‘I was going to do cartwheels’ – joy as ex-nail stylist takes down Gordon Elliott | Horse racing news

By James Stevens and James Burn
UPDATED AT 7:34 PM, OCTOBER 21, 2022

“Have you ever seen someone so excited?” she says. “I was going to do cartwheels entering the winner’s enclosure but I was being interviewed – there’s plenty of time for that.

“Can you imagine what that means for a little coach like me?

Straw Fan Jack received a 33-1 citation for Sporting Life Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival in March and Lewis, who ran a beauty salon until recently, doesn’t think that’s fanciful.

It experienced a revolutionary post-Covid campaign during the 2020-21 season and is now giving full attention to the training profession.

“I was in the salon painting nails a year ago but quit to practice full time,” she added. “It’s a big dream come true. It was an easy decision because it’s my passion, but you have to have the horses. The show closed again in 2021 due to Covid and I had had these 12 winners, which leads to more horses and more owners, but we’re still small.”

‘Do I think that’s an Arkle horse? It could be a dream’

Of her winner, who came back to 5-2, she said: “He made us proud. He ran over big handicap obstacles last season when he probably should have raced, but raced over these big handicaps. areas taught him to be a racehorse and to wake up.

“I don’t know what we’ll do next, but he wants better ground. Do I think he’s an Arkle horse? It could be a dream – it had probably crossed my mind but I’m too modest to jinx anything. It’s a dream and it would be amazing to have a horse that can race in the Arkle.”