Nina Carberry became the first woman to complete the John Smith’s Grand National on more than one occasion, when finishing seventh in the 2010 renewal of the race, aboard the John Quinn-trained Character Building. 206y6h
Carberry, who finished ninth on Forest Gunner in 2006, said of Character Building: “He was great and gave me an absolutely brilliant ride. They were going a stride too quickly for him early on, so I just tried to get him travelling and keep in touch. I had a real hope of being in the first three after the Canal Turn because he really took off, but he started to feel the pinch jumping the last.
“At that point I still hoped to finish fifth, but we got caught by a couple of horses on the run-in. Despite that he ran a great race, and if the ground had been a bit softer the leaders might have come back to him.
“He really couldn’t lie up early on – the plan was to give him a chance of getting into a rhythm over the first half dozen fences, and he didn’t get going until after Becher’s first time. On softer ground he could do really well next year.
“It felt like a normal race and all the jockeys were great. They’re all looking out for each other. I’ve got round twice from two attempts now, and I just want to get that bit closer.”