May_141_24Hours_Owner 21/04/2016 15:27 Page 96
24 HOURS WITH… JIM CROWLEY
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GEORGE SELWYN
W
hen I’m riding out at Newmarket I’m up and away by 4.30 and that’s with the help of an alarm call. Otherwise, I find my three kids – Alice, 8, Bella, 6, and Sam, 3 jumping on me between 6.30 and 7, the signal for me to be out of bed to go and ride out locally in Sussex, or set off on my regular fivemile run. The only time the body is not so willing is when I’ve been wasting the day before and feel dehydrated. I am a driven person with a very competitive nature. Being 37, I am aware there are a lot of young lads coming through, so I’ve got to be as fit as possible and that’s basically what gets me out of bed every morning. You set yourself goals, and mine are winning as many races as possible, perhaps a Classic or even one day the jockeys’ championship. Before leaving the house I grab a coffee but don’t have anything to eat until after I’ve ridden out or been for a run. If I can make it home before racing I’ll have some muesli and cook ham and eggs, poached or scrambled, to make sure I have the necessary protein. A year ago I wasn’t eating properly and it wasn’t good, but now I feel much better. A run and a decent breakfast sets me up for the day. My wife Lucinda, who is Guy Harwood’s daughter and sister of Pulborough trainer Amanda Perrett, is a full-time mum and housewife so I am left to cook breakfast myself. But I must do all right because I can eat it! I have to say some of the parents at the kids’ school think Lucinda is a single mum because they never see me in the summer. When the Flat eases off I try to spend more time with the children and their school-time activities.
A good breakfast and a morning run set JIM CROWLEY up for a busy day in the saddle, while his kids and a bit of Peaky Blinders or Game of Thrones winds him down for a (usually bad!) night’s sleep My parents trained pointto-pointers in Ascot and I rode about 300 winners over jumps. If it wasn’t for Guy Harwood, I wouldn’t be riding on the Flat. During the summers when I wasn’t jumping, I’d ride out for Amanda and Guy would keep saying, ‘Why don’t you pack up that bloody jumping and get your weight down!’ Guy gave me the push and the whole family were amazing in the way they helped and backed me. Nowadays my closest contact with the jumping game is dual Grand National-winning jockey Leighton Aspell and his family. Leighton lives locally, is a good friend and our kids play together. I was one of the first
jockeys to swap codes fulltime and found people kept thinking of me as a jump jockey on the Flat, so I had to change their mindset. Of course, I had to alter the way I rode to convince people to take me seriously as a Flat jockey. The only way was to ride big winners and I was lucky to grab a Group 1 on Lord Shanakill in France soon after I’d switched. In my first full year on the level I rode over 90 winners. The atmosphere in the Flat and jumps weighing rooms is very different. There are great lads in both, but the camaraderie among the jumping boys is stronger. If someone rides a big jumping winner everyone is pleased for each other, but it’s more business-like on the Flat,
where there’s so much at stake with high value stallions and breeding involved. But there’s still fun to be had with characters like Martin Dwyer and Jamie Spencer, who can be really funny. My agent Tony Hind is the person who talks about me becoming champion jockey. He is positive and upbeat, but I see any championship aspirations as a work in progress. If I said I was going out to be champion I could end up with egg on my face. Lunch on the racecourse is normally a bit of chicken, a banana and some fruit with water or a cup of tea. But if I’m at home it can be fatal because I end up raiding the kids’ chocolates! The most draining part of my job is driving 50,000-plus miles a year. As the only local Flat jockey where I live in Sussex, there is no one to share [the driving] with, though I do employ a parttime driver in the summer. My relaxations are hunting and I also enjoy a day’s shooting. Sometimes Lucinda gets me riding out the kids’ six ponies; we also have three dogs and some chickens. My favourite holiday spot is Meribel, where we have been skiing for the last 12 years – I have to admit Lucinda is better than me, unfortunately. When I’m night racing I don’t have an evening meal, but at home we’ll sit down with the kids at about five and afterwards I enjoy watching Peaky Blinders and Game of Thrones on TV. It’s bed at about 11 with my iPad to look through the next day’s runners. Strangely, the only time I sleep well is on an aeroplane. In my own bed I’m a very light sleeper, always tossing and turning and awake at the slightest noise.
Interview by Tim Richards
THOROUGHBRED OWNER & BREEDER INC PACEMAKER