Richie Condon

I’m from Conna in east Cork and my family are dairy farmers there. Davy Condon is a first cousin of mine and Paul Townend is also related to me. Liam Burke’s yard is just two miles down the road and I started riding ponies there with Liam’s son Johnny who is the same age as me. I rode about twenty winners in pony-racing and did my Leaving Cert before heading over to Britain where I was apprenticed to Brendan Powell. I rode on the Flat for a couple of seasons and had two winners from about fifty rides before taking out my conditional licence to ride over jumps.

I moved on to Kim Bailey’s yard and really enjoyed my time with him. I rode some very smart horses there and won bumpers on Vinndication and Two For Gold and also partnered First Flow in one of his early starts.

When I came back to Ireland I worked for Joseph O’Brien for a year and I’m now based in Paulstown near Gowran. I’m attached to Pat Fahy’s yard and I’m in Pat’s five mornings a week and also go to Gordon Elliott’s one day a week.

Paul Hennessy isn’t far away from me and, after one of the lads who worked for him was sidelined with a broken collarbone, Danny Mullins suggested that I go in to ride out Paul’s horses which I was able to do before heading to Pat’s place. That’s how I ended up on Heaven Help Us and she gave me a couple of brilliant days when winning at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown and in the Coral Cup at Cheltenham. The reception I got from the other Irish jockeys when coming back in at Cheltenham last year was amazing. That they formed a guard of honour for me on the way back into the winners’ enclosure was pretty cool and it showed that, although the Irish jockeys are very competitive out on the track, we’re a close-knit bunch as well.

The winner at Cheltenham obviously helped to put me in the spotlight and resulted in American trainer Keri Brion asking me to ride one of her horses at Fairyhouse on Irish Grand National day. The horse ran well and she later invited me to come over and ride for her in the United States. It was a great opportunity and I enjoyed a good bit of success there last year. I was based in Maryland and worked at the training facility in Far Hills, New Jersey. The jump racing is quite different in America where the emphasis is very much on speed and the ground is invariably firm. The training is geared towards making the horses faster and sharper.

Sometimes, at the likes of Saratoga, there might be just one jump race on the card before the Flat racing starts but the prize-money certainly makes it worthwhile. It was interesting to be in the weighroom with all the high-profile American Flat jockeys. I enjoyed the lifestyle over there as well. I would ride out from around 5am and finish up by 9am before it got too warm. That left plenty of time for golf which I’m very keen on and helped get my handicap down to 16.

I managed to win two very valuable Grade Ones on Keri’s good mare The Mean Queen. The Lonesome Glory Handicap Hurdle at Belmont Park in September was a big one for me because it was my first Grade One. I actually hurt my wrist in a fall in the previous contest but I was determined to ride her and, luckily, I managed to get the go-ahead from the doctor. In October I won the Grand National Hurdle at Far Hills where The Mean Queen really stuck her head down and battled for me. She’s a talented mare who I’m sure would have been competitive in the mares’ hurdle at Cheltenham next month had connections decided to travel, but they decided to campaign her at home again this year.

Just a week after the Grand National win I had a fall early in a race and, unfortunately, fractured two vertebrae. I spent two weeks in hospital and was looked after very well. After recovering from that injury, I got back race-riding in Ireland a couple of weeks ago. First and foremost it was great to be back fit and well and then to quickly get a couple of winners on the board was all the better. Pat Fahy told me he fancied History Of Fashion in the handicap chase at Down Royal and that was actually my first winner over fences. My very next ride was a winner as well when Kells Priory landed a handicap hurdle on Thyestes day at Gowran. The RTE cameras were there and I seem to have a happy knack of winning on big days. I’ve seven winners left with my 7lb claim and I’m able to ride lightweights so hopefully I can keep the ball rolling now and stay in one piece.

The plan is to fly to America in May to ride The Mean Queen in a Grade One at Nashville, then come back home for a couple of months before basing myself in the U.S. again from July for the main part of their jumps season. It’s great to be riding for Keri Brion as she has a powerful string and I’ll be aiming to make the most of my opportunities.