Paul Flynn

I'm from Celbridge and my father was reared up in Moyglare Stud. He mainly worked in Ballygordon Stud (now Derrinstown) when I was growing up and I always went to work with him when I could. I just had a keen interest from the start. There was no riding or anything like that, just helping him out. I used to follow him around for a good few years until I met David Behan who was a jockey. He put me up on the donkey, so I started riding he donkey up and down the road. I went to David Behan every day after school then.

I left school at 15 and went to work for Jim Bolger. I think I worked for Jim for about two years. I loved it and thought it was great. I thought he was very fair. He gave plenty of bollockings to people that didn't do what they were told but, once you had your head down and you were working, he was very fair. He let me ride a few bits of work, he didn't spoil me that way! I rode six or seven lots a day and we learned a lot with the yearlings. Eva Luna (Heinz 57 Phoenix Stakes winner in 1994) was there at the time.

From there, I went to John Hammond in Chantilly. He was brilliant to work for and very laid-back. He trained his horses differently, but got excellent results with them. He got the best out of them, but it just took a bit longer. He got good longevity out of his horses. It was different gravy riding out, every day was like a holiday. I really enjoyed working there. I was there on and off for about a year and a half. I stayed a summer and a winter and the following winter he sent me to America and I ended up there for nine months. I rode out for Ben Cecil and was lucky enough to ride a few for the great Bob Frankel. The odd morning, we got on a few of his. I remember Frankel used to look after all the Irish at Christmas. He didn't celebrate it himself, but he brought us all over for Christmas dinner which was brilliant. He was great fun.

It was money for jam riding in America. I was riding work for Frankel and I used to come back and give him the perfect time and he said 'Jesus, this kid is good!'. There were lads in the clock tower clocking the horses and, when I was coming back in, I used to shout up 'what time was that?' and the boys used to tell me and I'd go back and tell Bob the exact time! Then one day I shouted up 'what time was that?' and there he was looking at me! I lost my genius fairly quickly!

I went to England to Simon Dow and then on to Philip Hobbs. Hobbsy is a complete legend of a man. He's a very good trainer and doesn't complicate things. You still follow a lot of what he taught. I was champion amateur in 99/00 and it was good to have that title. It wasn't very rewarding financially, though! I won the Warwick National on Choisty (in 2000) and he was a notoriously bad jumper, so it was great to get around and win. It didn't do my career any harm as it was one of those rides that was noted. I smuggled him around down the paint, it looked a brave ride at the time, but I don't think I'd do it now!

I rode some really good horses - Farmer Jack was a good horse. I really enjoyed him when he won in Aintree (Grade 2 handicap chase in 2004). He was an exuberant jumper the whole way. I also loved a horse called Supreme Prince, he won a Listed Vodafone Gold Cup in Newbury (in 2005). The Coral Cup win on What's Up Boys (in 2000) was brilliant, my parents were there. My father has passed away since, but it was brilliant to do it when he was there and he got a great kick out of it. I kind of enjoyed the Hennessy at Newbury the following year on What's Up Boys more, maybe I was settled down a bit by then. He went under the radar going into that race, but it turned out it was no fluke as he ran well in a Gold Cup (fifth in 2002) and he was second in a Grand National the same year as well. He was a very good horse, but a tricky little jumper and not the bravest. You had to leave him to his own devices and he got his own way over them. I definitely would have won the Grand National on What's Up Boys - he (Richard Johnson) went too early! The Hennessy was actually the last award the Queen Mother gave at racing before she died. I have that picture of her on the wall here. That was a nice thing as my grandmother loved the Queen.

I remember one day Robert Widger and myself were meant to be cleaning a swimming pool for Philip Hobbs, and there was a lake and a pond there with an old boat tied up beside it. We thought it would be great craic to jump in the boat and use the shovels as oars in the pond. Next thing we heard Hobbsy shouting 'where's Robert and Paul? They are meant to be cleaning the pool'. We hid in the bushes. We then rowed out to the middle of the lake thinking he would find it funny, and I've never seen a man so mad in my whole life! He was the quietest man you ever met and never gave out, but he went mad!

I had two young kids and it wasn't really paying even though I was riding plenty. It wasn't adding up, so I think that's why I came back. I never had any interest in training really. I just got a little place in Colehill, Co Longford and was thinking of breaking and pre-training because I loved breaking horses and I loved tricky horses. If there was a tricky horse, I used to love riding them and trying to sort them out. I still get tricky ones! The owners of one horse in particular, Bronte Bay, asked me to run him. I got the permit and it just went from there in 2007, with very few numbers for a good few years.

Moon Dice in the Galway Hurdle of 2011 was a great win. That was one that got us noticed. We never really had a moment's worry in the race. He was going to win it every step of the way. I was stuck for words afterwards which wouldn't be like me! I think it was the best day for raising my profile, but I don't think it was my best training performance. It was straightforward. I probably enjoy the recent wins more, a bit more used to it now! We had a barren spell after that, so you appreciate them more now. Archie Boy won a lot of races for us, he won a Grade 3 Butterfly in Tipperary (2009) and we went to England with him a few times. He was a really good horse and a great bunch of lads owned him as well. We had Drunken Sailor as well. We got him rated 58 and I thought I had down a great job getting him to 95 and then he went on again. He ended up winning Listed and Group 3 races for Luca Cumani and ran in a Melbourne Cup. It was at the time of the big crash and the owner just had to sell him. They came in looking for him so we let him go. They got a nice price for him.

We have a mixed yard. We probably have slightly more Flat horses now than jumpers. the jumpers we have are quite nice and they should do well. We have about 24 or 25 and are full up. We are always open for more because we have horses coming and going. If they are no good, they don't stay too long. We have two gallops, a schooling strip, stalls, jumps and a salt room which is unique enough. That helps allergies and airways. I'd love to expand a little bit here if we could and maybe have bigger gallops. I wouldn't want to have too many horses really, just keep a good constant flow of runners running to the best of their ability. I'd always love to get a better horse if we could. We really don't spend much money on them at the minute. I would be open to someone spending money, no problem! My owners are really good and they are very good to me, but we do have our budget and we have to stick to it.

I don't know anything else but the racing industry, so there could be much better jobs out there! I really enjoy it and my daughter Ciara loves it, she's a really good worker and a big help. It is a family-run operation with my wife Claire involved too. You'd love to be able to pay people a lot more for what they do because they work so hard. There's good camaraderie within the community. It is a good place to work.