Pony trio gallop into town

A trio of top-end racing ponies have arrived in Bermuda to breathe fresh life into the sport.

‘Cherokee’s Ironman’, ‘Shake Down’ and ‘It’s All About Me’ were safely unloaded from the Bermuda Islander yesterday morning after a rough crossing from New Jersey.

The thoroughbred animals all originate from a small Amish community in Shipsewana in Indiana, which is home to most of the ponies that end up racing in Bermuda.

And they have been brought in by the President of the Driving Horse and Pony Club, Arnold Manders.

He told the Bermuda Sun he was excited about the injection of new blood into the racing arena.

Mr Manders added: “These are three very good horses.

“Ironman is one of the fastest, if not the fastest colt in Indiana at the moment so it’s going to be very interesting seeing what he can do here in Bermuda.

“He’s the half brother to Big Red Machine who has already proven a big success over here.

“Shake Down is a three-year-old mare, and It’s All About Me is a very good gelding.

“We’re bringing in these new ponies to help rejuvenate the sport in Bermuda.”

The three new ponies looked to be in good health when they arrived at Hamilton Docks yesterday inside specially adapted containers and checked over by the Government vet.

They will be looked after at three different stables across the island as they acclimatize to Bermuda.

And Mr Manders hopes they will be tearing up the racetrack within a couple of weeks.

He added: “All three of these ponies have been trained to race and have done great things back in Indiana where they come from.

“I have high hopes for them all.

“They come from a beautiful, quiet little town in Indiana which has a long running relationship with Bermuda.

“I often travel over there and thought it was time to bring Ironman to Bermuda to see what he could do here.

“In many cases after the ponies have finished their life on the track they end up going back to Shipshewana to enjoy their retirement.” n