MY mother, Tanya (Browne), sent out a winner with her very first runner when Lamar Canyon landed his maiden at Dundalk last month.

I was delighted to ride that horse for her, as both herself and Dad have been huge supporters of mine since I took out my licence. It was brilliant to share that first success with her and hopefully there will be many more to come.

I grew up around horses all my life. My grandfather, Willie Browne, is a well-known trainer and breeze-up consignor. My parents followed him down that route and always had breeze-up horses at home.

I started off with show ponies, show jumping and pony club. I was still in primary school when I first began riding out for Andy Slattery in 2020. It had been my intention to go pony racing, but Covid put a stop to that for a while.

Once the pony racing was back up and running, I did that for two or three years, right up to 2024. I only rode a couple of flappers that we had here at home, but managed to ride six or seven winners on those. I also rode a good bit in Scotland as well. That was a great experience, which helped prepare me for riding under rules.

Working full-time

I left school after my Junior Certificate and went working full-time for Andy Slattery. I rode all their breeze-up horses at the sales the last two years and also rode the few we had at home.

Towards the end of 2024, I had a couple of spins on the racecourse up at Dundalk. That prepared me for last season, which was my first full campaign as an apprentice jockey.

I rode my first winner in March of last year, on a horse of Danny Murphy’s named Crystal Luna. I was elated to get that first winner and continue on such a strong family tradition. I was very thankful to both Danny and the owners for giving me that opportunity.

Standout moment

I rode a further two winners last season; both for my grandfather, Willie Browne. One of those successes came in the famous Magnier colours on a horse named Just Before. That was a real standout moment for me, as some very good horses have carried those colours over the years.

This season had been slow to kick off, but I am pleased with how it has picked up. I rode two winners on Aingeal Dorcha at Dundalk and, more recently, rode Faoladh to win at Leopardstown. Both those horses are owned by the Men Of Forty Eight Syndicate; so a big thank you to them for their support. They have been very good owners with Andy Slattery down through the years and I appreciate their loyalty.

Lamar Canyon had been trained by my grandfather last year. He had always been a really good work horse at home, but he never brought that to the racecourse. He was always just too keen and never showed what we knew him to be capable of.

Different horse

We had him gelded over the winter and he has turned into a very different horse. To be honest, we weren’t surprised when he came out and won his maiden recently. At the same time, we wouldn’t have been confident going into the race. It was just a case of if he could bring his homework to the track. The problem was that, up until then, he had never managed to do that.

He was my mother’s first runner since taking out her licence and he also carried her colours. It was very special to ride a winner for her. He is entered again this weekend, but needs good ground, so he won’t run if the forecast rain arrives.

Mam and Dad have always been massive supporters of mine. Our whole family are steeped in racing, so I’m proud to be carrying on that tradition. My grandfather, Willie, has always been very encouraging of my career as a jockey and he gave me some of my early winners.

Up until last year, my grandmother, Margaret Browne, used to drop me to Slattery’s every morning and collected me in the afternoon. She did so much for me growing up and was always there for me when I needed her.

I realise that I am fortunate to have such a supportive family, who have always encouraged me to fulfil my ambitions of becoming a jockey.

Main goals

Looking ahead, my main goals would be to get more rides and build up more contacts. Obviously, I’d love to ride more winners as well, but I think if I can manage the first two, the winners will just come naturally.

I haven’t set myself any real targets when it comes to numbers. Beyond that, I am just taking it one day at a time. Naturally, I have grown up around breeze-up horses and that’s something that I might get more involved with down the line.

Training horses is also a big part of my background, so that’s another possibility. However, for now, my main aims are to improve as a rider, stay injury-free and make the most of whatever opportunities come my way.

Adam was in conversation with John O’Riordan