Why did we decide to ask for an interview with Jack Doyle and two of his students, Sara-Jane Tracy and Nicola Fitzgibbon? The answer is simple and complicated at the same time and it goes like this - Jack Doyle is himself a very competitive rider with horses ranging from 4 year old babies through to his up and coming Grand Prix horse and yet he is often seen in the practice arenas around the country warming up young riders for classes in which they will be competing against himself - it is an intriguing picture and one which we felt would interest others!

On a wild and windy Monday evening in late October, Jack and Jane Doyle invited jumpingaround.com into their home for this interview and their hospitality made it seem far removed from many interviews we have done over the years - it was a "group of mates, sitting around and chatting over impromptu Chinese takeout" and as the evening evolved I realised why Jack Doyle is a standout coach and why Sara-Jane and Nicola are achievers!

So just how did Jack Doyle find himself coaching - "well it was by accident really. I guess I really started coaching after being approached at Dublin Horse Show to coach in Japan and it went from there". Jack was approached by a Japanese gentleman who spoke little English - he explained through an interpreter that he liked the way Jack rode and would like him to come to Japan and coach some of the Japanese riders. This was in August around the late 70's and by January Jack had been to Japan and coached some of the riders and after this he was to return many times per year for many years developing a strong following and many friends.

I asked Jack why he thought he was a good coach and his answer was simple and humble " I had to learn to ride - I remember the stages of learning so it makes it easier to teach". Now, looking at Jack ride it would be easy to assume he has always been a natural rider but he assures us this isn't the case. Jack started, as did so many of the top Irish showjumpers, on the hunt field and then he did "his time" training at Kellet's Riding School with Ireland's living legend, Miss Iris Kellett and no doubt she instilled in him the knowledge of just how hard it was going to be if he wanted to get to the top in the sport and from there he has claimed many titles and represented Ireland in the Seoul Olympics in 1988.

As we chatted I asked the girls what their dreams and goals were - both were quick with their answer "we want to represent Ireland at the Olympic Games"! It is that simple - young riders the world round look to the Olympic Games as their dream - it is what makes the life of a young showjumper worthwhile!

The life of a showjumper seems to the outside world to be glamorous and to involve travel to far away places but the reality is that the riders have very little, if any, life "outside of the horses"! Their lives are dictated by the feeding and working regime of their horses and their days include early starts and late finishes with no allowances made for birthdays, Christmas or New Year - the horses must be fed and worked and given time at grass regardless of the day or the weather.

While other teenage girls are giggling about the latest pop star or discussing fashion and parties, the showjumpers fill their lives with show schedules, saddlery and horse power of the four legged kind.

So the obvious next question is - why would two young ladies who could both have successful and glamorous modelling careers choose instead to work with horses!?

It all began with ponies - Sara-Jane comes from a background of horses, so it was never a surprise that she began riding ponies and became competitive. Jack and Jim Tracy became friends when hunting together as young teenagers, and the friendship has stuck through the years and Sheila Tracy comes from a background rich in the racing industry. Sheila is a cousin of Jack's and so the connection between the two families is very strong and it was never questioned that Jack would be her Coach.!

Sara-Jane laughingly tells us that she has "two sets of parents" with Jane Doyle being the sympathetic one of the four! There was great laughter as Jack explained that when Sara-Jane gets cross with herself for real or perceived mistakes in the ring she has a tendency to "throw all the dollies out of the buggy" - Jack explained that when he was a young showjumper he would not have dreamed of doing this as his father simply would not have allowed it! When asked how he deals with the "dolly throwing episodes", which Jack is quick to tell doesn't happen all that often, the answer was simple "sometimes I ignore it - sometimes I take them on - it all depends on which is the more useful method"!

Again in between the laughter from the girls and Jack about these episodes, it becomes clear what makes Jack the coach of excellence that he is - he "reads" his students and takes the action which will be most useful to improved performance rather than placating them as many coaches do - but one has to be a good "people person" to be able to do this successfully.

Jack is a very hands on Coach, who is often seen at Young Rider shows, supporting his students by moral encouragement and the practical work of walking the track with his students and being in the practice ring with them and he is always ringside to watch the round and discuss it with them when they come out of the ring.

Nicola comes from a "less horsey" background but has very supportive parents who have always made sure that they have found her the right coaching and her early days of coaching focussed strongly on the flatwork and this tells when you see Nicola riding.

Again Nicola began with ponies and has always had a team of good ponies to ride which has given her a great deal of experience in the ring - she came to Jack as her coach at the end of her pony career and has now been with Jack for nearly two years and proudly says that Jack is her "first coach" as she has never before had jumping coaching.

Nicola's parents recognised that for Nicola to go on to a successful career in "horses" their first task was to make sure she had the right horses and Jack has been an important part of this for Nicola - they searched far and wide and have come up with an exceptional horse named Puissance! This is not Michael Hutchinson's super star Irish stallion Puissance, but instead a 7 year old gelding from the continent - and there must be something in the name because this young gelding has superstar written all over him!

When I asked Nicola why she went for such a young horse, Jack was quick to jump in and explain - "I prefer younger horses - they have a longer lifespan, more left in the tank and to be honest they fit a limited budget better." In saying this Jack explained that the older more experienced horse with credits to it's name has become so outrageously priced that they simply aren't in the realms of reach for most people anymore and so it is better to get a horse which you are going to get a longer time out of and if it is the "right" horse it will quickly become the horse with experience and credits!

This has certainly proved to be the case with Nicola's Puissance - within a few short weeks of taking delivery of him Nicola qualified for the Irish Junior Team heading to Portugal for the European Championships, where they jumped super rounds and did herself and her country proud. Then they returned to Ireland and continued on the circuit, getting to know each other better and better each show qualifying for Dublin Show in the Young Rider classes and Nicola has now qualified Puissance for the Belfast International Show in the Young Rider class and also for the 6&7 year old class at Belfast - quite an achievement for a 16 year old!

At 16 years of age, Nicola is in her last year of school studying for her Leaving Certificate and she displays maturity beyond her years and no doubt this comes from her desire to "be the best" at what she does - but the fun of being a high achiever is combined with a wicked sense of fun which is encouraged by her support team!

Now I am sure that Jack wouldn't be thrilled to find his horses clipped up for 'fashion" but there was great fun at Cavan Young Rider show when Nicola unveiled her latest work - the "loving clip" she had done on her beloved Equestrian Direct Whatajoker - pictured right - but he encourages the girls to "have fun" as well as to be serious about what they do in the ring!

When we talked about particular classes Nicola explained that she did, in the past, have fear sometimes going into the bigger classes but she trusts Jack implicitly and knows he wouldn't ask her to do anything she wasn't capable of so she now has confidence which is an important ingredient when showjumping.