Sunday 6th April at our sister course Ffos Las produced a story that proves fairytales do happen.
Jockey Alan Johns rode a winner on his final ride in the saddle. The horse concerned was Bumpy Evans, trained by Alan’s long term mentor and trainer Tim Vaughan. The seven-year-old chaser overtook his rival Higgs after the last fence to score by a length and three quarters.
It was the 223rd success of the Pembrokeshire born rider’s career.
The victory elated the healthy crowd basking in the April sunshine and Alan was given a rousing reception as the horse reached the Winners’ Enclosure. The jockey was then doused in buckets of water by his fellow riders, a traditional farewell for those retiring from the sport.
Alan grew up in the village of Castlemorris, where he had a horsey though not a racing background. Spurred on by a consuming interest in the Grand National, he went to work at Peter Bowen’s yard at the age of 17, when he first sat on a racehorse, but didn’t pursue a career as a professional jockey until he was 24.
He has been attached to Tim Vaughan’s stable for most of that time. His favourite horse there was Bucking The Trend, who won three times for him in 2016 when he was a conditional jockey, striving to get enough winners to get a full licence.
Alan describes his most satisfying ride as the one on Madera Mist two years ago at Cheltenham. He trailed the 20-strong field in last place for the first mile of a 3m4f chase, only to come past all the others and hit the front in the final 50 yards.
His biggest win was on Vaughan’s grey Eva’s Oskar at Cheltenham’s December 2022 meeting, a victory that made the horse one of the leading British-trained fancies for the following year’s Grand National. They attracted a lot of media interest in the lead-up to the race, which led to Alan being commissioned by the Jockey Club to make weekly short, sharp, fun videos about racing.
He also produced a film promoting the 2023 Unibet Welsh Jump Jockeys’ Derby charity race at Chepstow, which instantly became comedy gold. Since then his presence online has been growing and he has appeared as a pundit on ITV Racing.
Its viewers will also have seen his never-say-die ride on Kalium at Newbury a few weeks ago, and it’s plain he is quitting the saddle at the peak of his powers. He’s now hoping to expand his career in racing broadcasting, media and PR.
