Behind the Scenes of Jackdaws Castle; Jonjo O’Neill’s Training Facilities

If you’re a fan of horse racing, there’s nothing quite like getting as close as possible to the action. Attending your local race meets is one thing; but wouldn’t it be great to see your favourite horses off the track?

Leading UK-based racehorse trainer, Jonjo O’Neill, boasts some of the most impressive training facilities in Europe. Jackdaws Castle has played host to legendary racehorses and big winners such as Synchronised, Sunnyhillboy, Holywell, and Tarquin du Seuil.

So sit back and be prepared to be wowed as we take a behind-the-scenes look at Jackdaws Castle; Jonjo O’Neill’s incredible racehorse training facilities.

The Gallops

The bulk of a racehorse’s training programme revolves around regular workouts on the gallops. Jackdaws Castle proudly boasts the finest National Hunt training facilities in Europe and features both grass and all-weather gallops. The 500-acre estate features three-mile horse walks; all allowing horses to enjoy a diverse exercise plan without the need to use public roads or bridle paths.

Jackdaws Castle has three, mile-long grass gallops with varying inclines. Equipped with sprinkler systems to ensure optimum underfoot conditions, the gallops provide a thorough workout for the horses.

Ever prepared for the Great British weather, Jackdaws Castle also has a five-furlong Eurotrack gallop and a one-mile Polytrack gallop. If the weather isn’t on the teams’ side, these facilities mean the horses are still able to get their workouts. With a whole host of specialist equipment, Jonjo and the team are able to replicate underfoot conditions to keep training consistent.

Indoor School

Indoor schooling also forms a hugely important part of a horse's training regime. Measuring 25,000 square feet, the Indoor Complex at Jackdaws Castle includes a 215 x 130 feet schooling area, horse walkers and much more.

This facility is especially important in the training of young horses. As well as a replica Eurotrack surface for the training of novices, Jackdaws Castle’s indoor school also includes a number of facilities for yearlings.

These include training hurdles, helping prepare novices before they advance to the outdoor school. The facility also includes starting stalls. These help the team introduce young horses to this central piece of racing equipment; helping to prepare them for their first race.

Equine Swimming Pool and Solarium

Jonjo’s training facility doesn’t just focus on preparing the horses for racing. It also includes a number of state-of-the-art equine spa facilities; each helping in the recovery and rehabilitation of horses.

The equine swimming pool relieves pressure on joints, bones and ligaments, whilst providing enough resistance to ensure a thorough workout. Not only this, but swimming can also help maintain an injured horse’s fitness levels without causing any extra damage.

The equine spa also includes a solarium. Jonjo and his team see this as a hugely important piece of therapy equipment and use these solariums to gain a competitive edge over other horses on the track.
The three solariums are powered by special infrared bulb heaters and provide a pleasant warming sensation that is proven to relax tense muscles and improve circulation. The solarium also provides horses with much-needed vitamin D – something which is essential for joint and bone health.

Equine Therapy Bays

The final facility we will look at on this virtual tour of Jackdaws Castle is the therapy bays. These bays use magnetic pulse therapy (MPT) to help improve a horse's recovery from injury and lessen the severity of certain injuries.

This relatively new treatment is completely safe for the horse and is purely therapeutic. It has been known to reduce pain and inflammation, increase circulation and help with horse rehabilitation. Jonjo’s equipment includes a Temperature Therapy machine, providing continuous and programmable ice or heat therapy.

So there you have it; a sneak peek at behind the scenes of Jackdaws Castle. Getting to see horses in training – and then battling it out on the track – is a must for any horse-racing fan. By getting closer to the action in this way, you can see exactly what goes into training a winning horse.

Jonjo O’Neill is a leading name in the racing industry, having trained a Grand National winner and many other Grade One winners. Racing enthusiasts can visit Jackdaw’s Castle or even own a racehorse that will be trained by Jonjo and his team.

To body protect or not to body protect

As I have already mentioned, apart from L, we are not a very animal-centric family. I had a budgie once as a child, but finding it stone dead and stiff on its perch one day rather put me off any further attempts at pet ownership.

I love most sports though, and for a while was a great follower of horse racing. For several seasons on the trot (sorry) my young son G and I would watch the national hunt racing season with great interest. From our armchair vantage points we began to know the horses, the trainers, the form, we could even spot the colours of the silks and we had a pet horse (not literally) which we followed avidly as he competed all over the country. The Last Fling tragically fell and died in the 2002 Grand National, where he had been leading for a long time in the race.

L was four when this happened. She didn't really know much about it, but she grew up loving horses (not necessarily horse sport) even though the rest of us were football, rugby, and athletics mad. She was a brave girl in a house full of non-equine-based sports fans.

When it finally came time for L to start having riding lessons, I was determined that she would be safe. Although I know you can rent riding hats from most stables, we wanted L to have properly fitted kit which was her own and would make her feel safe. By going to Dogwood London I was able to ensure her riding hat and riding boots were fitted correctly and of the highest quality. I was a happy mummy as L went for her first riding lesson in her brand new boots and hat.

It was apparent very quickly that she would progress at a fast pace and that she loved riding. Then out of the blue a colleague asked me what sort of body protector she was wearing. I hadn't really thought about it as she was only a beginner and they are expensive pieces of kit, but, having written about horse riding accidents on many occasions, and having listened to a number of horsey people say they felt all novice riders should wear one, I was sold on the idea pretty quickly. Yet, looking around at the riders having lessons, it was about a forty-sixty split on young riders with body protectors and those without. The last thing I wanted was for L to feel self-conscious, as if she was being forced to ride with stabilisers on her bike when all the other kids are firmly on two wheels, but as she was starting to canter in her lessons I felt sure a fall could be imminent.

So, we got one properly fitted at Dogwood, and L wore it to her next lesson. She seemed happy to wear it. It was a good lesson, but as she was asked to complete a particular movement her horse decided he was not going to comply and L had her first fall (only a little one – the horse stopped, but she carried on going) and I was mightily relieved that we had invested in the extra piece of safety equipment as she landed flat on her back, but was left with no serious damage or pain etc.
Okay, I'm not an expert and I know there are many people who don't wear body protectors because they feel they are ineffectual in a serious accident, but L said she felt more confident in hers and it made a difference to her posture as well. She has never been riding without it and, for me, this is a good thing.

So, we are body protector converts…but you still won't get me on a horse!

Canter leads lead the way

It's finally June, the wind is no longer howling and the indoor school is almost a pleasure to be in.

There were six horses and riders in L's last lesson – L was on Sultan, who looked a wee bit sleepy.

The instructor announced that the riders were going to practise their canter leads – I had no idea what that meant, but I was soon going to find out.

Apparently, being on the correct canter lead means making sure the horse is striding out on its appropriate leading leg when going into canter. The entire ride got their first canters all on the correct canter lead. Hurrah!

But they were just riding large so it was fairly easy – when a rider needs to make the horse change direction, such as going over a jump on a show jumping course, this can become problematic.
At the next exercise, the riders had to canter their ponies over a diagonal pole in the middle of the school, turn into the corner going into trot, then come off the corner on the correct canter lead.
L had trouble waking Sultan up on her first run, but having got him going, she carried out the exercise the best of the bunch, despite, so the instructor said, the need to give her horse "baggy reins".
Next the riders had to go over a series of poles set in the middle of the school. I was completely confused by it all, but the riders all checked their horse tack and seemed to know where they were going. Initially there was some confusion about the series, but the two lead-out riders eventually got their bearings and off they went, changing their canter leads as they went into the corners.
It looked like fun and was great to watch. The riders seemed exhilarated too.

By the time L took her turn, Sultan had more or less given up, having stood for a while on this warm afternoon. It took several sharp taps of her whip to get him going, and he didn't like it, so L got a sharp buck for her trouble. She very nearly lost all contact with her saddle and almost ended up flying right off. Yet she held on for dear life, got her riding boots back into place and kept cool under her riding hat. When she eventually got Sultan going she managed the exercise very well – a couple of wrong canter leads, but she got him back on the right lead with great efficiency.

At the end of the lesson everyone was exhausted, including the frazzled non-horsey mummy on the sideline, but there were lots of hugs and big pats for all the ponies and a very happy drive home for L and me.
Photo © J Venn

Dark December riding lesson

A few blogs ago I mentioned L's much-longed-for first riding lesson, she was 13 and it was a dream come true for her that she was being given the opportunity to learn to ride.

I had booked the last lesson of the day at the riding school, so I could take her after work on a Tuesday. It was a dark December evening and L was over the moon with excitement and nervousness.
We had already bought a riding hat and jodhpur boots, and L got into our car clutching the hat excitedly on her knees. The riding school is 25 minutes away, but because I hadn't driven the route for a long time, and I wasn't sure what admin we would need to complete upon arrival at the school, I decided to leave 45 minutes ahead of the booking time.

We were all smiles at the outset of our journey and we dashed through our little town and out onto the country roads towards the riding school. There's really only one major road in and out of A_____ and it's a nice, fast dual carriageway, but, oh dear, as we joined it the cars were completely backed up over a mile and a half outside A_____.
"Not to worry," I told L, "It's probably just a bit of rush hour traffic and we've given ourselves plenty of time."

We continued to chat eagerly about horses and how great it was that L was really, truly going to have riding lessons, but I could see the time ticking away and the traffic was just not moving.
We sat…and sat…and sat.

About 20 minutes before the lesson was about to start I rang the school and the cheery instructor told us not to worry and that it would be okay if we were a few minutes late.
Five minutes after the booking time, and still a long, long way away I rang again. The instructor was sorry, but the school would need to close soon. My heart fell and I could see from L's forlorn face that she was heartbroken. She was still clutching her riding hat on her knees and I've never seen anything sadder.

At the earliest opportunity, and an hour and a half after setting off, we managed to turn the car round to go home. I was gutted.
It turns out that a sequence of accidents on the roundabouts around A_____ completely snarled the whole area up and we were just caught in an unfortunate traffic jam. The following week, we were at the school 25 minutes early and L's lesson was brilliant.
She hasn't looked back.
Photo © J Venn