Alex enjoying life in kildare

Meath Chronicle sports editor Conall Collier visited Kildare last week with the objective of finding out how Cortown native Alexander Butler is settling into his new surroundings. He is now based at the well-appointed Ladycastle Stables in Straffan with his partner Katie-Ann Grendon - close to the prestigious K Club.

International showjumper Alexander Butler is now based at Ladycastle Stables, Straffan with his partner Katie-Ann Grendon following a move from Meath two years ago.

The Cortown, Kells native has enjoyed tremendous success since he scooped a Young Rider of the Year award six years ago.

Building on that achievement, he soon added National Speed Champion titles in 2010 and 2011, a year in which he was also nominated as the Rookie-of-the-Year.

There was a National Autumn League title in 2013 and, displaying impressive levels of consistency, the Meath man retained that title last year to round off a memorable 2014.

The Meath man has represented Ireland at Nations Cups and Super Leagues and with the domestic competition season now moving up a gear, there was a victory last month in the Premier Series at the first major show of the year in Dundalk.

That success at Dundalk was achieved with one of his top horses, Hallowberry Cruz, a nine-year-old Cruising stallion.

The victory was all the more noteworthy as his mount was making a Premier Series debut and to win at that level first time out was a fine achievement.

Another top horse is 11-year-old mare Monastery Stud More Pleasure which competed in a Nations Cup event last September where the Irish team achieved a joint-third-place finish at Arezzo, Italy.

Speaking to the Meath Chronicle, Butler explained that he had just returned from a three-week stint on the road where he competed in Belgium at a number of shows.

With the action at home also providing plenty of opportunities, the pace at Ladycastle Stables is gathering momentum.

“We were in Belgium for three weeks and brought four horses to get them up and running and ready for the season ahead,” explained the man who can list a high-calibre neighbour in the form of the prestigious K Club.

The golf course is adjacent to the well-appointed Ladycastle Stables on the outskirts of Straffan.

“Three weeks in Belgium, it might sound glamorous, but it’s hard work and you have to like it, the weekend is when most of the big action happens,” he remarked.

“The first round of that league series was in Dundalk at the end of April and I won that with a relatively new horse, the nine-year-old Cruising stallion, Hallowberry Cruz.

“Initially, my older brother Edward came home from Germany and we set up in Cortown, but we needed more space, this place was available and I moved here two years ago with my partner, Katie-Ann, she used to compete so she has a good knowledge of what’s involved.

“This location is very convenient as it’s close to the motorway system for access to the ferries for competitions abroad and also for the domestic events.

“Add in the proximity of the K Club, that is another bonus, it’s very convenient for most of our clients.

“I’ve been very lucky to have had good horses in the past and we have a few promising ones this year, a lot of the showjumpers wouldn’t be reaching their peak until around the age of nine or 10.

“It’s a longer process than you would have in horseracing, for example, where a few lads can get together and form a syndicate - they mightn’t know too much about horses, but they can enjoy a day at the races.

“Showjumping is slightly different, you could have a good horse, one that could compete at the highest level, and an offer to buy the horse might be attractive for an owner.

“Something like that can be very disappointing, initially, but you have to try to look at it positively in the sense that you are producing good horses.

“And sometimes an owner will not sell, but you can’t fault an owner for whatever decision he or she might make.

“I have 16 horses and they compete each week, we will compete the younger horses midweek at smaller shows and the older and more experienced horses will be in action at the bigger weekend shows.

“It’s a workable number (16), I could take more, but that would involve more staff, more facilities, that kind of thing, I feel that we can manage 16 properly.

“Doing the job properly is imperative, that’s the first priority, there’s a lot involved, I 'm the main rider, but Patrick Sheehy from Longford works with me, there is another girl here also, Amy Ryan from Mayo and then my partner Katie-Ann,” he added.

And where exactly did this 27-year-old Meath man get his passion for horses?

“My mother Colette is from England, but she was a groom for a trainer in Meath, Tom Vance, my father (Jim) is a Galway native and a farrier, he did his apprenticeship with another Meath man, Liam McAteer, one of the top men in that particular field.

“They ended up in Cortown and when we were growing up, we were all into the Meath Pony Club, my younger brother Nicholas, myself and my older brother Edward, we all started with ponies.

“I have always been involved with horses and interested in horses although I played a lot of football with Cortown up to a few years ago. “This is my sport and I always wanted to make a career out of it,” he added.

Next week the Meath rider will be making the 100-mile trip to Lisburn for the Balmoral International Show from Wednesday 13th - Friday 15th May where he will be bidding to defend his 2013 and 2014 titles at the popular Ulster venue.

There will be tough competition in the form of English rider Geoff Billington and Ireland’s Dermot Lennon, Greg Broderick and Daniel Coyle.

The total prizefund for the showjumping event is over €40,000.

“There is the Balmoral Show next week and that will be followed by another international event in Mullingar, that will give us a better idea of where we can go with Monastery Stud More Pleasure and Hallowberry Cruz,” he suggested.

“If I finish in the top three in the league I will qualify for Dublin (RDS Dublin Horse Show 5th-9th August)) automatically.

“I’ve made a good start and will try to keep the momentum going, winning the league also carries the national champion title,” he concluded.

GOING TO THE DOGS!

Horse Sport Ireland’s initiative to broaden the appeal and interest in showjumping could prove popular next month. The Jumping In The City initiative will see top-level national showjumping taking place at three greyhound racing venues in June. The action will take place on Friday, 5th June (Limerick), Friday 12th June (Cork) and Friday 26th June at Shelbourne Park, Dublin. There will be an amateur competition, a grand prix and a puissance event.