Agricultural shows are the cornerstone of our sport horse industry.
Breeders can see and judge youngstock, from foals to three-year-olds, how stallions stamp their offspring and cross with different damlines, while the jumping arenas provide the training ground for four-year-olds and upwards, giving mileage to those aiming for the Cavan, Millstreet and Dublin age classes. Those same rings also contributed to two gold and two silver medals on the world stage at Lanaken this year.
They’re also our young riders’ training ground and many talented youngsters, who go on to great success, have shown us this.
The missing team member from the photograph of my daughter Ellie and I (right) is Cathy Cooper, partner, mammy, secretary, groom and rider. Piper and Alfie, our two terriers, complete the family.
Cathy works as a practice manager for a Kildare veterinary clinic and manages the yard at home. We recently made the move from Naas to north Tipperary.
Country life
I love country life, having lived in Doolough, Belmullet, where they say you can see the Statue of Liberty on a clear day.
I was concerned it would be a big change for the two ladies but they love it too. Ellie loves that her ponies are outside the back door and Cathy really enjoys the freedom of the countryside. We have great neighbours: Eamon and Mary Murphy, the Hanleys and Dineens, they have all made us so welcome.
My father, Johnny, spent nearly 25 years in Newmarket. He was an apprentice to Sir Walter Nightingale and worked for Peter Cazalet, who trained for Queen Elizabeth, and Bill Marshall.
He rode some great horses including Winston Churchill’s Vienna and had a great depth of knowledge. At the age of nine I remember laboriously strapping and quartering horses, but what seemed like torture then, was indeed the correct way to look after a horse.
Local shows at Ballina, Enniscrone and Bonniconlon showcased the skill of top showing people; Lily McGowan, Willie Hughes, Philip Scott, Cherie Devaney and Tiernan Gill. These people turned out horses to the highest standard and I watched as they made the annual pilgrimage to the Dublin Horse Show to bring back highly coveted silverware.
Their horsemanship and ringcraft was inspirational. Many times I saw a good handler turn a class around to pull the red ribbon.
Pictured in December 2018, Ellie Rogan (then aged 7) and her little pony Lackaghmore Zara take on a big hedge and drop at the North Kildare Farmers Charity Ride \ Mel Doyle
Military training
I joined the Irish Defence Forces in May 2003 and did my military training with the 27th Infantry Battalion Dundalk. Training was rigorous but I made friends for life.
Posted to the Equitation School in September 2003, I completed the grooms’ course, which I can honestly say is one of the most intense courses in the Army. The course material was very structured; anatomy and physiology of the horse, feeding, tack, course building, clipping and riding.
Lieutenant colonel Gerry Mullins was the Commanding Officer, one of the most influential and technical instructors I have ever seen. He was a tough taskmaster who expected high standards but was very fair and gave great credit when earned.
I was given two horses; a grey named Ballynacarrigy and Patrickswell, the devil himself’s own mount!
Six weeks of daily inspections of stables, horses and tack, clean windows, drinkers, feed pots, fresh shavings banked and squared away. Late nights and days filled with work.
For Friday morning inspections, I distinctly remember using rolls of white masking tape to seal up the lines in the cobblelock outside, so there wouldn’t be shavings on the yard!
I worked for Captain David O’Brien and looked after some great horses including Boherdeal Clover, Lismore Clover, Ringfort Cruise and Kiltealy. My favourite horse was Kilcummin, a grey mare by Quidam de Revel. She was only 16hh on a good day but had a great, careful jump, very fast and very brave. She always won a class or placed, a great servant to the school and the most easy to look after.
Show jumping is an illustrious sport which provides great highs when all goes to plan, but can also provide disappointment and sorrow when it doesn’t. Everyone sails in the doldrums at some point but one must persevere, keep the hand on the plough and your eye to the horizon.
International trips brought me all over, from Monte Carlo to Copenhagen. Having warmed up Ludger Beerbaum and given Rolf-Göran Bengtsson a leg up on the great Casall, it has been a great experience.
Lebanon duty
Last summer, I served overseas in Lebanon for six months. The situation at the moment is calm but volatility could erupt at any moment. The Irish defence forces patrol and observe to keep the peace and 46 Irish soldiers have lost their lives in service there.
Our area of operations was a beautiful Mediterranean country, full of culture, good people and contradictions, where they face the extremes of the have and have-nots, from huge palatial summer houses, covered in Italian marble, to one-room shacks, covered in tarpaulins. Serving there left a lasting impression on me.
Family
My daughter Ellie is my pride and joy and has been around horses from day one. Totally fearless, she has great empathy and when she gets off her pony, can explain, even in the most simple sentence, how it went and how it might go better next time.
Dora, her first pony, was a 10hh Shetland cross, loaned to her by her uncle Mark. Ellie was three and could catch her first go in the middle of the field. Saddle on, no stirrups and off we’d go hacking across the Curragh plains. Our favourite spot was Braveheart Hill, it had the best pinecones!
Tearful exchange
Uppacott Xotica, a true schoolmistress, was Ellie’s next pony. She came from Lorna Casey on the advice of another showring stalwart, Dessie O’Sullivan. We met at the Barack Obama Plaza in Moneygall to do the exchange. Lorna was crying because she loved the pony, I was crying handing over the envelope but she was the best investment we ever made. Children who want to ride well and compete successfully must have the right pony at the right time.
We’ve attended some great country shows like Newcastle West, Charleville, Bannow and Rathangan and many more. We’ve won cups, red ribbons and sashes but it never fazes her and when it doesn’t go well, she is always pleased for her friend that won.
Sportmanship is hugely important and must be taught at the youngest age. From IPS classes to Pony Club to representing your country, good sportsmanship is a binding camaraderie between competitors.
Ellie is a member of the Show Jumping Ireland, Irish Pony Society and recently joined the Ormond Pony Club, a well organised club with Emily Hogan as district commissioner and Tony Ennis as chief instructor.
She is also very proud to be Team TRI’s youngest member and we’re so thankful for their support as we go through lots of show sheen and hoof oil!
Spring 2020 will be busy for us as we develop our stables and facilities and have horses and ponies to be broken for clients. We’re fortunate to have a lovely string of promising ponies. Waxwing Lewis was sent from the UK and uncle Mark’s pony Quickstep Dancer, with his striking colour, movement and super jump, will be one to watch out for in the working hunter rings.
Ellie’s favourite is the legendary Scooby (Just Little). At 24 and 12hh, he believes he is a Grand Prix stallion and has the heart of a lion.
If he teaches her half as much as he did his owner Cathal Daniels, there will be no shortage of success.
Showing is not just a hobby but rather a consuming passion. Red rosettes and champion sashes are very hard to win, they are worth nothing but also worth everything.
Most importantly, agricultural shows are about family, the day out. Early mornings, parents getting tired children out of bed, loading up and setting off. It can be hard work but it is healthy. The family that shows together stays together.
JP Rogan was in conversation with Susan Finnerty.
Agricultural shows are the cornerstone of our sport horse industry.
Breeders can see and judge youngstock, from foals to three-year-olds, how stallions stamp their offspring and cross with different damlines, while the jumping arenas provide the training ground for four-year-olds and upwards, giving mileage to those aiming for the Cavan, Millstreet and Dublin age classes. Those same rings also contributed to two gold and two silver medals on the world stage at Lanaken this year.
They’re also our young riders’ training ground and many talented youngsters, who go on to great success, have shown us this.
The missing team member from the photograph of my daughter Ellie and I (right) is Cathy Cooper, partner, mammy, secretary, groom and rider. Piper and Alfie, our two terriers, complete the family.
Cathy works as a practice manager for a Kildare veterinary clinic and manages the yard at home. We recently made the move from Naas to north Tipperary.
Country life
I love country life, having lived in Doolough, Belmullet, where they say you can see the Statue of Liberty on a clear day.
I was concerned it would be a big change for the two ladies but they love it too. Ellie loves that her ponies are outside the back door and Cathy really enjoys the freedom of the countryside. We have great neighbours: Eamon and Mary Murphy, the Hanleys and Dineens, they have all made us so welcome.
My father, Johnny, spent nearly 25 years in Newmarket. He was an apprentice to Sir Walter Nightingale and worked for Peter Cazalet, who trained for Queen Elizabeth, and Bill Marshall.
He rode some great horses including Winston Churchill’s Vienna and had a great depth of knowledge. At the age of nine I remember laboriously strapping and quartering horses, but what seemed like torture then, was indeed the correct way to look after a horse.
Local shows at Ballina, Enniscrone and Bonniconlon showcased the skill of top showing people; Lily McGowan, Willie Hughes, Philip Scott, Cherie Devaney and Tiernan Gill. These people turned out horses to the highest standard and I watched as they made the annual pilgrimage to the Dublin Horse Show to bring back highly coveted silverware.
Their horsemanship and ringcraft was inspirational. Many times I saw a good handler turn a class around to pull the red ribbon.
Pictured in December 2018, Ellie Rogan (then aged 7) and her little pony Lackaghmore Zara take on a big hedge and drop at the North Kildare Farmers Charity Ride \ Mel Doyle
Military training
I joined the Irish Defence Forces in May 2003 and did my military training with the 27th Infantry Battalion Dundalk. Training was rigorous but I made friends for life.
Posted to the Equitation School in September 2003, I completed the grooms’ course, which I can honestly say is one of the most intense courses in the Army. The course material was very structured; anatomy and physiology of the horse, feeding, tack, course building, clipping and riding.
Lieutenant colonel Gerry Mullins was the Commanding Officer, one of the most influential and technical instructors I have ever seen. He was a tough taskmaster who expected high standards but was very fair and gave great credit when earned.
I was given two horses; a grey named Ballynacarrigy and Patrickswell, the devil himself’s own mount!
Six weeks of daily inspections of stables, horses and tack, clean windows, drinkers, feed pots, fresh shavings banked and squared away. Late nights and days filled with work.
For Friday morning inspections, I distinctly remember using rolls of white masking tape to seal up the lines in the cobblelock outside, so there wouldn’t be shavings on the yard!
I worked for Captain David O’Brien and looked after some great horses including Boherdeal Clover, Lismore Clover, Ringfort Cruise and Kiltealy. My favourite horse was Kilcummin, a grey mare by Quidam de Revel. She was only 16hh on a good day but had a great, careful jump, very fast and very brave. She always won a class or placed, a great servant to the school and the most easy to look after.
Show jumping is an illustrious sport which provides great highs when all goes to plan, but can also provide disappointment and sorrow when it doesn’t. Everyone sails in the doldrums at some point but one must persevere, keep the hand on the plough and your eye to the horizon.
International trips brought me all over, from Monte Carlo to Copenhagen. Having warmed up Ludger Beerbaum and given Rolf-Göran Bengtsson a leg up on the great Casall, it has been a great experience.
Lebanon duty
Last summer, I served overseas in Lebanon for six months. The situation at the moment is calm but volatility could erupt at any moment. The Irish defence forces patrol and observe to keep the peace and 46 Irish soldiers have lost their lives in service there.
Our area of operations was a beautiful Mediterranean country, full of culture, good people and contradictions, where they face the extremes of the have and have-nots, from huge palatial summer houses, covered in Italian marble, to one-room shacks, covered in tarpaulins. Serving there left a lasting impression on me.
Family
My daughter Ellie is my pride and joy and has been around horses from day one. Totally fearless, she has great empathy and when she gets off her pony, can explain, even in the most simple sentence, how it went and how it might go better next time.
Dora, her first pony, was a 10hh Shetland cross, loaned to her by her uncle Mark. Ellie was three and could catch her first go in the middle of the field. Saddle on, no stirrups and off we’d go hacking across the Curragh plains. Our favourite spot was Braveheart Hill, it had the best pinecones!
Tearful exchange
Uppacott Xotica, a true schoolmistress, was Ellie’s next pony. She came from Lorna Casey on the advice of another showring stalwart, Dessie O’Sullivan. We met at the Barack Obama Plaza in Moneygall to do the exchange. Lorna was crying because she loved the pony, I was crying handing over the envelope but she was the best investment we ever made. Children who want to ride well and compete successfully must have the right pony at the right time.
We’ve attended some great country shows like Newcastle West, Charleville, Bannow and Rathangan and many more. We’ve won cups, red ribbons and sashes but it never fazes her and when it doesn’t go well, she is always pleased for her friend that won.
Sportmanship is hugely important and must be taught at the youngest age. From IPS classes to Pony Club to representing your country, good sportsmanship is a binding camaraderie between competitors.
Ellie is a member of the Show Jumping Ireland, Irish Pony Society and recently joined the Ormond Pony Club, a well organised club with Emily Hogan as district commissioner and Tony Ennis as chief instructor.
She is also very proud to be Team TRI’s youngest member and we’re so thankful for their support as we go through lots of show sheen and hoof oil!
Spring 2020 will be busy for us as we develop our stables and facilities and have horses and ponies to be broken for clients. We’re fortunate to have a lovely string of promising ponies. Waxwing Lewis was sent from the UK and uncle Mark’s pony Quickstep Dancer, with his striking colour, movement and super jump, will be one to watch out for in the working hunter rings.
Ellie’s favourite is the legendary Scooby (Just Little). At 24 and 12hh, he believes he is a Grand Prix stallion and has the heart of a lion.
If he teaches her half as much as he did his owner Cathal Daniels, there will be no shortage of success.
Showing is not just a hobby but rather a consuming passion. Red rosettes and champion sashes are very hard to win, they are worth nothing but also worth everything.
Most importantly, agricultural shows are about family, the day out. Early mornings, parents getting tired children out of bed, loading up and setting off. It can be hard work but it is healthy. The family that shows together stays together.
JP Rogan was in conversation with Susan Finnerty.
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