THE 15-year-old Cathy Gannon cried every day as she took the bus from Donaghmeade to Kildare to attend RACE and begin her journey to becoming one of the world’s leading female jockeys.

Almost a decade later, she was moving even further away from the family she held so dear, as opportunities dried up in Ireland, despite having enjoyed eight years with John Oxx and becoming the first female to be champion apprentice in Ireland in 2004.

She was named Sportswoman of the Year for that achievement but awards don’t put food on the table.

It took time but Gannon’s bravery paid off. She is now highly respected and sought after, proving her ability and durability, bouncing back from serious injury time and again as if she had never been out of the saddle.

She still gets back to Dublin “whenever I get a suspension”, although fortunately, her trip on August 29th five years ago coincided with a ride back on her old stomping ground at the Curragh for David Evans. Not just that, it yielded a magical Group 3 success on board Dingle View in the Go And Go Round Tower Stakes.

To achieve something the majority of riders can only dream of in such familiar surroundings was special but home now is Wantage, with partner Michael Cook and six months old Aaron.

SIMILAR SITUATION

Sammy Jo Bell found herself in a similar situation to Gannon in Ireland but at a much earlier point in her career. There was nothing doing here, so her boss, Kevin Prendergast suggested having a go across the water.

Crucially, he also advised throwing her lot in with Richard Fahey. The Yorkshire-based Irishman has a good record with young pilots. A former champion conditional rider himself, he has had three champion apprentices associated with his yard. Right now, Bell is making a bold bid to bring that tally to four.

If gender might have been an issue in accentuating the lack of chances in Ireland, neither see it as a problem in racing now. The challenges they face are the same as any other jockey. Getting on as many horses as possible. Preferably quick ones.

BAREBACK

Gannon grew up riding her brother’s ponies bareback. School didn’t really register but one of her teachers, Deirdre Shiels, saw potential in the tiny 14-year-old tearaway and suggested enrolling with RACE.

At that stage, Gannon didn’t really consider a life as a jockey. She was just happy being around horses. The switch to Currabeg changed her perspective though and that 33-winner season 11 years ago led to her making history. No other female has become champion apprentice in this country.

Instead of being the start of something though, it was almost the end. The rides slowed to a trickle and she went to England without anything in place.

“It had dried up in Ireland and it was just a case that there would be more opportunities in England,” says Gannon. “It’s just that there’s more racing, not that Ireland was particularly bad about putting girls up. When I came over first I went to Kevin Ryan’s. They took me in and looked after me like one of their own. They were really helpful but I just couldn’t get going up north.”

A spell with Bryn Palling followed before she linked up with Evans and the winners finally started to come. She has now ridden 390 in Britain since crossing over, with only 12 coming in those first two years.

“It was hard at the start. I had to re-establish myself.”

BELL’S EXPERIENCE

Bell’s experience has been completely different. For a start, she was reared in racing circles, her mother, Jacqueline McCullough, having ridden in point-to-points. She spent most of her time at Wilson Dennison’s yard next door to the family home in Antrim and wanted nothing else but to be a jockey.

She learned plenty in five months with Jim Bolger before transferring to the Prendergast yard on Derby weekend 2009. After booting home 10 winners there, the decision was taken to make the leap at the end of 2012.

She hit the ground running. Her initial target was to ride another 10 winners to allow her lose her 7lb claim. That was achieved by the end of her first campaign. Last term was similar but this season has been remarkable. She aimed for 20 winners and has 21 already.

Bell is now in Cam Hardie’s slipstream on the apprentice jockeys’ table. June was unbelievable as she recorded 11 wins from 52 rides. That run placed her amongst the three nominees for jockey of the month. The other two were Frankie Dettori and Ryan Moore. She was also nominated for Sky Sports’ sportswoman of the month.

“The past two seasons I had 10 winners each season, which was good. I doubled my rides last year from the year before so that was obviously getting better as well.

“This year just took off and once you get the ball rolling and you’re riding winners, it makes it easier for your boss to put you up, for your agent to sell you, for owners to use you. It makes everybody’s job easier if you can get a few winners early on.

“I just thought I had a little bit of a better chance over in England as a girl. Ireland is pretty tough. It’s pretty hard to get going and I wanted to further my career. I thought if I went to England I might get going and it worked out.

“I had seen the likes of Cathy Gannon and Hayley Turner doing well in England and I might try to do the same.

“They’ve been great for girls in racing and how people view us as jockeys. They’ve helped the thing a lot. Amy Ryan as well. She was champion apprentice. They’ve been good.”

Gannon is delighted for Bell, who at 24, is nine years younger than her compatriot.

“She’s doing really well,” Gannon enthuses. “She might be champion apprentice this year. She’ll be battling it out anyway. I know her from back home. She’d be a good friend and when I do get to see her we have a bit of a laugh.

“It might have been a little bit harder (for me to make the transition) because I came over with no claim and was fully professional. It just took a while to get going, whereas Sammy Jo has come over with her claim which is great. She’s riding well and she’s after improving an awful lot.”

“I see Cathy racing quite a bit,” says Bell. “She’s in the south of England so we’re a fair bit away from each other. But any time I see her at the races, she’ll help out, and is happy to tell me what I’m doing right or wrong. The same with Hayley Turner. She’s really helpful. I’ll ask her about this or that. They’re both great girls.”

Gannon is quite close to Turner.

“We do have the banter now and again. She’s a good laugh, great to have around. She’s a good friend. We have a bet every year on who will get the most winners. At the minute I’m two ahead of her, so she needs to catch up!”

GENDER NO PROBLEM

Neither of them considers gender to be much of an issue in racing anymore. Proving yourself an able rider is the be-all and end-all.

Gannon does indicate that one or two might think she has her priorities wrong by continuing to participate in such an unforgiving sport – she has broken a femur (which brought a premature end to her best season to date in 2011 with 71 winners), jaw, collarbone and shoulder – and spending lengthy periods away from home while she has an infant son. One cannot imagine it’s a widespread assertion however, given how far we actually are into the 21st century now.

“Michael is a stay-at-home Dad so he’s with Aaron most of the time. I ride out in the morning and if I’m not racing in the evening, I can spend a bit of time with him. It’s working out well at the minute.

“It does happen that I’ve been away all day, riding out at half-five in the morning and not getting back ’til nine or 10 but it has to be done and the lads do it as well. It makes it worthwhile when you have a winner then.

“I’m working. I’m doing well. In this day and age, that’s the way it is. Mothers do work and it’s the same for fathers.

“People might think I’m a bit selfish racing with a child but I have to earn a living. If I was selfish I’d be sitting at home with him. Things are going really well so I would be stupid not to.”

UNPREDICTABLE

The future is more unpredictable in racing than the majority of other walks of life but Bell would like to ride out her claim. With 51 winners, she needs another 44 to hit that target. After that, she’ll see.

Gannon has been upskilling in the 14 months she spent out of the saddle with her shoulder injury and pregnancy before her March return, participating in the same jockey coaching course that Warren O’Connor and Gordon Power attended, as featured on these pages last week.

Having started riding work for Andrew Balding and picking up a few rides from the Park House handler, there are no intentions of packing it in just yet anyway. Neil Allan is doing too good a job finding her rides.

“I’ll just keep going while I’m doing well.”

Which should see the two of them right for some time.

Pendleton bid: “It’s great for the sport”

Some of the negativity surrounding Victoria Pendleton’s bid to become a licensed amateur jockey seems bizarre to say the least. Certainly, Cathy Gannon and Sammy Jo Bell think so.

Cathy Gannon: “It’s actually amazing what she’s doing. Fair play to her. For somebody that hasn’t got anything to do with horses to be brave enough. You see people that have no experience with horses, they’re afraid to stand beside them not to mind go and ride them. Hats off to her. And it’s great for the sport. That’s what we need to attract new people. And she’s a good strong role model.”

Sammy Jo Bell: “I think it’s brilliant. She’s obviously worked very hard to do what she’s trying to do. She rode well the other day so I’m all for it. It’s a great profile for racing. She’s doing a pretty good job at the minute and she’s only started doing it.”