I spent school years in Carnmore, in the Gaeltacht, so it was all learning in Irish. Even today, if I sold you 10 sheep, at, say, seven pounds each to make it simple, I’d have to calculate the sum in Irish in my head.

Then I spent a few years in Carraroe in south Connemara. I suppose people coming from New York or big cities think it is beautiful the first time they see Connemara – and it is – but you can’t get rich on the land. That’s what made the ponies hardy; they came in from the Spanish Armada shipwreck and scattered out to the mountains. The old dun Connemara would live anywhere.

The foundation stallion Cannonball was a grand pony. Do you know how they used to train him? They’d cart him to Oughterard and take on the Galway-to-Clifden train in a race.

There were some great shows: Holycross would have been a favourite, and the filly foal final in Moate [in 2007, which Miceál co-judged with David McCann] was a right one. When it came to changing Athenry’s show date, we came to the conclusion that it was either close up or get a better date. We went for the last Sunday in May and I must say it was a success. The move away from July meant that we got a lot of coverage and great classes from Connemara too, because we weren’t clashing with Maam Cross.

It’s nice to go down to Clifden and meet all the boys; you’d meet them from everywhere. The presentation (pictured above) was indeed a big surprise – I didn’t know anything about it. That was the first show I went to after Athenry. I was in and out of hospital a good while during the summer, but then the mileage is building up. We cannot go against nature.

ALBANY

Albany was a good one. He was by Actinium out of a good Edmund Burke mare and we bought him down in Cork off a fellow called Murphy. I had him entered for Dublin as a three-year-old but he got injured at Tynagh Show when a clutch of wasps got into the horsebox and had to have a year off with torn ligaments.

We [daughter Ethna and wife Evelyn] were in Western Australia to visit family and went down to Albany. I thought Albany, beside the Indian Ocean, was beautiful and that’s how he got his name. The last time I went back to Australia was after Evelyn passed away. I went in November because I wanted to see what it was like in wintertime. So we had Christmas dinner down on the beach at six o’clock in the morning. Every 10 feet, people were cooking steak on the barbecue – no turkey or ham. “How far down does the beach go?” I asked this Aussie. “About 200 miles,” he said.

That’s the thing about distances in Australia. Another family were big cattle men and were the whole time droving cattle with horses. When he was asked how big his farm was, the owner said: “About the same size as Ireland.” Can you imagine going down to Wexford with a herd of cattle in front of you! They had everything in the Kalgoorlie goldfields except a drop of water and an Irish gentleman named CY O’Connor from Co Meath built Mundaring Weir. It took two days to pump the water 300 miles to Kalgoorlie and they put up a bronze statue to him afterwards.

JUDGING

I sold Boreen Sprat at Clifden to a lady from England and she sent him to Australia. Lady Hemphill bred him; she was a great character and would come here twice a week to visit Evelyn when she was ill.

Matthew O’Meara made it very clear about showing: if you can’t take a beating, you shouldn’t be there. I know that some don’t like me because I do what I want to do when I judge, but I wouldn’t be said nor led by anybody. You have to hold the standard and the biggest problem they have in Connemara is the inspections – they’re passing inferior quality Connemara fillies.

That leads to an inferior quality broodmare. Only about half of them are suitable. They’ve no bone left either, they’d manage for breeding but if you put them show jumping, they’re going to go lame or throw splints when the ground is hard.

I remember the Larkins in Killimor had Middle Temple and the Finns in Carnmore had Primal. Now, Larkin had a better selection of mares but Finns relied on one type of mare by Vinegar Hill. He bred the best of mares. Any of the Primals that made it to the top, like Lydican, were all out of Vinegar Hill mares.

The Finns travelled into the fairs in Athenry with two Irish Draught stallions – Shannon Boy and Shannon Shore – to show them off.

Then they bought this “American horse” – that was Primal. He was a good looking, big bay horse with a lovely head and neck.

Anywhere you went – Ballinasloe, Spancil Hill – you’d see a foal or two-year-old and you’d know he was a Primal immediately, he’d put that stamp on them. While Middle Temple didn’t have the bone of Primal, he was a picture of a horse and got his show jumpers too.

Eddie Hanley had three or four Vinegar Hill mares. He sold Lydican to Mrs Flynn and Francie Kerins was riding him.

I remember Francie asking Eddie once what kind of a mare Lydican was out of and could she jump 1.20m and Eddie said: “Well, I saw her jump that with a cart full of spuds on her.”