By Kristen
Day I
After visiting so many bases of equine industry in the
country of Ireland it only made sense for us to take a few days to enjoy some
riding ourselves. Since our class is comprised of equine enthusiasts, we
selected the cross-country riding center Flowerhill with a reputation for excellent
horses and great guides. This meant that each student and faculty member was
paired with a well-suited horse to either hack on the flat or enjoy some
cross-country jumping. Considering our group is comprised of riders ranging
from lifelong professionals to beginners, I was impressed that Oliver Walsh and
his staff were able to find the perfect mounts for each of us.
I rode with the jumping group on a brilliant little mare
called Classic who apparently had a reputation for being an excellent hunter.
Despite moments of complete ineptitude on my part she carried on gamely over a
vast variety of obstacles including logs, coops, rollers, drops into water and
a particularly exciting brush. I’m not completely certain on the breeding of
any of the horses we were riding but most of them looked like the typical Irish
hunter type: solid-boned, lightly feathered, long-headed but sweet and
sensible. Above all, they were surefooted, quick thinking and able to get
themselves out of any spot no matter what miscues they were receiving from us
as their riders. I don’t mean to say we were a terrible group—but when a group
of riders gets on a group of strange horses and goes out to gallop around over
a course of 2’6” solid obstacles, there are bound to be a few rough patches.
My favorite set of obstacles involved a canter up a little
hill, a leap over a log, trotting down the other side of the hill and turning
to jump an obstacle, dropping down into deep water that splashed up on either
side of Classic and me until we could hardly see our way out to climb up and
leap a small hedge. Thanks to my wonderful Irish-bred mount, we cantered
through with flying colors.
Overall, our party was completely impressed with the
grounds, course, amazing guides and above all the talented native horses to
Ireland. We’re at it again tomorrow before heading back into Dublin.
Day II
Since Mel, our cross-country guide, was already familiar
with and very pleased with our abilities over fences, we jumped right into it
in the morning at Flowerhill for our second day of riding. To rest our horses
from yesterday’s adventures, most of us were remounted: I received a very
talented little piebald gelding with the typical Irish long face, upright
carriage and leg feathering, named Monsoon. My coworker Rebecca rode an
absolutely wonderful sporthorse type called Ray Guy, dark brown or black,
adjustable over the fences and very athletic.
We rode out with a very amiable British gentleman called
Eamon, a retired veterinarian who spent most of his days schooling his field hunters
over the course with Oliver’s staff. He helped the guides out along the way,
holding back to give some of our less-experienced riders confidence, calling
out directions when the combinations were trickiest, or even standing off to
one side to take photos of each and every one of us over a jump. He had lots of
good advice for our pre-vet students on the trip and simply made the ride a lot
of fun. All of the staff and friends that we met during our two days at
Flowerhill were beyond welcoming.
We put some of the combinations together today, giving us a
few long runs in the open field as well as into some water and woods. Between
openings in the trees I could catch quick glimpses of the trekking half of our
group out on their hack, looking like they were having the time of their lives
(as I found out later, they were.) Monsoon carried himself quite differently
from Classic, my spritely mount from Monday, and it took me a few jumps to
really click with him. He had a very balanced natural canter which was enough
for his powerful body to clear the jumps at any height, so it took me a few
minutes to realize that a bigger canter that felt stronger to me was actually
much too fast for him. It speaks well of my coworkers at Alfred who have
coached me in jumping that I was able to adjust and correct myself to match my
mount.
Halfway through our morning ride, Oliver decided to take his
hunting hounds out for some exercise. Hounds typically need to be taken out
daily for walks, either on foot like our local Genesee hunt, or on horseback as
Oliver chose to do today. Today’s experience felt like a scene out of some
movie: we waited in a schooling ring off to one side as we heard a sudden great
baying of the hounds and Oliver’s shout, Amon assisting. From around the corner
of the whitewashed yard came Oliver in the lead, mounted on a sturdy-looking
bay, his dogs cavorting around him but never coming ahead of him, his whip in
hand and horn at his hip, shouting commands to the pack. He carried on down the
lane and we followed at a distance, heading off to jump behind him as he took
the pack for their daily walk.
In the afternoon I was reunited with Classic and we headed
off for one final schooling, trying out a few different areas of fences than we
had seen earlier. With hundreds of acres of land available, Oliver has the
space to build lots of different obstacles. Overall, our experience at
Flowerhill was unforgettable and I speak for the group when I say we all had
the best two days of our entire trip.
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