BRENDAS Asking was my first ever winner under rules, on my first ride in England, when winning at Ludlow earlier this month.

After deciding to leave home to give England a try, I really couldn’t have asked for a better start. I am very lucky to be working for trainer Kim Bailey, who has such a nice team of young horses for the coming year.

I am from Cookstown in Co Tyrone. My father Richard Gordon, was a jockey in the UK, as were my uncle and grandfather. My dad would still have been race-riding up until I was three or four, but my only real memories are of watching old videos of his races.

Although I come from a racing background, I never had any real interest in becoming a jockey when I was younger. My cousins would have done a bit of pony club and I would have ridden an odd pony through that connection.

So, while I knew the basics of how to ride a horse, I wouldn’t ever have had any experience with horses until my teens.

England

After my parents split up, I moved over to England to live with my mum. I did the last year of secondary school over there, then went on to the British Racing School in Newmarket. After doing three months there, I spent a year-and-a-half (including work placement) with trainer Alan King.

At the end of that, I decided I wanted to move back home to Ireland. I called up Gordon Elliott and he offered me a job there and then. After I was there a couple of months, he suggested that I should get my licence out.

I had my first ride on the track for Gordon at Leopardstown on Boxing Day 2022. It was a big stage to have my first ride, but I really enjoyed the occasion. The horse I rode finished in mid-division and gave me a great first experience.

Gordon was very good to me, giving me loads of opportunities schooling horses and in racecourse gallops. In all, I had 10 rides under rules for him during the two seasons I was there. I also had one outside ride for Charlie Moore.

Breakthrough

With Gordon having so many top-class jockeys in his yard, I knew that it would be difficult to make the breakthrough over there. Jack Kennedy, Sam Ewing, Danny Gilligan and Jordan Gainford are well-established riders, who would all have been well ahead of me in the pecking order.

During the summer, I spoke to Gordon about the possibility of me moving to the UK. He was all for it, promising to help in any ways that he could. I contacted Kim Bailey myself, but obviously he would have spoken to Gordon before deciding to take me on as stable conditional jockey.

Although I was too young to remember the Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle and Grand National winners that passed through his yard, I had done my research, so was well aware of Kim’s success over the years.

After a few quiet years, the yard is back amongst the winners again and enjoyed a big success at Cheltenham in March. I am currently the only conditional rider in the yard, so I pray to God that I will make the most of whatever opportunities come my way.

I have only been in Kim Bailey’s for five weeks. At the moment, I am living in the yard. While I wouldn’t know the area that well, it is only about an hour from where my mum lives.

I am really enjoying it; it’s a lovely place to work. Kim put me up on Brendas Asking at Ludlow last week, even though I hadn’t been working for him all that long.

I had ridden the mare out at home, so while I wasn’t expecting to win on my first ride in Britain, I can’t say I was surprised when she did. She had been showing up well on the gallops and had been second over course and distance last season.

It was a great thrill to get that first winner on the board. Having been behind so many lads in Gordon’s, I knew that the chances of riding a winner were slim, but to do it so quickly over here was just great. I got such an adrenaline rush from it.

Supportive

I was delighted to get that for Kim, as he has been so supportive of me since I arrived in the yard. Ciaran Gethings and Tom Bellamy, who both ride out for Kim, have also been brilliant in terms of help and advice. I get on particularly well with Ciaran.

For the rest of the season, I want to just keep my head down and work hard. I hope that I can stay free of injury and build up further contacts. Getting that first winner should definitely help, especially when it comes to picking up rides in conditional jockeys’ races.

If I could add a few more winners over the coming months that would definitely help to raise my profile. I’d imagine that I will remain in the UK for the foreseeable future.

I don’t have any set goals as such, other than to keep tipping away, working through my claim. Hopefully, if I can do that, the winners will come in their own time.

Nathan was in conversation with John O’Riordan