Course News June 29th – July 3rd
First Year Trainees
For the first years this was the final week of their six week work placements. All of the trainees described their placements as fantastic experiences during which they learnt things which will be of immense value to them in their future careers. They also made many new contacts in the industry who they hope to meet again in years to come. For many of the trainees the placements consolidated the direction and goals they aim to pursue in the future and found that working with top industry professionals was inspirational and very motivating for them. This weekend the trainees will make their way back to Kentucky and re-group for the last three weeks of the USA phase to exchange experiences of their placements, prepare for their conference and the Fasig-Tipton Yearling Sale. It is nearly time to start thinking ahead to the next leg of the course in Australia.
Second Year Trainees
On Friday Cathal, Jana, Liam, Jason, Ian and Andrew presented their business plans to a panel of assessors comprising of Alan Byrne, Alan Dukes, Clodagh Kavanagh and Joe Osborne. The assessors look at the quality of the document, the viability of the plan and the performance of the trainee at interview. This is the concluding assignment of the programme and it is worth 15% of the overall course grade. The other six trainees will make their presentations on Monday.
A welcome break from the business plans was provided through a number of stud visits. In County Tipperary they enjoyed a tour of the picturesque Ballyhimikin Stud. Afterwards they discussed the running of the farm and the industry in general over lunch with the farm’s owner, James Hanly. At Kildaragh Stud the group enjoyed meeting Peter Kavanagh and discussing his views on the future of the breeding industry. The next visit was to Ballylinch Stud in Co. Kilkenny where they were impressed by the surroundings, facilities and the professionalism of the operation. They had lunch and a lengthy talk with the manager, John O’Connor about stallion selection criteria and many other aspects of running a successful stud farm.
The highlight of the week was a visit to Jim Bolger’s Racing stable in County Carlow. Many of the trainees described it as one of the most memorable visits of the two years, with quotes typically as follows, “It is a phenomenal training facility and it was a great privilege to spent time with him”. Mr. Bolger was very generous with his time and openly discussed his training methods with the trainees.
The second leg of the Darley Flying Start v. Kildangan Soccer Challenge took place this week. Confident after their 5 – 0 win the previous week the trainees were hopeful of another victory. The Kildangan team, however, with last week’s defeat fresh in their minds, were determined to even the scores. As the game unfolded the Kildangan side produced a mighty performance to keep the DFS team scoreless and at the final whistle the result was 4 – 0 to Kildangan! Will the trainees demand a Best of Three?