Long weekend = lots of horsey fun
Local equestrian news, reports, results and fantastic photos!
Hello everyone,
Another week, another Bank Holiday weekend! It is May Day on Monday, so it is a long weekend for many people - let’s hope the dry weather continues and there are lots of opportunities to spend time enjoying our equine friends and having some horsey fun!
The past week or so has seen a lot of activities taking place and a lot of emails being received! As ever, it is brilliant to see our local competitions being so well-supported, when there is so much going on. Alongside the regular leagues last weekend, Lisbane Farm held a Two-phase event, making use of both their all-weather and grass surfaces - the venue is now hosting their popular Jump Cross competitions every Tuesday evening.
It is such a busy time of year, with lots of equine competitions listed in the Horse&Field calendar for the coming weeks - one competition scheduled for next weekend is the Mid Antrim Pony Club Two-phase, being held at Laurel View next Saturday. Read more about the classes on offer, entries details etc:
Two-phase approaches for Mid Antrim Pony Club
Mid Antrim Branch of the Pony Club is looking forward to hosting their Annual Two-phase at Laurel View Equestrian Centre, Templepatrick on Saturday, May 10.
This Horse&Field newsletter brings you the latest equine news, as well as reports, results and pictures from local competitions and events over the past week or so, including news of Alison Donnell taking on the challenge of the Mourne Way Marathon Walk for charity; Down Royal Racecourse looks forward to their May Day fixture; results from the Two-phase event at Lisbane Farm; the latest Training Show at Connell Hill; the final week of the Working Hunter league at Hagans Croft; week two of Ecclesville’s show jumping league; the SJI Spring League at Connell Hill; the East Down Pony Club Derby at Tyrella; the Easter Show at Laurel View; and Strule Valley Riding Club spring activities.
Alison to take on the Mournes!
Alison Donnell, Secretary of Strule Valley Riding Club and Ivor Russell are taking on the challenge of the ‘Mourne Way Marathon Walk’ on Saturday, June 7 for ‘Cancer Focus Northern Ireland’.
Club Mixers sponsorship shakes up Down Royal’s May Day Fixture once again
Down Royal Racecourse has announced the return of Britvic NI as soft drinks partner for its ever-popular May Day fixture, with the company’s Club Mixers brand once again taking centre stage as title sponsor.
Terrific two-phase at Lisbane Farm
Saturday, April 26 saw a Two-Phase event being held at Lisbane Farm, Saintfield, with courses incorporating fences on both all-weather and grass at heights of 60cm, 75cm, 90cm and 1m.
Eve and 'Tom' take top spot at Connell Hill
Good weather and good competition saw all competitors in top form at Connell Hill, Randalstown, on Saturday, April 26 with Sinead Diver and ‘Calida’ taking first place in the 50cm class, Alice Gregg and Alex McFall taking joint first place in the 60cm and Lisa Dundee on young horse ‘Cricket’ taking the honours, along with Kim Fields on ‘Milo’ in the 70c…
Colourful end to Hagans Croft Working Hunter League
Saturday, April 26 saw the final week of Hagans Croft’s Working Hunter league and NIF Qualifiers, with an abundance of rosettes, sashes, trophies and prizes galore on offer! This five-week league saw competitors each week riding a challenging course of fences, which were built slightly more demanding each week and asked plenty of questions of horse and …
Record entries at Ecclesville Show jumping League
Week two of Ecclesville’s Show jumping League was again very popular, with a record number of 108 entries taking on Raymond Caldwell’s challenging courses. The League will continue next Friday evening at 6.15pm sharp.
SJI Spring League continues at Connell Hill
Connell Hill held another of their popular SJI Spring League shows on Thursday, April 24, which saw a good turnout for the horse classes and a few ponies were also in attendance.
Easter Derby goes down a treat at Tyrella
Easter Monday saw the Tyrella Derby being run by East Down Branch of the Pony Club, in conjunction with Holmestead Saddlery and with the kind permission of John and Hannah Corbett.
Easter ‘Egg-citement’ at Laurel View
The Laurel View Easter Show on Sunday, April 13, was filled with fun. The obstacle course and show jumping competitors didn’t have to hunt too hard for their Easter treats, as the Easter Bunny had left a couple of baskets for everyone who hopped over the jumps or around the obstacles.
Strule Valley club enjoying spring activities
Strule Valley Riding Club members and friends enjoyed their Annual Easter Charity Pleasure Ride at Baronscourt Estate, by kind permission of the Duke of Abercorn and Lord Hamilton.
In local news:
Titanic Hotel Belfast wins Global Hotel Design Award
The Titanic Hotel Belfast, the former headquarters of Harland & Wolff, the firm which designed RMS Titanic, has won the primetime CBS show Hotels ByDesign People’s Choice Award. Series 3 of this internationally-acclaimed hotel design television programme, Hotels ByDesign presented the prestigious award in recognition of the hotel’s distinctive design an…
A warm NǏ HǍO awaits at Titanic Hotel Belfast
Northern Ireland’s Leading Hotel, Titanic Hotel Belfast, is now officially ‘China Ready’, having completed the prestigious ‘China Tourist Welcome’ training and accreditation programme.
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The Horse&Field calendar lists local equine activities and is updated on a daily basis. We are trying to make the calendar as comprehensive as possible and it currently lists shows and events right up until the spring, so if you know of any events that aren’t yet listed, please let us know by emailing: horseandfield@gmail.com!
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