2010 Trainee Views

September, 2010

The new Darley Flying Start trainees arrived at Kildangan Stud on August 16th, some having travelled long distances from their home countries of Australia, Canada, South Africa and the USA, while others had less arduous journeys from the UK, Northern Ireland and Co. Cork. Thankfully the sun was out to welcome us on arrival and the stud and gardens looked in great shape. Having settled into our four houses at Kildangan, we were treated to lunch at Kildangan House where we met the management of Darley Flying Start and Kildangan. They made us feel at home immediately and it was a great way to start the course and get to know some key personnel. We were served up a fantastic lunch which more than satisfied our travel-induced appetites.

The second day commenced with a morning medical at which Australia’s Michael ‘Maddog’ Morrison’s raw athletic ability saw him through with honours, whilst the other 11 of us managed to merely scrape by. Afterwards we were allocated bikes, which will be our transport around the stud for the duration of our stay. On Thursday we were given an Introduction to IT and received our laptops. Adrian Bott failed to contain his excitement with leaps of celebration as Clodagh handed him his new hardware. By the end of the week we were all getting to know one another and had settled into our accommodation nicely, a promising sign for the two years ahead.

On the weekend the team went racing to the Curragh where we witnessed a possible star of the future in Pathfork as he won the Group 3 Futurity Stakes impressively. After a full on first week and a hectic weekend we were all excited to begin our second week. It kicked off with a two-day module in IT followed by two days of Communication Skills training, both of which were useful to everyone. However, the highlight at the start of week two had to be the presentations on the Irish racing and breeding industries given by Barry Lynch and Michael Hardy. We, the Irish trainees, had to educate our international classmates on how the business runs here in Ireland. By Wednesday the group was getting restless in the classroom, so a trip to the Curragh to watch the early morning lots work provided an excellent respite for the team and a chance for many of the trainees to see how horses are trained in Ireland.

Thursday, however, brought the most entertaining evening of the week, in the form of professional style and etiquette training with Fiona McKeon at the Keadeen Hotel in Newbridge. Following an insightful talk with Fiona, our newly-learned etiquette skills were immediately put to the test with a beautiful meal at the hotel. On Friday we commenced our Equine Anatomy and Physiology course run by the UCD Veterinary School. It would appear that the course is going to be very exciting over the next eight weeks with a series of practicals and lectures along the way. On Sunday, we made our way back to the Curragh to watch another vintage renewal of the Group One Moyglare Stakes.

The first two weeks have been fast paced and exciting for the group and we have a lot to look forward to in the months ahead, starting with our practical work assisting with breaking yearlings at Kildangan Stud, which begins on Monday, September 6th.

Barry Lynch and Michael Hardy

Click here for a list of all 2010 trainee views