Reigning novice men’s champion Ed Vaughan begins a new riding association at tomorrow’s Horseheath meeting in Cambridgeshire.
The Welshman partners two horses for leading East Anglian trainer Andrew Pennock (the two men pictured above), who believes the distance between his yard near Bury St Edmunds and Vaughan’s home near Cowbridge in the Vale Of Glamorgan need be no bar to a successful partnership. Evan David commuted from his home in South Wales to ride for Pennock during the 2016/17 and 2017/18 seasons and knocked out 26 winners for the yard during that time.
Pennock said: “I’ve got quite a lot of horse in for this season and wanted to get back to having a stable jockey. I’ve used Paddy Barlow, Charlie Marshall and Dale Peters recently, but they all have their own commitments.
“Tim [Ed Vaughan’s father] and I have a friendship so I rang him, explained my position, and said ‘have a think about it and take as long as you want’. Not long after they rang me on the way back from Lingfield races and said they were happy to give it a try. Ed drove himself here a week last Saturday, schooled quite a few horses and we had a good chat.
“He’s 17, but he has a lot of experience for his age and last season he rode at all the East Anglian tracks bar Fakenham – and I see he’s got a ride there on New Year’s Day, so that’s covered, too. He’s a very down-to-earth person and mature beyond his years, and while he’s still learning the game it will be nice working with him.”
Ed Vaughan (pale blue colours) riding at Ampton last season, with Pennock's yard in the background
Vaughan entered the sport last season after turning 16 and set a record for a novice rider when guiding home 33 winners from 135 rides, a remarkable tally which took in visits to courses around Britain.
Pennock said: “All the lads that have ridden for me have been really good riders, but they all tend to have a different opinion about a horse, which is only natural. I’d like to have consistency of opinion, which you can only get when one person rides the horses regularly.”
Riding at Chaddesley Corbett on Sunday, Vaughan said he was looking forward to his first rides for Pennock, although a planned three bookings has become two after Pennock said he would not be running the promising five-year-old Trojan du Berlais in the restricted race.
Vaughan will however ride two ex-Irish pointers, Wiseman Said and My Jetta Plane, in the two maiden races, while Pennock also runs In Arrears, who is owned by his wife Ruth, in the novice riders’ race under Vicky Frost.