Talented teen Jack Doughty is busy running up the meter on his Mum and Dad’s Taxi, which is on the way to Royal Ascot.
In one week alone, the Volkswagen Transporter has travelled to Brighton, Leicester, Lingfield, Goodwood, Chepstow and Windsor – a cumulative distance of 1,500 miles from home.
But carpenter Craig and housewife Jo are willing to go the distance to help their son up the ladder in a sport he has loved since school.
And this week he is aiming to make his mark at the royal meeting. He rides Annsar in Friday’s Sandringham Stakes and hopes to pick up another few spares.
“Mum and Dad drive me to the races and I pay the bill at the end of the month,” said Jack, 17, from the Midlands staycation town of Stourport-on-Severn and fresh from his 100th career winner on Marioento earlier this month.
“I’m one of six kids so I’m very fortunate they have been able to support me. They are really proud of what I’ve achieved.”
Second in line at the Doughty household, behind 19-year-old Worcester University student Will and senior to siblings George 15, Ted 11, Alice, 8, and Ernie 2, Jack was the heaviest baby of the bunch at 8lb 13oz.
But he is now an 8st 3lb featherweight and unlike many jockeys who struggle with the pounds, can tuck into a takeaway or his favourite steak after a big winner.
“I am grateful to be able to eat what I want,” said Jack, who ordered a Tikka Masala to celebrate his first win on Fieldsman in December 2023.
“When I was 11, I was into pony racing and used to go into Henry Oliver’s stable to see what being a jockey was all about.
“I was very light and never going to ride over jumps, so Hollie Doyle’s dad said I should try Tony Carroll’s yard as he helped Tom Marquand start off.”
Jack described it as the “best earliest Christmas present ever” when he first made his mark on the track, on Fieldsman part-owned by Carroll’s head lad Mark ‘Titch’ Smith.
The race-riding newcomer had officially graduated from galloping his pony Madame Mimi up Carroll’s all-weather strip in Worcestershire – and jockey and trainer have thrived together since by racing towards all-weather titles.
“From my first winner it just kicked off,” said Jack. “The momentum has never really stopped. Mum often says take a step back and remember what you have done.
“At my age I feel very lucky to be doing this job and Tony has been very supportive.”
Jack, whose first career idea was to be a farmer, was home-schooled from year nine, dashing away from the computer to work with Oliver’s horses in the nearby village of Abberley.
But now the figures add up and to the relief of his dad and the trusty van’s mileometer, Jack will reinvest his recent prize money and get behind the wheel.
“I’ve been saving up for driving lessons,” he said, hoping to find some hours in his hectic schedule. “Hopefully it’s easier than school.
“My parents had to almost push me out of the door to go and I was always getting detention. I think that’s why I get on with horses as they can be naughty too.
“My favourite thing is trying to work out their behaviour and get the best out of each one.”