Bred, owned and trained by a farming family in rural Ireland he was offered for sale as a three-year-old but was rejected after failing a medical examination.

[2] Limestone Lad was a bay gelding with no white markings, bred and owned by James Bowe of Gathabawn, near Johnstown, County Kilkenny.

[2] The gelding was officially trained throughout his racing career by James Bowe, although the day-to-day handling was managed by his son Michael on the family farm which was also home to 60 cattle and 150 sheep.

On his debut at Naas Racecourse on 12 February 1997, he started at odds of 20/1 and finished ninth of the twenty four runners, eighteen lengths behind the winner Mount Druid.

He was well beaten in further bumpers at Naas (behind the future Grand National winner Amberleigh House), Cork and Thurles, before recording his first success in a race confined to female riders at Limerick Racecourse on 27 December.

On his final appearance in a bumper, the gelding led from the start to win an eleven-runner contest at Naas, beating the mare Our Meg by two and a half lengths.

[14] On his final appearance of the season he was matched against more experienced opponents in a handicap hurdle at Clonmel and finished fourth of the seventeen runners behind Micko's Dream.

After the gelding finished second to Le Coudray at Naas in January, James Bowe was greeted with laughter by the press when he claimed that Limestone Lad would have won if he had not missed three days' work because the trainer was away at a cattle mart.

Istabraq had won eighteen of his last nineteen races and started at odds of 1/7 with Limestone Lad, on 13/2, was the only one of his four opponents to attract any real support in the betting.

[18] The Independent's correspondent described the result as the biggest upset of the year, whilst Istabraq's trainer, Aidan O'Brien offered no excuses, commenting, "Take nothing away from the winner, he is a very good horse".

[20] The latter race saw the jockeys of the beaten horses fined by the racecourse stewards under the "non-triers rule", but the verdict was quickly reversed on appeal in what became briefly known as the "Limestone Lad Affair".

Limestone Lad was back in action a week later at Naas, when he won the two and a half mile Bank of Ireland Hurdle by eight lengths from Dorans Pride.

In the three mile Boyne Hurdle at Navan on 20 February he led from the start and won easily by twenty lengths from Sallie's Girl, conceding fourteen pounds to the runner-up.

[22] In March 2000, Limestone Lad was sent to England for the first time to contest the Stayers' Hurdle over three miles at the Cheltenham Festival and started the 3/1 second favourite behind the mare Lady Rebecca.

Michael Bowe was reportedly "philosophical" about his horse's defeat and explained to a BBC journalist that the gelding had reacted badly to the journey from Ireland and had not eaten or drank since his arrival at Cheltenham.

[23] Limestone Lad began the 2000/2001 National Hunt season by finishing second to Bannow Bay in a hurdle at Cork on 1 October and was then switched to compete in novice steeplechases.

On his debut over larger obstacles he won at Cork on 15 October and followed up at the same track six days later, beating the Sefton Novices' Hurdle winner Sackville by three lengths after what was described by the Racing Post as "a rousing battle"[24] with Limestone Lad rallying after being headed at the fourth last.

[25] In December he started favourite ahead of four opponents in the Grade 1 Drinmore Novice Chase at Fairyhouse, but after leading until the third last he was overtaken and finished fourth behind Sackville, beaten eight lengths by the winner.

[28] On 7 December, the gelding, ridden by Paul Carberry won the Hatton's Grace Hurdle for the second time, making all the running to win from Liss A Paoraigh, Ned Kelly and Bannow Bay.

[29] He ran twice more before the end of the year, winning a minor event at Navan from the Willie Mullins-trained Catch Ball and then finishing second to Bannow Bay in the Christmas Hurdle.

In January Limestone Lad won the Bank of Ireland Hurdle for the third time, beating Commanche Court by ten lengths whilst conceding sixteen pounds to the runner-up.

On 3 November he won the Lismullen Hurdle, reversing the previous year's form to beat Liss A Paoraigh by two lengths after leading from the start.

Ridden by Barry Geraghty, he led from the start, went clear of his rivals approaching the last and won the race for the third time, beating Scottish Memories by eight lengths despite being eased down in the closing stages.