It is good for any sport when the minnow proves bigger than the whale, as witnessed by Saudi Arabia’s World Cup win and Moroval’s 100/1 Southwell success for Tracey Leeson.
This article first appeared in the Racing Post on Friday 25th November.
If the big fish won every time the rest of us would wander off, not to mention the publicity created by victory for a small-scale outfit.
Step forward George Edgedale, a one-horse owner/trainer/rider who partnered Kilpin – a maiden after ten runs for Nigel Twiston-Davies – to victory at Ffos Las point-to-point a week ago last Sunday.
Edgedale, an assistant to Alan King, rents a stable across the Marlborough Downs from his boss’s yard and rides Kilpin on his own in his lunch break. He says: “I loved following racing as a child, and at 15 or 16 went to Oliver Sherwood’s in my summer holidays. My mum would drive me there but made me cycle the 14 miles home thinking it would put me off. It made me keener.
“After gaining a place at Exeter University, I did a gap year at Harry Whittington’s and stayed three years, dropping the university plan. I joined Alan King as an assistant in July.
“My parents kindly bought my first pointer [in 2019], but after four rides he went wrong and they said, ‘We’re not doing that again’, so I sold him as a hunter and with my savings bought Kilpin privately from Henrietta Knight.
“I went to see him at her yard, and she said, ‘Give him a pop’. I hadn’t schooled for nine months and felt very nervous jumping in front of her. I was so rusty he nearly jumped me off at the first, but he felt safe, and I thought I could have some fun with him.”
In March, on their third start together, Kilpin won at Guilsborough – despite Edgedale’s 6ft 1in frame being 1lb over at 12st 1lb – and then they scored again last weekend.
“I think Alan quite enjoys the fact that I’m doing this,” says Edgedale. “He rang me at Ffos Las to see how I had got on, which was really kind. I’m never going to be a jockey so I’m doing it purely for the love of the sport.”
Back-hand complement
Britain’s point-to-point riders will be falling into line with professional jockeys when whip-use changes arrive in January. The use of the whip for encouragement will be limited to the backhand position for the first time at Ampton, Buckfastleigh and Sheriff Hutton on January 15.
