It has been a somewhat different Christmas for Daryl Jacob, who announced his retirement in a blaze of glory at Limerick a year ago.
A permanent fixture of the weighing room for over 20 years, victory on Impaire Et Passe in the Faugheen Novice Chase brought the curtain down on a career that was encapsulated by those great days aboard high-class grey Bristol De Mai and his Grand National hero Neptune Collonges.
However, the 42-year-old is embracing a new way of life, immersing himself into a new normal that has even allowed for extra trimmings on this year’s Christmas dinner.
Jacob said: “This is the first Christmas I have had proper down time and not had to get into a bath or jump on the treadmill on Christmas Day in the evening times. It was a lot more relaxing and it’s crazy that this means it’s been a year since I retired.
“I put my heart and soul into riding horses for 24 years and put an awful lot of pressure on myself to perform every day of the week.
“It’s a different kind of pressure now with my new roles, it’s a lot more relaxed and I’m loving doing what I’m doing.”
Jacob has switched breeches and boots for a sharp suit and a microphone, but the same enthusiasm and desire that saw him make the most of his talent in the saddle now sees him fulfilling a long-held promise to his mentor Robert Alner to relish every new opportunity that has come his way.
“Robert was my boss and my father figure ever since I came over to England and he was always on the phone for a chat,” explained Jacob.
“Before the boss passed away, he said to me to promise whenever I stopped riding, to enjoy the next chapter of my life, whatever it was, and that’s what I’m doing.
“Riding racehorses was a brilliant chapter, but now I’ve turned over the page and I’m trying to write a new book and create a new story.
“I’ve been very busy over the past year doing various things and I’m very grateful and quite surprised how many great opportunities have come my way
“It’s been great mixing in with the press guys, finding new friends and trying not to annoy too many people – I have absolutely loved it.”
Alongside his TV work, Jacob remains a central figure within the Simon Munir and Isaac Souede team.
First rider duties may now have passed on to J J Slevin but the two-tone green silks are ingrained in Jacob’s DNA, with his evolved role giving the racing itch just enough of a scratch to avoid any real pining for the great days of old.
“This is my 12th year being involved with Simon and Isaac and their horses are like family to me, I know them all,” said Jacob. “I want to see them succeed, especially with J J now riding them as I get on great with him.
“I can go represent them at the races, I can ride work on their horses and see how they are and it’s very busy still with Simon and Isaac, but it’s great as I’m seeing a different side to it.
“It’s nice to ride work but then not have the pressure of going out there and performing and winning on those horses every day. It’s fantastic to still be involved.”
Jacob’s road to retirement proved an agonising tale of injury heartbreak and a defiance of medical advice in search of one last celebratory moment in a decorated career.
“I was on course for 1,000 winners and would have had Intense Raffles in the Irish National but broke my shoulder just after Cheltenham at Newbury, so had to come back as I wanted to get to 1,000,” explained Jacob.
“I reached the 1,000 around five weeks before Christmas and then the very next day broke my shoulder again quite badly.
“I went to see the specialist and they said it would take three months to heal, but the last thing I said to the surgeon before they put me out was ‘make sure this is bullet proof, I have to be back in five weeks’.
“I think the blood, sweat and tears I put into getting back in that five weeks after a major operation really took its toll on me, but I think the real turning point was when I rode a horse at Leopardstown and he struck into himself and I really didn’t enjoy that.”
That turning point was the fatal injury to It’s For Me which occurred on December 27 and 24 hours later, having crossed the line first for one final time aboard Impaire Et Passe, Jacob knew the time had come to hang up his boots.
“It’s For Me had to be put to sleep and it was a horrible experience for me as I had been so close to these horses. I rode in three Grade Ones after that and didn’t really enjoy it,” said Jacob, who returned to Leopardstown for a final ride the following day.
“I remember having a conversation with my dad at Leopardstown and saying if that horse wins tomorrow at Limerick, I’ll see when I cross the line how I’m feeling, but it might be time to call it a day.
“I didn’t speak to anyone else, didn’t even speak to my wife. I went to bed and didn’t really sleep at all, then I got up and went racing the next day. Impaire Et Passe won and the minute I crossed the line, I knew that was the time to call it a day.
“I enjoyed that moment, it was brilliant as I knew the decision was made and I knew that was it. To bow out on a Grade One winner was something I always wanted to do and it was a perfect ending.”