MARK Ruddock (British Dressage List 1) was the sole judge at last Saturday’s Midland and Western Region Show at the Connemara Pony Sales Arena in Clifden where, on Sunday, he and Sean Burgess were the coaches for a very successful training/test riding day.

Ruddock wasn’t overtaxed on Saturday when he awarded what was easily his highest score of the day, 77.35%, in the Trailblazer Intro B to Rachel Nee riding the seven-year-old 123cms chesnut gelding Mighty Tim. Her closest rival was Aoife Joyce who scored 71.18 on the Connemara mare Cluain Aidhle Lady, a five-year-old grey by Caoranbeg Champ.

There were five starters in that class and in the Introductory Test C where, on a score of 68.33, Shauna O’Malley came out on top with the currently DI-unregistered five-year-old Connemara mare Ballymac Dawn (Bunowen Paddy – Lusmagh Belle, by Laerkens Cascade Dawn). O’Malley doubled up when seeing off three rivals in the Preliminary 18 where she scored 66.67 on Apollo.

On 66.46, Sadhbh O’Toole finished a close-up second there on Aughnanure Avici (Acorad 3 – Realtin I, by Castana) having partnered that five-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding to overall victory in the three-runner Preliminary 15 in the short arena where they scored 67.86.

Riding the same test in the same arena, Emily Duffy was the overall winner of the three-runner Trailblazer Preliminary on Cathleen Fergus’s 16-year-old grey gelding Mr Freddo (66.79).

Four combinations appeared before Ruddock in the Elementary 52 where he awarded his highest overall score (66.39) to Lilly Berry McLoughlin riding her 14-year-old Connemara gelding General Sinatra (General Humbert – Tully Marie, by Moy Johnny’s Pride). Berry McLoughlin and the Gerald Walsh-bred grey were the sole starters in the Novice 27A where they scored 70.34.

Uncontested victories were recorded by Judith Wurmel on her eight-year-old ISH mare Dreamhill Doria (64.06 in the Medium 65), Erin O’Neill with Alana Cazabon’s 19-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Chablis (67.58 in the Elementary 56A), Cadhla Curran on her mother Carmel’s Dutch Riding Pony gelding Cosmo Rubin (65.14 in the FEI Pony Team test) and Tom Sweeney with the 14-year-old Dutch Sport Horse gelding Casinaro (61.36 in the FEI Junior Team test).

The Connemara Pony Sales Arena in Clifden will also be the venue for the Midland and Western Region’s next show on Saturday, October 31st.