From trapped under a sedated horse to riding a winner - the story of a wild hour and a half for James Bowen

James Bowen explained how he feared being kicked in the head after being trapped under a horse before being dragged out and then remarkably partnering a winner on his next ride. 

The jockey said the thought of not taking his next ride never crossed his mind despite being stuck under Saunton Surf after she fell at the final flight in division two of the 2m4f handicap hurdle at Ffos Las on Saturday.

Racing was delayed for half an hour when the former champion conditional rider became wedged under the Warren Greatrex-trained six-year-old after she fell and rolled on top of him.

The 23-year-old said: “She was getting very tired going to the last and perhaps, in hindsight, I should’ve let her get in tight and pop over, but I thought I had a chance and all jockeys have that competitive edge in them, don’t they? 

“My foot got caught in the iron as she went down so I couldn’t roll off as she fell. She then rolled on top of my legs so I was stuck on my stomach underneath her. 

“Ben Jones [fellow jockey] came over to give me a hand. He managed to get my foot out of the iron as we were worried that she might start to struggle and I’d still be caught up. However, she was very tired and that kept her down.”

'They spent quite a bit of time deciding whether they’d roll her over, or if they’d lift her up and drag me out'

Due to Bowen’s position under Saunton Surf those attending the fall elected to sedate the mare and then figure out how to remove the rider – a decision Bowen said took some time to make as he lay under the half-ton animal.

“It was a no-brainer to sedate her as my head was right in the firing line of her hooves, and if she had struggled my head would’ve been a football getting a right kicking,” said Bowen. “I was just stuck there in the middle and they spent quite a bit of time deciding whether they’d roll her over, or if they’d lift her up and drag me out. 

James Bowen: “It didn’t cross my mind that I wouldn’t ride in the next race"Credit: Edward Whitaker

“There were so many people trying to figure out what to do, and it did feel like it took a while to make a decision. 

“In the end they decided to lift her hind end and drag me out, which they knew they could do as the horse was okay; that was the most important thing. I could tell she was okay as we were lying there, and that helped.”

Bowen, who has ridden 59 winners this season, said his experiences as a jump jockey meant that he had learned to deal with adversity and triumph, with his subsequent winning ride on the Greatrex-trained Keep Running just under an hour and a half later neatly summing it up.

He said: “It didn’t cross my mind that I wouldn’t ride in the next race. I had some pins and needles in my legs, which I guess isn’t a surprise as I had a 500 kilo horse on top of me, but once I was up and away I was fine. 

“There are a lot of ups and downs in racing, so you take that approach to everything you do.”

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