National Geographic: Ballad of the Irish Horse Page #4

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jockey when I get older.

The biggest challenge for me

anyway is that I'm girl.

I don't think race riding

is wonderful for little girls.

But they do like it. They love it.

They live for it.

They don't want to

go to the disco.

They want their pony.

They want to be a sport.

You're always thinking of

where you are

and thinking ahead of

the next bend

whether it's sharp

or how to ride the next bend.

And especially if you're on a pony

that's slow earlier on

and comes on fast at the end.

Because of her consistent winning,

Caroline is sought to

race other people's ponies

as well as her father's.

When you're in front

and when you have won,

the owners come running up to you

and say, "Well done" and all that.

It's just great to see

their happy face

from winning on their pony.

And then your friends come up

and say, "Well done".

It's just a great feeling.

I'm delighted

that I won the last race.

That was a female race.

And I'm just thrilled

that I won it

and that I had a good pony.

Winning against

both girls and boys,

Caroline raced

closer to her dream

when she became

champion pony racing jockey

for an unprecedented

fourth consecutive year.

In 1752, with the steeples

as starting and finishing points,

a Mr. O'Callaghan

raced a Mr. Blake

from the church at Buttevant,

jumping walls and fences,

across farms and fields,

to the church at Doneraile...

thus running the first recorded

steeplechase.

Today, some of Ireland's

most popular steeple chases

take place at the Galway Races.

Thousands gather daily to bet

on the horses

in this week of festivities

held at the same time of year

that the ancient Celts assembled

to honor their god of horseracing.

The National Stud was established

to foster

the Irish thoroughbred industry

by providing breeders with

good stallions at reasonable fees.

The record of

thoroughbred breeding dates

from the publication in 1793 of

the first English Stud Book

which listed three Arab stallions

and the Royal Mares.

Every thoroughbred on earth

is descended from them.

A sire is selected by the breeder

on the basis of bloodlines,

tracked back through

the stud book,

his conformation or appearance,

and the number of races

he has won.

Six-year-old Raja Bab horse.

He's a tremendous individual.

A great mover, tremendous quality.

His first crop are now foals.

He won four group races,

including the Corkanorry Stakes

at Royal Ascot

in course record time.

Dr. Maire O'Connor

is deputy manager

and resident veterinarian

at the stud.

We're just starting to

build her back up again...

for a couple of days.

Yeah, yeah.

She's walking very well now.

Ireland is well known

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