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The Jumping Game: How National Hunt Trainers Work and What Makes Them Tick
As the woman who trained the great Best Mate to win three consecutive Cheltenham Gold Cups—a feat only equaled by the legendary Arkle in the 60s—no one could be better qualified than Henrietta Knight to discover what makes today's top jumps trainers succeed. From eccentric, outspoken Yorkshireman Mick Easterby, to elegant, aristocratic Venetia Williams, from Irish wizard, Willie Mullins, to perfectionist champion trainer, Paul Nicholls and young pretender, Dan Skelton, here is a dazzling cast of extraordinary characters, all with their quirks and foibles, but with one single-minded ambition—finding first class horses and training them to win big races. Their stories are fascinating, each one illustrated with unique photographs from private albums.
384 pages, Hardcover
Published May 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 10, 2022
Overall a high 3's/low 4s.
This is a really unique book - i can't think of any other authors who have been able to write about the training techniques, facilities and (more generally) the personalities of the UK/Ire jumps racing circuit.
The author blends her extensive knowledge of training in with her ability to spin a ditty, making this a really interesting perspecitve on the industry.
My two major knocks are, firstly, that the book does get a little repetitive - the book is made up of about two dozen short essays on a trainer each. I ended up skipping over alot of them because they all read the same. Secondly, I had expected this to teach me more about how to pick a winner, and whilst I did pick up a few things here and there (eg the effect horses being overworked in training) this book is more focused on the veternarian side of things.
This is a really unique book - i can't think of any other authors who have been able to write about the training techniques, facilities and (more generally) the personalities of the UK/Ire jumps racing circuit.
The author blends her extensive knowledge of training in with her ability to spin a ditty, making this a really interesting perspecitve on the industry.
My two major knocks are, firstly, that the book does get a little repetitive - the book is made up of about two dozen short essays on a trainer each. I ended up skipping over alot of them because they all read the same. Secondly, I had expected this to teach me more about how to pick a winner, and whilst I did pick up a few things here and there (eg the effect horses being overworked in training) this book is more focused on the veternarian side of things.
February 26, 2024
Brilliant insight to the different trainers train, what equipment they use and abit of history mixed in there aswell
June 14, 2018
Bought a dozen copies from Henrietta to give to friends. Very good.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews