‘As mad as it looks, there’s a strategy to it’: the story behind unorthodox puissance hero Luichew, who captivated the London crowd

Andrew Hodgins and Shanaclough Luichew may not have been names you were familiar with before this year’s London International Horse Show. But after wowing the crowds with their courageous – and at times heartstopping – attempts at jumping the big, red wall in Thursday night’s puissance, the brilliant nine-year-old chestnut Luichew is now a horse that everyone is talking about.

Andrew’s unorthodox approach of turning up short to each fence and coming to a near-halt in each corner is something we’ve rarely seen before, but it resulted in a third-placed finish behind victor Rachel Proudley, much to the delight of the crowd.

So what’s the story of this electric duo? We caught up with the Irish rider to hear the remarkable story of a “near-unrideable” young horse who found his ideal human, learnt to trust him and has been taking the showjumping world by storm ever since.

Shanaclough Luichew: from “nearly unrideable” young eventer to puissance hero – a partnership built on trust and reassurance

Now nine, Irish Sport Horse Shanaclough Luichew was bred in Ireland by Jill Twomey. He is by the great stallion Luidam, out of Cailin Leathsli, a daughter of Coolcronan Wood. The gelding was destined for an early career in eventing before Andrew took the reins.

“I was told he was too careful for eventing and I think they made the right decision,” says Andrew. “In his five-year-old year, he went showjumping and he was in a number of yards before he came to me. They all added value, but they weren’t building the partnership he needed.

“I wouldn’t say he was completely unrideable at that stage, but he just used to jam up with people and it was a real issue – he wasn’t at all straightforward and that’s largely the reason I got him. A mutual friend recommended me to the owners John and Anne Glynn and I won’t give it the fairytale finish just yet, but it’s been pretty good since! We’ve been productive every year and he’s got way more rideable.

“I made a few alterations in terms of tack when I first got him – he was just so sensitive in the mouth. But essentially it all came down to him learning to trust me, which has been hugely rewarding. He’s just a sensitive horse and once he trusts you, I think you could do anything with him. So trust was the big thing we had to work on and thankfully things got much easier.

“I know Luichew inside out now – I can preempt anything that’s going to upset him and if he does get upset I know the dos and the don’ts of how to deal with it,” continues Andrew. “But every horse has an individual personality and he is very sensitive – you just have to be kind and caring to him and reassure him that it’s all ok. Then he’s very willing. We have a great bond now and he gives me the sensation that he thinks ‘If Andrew says it’s OK, we’ll do it’.”

An almost accidental first puissance attempt

Andrew Hodgins and Shanaclough Luichew were soon stepping up the levels in the ring and he’s developed into a “hugely consistent showjumping horse in any type of class”.

“He’s happily jumping 1.35m/1.45m now and we’re hoping to move up to 1.50m next year,” says Andrew.

Their first attempt at a puissance came about almost by accident while Andrew was making entries for a county show in Ireland.

“I always knew Luichew was extremely athletic and scope wasn’t a problem and I looked to see if there were any other classes other than the grand prix at this show,” says Andrew. “I had four minutes left to enter online, I spotted the puissance with very few entered and I thought, worst case scenario, we’ll get placed and we’ll have done something different! But before I knew it, he had finished second in his first ever puissance.”

Still unsure whether that was just “a one-off, a bit of beginners’ luck”, Andrew then entered him in a puissance at Cavan, where they again finished second.

“I knew then he had all the talent,” says Andrew.

Unfortunately Andrew picked up an injury earlier this year, but in August they returned to puissance action, making their five-star debut at Dublin Horse Show where they finished equal third – again behind victors Rachel Proudley with Easy Boy De Laubry Z. But that competition was a “massive learning curve” says Andrew as the “headstrong” Luichew launched full pelt towards the triple bar and straight on to the puissance wall in Dublin’s huge turf arena.

“I was really disappointed in myself that day – I felt I could have done more,” reflects Andrew. “When you take the long approach to the fence and you have any bit of pace, Luichew takes over and tries to get there too early, so you have very little say. Fortunately he got a half decent stride to the wall, but it could have been an unpleasant sight if he’d met it long and wrong.

“After talking with a few friends of mine and getting their opinions, I changed my strategy. The deal was that if Luichew didn’t fully know where the fence was or where he was going, he couldn’t attack it from a long way back. So the idea was to start turning him up shorter, not to let him get his eye on the fence, and stopping in the corners. It just gives you a bit more chance to get the striding right. I’m sure it looks like madness to spectators but there’s a strategy to it – it’s the key to getting Luichew there in a controlled manner.

“When you meet the wall right, he’ll put in 100% effort every time. Whatever outcome we get, it’s never going to be short of effort anyway. Cavan, where he won, was the first puissance we did after that change of strategy and it felt like it really worked.

“The long rein and the style I ride in where I sit back in the saddle, that’s what feels comfortable for me. It might not be the prettiest but I like to think it’s effective.”

Next stop, the London International Horse Show for Andrew Hodgins and Shanaclough Luichew

After winning the puissance at Cavan earlier this year, a friend of Andrew’s suggested he might have qualified to compete in the puissance at the CSI5* show in London.

“I rang HSI and they said that actually, although that used to be the case, it wasn’t a qualifier this year,” says Andrew. “Somebody very kindly said, ‘Why don’t you make an application anyway?’ Luichew was on a break back at his owners’ farm when I got the call up on 16 November, I picked him up on the 17th and we just got going from there.

“I’ve been showjumping since I was 14 when I just fell in love with the sport and competing in London was a real childhood dream from watching the show as a kid. It never dawned on me that I’d get to go as a rider, though. To ride in the beautiful arena, with the crowd right next to you, it’s proper stadium jumping.”

Luichew had remained relaxed in the warm-up during Thursday night’s contest, but as soon as he saw the wall, the adrenaline started pumping.

“In the second round, he went to do the same thing as in Dublin and charged at the triple bar, so I circled and thought ‘OK we need to to turn up as tight as we can’,” explains Andrew.

“Puissance jumping is a difficult job for most horses and he does get aware that this isn’t a grand prix, that we’re doing a different job today. He gets pumped up by the atmosphere but trust me, when you’re approaching the fence, he’s an absolute demon – it’s such a good feeling.”

The higher Andrew and Luichew jumped, the more the crowd got behind this dazzling duo, giving their full support to these unexpected heroes on a thrilling evening in London.

“I could hear the roars for every rider that was in there – was it any different for me? I couldn’t tell you, but the reception I got in there was very impressive, people really seemed to appreciate the efforts that Luichew and I gave – as they did for everyone else in the class,” says Andrew, who ended up jumping 2.10m on the night.

“I’d love the opportunity to jump at Hickstead”

Andrew assures us that Shanaclough Luichew is much calmer when it comes to jumping coloured poles.

“He’s unique in that I think he could do nearly anything – he’s extremely fast if you want him to and he’s a very good grand prix horse. He jumped his first 1.45m in Millstreet this year for just one fence down. The owner is really supportive and gives me the green light to do whatever I want,” he says. “Luichew is also proven in Derbies – I think that would actually be his best class, he’s exceptional. I did my first Derby on him last year and I was very lucky to have a win that day.”

Andrew’s ultimate goal would be to jump at Hickstead, in either the speed Derby or the Hickstead Derby itself.

“I don’t want to get too ahead of myself, but a couple of goals I’ve set for myself for next year are more puissances, naturally enough, then away from that the only class I’d really love to do if they’ll give me the invite is Hickstead. I’d love the opportunity to jump there. I believe Luichew could be competitive in either the speed Derby or the Derby.

“He is such a fighter and he’s 100% committed so, with a bit of luck, I really believe he could well pull it out the bag.

“London was my first show abroad, so, having been such a positive experience, hopefully more opportunities will present themselves to me,” says Andrew Hodgins, who is married to Aoife and runs Thornhill Sport Horses from his base in Tipperary, breeding, producing and dealing showjumping horses.

“We have a lot more horses of Luichew’s standard coming to me now but hopefully we can continue to build to better things. I can’t thank everyone enough who helps me in the background – my wife, Aoife, my mum and dad who work with me every day and the owners who do so much for me; so many people pull together to make moments like this happen and I’m so grateful to all of them, as well as the brilliant Luichew.”

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