J D falls for not one, but two challenges
J D Moore has succumbed to the lure of riding in the Ledbury Hunt’s seventh Complete Utilities Golden Button Challenge, reasoning: “It’s been on my bucket list, and I wanted it gone.”
A former amateur rider, national novice point-to-point champion and now a bloodstock agent, John Daniel – but known to all as J D – has a surname that will be known to fans of Jump racing. His grandfather, Dan, trained L’Escargot to win two Cheltenham Gold Cups and then thwart the mighty Red Rum’s bid for a third consecutive Grand National – although ‘Rummy’ did bring up the treble two years later.
J D prefers buying and selling horses to training them, but he is a brilliant horseman across country – and fearless, a man prepared to ride any horse any time. When asked for the name of his wheels for Saturday’s Complete Utilities Golden Button Challenge he said: “I’ve got to find a horse – I’m trying to rob a point-to-pointer from somewhere.”
He adds: “I’ve hunted a couple of times with the Ledbury and jumped a few of their hedges – I’m expecting a big course, and will probably be leaving with a bit of land this time!
“Whatever happens I’m hoping it will be a good warm-up for my next challenge, which is the Mongol Derby. I’ve heard a lot about it and wanted to give it a go, and Richie Killoran [an ex-jockey] told me it was better than Tinder for finding a girlfriend. He took part and ended up marrying one of the other competitors!”