TIME flies when you’re having fun and Adam Caffrey is having plenty of it.

It’s not yet 15 months since his debut win, pushing home Magnetic North at Navan for his boss Ado McGuinness, and the winners have flowed since; 35 and counting, 18 coming last year and 17 this year.

Of that 17, a total of 13 have come within the lines of the Irish flat jockeys championship and which has him just one win off joint leaders Joey Sheridan and Luke McAteer.

“I think it was only around this time last year that I lost my 10lb claim,” the 19-year-old says. “I couldn’t be any happier with the way things are going.

“A few people have mentioned the apprentice championship but you take it one day at a time. If I was still involved in a couple of months, you’d love to win it of course. As an apprentice, it is what everyone wants to do.”

Caffrey comes from the small rural village of Clonalvy in Meath, right on the Dublin border. His interest in racing stems from his uncle James Hartford, who always kept different types of horses in a yard just down the road from him.

He never did pony racing or went to racing school, instead cutting his teeth by riding out for small trainers in the locality before signing on as an apprentice to Ado McGuinness three years ago now.

A winless first season from 40 rides was no deterrent to him or his boss, who has regularly sung his praises, most notably after he reduced his claim to 5lbs after he scored on Hightimeyouwon at Leopardstown last month, with McGuinness asserting that the rider was very good value at his new claim.

Caffrey has taken the confidence from that and is revelling now from working in a yard that continues to hold its own and a yard which is very much coming into its red zone territory now with Galway just around the corner.

“I couldn’t ask for anymore from Ado, he has given me so much experience,” Caffrey says. “In fairness to Ado, he always keeps things simple and he gives you plenty of confidence before you get out on the track, with whatever horse or race it may be. He always says to just go and do your best and enjoy yourself.

“The more you get to know horses running at home the better but then when you get a few rides for outside trainers as well, on horses you’ve never sat on before, you learn plenty from that.”

And that’s a surefire sign of progress for any young jockey, that ‘outside’ trainers want to use you. Last year, all bar one of Caffrey’s winners came for McGuinness and this year he has ridden winners for seven other trainers.

He should get a few more opportunities from other trainers at Galway, if indeed McGuinness isn’t already using him. He went so close to giving the Dublin trainer yet another Colm Quinn BMW Mile on Casanova last season and is set to ride Saltonstall in the race this season. “It would be brilliant to ride a winner around Galway, but very special if I got one for Ado.”