We waved goodbye last week to JEPECK who has been retired at the age of fourteen after a stellar career.
He was an absolute pleasure to train, a horse whose constitution was closer to iron than flesh and bone and rarely saw a vet.
Jepeck won ten of his nineteen Point-to-Points, plus three times over hurdles and twice over fences with his finest hour coming with the narrowest of victories in the £100,000 Veterans Chase Final at Sandown in January 2020.
He was badly hampered going to the last fence that day but somehow managed to get back into contention on the flat and snatch the verdict by a short head.
Two years later he rolled back the years at the age of thirteen with a brilliant success over hurdles at Wincanton in January 2022 which landed quite a punt for his enthusiastic owner Jon Pike.
A great sport and a terrific owner, Jon, helped me plot his horse’s programme and place him to advantage in his races.
We both felt that Jepeck was capable of winning again this season once encountering the soft or heavy ground that suited him so well but a combination of a prolonged dry spell and a minor injury put paid to that.
He earned a total of £124,000 in prize money during his career and is sure to enjoy his retirement with Jon’s wife, Michelle, who will treat him as if he is staying in a seven star hotel.
Happy Retirement Jepeck you’ve earned it!!??