Victoria Pendleton to train as a jockey

I had £20 to min at 13/8 and she fell off (sorry, unseated ) and right in front of me, just to add insult to injury! :D

Regardless of the twenty quid, and though I genuinely admire the girl's pluck, in all honesty, I wasn't impressed with her riding style. She looked awkward and unbalanced. I suspect that she has some way to go and I would seriously fear for her at Cheltenham. The attendant media scrum has me thinking that it is mostly hype and the Niccols name, and I wonder if a serious rider can really be produced in 12 months. No one will be happier than I will, if I'm wrong.

Alec.
 
Watched on ATR, was not really impressed even before she fell. She did look inexperienced, which of course she is. Trying to ride at Cheltenham looks like madness to me at the moment. Happy to be proved wrong.
 
I wish she'd got round! I really want her to do well ( and then carry on!) to prove all the naysayers wrong. I just read a thread about it on Racing Post's facebook, people are so horrible about her, I feel sorry for her. I think she's so very gutsy, I just wish she hadn't popped out the side door!
 
I'm so not a fan of the media hype & circus that is being created around her. But in defence of VP she has knuckled down & shown some grit & guts. What she is trying to achieve as a non rider is hard to imagine. I fear Cheltenham is a step too far for this year. Get another 12 months in on the job so to speak & then reassess. She has come along way in a short space of time so she must have some skill level.
 
Mariposa said:
I wish she'd got round! I really want her to do well ( and then carry on!) to prove all the naysayers wrong. I just read a thread about it on Racing Post's facebook, people are so horrible about her, I feel sorry for her. I think she's so very gutsy, I just wish she hadn't popped out the side door!
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NO ONE could deny her your good wishes, but when she left the paddock, the horse left her behind. She was on his rump for a good four strides and all but on the end of the buckle. It was as if the horse taking off and going to the start was a surprise, as if he wasn't ready for her, when the truth is that it was the other way about. It seems to me that after 12 months, the basics still aren't in place, sadly.

Alec.
 
For what she has done and how far she has done she deserves a hell of a lot of credit. But I do think Cheltenham is a step too far this year. She has 4, weeks to buckle down and school horse after horse after horse. Not schoolmasters either. Dodgy jumpers, novices, the works. It's the only way sh will learn to keep back and in the plate.
 
EKW said:
For what she has done and how far she has done she deserves a hell of a lot of credit. But I do think Cheltenham is a step too far this year. She has 4, weeks to buckle down and school horse after horse after horse. Not schoolmasters either. Dodgy jumpers, novices, the works. It's the only way sh will learn to keep back and in the plate.
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Exactly, a lot of riding in any sphere is instinct and that only comes through time.
 
EKW said:
For what she has done and how far she has done she deserves a hell of a lot of credit. But I do think Cheltenham is a step too far this year. She has 4, weeks to buckle down and school horse after horse after horse. Not schoolmasters either. Dodgy jumpers, novices, the works. It's the only way sh will learn to keep back and in the plate.
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I think you might be right. I think to learn to ride and get to the level she's got to in 12 months is amazing, but maybe Cheltenham could be a step too far ( for safety's sake...)
 
Thats been my worry all along. The Foxhunters at Cheltenham will be a big field, riders who have been doing this for years and no quarter given (not that she would expect any) I just think its too dangerous at the level she is now, a lot more experience required and then, who knows!
 
Watching the jockey cam footage she smacked into the horse in front of her. Now you can see why she has been told to hold up, go wide and get a clear sight of your fences - ie. Keep out of everyone elses way!
 
I think it is incredibly hard to learn to ride as an adult, most adult learners I have seen just don't have one ness with the horse that child riders get.
I have ridden all my life and you wouldn't get me riding in the Foxhunters, I would make a complete fool of myself, even if I survived.
The danger is not just her falling off but what if she endangers other people? TBF I would have fallen off if my horse had smacked into another one like hers did at Fakenham.
 
I really admire her determination and what she's achieved so far, but I'm inclined to agree that she'd be better giving it another year. I think what she doesn't have is the intuition that experienced jockeys will have - the ability to read a race and, most importantly, to read the horse's movement, to go with it without thinking and know exactly what to do when. That is something that only time and experience can teach you, but it is essential to any riding and I'd imagine even more so at the level she is trying to ride at.
 
Clodagh said:
I think it is incredibly hard to learn to ride as an adult, …….. .
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Any skill which requires speed of thought is best learnt whilst we're young, be it driving a car, learning to cook or how to catch a fish. We could say the same for skiing, shooting or perhaps even competitive cycling.

I'd hate to be a harbinger of doom, but if either VP or her ride are seriously injured and during a race, then there will be a level of uproar to match the loss of our greatest steeplechaser of all time.

One thing's for certain, she wouldn't be race riding a horse of mine.

Alec.
 
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Having watched the ML I don't think anyone would have stayed on, her foot was kicked clean up by the other horse. On the other hand perhaps sher shouldn't have been where she was in the group? The two races she jumped (on screen) she looked very novicey.
 
If you watch the jockey cam footage the horse in front jump right at the fence before so why on earth would you go closer up on its right hand side mere strides before the next fence - when the horse duly jumped right again. No one was staying on that but it could have been easily avoided.

But then that is only something learning from your mistakes will give you - the knowledge to keep paying attention to those around you and not just focus on you and your horse.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10153720171180379&id=47793375378&fs=5
 
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EKW, your fb post won't open.

I was 30 yards from the incident, if that, and from the side on it 'seemed' that she simply rode in to the other horse. I watched the Ch4 footage this afternoon, and though the horse to her left did jump, slightly right handed, she should as you say, having seen the horse do it at the previous jump, have prepared herself for that.

Does anyone remember Eddie The Eagle who represented Britain in the Winter Olympics at the Ski Jump? He'd never before done a ski jump, his vision was so bad that his glasses resembled the bottoms of wine bottles, but he survived it!

I don't suppose that you'll read this Victoria, and though I admire your pluck and determination, were you my daughter, you and I would be having a serious chat, and the first thing that we'd consider is the time which jockeys spend doing apprenticeships, and the age at which they start. No one in their right minds would allow you in an F1 car after just 12 months of learning, which could be a point which Niccols & Co. could consider.

Alec.
 
Ive just watched the replay on ATR. To me she looked very much a passenger, not really helping the horse at all. Easy for me to say from the sofa, Ive been riding for nearly 50 years and the fastest I ever went on my own little failed racehorse was a nice hand canter. There is no way on earth I would even consider doing what VP is doing, far too dangerous. Im afraid I agree with Alec on this one, much as I admire her for taking up the challenge and doing incredibly well, I fear she would be a danger to herself and others at Cheltenham.
 
I am sure she knows she is not a professional level jock, but if she wants to go to Foxhunters, let her be, she loves the game.
She is happy to accept the risks of riding, so all is well. It s not likely she will end up with a life threatening injury.
 
I admire her for getting as far as she has but I think she will be a danger at Cheltenham, in a faster run race with more runners she could end up causing some serious damage. Give her another year and she would be more experienced to take on this challenge, after all I'm sure it took her longer than a year to become a gold medal winning cyclist.
 
Bonkers I would have to disagree with you. Im sure it was the Foxhunters where both the Mcnamara boys suffered life changing, if may not life threatening injuries. Im also sure both those lads were practically born in the saddle and have years of experience under their saddles. She may well manage to hunt safely round, she might not. I think my biggest fear for her is managing to avoid trouble en route, things happen so quickly in and around you and imo she doesnt have the race knowledge to avoid it, side step it or keep out of the way. Half a ton of horse landing on top of you, at speed, may well be life ending :(
 
If she is to attempt this then she needs to hunt out the back 6-8 lengths off of everyone in front of her so she has time to avoid any carnage going on. But she has already proven that she can't do that and instead aims for the trouble.

The speed at Cheltenham may save her if she gets cannoned from the saddle but it won't save her if she has horses behind her.
 
ester said:
Is there any sort of qualification for riders for the foxhunters or just the horses?
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Just the horses unfortunately! I have looked through every version of the rules that I can find and there is nothing stopping her.

There are restrictions on the other amateur rider races though so she defos can't do them!
 
It is indeed. It is usual practice to grow up in the saddle, daddy buys you some schoolmasters to learn your trade on before buying one good enough for Cheltenham. By which point you have a few years riding under your belt and won't disgrace yourself.

Or you do it the hard way by sheer grit and determination working your way up from the bottom and proving yourself worthy of a horse to ride after you have spent years riding every scabby maiden out there!
 
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