Captain Tom Freyne (29) of the Army Equitation School made all the running in the main arena at the RDS yesterday morning when he won the opening Grade A class, and in the process kept European champion, Peter Charles, and Irish international team captain, Eddie Macken, in the minor placings. But Freyne's enjoyment of this success - a highlight of his seven-year career with the Equitation School - will be short-lived as next week he hands over his winning mount, Castlepollard, to Capt John Ledingham. Ledingham, who shares the ride with his junior colleague, will be aiming for his fourth success in the Hickstead Speed Derby on Sunday week with the 14-year-old gelding, First Consul. The Army horse is something of a course specialist at Hickstead, having won the British Speed Derby there three times, and, as he demonstrated yesterday, the open expanse of the RDS main arena also suits his onward bound way of going.
With 13 clear in the first round of this class, Castlepollard's turn of foot was employed to best advantage by Freyne, who cut some tight corners and galloped through the finish with the fences intact and the clock flashing 38.96. This shaved four hundredths of a second off the pace set earlier by Peter Charles with his seven-year-old, Nusria.
Freyne's victory was by no means sealed at this stage, however, and the most pressing danger was presented by Dermott Lennon, second last to go with Diamond Stone. Despite cutting five seconds off the Army man's target, Lennon was denied by a late falling pole at the final fence and Freyne won the first red ribbon of the week.
In other national showjumping action at the RDS yesterday a tie-break was required to decide the winner of the four-year-old class when two Northern-owned horses scored identical marks of 90.66. When the balance and presentation marks were scrutinised the verdict went to David Prentice's Phantasy, by Bonnie Prince, with David Conlon's Double Vision, by Classic Vision, in the runner-up position.