I RODE my first ever winner on Voice Of Reason at Dundalk recently.

A horse I had bought out of a Clonmel claiming race, he was winning for the second time in my colours. While I hope to ride a few more winners in the future, if I never do, I certainly won’t ever forget that night anyway.

When I was in primary school, my brother Billy was the fella that was into the horses. He helped my father around the yard and rode out. I was more into the Nintendo DS at that time!

I’d stick my head outside the door the odd time and muck out a stable but that was the extent of it. Looking back on it now, I was probably a different person altogether. I had no interest in doing any kind of work.

Young lads go through that stage before they snap up of it eventually. It was during transition year that everything changed for me. I was off school because of lockdown and, for one reason or another, began to take an interest in what was going on around at home.

Billybuster, a horse who won twice for my father, was long retired but still riding out. He was the one that really got me going. I used to sit up on him at home. He was a good horse to learn on because he was a keen-going sort and if I could ride him I had to be doing something right.

Encyclopedic knowledge

I got my first paid job in racing with Daniel Furini, an Italian man who lives near us in Kilkenny. He bred National Hunt horses and has an encyclopedic knowledge of pedigrees. I think that was where I developed the interest from.

He said it would help sharpen up the mind and keep it ticking over!

In sixth year in school, I went down to Eoin Griffin. I rode out at weekends and on holidays. That summer, I went up to Gordon Elliott. Coming from a smaller yard where three or four rode out each lot, it was a shock to the system to have 40 or 50 riding out at a time.

I had the time of my life up there. Gordon was very good to me and he has great people working for him. It was certainly the making of me.

I had done fairly well in my Leaving Certificate, so college was always the next step. I had thought about doing something with agriculture or horses but my father pushed me towards a business degree. He said it would help sharpen up the mind and keep it ticking over!

I had also wanted to continue riding out. Lisa O’Neill put me in touch with Davy Roche, who arranged for me to go into Henry de Bromhead’s that winter. It was an amazing time to be in the yard, with Honeysuckle, Envoi Allen, A Plus Tard and Minella Indo all there.

Led up

With Henry being quiet for the summer, I went back to Gordon for a second time. I went racing a good bit and led up a few winners. That winter, I went to Ellmarie Holden where I rode the three-year-old stores.

It was different to anything I had ever done before but a great experience. Seeing the raw unfurnished young horses come in and develop over time was very satisfying. I went back to Eoin Griffin in 2024. Ol Man Dingle had just come into the yard a short time earlier.

In March, I came off a horse and landed on a hard surface. A broken hip put a stop to my progress. Although I hadn’t done any race riding at the time, I had my amateur licence. Jennifer Pugh and the Irish Injured Jockeys Fund were both very good, as were Wayne [Middleton], and Gavin [Egan] who oversaw my recovery in RACE.

Ten weeks later, I was back riding out at home for my father. I still go down to Eoin’s when I can and since September, I have been in Joseph O’Brien’s two mornings a week.

Race-riding

I had my first taste of race-riding when I rode a horse for my father in a bumper in Cork in August 2024.

Myself and my father always look through the claiming races to see if anything stands out. Voice Of Reason had caught our eye before he ran in Tramore in April. We went down to see him that day but his run wouldn’t have knocked your eye out or anything. When he was entered in another claiming race in Clonmel, we decided to follow him in again.

Going down in the car, we agreed that he would have to finish within 10 lengths of the winner to be worth buying. He ended up winning the race and we were the only ones that had put in a claim.

We had always been a National Hunt yard but had often thought about getting out the flat licence. Now that we had Voice Of Reason, it was the perfect excuse to go and get it. His pedigree strongly suggested that he was a dirt horse. To be honest, when he finished third in Dundalk the first day, it felt almost as good as a win to us. We are a small yard operating on a shoestring budget, so just to have the horse pay for himself was great. When he came out and won under Seamie (Heffernan) two starts later it was beyond our wildest dreams. My father and mother were both up there on the night and you could hear the screams at home in Mullinavat!

Going home in the car that night, it never even entered my head about riding Voice Of Reason. He had just carried my colours to win for my father; his first winner since 2013.

Chance

It wasn’t until I went through the Provisional Summary and spotted the qualified riders’ race that I thought I could have my chance.

With such limited riding experience, I put no pressure on myself going out last week. I was determined to enjoy it but mainly to do right by the horse. I had gone through the race a thousand times in my head, watched replays of Seamie winning on him and studied the sectional times.

I knew that Voice Of Reason was a strong stayer and I couldn’t let it turn into a sprint. I managed to have most of them out of their comfort zone early in the straight and only Denis (Hogan) could go with me. Although I was headed on the run-in, Voice Of Reason dug deep to get back up close home.

Looking ahead, my main focus over the coming months will be on my final year exams. After that, I’d love to do a stint in Australia, while the Irish National Stud course is on my mind for 2027. Whether I get to ride much more on the track or not, I intend to remain very much involved in the industry.

Michael was in conversation with John O’Riordan