SAFETY FIRST

Richard Eagle clocks spills as well as thrills as he tours tracks and yards

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Rushing down to Windsor for one of their last evening meetings I knew I might miss the first race .... I did. But I might as well have not risked the speed cameras as the second race was voided on account of a false start. One horse reared, and another, with blinds still on, careered across the Berkshire course riderless. Fortunately the horse avoided the nearby Thames, but continued to crash through the plastic rails. The horse was caught thankfully with no great damage. But I am old enough to remember back in July 1981 when jockey Joe Blanks, 24, died after being thrown from a horse at Brighton and crashing into concrete posts. It seems amazing that it was only after 1981 that the concrete posts were removed from UK race courses hopefully saving lives of horses and jockeys.

The race was 'won' by Michael Attwater's Cabeza de Llave but, as jockeys ignored (or did not see the false-start flag raised), the race was void.

Afterwards I commiserated with him on the win that wasn't.

Michael trains at Tattenham Corner stables in Epsom these days after short spells in Nottingham and Lambourn.

What I didn’t know was that he was once a jockey (difficult to believe as he towered above me). His height and weight shortened his time as a conditional jockey for Gary Moore, so he moved to be head lad for the late John Akehust in Epsom before taking out his training licence.