Remarkable ride: 'This is some riding to go down to a hurdle when your saddle has shifted' On our new show The Jockey Angle, lead analyst Paddy Flood breaks down a remarkable ride from conditional jockey Carl Millar. Carl was riding Chantilly Wings for Cian Collins in the 5.25 at Kilbeggan, a 2m.2f maiden hurdle, when his saddle slipped just before the final flight. Flood applies his own experience in the saddle and explains why this is such an extraordinary display of balance and horsemanship Paddy Flood’s Analysis Carl is giving it everything. He's going all the way to the last and doing everything right. He's pushing and driving, and his horse is responding. Just before the last Carl's saddle begins to shift. When your saddle starts to move, it's a serious problem. You can see Carl's left leg is much lower than his right. What's happened is the saddle has shifted off the horse's withers. If he puts any more pressure on that left-hand side, the saddle is going to roll completely underneath the horse's belly. Watch the Jockey Angle in full This is some piece of riding to go down to a hurdle when your saddle has shifted like that. It probably feels a bit like driving down the road and losing a wheel. What do you do? Most of us would panic, and most of us would panic if the saddle started to slip as well. The one thing about Carl Miller is that he doesn't panic. He gets his horse to the last. You can see that left leg is still hanging so low, yet he's still able to drive his horse forward. He's pushing and pushing, but now he's starting to run out of options. The stirrup comes away and Carl has kicked his left foot out. He had to do that because if he'd kept his weight in that left stirrup, he would have ended up underneath the horse. At 29 or 30 miles an hour, with another horse only half a length away, that's the last place you want to be. His left foot ends up. You can't really see his body because he's basically holding on around the horse's neck. Unfortunately for Carl, he doesn't win. He gets caught right on the line. He does an unbelievable job just to get the horse that close, and even to get over the final hurdle with the saddle shifting like that. That's core strength, that's balance, and that's outstanding horsemanship. I really think he deserves a mention this week. Race replays are FREE to watch from all Irish tracks and a selection of premier British tracks sponsored by William Hill.
