LAST Sunday, the Kildare Branch of the Irish Pony Club held a very successful Fun Minimus/Tetrathlon/Fledglings day which started at 7am in the swimming pool at K Leisure in Naas before moving on to Punchestown racecourse for the shooting, running and riding phases. Happily, any rain that fell did so in the morning.

The Kildares’ new technical delegate, Sandra Phipps, oversaw the presentation and dressing of three ride courses – 1m, 90cms and 80cms – and among those seen working on these in the days before the competition was former champion National Hunt jockey Ruby Walsh (who had three children competing), John Curley, the Branch’s head of grounds and cross-country courses, and many other parents. Joanna Phipps looked after matters in the fledglings’ arena.

Thanks to the Kildares’ new District Commissioner, Ruth Masterson, there were some great prizes on offer sponsored by TRI and, on hand to present those for best run, swim and shoot, was the Army Equitation School’s senior show jumping rider Commdt Geoff Curran, a former member of the Waterford Branch. It was good of Geoff to call in as he was jumping, and winning, at Balmoral the previous Wednesday, jumping, and winning, at the Royal Windsor Horse Show on the Thursday, and jumping, and being placed, back at Balmoral on the Friday.

Sam Alfred competing in the Kildare Branch of the IPC Fun Minimus event \ Mel Doyle

There was a great result for the hosts when Ellie Dillon followed up her win at the Carlows’ competition a week previously with another here in the 12-strong Senior Girls’ Tethrathlon. The 15-year-old was third in the swim, fourth in the shoot and won the run. She was then one of five who took the whole 1,400 points on offer in the ride phase for a winning total of 3,894. Galway Mid County’s Isabella Devitt kept the pressure on all the way as she finished second on 3,832.

There was a close result too in the 10-runner Senior Boys’ Tetrathlon where the honours went to Co Limerick’s Sean Alfred, who completed on 3,980 points with the Ward Union’s Jed Collins finishing second (3,958). Tipperary’s Zach Palmer improved a place from the previous weekend to see off 22 others to win the Junior Boys’ Tetrathlon on 4,354 while Alex Barry struck for the Co Limerick Branch when amassing 3,740 points to win the 26-runner Boy’s Minimus.

Forty-eight competitors were counted down in the Junior Girls’ Tetrathlon, the last starter being Leitrim’s Grace Quinn. Second a week earlier, Quinn improved a place to win on 4,401 but only narrowly from Wexford’s Emma Hickey on 4,395. There were 80 starters in the Girls’ Minimus. Here, the Waterford Branch came out best thanks to the efforts of Matilda Ormond who accumulated 3,496 points mainly due to her win in the swim and her clear in the ride phase. Sarah Finn finished second for the Wexford Branch on 3,400.

Boys and girls competed against one another in the 28-runner fledglings’ class won by the Ward Union’s Áilbhe Reilly on 3,278.

We don’t know if Ruby Walsh was back at Punchestown on Monday, tidying up and putting the ground back, but we do know that among those who were on-site was his wife Gillian who is the Branch’s head of Minimus/Tetrathlon and cross-country training.

Grace Quinn in action over a brush fence at the Kildare Branch of the IPC Fun Minimus event \ Mel Doyle