NICKY Galligan made a great start to the final week of the HITS Hudson Valley Jumping Tour at Saugerties in New York, when he rode the 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare Lougherne Kingfisher (Colestus x Lougherne Springs by Limmerick), bred by Jane Allen-Collins in Hillsborough, Co Down, to win the $31,020 Jumper Classic at the three-star show on Thursday.

Galligan was among 43 starters in the class, 14 of whom managed to complete double clear rounds over FEI Level 4 course designer Olaf Petersen Jr’s (GER) power-and-speed track.