FOLLOWING a summer of indifferent weather and precious little sunshine, it was almost inevitable that back-to-school week would commence with blue skies and warm rays. This is what greeted our new intake of 30 trainees last Monday when they arrived for registration.

This year’s trainee jockey group, which includes 13 girls, are drawn from a wide pool with 13 different counties represented plus, for the first time, one trainee from the Netherlands and they have just commenced their initial 12-week foundation programme.