APART from my grandad probably putting on a few bets here and there, I am definitely the only one in my family to have an interest in racing. From as early as I can remember, I always wanted to ride horses. I don’t really know where that longing came from, as I grew up in Baltinglass (Wicklow) which wouldn’t be a real racing stronghold.

I learned to ride at Doyles Equestrian Centre in Rathvilly (Carlow) when I was four or five. I didn’t get a pony of my own until a few years later – buying it with my Confirmation money!