Surrey's mane man

My love affair with the ‘sport of kings’ started when I was very small. Weekend trips to visit my grandparents could often end up with my big sister and I bickering and fighting. Not that I was an argumentative soul, you understand. Hardly any point when my sister would start a fight in an empty room...

My late grandfather, knowing that I was fond of horses, hit on the idea of switching on ‘Grandstand’ to make visits a little less fraught, and letting me follow the horses as they jumped their way around Haydock Park, Chepstow and the like. And lo, one of the world’s youngest gamblers was born!

Well, would have been, if I’d been allowed to have a bet.

In truth I don’t really gamble. I restrict myself to a couple of bets come Cheltenham and Aintree time. My first ever winner was ‘Blue Wind’ in the 1980 Oaks. I think I’d have been six years old or thereabouts. And countless Grand National winners followed afterwards. I have a better track record than my mum on this score: she usually kills them.

Of course, there have been a few cricket-related horses over the years. ‘Leg Glance’, ‘Katchit’ and of course the eponymous ‘Flintoff’, owned by...well, Mr Flintoff himself! And now it appears we have another one to add to the list, in the shape of a 5 year old called ‘Ramprakash’.

I kid you not. And no, the Rampants aren’t responsible. I think we could just about club together to buy a hoof or a nostril hair (although technically that’s the first part over the line). At first I wondered what sporting enthusiast had decided to name a horse after one of county cricket’s finest ever exponents, and then (being a racing anorak who’s into that kind of thing) I had a look at the pedigree:

Sire: Best of the Bests

Dam: Missy Dancer

I can only assume that the wee fella was named circa 2006. Somebody’s a Strictly Come Dancing fan!

It's a big honour to have a racehorse called after you. Alas, in my case "Too tired to get out of bed at five thirty in the morning" has yet to make it's course debut...