganna Dancer who was on the same score.

Riding the same test, but in the Under 12 division, the Killinicks’ Taylor Peare (Lady Dawn Winser) and Faye Murphy (Brighter Day Biscuits) scored 67.25 and 67 respectively but had to give best to the easy winner Rebecca Payne. A member of the Kildare Branch, 11-year-old Payne achieved a mark of 71.25 riding Joanne Horan’s Caspar The Ghost.

DOUBLE-HANDED

Also representing Kildare, Tara Hayes was double-handed in the Junior competition where Jillie Rogers and Bernie Webb judged the Dressage Ireland Preliminary Test 8 (2012) in a 60m arena.

The rider’s winning mount on 72.98% was her mother Fiona’s Thorneyside Kestral (by Thornside The Gladiator), a black Welsh Section D gelding who was recently imported from Britain, while she finished third with Harley (70.38).

Splitting the Hayes pair was the Ward Union’s Charlotte Mangan on Cnoc na Greine Fraoch (72.02).

The Killinicks were back in winning form in the Intermediate competition where six riders came before Marie Hennessy and Eithne O’Kelly to perform the IPC Novice dressage test (2014) in the 60m arena.

Naoise Ward proved a comprehensive winner as she scored 70.28% on Designer 16 (by Dancier) ahead of the Kildares’ Peter Dillon on Thistletown Nordic Clover (67.13) and Millie-Jane Bell of the Louth Branch riding Yodalicious (65.46).

The same test was used for the Open/SA competition where just three riders came before Hennessy and O’Kelly. Carlow’s Megan Telford-Kelly, who featured in these pages last week following her win in a Dublin Horse Show small event horse qualifier, took the honours here on her mother Rosalind’s six-year-old dun gelding Aughabeg Dun Boy with whom she recently landed an EI105 class at Clyda (2).

The 16-year-old scored 69.91% which saw her win narrowly from Louise Kennedy on Ginger (69.54) with the latter’s Westmeath clubmate, Rebecca Joyce, placing third on the ex-racehorse Heisacoolhand (66.85).

For all but this Open/SA competition, there were warm-up classes which were won by the Killinick’s Oscar O’Connor and Birtley Rainbow Quest (Under 12), the Wicklow Branch’s Emily Barratt and Sheika Of Killowen (Junior) and the Killinicks’ Naoise Ward on Designer 16 (Intermediate).

In a bid to get members to mix with others from around the country, Marie Hennessy organised a team competition which was won by the Pony Tales quartet of Charlotte Mangan (Ward Union), Tara Hayes (Kildare), Megan Telford-Kelly (Carlow) and Niamh Fennell (West Waterford). They scored 212.31% ahead of the Happy Hoofs (205.31) and the Glamour Girls (203.78).