Stories from the Saddle: Felix Foster
- pporacommittee
- Mar 6
- 7 min read
19-year-old Felix Foster rode his first winner of the season when Gustavo Goodway took the Mens Open at Charm Park last weekend.
Though from a family steeped in pointing and racing – Mother Jo was a leading rider between the flags in the Yorkshire Area and now trains under rules – Felix didn’t actually learn to ride until he was 17, and his speedy conversion to pointing success won him the PPA Champagne Moment of the Year award last season. Jake Exelby spoke to him during the week after his latest victory to find out the reasons behind his late start in the saddle, and why he decided to become a jockey.
What do you do alongside riding and training?
I’m at Newcastle University, studying English Literature, which was my best subject at school – my favourite author is Oscar Wilde. I go home on Wednesdays and at weekends to do the horses and ride out for Mark Walford, Micky Hammond, John Dawson and Rebecca Menzies among others – anywhere I can.
Why did you only learn to ride aged 17?
I went hunting as a child on a Shetland pony – I didn’t ride but was just led around – and hated it. I kept falling off and remember being freezing cold one Boxing Day and thinking I’d rather watch football, so I stopped.
I played football – I support Leeds – and cricket, the latter to quite a good level, and was at the local grammar school. Mum then sent me to board at Sedbergh because I kept failing tests! The school’s produced quite a few jockeys, the likes of Harry Reed, Elizabeth Gale and Tash Cookson. When I was in the sixth form, I wanted to be a sports journalist and I was at the Cheltenham November meeting with Marcus Armytage when, on the drive back home, Mum said I should start riding out.
How did your riding career progress from there? How long after you started did you have your first race rides?
I started by learning how to walk, then trot. There’s a video of my first canter – I got pissed off with! The horses used to run away with me – that’s how I learnt… and how they got fit!
I was very driven and wanted to do it – I’m not great at sitting still – and thought it would be cool to be a jockey, so Mum told me I needed to ride out elsewhere. First, I went to Sam England’s down the road – she taught me to muck out as I’d never done it at home! – then to Phil Rothwell’s in Ireland. He’s a good family friend and it was a complete change of culture, like learning from scratch again.
I then started working for Micky Hammond – Mum’s good friends with (fellow rider and Hammond’s assistant) Becky Smith, and Becky’s been so good to me, teaching me so much, and giving me a fair few bollockings! On my first day at Micky’s, I’d only ever been over showjumping fences, and I was schooling over steeplechase fences with Brian Hughes!
After that, I wanted to race-ride as soon as I could and rode in a charity race on a horse of Sam England’s. I think we finished fifth, but I missed the start and we might have won if it wasn’t for that.
I had my first ride in a point-to-point in December 2024, less than a year after I started learning.
Talk me through your first season, including your first win on Titanium Bullet.
My first ride was on Conquredalofeurope at Hexham. We finished third and were then second at Sheriff Hutton.
Then came Titanium Bullet, an absolute dude, who Mum trained under rules, and on whom I later had my first spin in a Hunter Chase at Cartmel. We won the Maiden at Askham Bryan – it was my first winner on only my fourth ride over fences. Now that I’ve won there, I want to have a winner at every track along the A64 – only York to go now!
You won the PPA Champagne Moment Award last year. How did you get nominated for that?
I didn’t know anything about it until I checked my Instagram and saw I was tagged in a post, so I don’t know who put me up to it.
When you were shortlisted for the final three, what were your expectations up against the likes of Gina Andrews and Josh Newman?
I didn’t think I’d win against them and was supposed to be in Ireland that weekend, but I spoke to Tiggy from the PPA and she said I should attend but wouldn’t tell me if I’d won. I was scrabbling about to see who wanted to come and went with another friend who has shares in our horses, Max Overend. I wouldn’t let Mum come!
How did you feel when you found out you’d won?
When my name was called, I was quite embarrassed. We had to do a video – Gina’s and Josh’s were good but mine was pathetic, as it just showed me getting run away with jumping fences. But it was great to get my name up in lights.
Tell me about Gustavo Goodway. What are your plans for the season with him and your other horses?
Mum bought Gustavo Goodway from Phil Rothwell after we’d been to the Punchestown Festival with my friend Oliver Fidler, who has shares in Titanium Bullet and Conquredalofeurope, with his Mum Jo, who’s my sponsor. He’s a nice horse but went sour under rules. His owner Liz Verity has been with Mum a long time, is into her hunting and pointing, so we took the horse hunting to sweeten him up. He enjoyed it so much that he was still pulling my arms out after three hours!
On Sunday, Mum told me to just hunt him round. It wasn’t a great race, but I got him jumping – he’s an efficient jumper – slowly crept up and was left in front when the favourite came down. He doesn’t do much in front but did enough.
I haven’t got any particular ambitions this season, although I’ve just got my Category B licence and had my first ride against professionals this week. Titanium Bullet could go for a Novice Hunter Chase on quick ground.
I’ve also had a few outside rides, including for Will Milburn, which is nice. Will’s head lad at Mark Walford’s and he gave me the ride on the mare Millena Agent when Paddy Barlow, her usual jockey, was riding elsewhere.
You ran – and rode – three on Sunday. What pressure does that put on you?
I did the same last year at Witton Castle, when I was going for the Yorkshire Area novice title, which I won. It’s not too hard – Mum sorts everything out and leads them up, and I just handle the saddle! Also, I’d ridden them all before, even though I’d unseated at the second from Nephin Beg the previous week. It was really embarrassing – Marcus Armytage was writing about the thrill of his daughter Molly winning her first race, while Mum’s Yorkshire Post article was all about how I got my bollocks stepped on!
Nephin Beg finished fifth on Sunday, and Titanium Bullet did too – he needed the run, his first of the season. He’s my favourite ride – he wings the fences and gives you his all.
Your Mum was a successful point-to-point jockey herself with 60 winners and kept riding after you were born. Do you remember anything of her riding career?
She rode in the Aintree Foxhunters (completing the course on Ikdam Melody) when she was pregnant with me! I don’t remember her riding, just being dragged to point-to-points when I was young. Now, people remind me of things I used to do, like locking myself in the car and eating the entire picnic! I just found it boring.
One thing I do remember, when I must have been about 12, was my Grandpa saying, ‘Mum’s had an accident’. She’d broken her pelvis and was in a wheelchair for about a year.
Which other jockeys do you admire?
John Dawson – he’s just a horseman. You can be a good jockey, but it’s harder to be a horseman. Under rules, Brian Hughes and Davy Russell are my idols.
Which horse (not one of your own mounts) would you most like to ride?
Surprise Attack (trained by John’s wife Alice). Some family friends own him, I’ve ridden him at John’s, and I think I’ve finished behind hm about eight times (it’s actually four, Felix).
What's your favourite course?
I like Charm Park and Sheriff Hutton, but probably Hornby Castle. A lot of my schoolfriends go, it’s a great day out and it often runs on the same day as the Grand National.
What do you enjoy most about pointing?
The adrenalin of racing and the will to win, and the crowds – you meet some amazing people. The craic in the weighing room is great, although Will Brown’s the worst – he’s always taking the piss out of me.
What are your ambitions in pointing and racing?
I’d like to turn conditional when I finish university, but I’ve got two more years, so we’ll see how it goes. I remember after I’d ridden at Wolverhampton last season, I was sitting in a philosophy lecture thinking, ‘This is dreadful’, so I flipped a coin and said to myself, ‘Heads I stay, tails I leave’. It came up heads!
What would you do if you were in charge of the sport?
In an ideal world, prize money would be higher and there would be less red tape, and more like pointing in Ireland, but I know you can’t do that.
I think the 0-110 series is a good initiative and that there should be more races for moderate horses that aren’t good enough for Opens or the better conditions races.
Felix Foster is sponsored by Boarding Bites this season.
Comments