Colin Brown (born 16 August 1955) is a former

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

in the UK, best known for his association with the famous steeplechaser

Desert Orchid Desert Orchid (11 April 1979 – 13 November 2006), known as ''Dessie'', was an English racehorse. The grey achieved a revered and esteemed status within National Hunt racing, where he was much loved by supporters for his front-running atta ...

. He rode Desert Orchid in more than half his races, a total of 42 starts, winning 17 times. Many of Brown's successes were achieved through his association with Desert Orchid's trainer,

David Elsworth David Raymond Cecil Elsworth (born 1939) is a retired horse trainer living in the United Kingdom. He was the trainer of Desert Orchid, 1988 Grand National winner Rhyme 'n' Reason, and 1990 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Barnbrook Again; thre ...

. During his 16-year career, he rode more than 400 winners, among them Barnbrook Again in the 1987 Irish Sweeps Hurdle (now known as the Boylesports.com Hurdle),

Burrough Hill Lad Burrough Hill Lad (1976–2004) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. Named after Leicestershire village Burrough-On-The-Hill, he competed in National Hunt races and won seventeen times from twenty-seven runs in steeplechases. His performan ...

, Combs Ditch and Floyd, winner of the 1985

Imperial Cup The Imperial Cup is a Premier Handicap National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of about 2 miles (1 ...

, 1987

Fighting Fifth Hurdle The Fighting Fifth Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Newcastle over a distance of about 2 miles and half a ...

and 1988

Kingwell Hurdle The Kingwell Hurdle is a Grade 2 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Wincanton over a distance of about 2 miles (1 mile, 7 furlong ...

. He rode the 1989 Grand National winner

Little Polveir Little Polveir (1977–1999) was a race horse. He won the 1989 Grand National steeplechase ridden by Jimmy Frost, beating West Tip by seven lengths. The horse had previously finished ninth in 1986 and did not finish in 1987 and 1988 (where he ...

when completing the course in the

1986 Grand National The 1986 Grand National (officially known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 140th running of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 5 April 1986. The race wa ...

and when falling in the

1987 Grand National The 1987 Grand National (officially known as the Seagram Grand National for sponsorship reasons) was the 141st running of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 4 April 1987. The race w ...

. He also partnered the 1988 Grand National winner, Rhyme 'n' Reason, to victory in the Mildmay Cazalet Memorial Chase at

Sandown Park Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse rac ...

three months before his win at

Aintree Racecourse Aintree Racecourse is a horse racing, racecourse in Aintree, Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, bordering the city of Liverpool. The racecourse is the venue for the Grand National steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase, whi ...

. Brown retired as a jockey after riding at the

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Rac ...

on 17 March 1988.

References

English jockeys Living people 1955 births {{England-horseracing-bio-stub