THE O’Brien sisters, Suzanne and Lyndsey, and their parents, Laura and Tim, love their summer weekends on the showing circuit and are happy to travel throughout the country to fuel their passion, particularly when it comes to qualifying for the ladies’ side-saddle class at Dublin.

Both riders secured their golden tickets in mid-June at Gorey Agricultural Show where Lyndsey finished first on the six-year-old Irish Draught gelding Creevaghstables Mr Bloomfield while Suzanne placed second on the traditionally-bred Prince Of Diamonds.

That order was reversed in Ring 2 last Thursday week when judges Sophie Buckley (ride) and Bridget Millington (conformation) had Suzanne and Laura’s Prince Of Diamonds at the top of their final line-up with Lyndsey and Tim’s Creevaghstables Mr Bloomfield down in fifth. Rachel Moore stood second with her six-year-old Scrapman gelding, Drumlane Tall Order.

The winner, an eight-year-old bay gelding by Carrick Diamond Lad, was bred in Co Kildare by Donal McKenna out of the unraced Moscow Society mare Moscow Gayle.

He was crowned the Connolly’s Red Mills ridden horse champion of champions at Tatteralls Ireland last month.

Maguire named champion

O’Brien contested Saturday evening’s lightweight sportsman class on Prince Of Diamonds but here, where Millington was joined by ride judge Hayden Hankey, she could only finish third behind Orla Maguire and MBF Quick Decision, who went on to be crowned The Horse Show House champions, and Jean Power with her 12-year-old Krafty Clover gelding, Briska Lad.

A seven-year-old gelding by OBOS Quality 004 out of an Orbis mare and bred in Co Carlow by Dairmuid Byrne, MBF Quick Decision has contested three EI90 (Amateur) classes under Maguire this season, finishing third and fourth before winning at Frankfort Stud (2) last month.

The reserve champion was the middle/heavyweight winner, the Irish Draught gelding Ballingeary Buster, who was ridden by his owner, Britain’s Amanda Benson who spends a lot of her time in Ireland. Bred in Co Cork by Seamus Lucey out of his Holycross mare Dominico, the nine-year-old grey took the red ahead of Creevaghstables Mr Bloomfield.