HEREFORDSHIRE point-to-point enthusiasts enjoyed a glorious visit to Stratford racecourse at the weekend.

Traditionally, the national awards for the season are presented at the PPORA lunch at the venue, and the competition for the Weatherbys Chase/PPORA Leading Young Horse in the Welsh Border Area was hot.

But it was the Shropshire-based Everall family's seven-year-old Beauchamp Oracle who finally took the title, shadowed by the Gibbons family's Shemardi.

Beauchamp Oracle is trained at Shobdon by Steve Flook, who also had reason to celebrate later in the day. He sent out Guignol Du Cochet to gallop to a brilliant threequarters of a length victory in the Dodson & Horrell PPORA Hunter Chase Final.

The success was all the more poignant as the gelding was ridden by his owner, 41-year-old Lyonshall man Glyn Slade-Jones, who was realising a cherished ambition in riding his first winner over regulation fences.

Slade-Jones, who is better known as a driver on the harness racing circuits, only learned to jump two years ago and rode his first winner between the flags at Brecon last season, the day before his 40th birthday.

He modestly attributes his victory to Steve Flook's diligent tuition ("I've never yet ridden a horse when he hasn't told me off!") and, initially, to the patience of Billie Brown who gave him lessons over poles at her Penybont riding school.

He is planning a unique treble this season as he now turns his attentions to training his father's pacers.

"I've ridden the winner of a point-to-point and a hunter chase this year - if I can win a harness race this summer, it'll be a combination that absolutely no-one else in the equestrian world is likely to achieve."

Congratulations were due to Little Hereford owner Peter Corbett after his horse Upton Adventure, trained at Eastnor by Nicky Sheppard, picked up the mare's award as the season' top-winning pointer.

l Martin Jones, of Redmarley, was the trainer of Terimons Dream which won the second division of the younger horse maiden race at the Golden Valley point to point - not Steve Flook as incorrectly reported last week.