If you were a first-time racegoer, the sight of a tall and skinny figure, wearing a pair of GAA shorts and Barcelona socks, running around the track on muddy ground might be a peculiar one. But for those regularly on the racecourse, this is nothing new. Patrick Mullins, son of 12-time National Hunt Champion trainer Willie, is an amateur jockey and at the age of 28, has already ridden over 500 winners. As an amateur, the majority of Patrick’s rides come in bumpers, races without jumps for horses beginning their careers on the track, and for these races, it is very rare that a fully fledged amateur would have to do a weight below 11st. However, Mullins stands at over 6ft and so must retain a healthy lifestyle and diet.
If you were a first-time racegoer, the sight of a tall and skinny figure, wearing a pair of GAA shorts and Barcelona socks, running around the track on muddy ground might be a peculiar one. But for those regularly on the racecourse, this is nothing new. Patrick Mullins, son of 12-time National Hunt Champion trainer Willie, is an amateur jockey and at the age of 28, has already ridden over 500 winners.
As an amateur, the majority of Patrick’s rides come in bumpers, races without jumps for horses beginning their careers on the track, and for these races, it is very rare that a fully fledged amateur would have to do a weight below 11st. However, Mullins stands at over 6ft and so must retain a healthy lifestyle and diet.
“I started running earlier in my career and I do enjoy it,” Mullins says. “I had to lose a pound or two before I was riding in a bumper one day so I brought my gear and ran the course. Then it just became a routine.
“Running has its physical benefits obviously but I’d value the mental benefits just as much. It gives me a chance to relax, put my phone down and think about the race I am about to ride.”
When he is not race-riding, Mullins works as assistant trainer to his father and rides out every morning.
Time is of the essence so for that reason it makes sense to kill two birds with one stone.
“I would always walk the course when I had a ride in a race anyway and seeing as I’d usually be there early with our horses running in earlier races, I have time to get out there.”
FITNESS CLASS
Running is the main form of exercise for Patrick but he also does a fitness class with Wayne Middleton, strength and conditioning coach at RACE (Racing Academy Centre of Excellence) at the Curragh.
“Wayne specialises in jockeys’ fitness. He does an excellent class which I do with a few other jockeys. It’s a 45-minute session that varies between stretching, strength exercises, HIT [high-intensity training] exercises and boxing. It’s good to get out and do the class with lads in the same boat as you,” Mullins says.
Middleton works with aspiring and experienced jockeys at the academy. He has been featured more than once in The Irish Field and one of his basic ideas is to train jockeys as athletes rather than the age old attitude of unhealthy living in order to make weight. There is also a nutritionist at RACE on hand to give jockeys tips and options for different meals and diets.
Willie Mullins rode as an amateur jockey until he was 40 and with a bit of luck, his son hopes to do the same.
“I’d hope to ride for as long as I can,” Patrick says.
“As I’ve gotten older, it’s probably got harder to shift the weight. But every year I try to change things up, whether it be diet or exercise.
“I think that is the key for me. You need to vary things with exercise or else it can get very boring and then harder in your mind.” ?
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