College of Agriculture Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE), equine students enjoyed a trip focusing on aspects of the horse racing industry in Ireland.
The students all have a keen interest in the sector developed as part of their course or as a member of the College’s Racing Club.
Accompanied by Equine Lecturers, Chris Bogues and Martina Dempsey, their first stop was to Rangers Lodge, Co Kildare. The students were given a tour of the Thoroughbred facilities and heard about pre-training horses with Richard Brabazon.
Students received an insight into horse husbandry, daily routines, the breaking process, and monitoring progress from pre-training through to full training.
Next, the students visited The Curragh training grounds where they met Trainer Pat Kelly. Pat discussed the variety of gallops available to trainers on The Curragh and explained how each is different which impacts how they are maintained.
Students were fortunate to see horses working on the Old Vic, The Free Eagle and Grass gallops, as well as on the schooling grounds.
From The Curragh the students headed to the Racing Academy and Centre of Education (RACE) where James Dowling provided a tour of the facilities. They heard about the history of RACE, an organisation which has been in operation for over 50 years, the transformations that have taken place and its future direction.
They also visited Farriery Ireland, where they met General Manager, Sharon McConnell and Alwyn McKeown.
The group enjoyed some downtime to browse the shop at Thoroughbred Remedies Ireland (TRI) before heading to the final stop on their tour.
Aine O’Connor, from the EQUUIP branch of Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) met the students in the RACE simulator room to discuss the services EQUUIP provide to the industry. Aine also spoke about her career path and progression through different roles in the industry, highlighting the opportunities that exist for graduates within the business.
Enniskillen Campus students and staff extend a sincere thanks to all those businesses who kindly spent time with the students, imparting their knowledge and sharing their experiences of the horse racing industry.
If you are interested in studying for an equine qualification, be in the running and apply now for a course starting this September at CAFRE, Enniskillen Campus.
For course information and details of our Taster Day on Tuesday 25 June 2024, visit the CAFRE website.
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