Bryan Cooper © Photo Healy Racing
Bryan Cooper fully appreciates the privileged position in which he finds himself heading to the Cheltenham Festival.
Three years on from hitting the headlines with a Prestbury Park hat-trick as a teenage riding sensation, the softly-spoken Kerryman is now firmly established among the sport's elite jockeys, despite being at the tender age of just 23.
As retained rider for Ryanair supremo Michael O'Leary's formidable Gigginstown House Stud operation, Cooper will be the envy of most of his weighing room colleagues as he makes the journey for a book of rides most jockeys could only dream of.
" I'm in very lucky position. Hopefully they all get there in one piece. I'm looking forward to it," he said.
Being in such an excellent job is not without its challenges, however, and one decision which has Cooper in a quandary is what to ride in the Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup. His employers could have as many as four runners in the blue riband, but it would look a straight choice between the 'two Dons'- Don Cossack and Don Poli
Gordon Elliott's pride and joy Don Cossack is the ante-post favourite and is widely regarded as the 'sexier' option, but he is winless in two previous visits to the Cotswolds.
The Willie Mullins-trained Don Poli, on the other hand, is two from two at the track and looked a tailor-made Gold Cup contender when galloping remorselessly clear in the RSA Chase 12 months ago, but does he possess the requisite speed and class for steeplechasing's greatest prize?
These are the questions Cooper will need to answer and he plans to leave the decision as late as possible to give him the best possible chance of getting the right call.
He said: " It's not easy as if you get it wrong you'll be kicking yourself for six months afterwards, but at the end of the day you can only ride one horse. I won't decide until 10.30am on the Wednesday morning. If the BHA decide to get rid of the 48-hour declarations that would be a big help!"
Ruby Walsh faced a similar dilemma in 2008 when forced to choose between stable companions Kauto Star and Denman and ultimately called it wrong as Denman stole the show under Sam Thomas. Walsh must also decide between two potential mounts, with last year's runner-up Djakadam and the brilliant Vautour both going for gold.
"I wasn't even riding when Ruby had the choice between Kauto Star and Denman. I remember sitting down and watching it and thinking it was a great position to be in, and now here I am five or six years later and I'm in that position, so I'm very lucky," said Cooper.
"The way I look at it is it would be a lot worse if I was sitting in the canteen and someone else was riding and I was only watching. They're not making as much heat about it, but Ruby is in a very similar position to me and I know if he gets it wrong he'll be kicking himself for a long time after. You can only ever ride one and I'm lucky to be in that position."
