Meet The Trainees - Jack Enright

My name is Jack Enright, I’m 17 years old and I’m from Ardagh in Co. Limerick. I completed the leaving certificate and decided instead of going to college, I would try and go to RACE. I always had a love for horse racing, I watched it all the time and I wanted to get involved in the sport. I had to do a week’s work experience and I thought this was my chance to get an insight into the job.

I contacted a local trainer, Eric McNamara, he said I could call down and he would show me the works.  I loved it and the week went so fast. I got to see the horses being trained, how they prepared the horses for racing and I got to meet lots of new people.  After that I continued to work at Eric’s and gained a lot of experience. During the summer I was riding out three lots a day for him. I learned a huge amount about the horses and how they like to be ridden.

Since I started in RACE I have learned so much, I have become very strong and gained so much confidence around the racehorses.  My fitness has improved as we must attend the Gym each day.  At RACE our attention is also focused on our diet and wellbeing.  Each day we have nutritional food and the emphasis is on healthy wholesome foods which benefits us in a huge way. I continue to improve using the simulators which helps me with my riding style, proper use of whip and stamina.

All the instructors at RACE are hugely informative, especially Paddy Flood, as he has a great knowledge of style and is honest about your ability. One of my highlights of the year was a visit to Coolmore, we got to see some amazing horses, such as Galileo. We also got to see how they carry out the process for covering mares during the breeding season.

I feel like a gained a lot from my time in RACE and with a little luck I hope I will be riding winners in the not so distant future.

Jack was placed with Michael Halford

Out on x-country course for assessment week