SHOW CLASSES:THE PERFORMANCE ring was the centre of attention on yesterday's showing programme, with the Parkbytext Irish Draught class split into two age categories this year as the entry was so large.
First up, the four and five-year-olds had the best of the weather and most coped well with the track. Following a short show on the flat, the jumping phase and inspection for conformation, seven horses were recalled to be ridden by judges Jack Cochrane and Matthew Ainsworth.
The winner was the five-year-old Montpelier Seaview gelding Shining Sea, partnered by Nicola Perrin. Co Kildare owner Fintan Flannelly bought the grey as a foal from Ashford’s Reg Armstrong, who bred him out of a Powerswood Purple mare.
Mr Flannelly bred the Alva Gunne-owned and ridden Silver Skippy which won last year’s sole class. This year the mare finished second in the six-year-old and upwards class to Crosstown Dancer gelding Dunleckney Dancer.
The grey stallion Josie Jump claimed the five to seven-year-old Connemara performance hunter championship under his Wexford owner Jason Higgins. Annagh Storm, which won that younger ponies’ class three years ago, landed the eight to 15-year-old class under Co Down’s Rachel Suffern, whose mother Alison owns the Ashfield Festy gelding.
Merryn Huntley-Jones’s bid to win the led-stallion class for the third year in a row with Killacloran failed when the 11-year-old finished fifth behind Ciaran Curran’s home-bred Glencarrig Knight, a grey four-year-old by Janus out of a Cooshen Finn mare.
Awaiting the results of her Leaving Certificate, Youghal’s Avril Riordan had the perfect start to her day, winning the riding horse championship on her mother Finola’s Lord Foxford, a seven-year-old bay gelding. Also from Co Cork, 16-year-old Gavin Daly won the small hunter championship on Justine Fay’s 12-year-old chestnut gelding Colorado III.