ALEX Dunn enjoyed her first winner as a trainer back in February 2013 when Arryan triumphed at Taunton, since when her career has gone from strength to strength.

At the start of 2014 she enjoyed a unique double, when she trained and rode Helium and Come On Annie to victory at the same meeting at Taunton.

“That double kick-started everything for us and to have a double on your local track is pretty significant,” she said. “It was brilliant and from then on everyone started to take notice.”

The young trainer and her husband Tom moved into their yard, just over the M5 bridge on the outskirts of West Buckland, eight years ago, since when she has transformed the facilities.

“Now we have created a top class training establishment that has been set up in exactly the way I want it and which enables me to provide a bespoke training programme for every horse in the yard.

“We now have a top class gallop, every paddock has been properly fenced and the road you drive in on has been Tarmacked. We have a set up here now that has been designed and custom built for racehorses.”

Since first gaining her license Alex has trained well over 60 National Hunt winners, as well as having 109 horses placed. In addition, she has also enjoyed a number of successes in the flat racing world.

Alex has strong family connections with flat racing – her grandfather used to breed flat horses and her cousin is a flat horse trainer in Newmarket, and since the start of this year Alex has saddled six winners on the all-weather tracks – something she is very much enjoying.

“A lot of my roots are in flat racing and I rode on the flat as well – in fact, I would say I was a better flat jockey than I was over the jumps.”

“We have had a brilliant start to 2019 on the flat and our horses have been running incredibly well all winter, winning their races and going very well.”

Alex added: “We have a lot of owners who are new to racing and we have a lot of syndicates, so it couldn’t be easier to become involved as an owner. Racing isn’t a closed shop and we have given many owners their first winners, both jumps and flat, which is brilliant.

“The owners of Argus had never had a racehorse before and now they have had four winners with that one horse – you couldn’t dream of anything better.”

Asked about the attraction of the flat, Alex said: “On the flat we are able to offer some nice days out in the summer in the sunshine. We have Newton Abbot with the jumps but equally we have Bath and

Chepstow on our doorstep in the summer.

“It’s lovely for people who work full-time to go racing in the evening with friends in the sunshine, and that is the advantage of flat racing over jumps. People really enjoy it!”

Anyone who wants to find out more about ownership should log onto alexdunnracing.com or give Alex Dunn a call on 07738 512924 and go along and visit her.

Racehorse trainer Alex Dunn (inset), who is based at West Buckland, has had success at National Hunt racing and on the flat – Alain Lockyer took these photos on a visit to her yard.

RICHARD WALSH