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riding a year for Adams’ father — with 10 rides and four falters from the lot — a discouraged Aitcheson, toddled over to trainer Mikey Smithwick’s stable and asked for a job galloping. The rest, as they say, is history.
Immediate Success
“I was fourth leading rider, to [Mike Smithwick’s brother ‘A.P’J Paddy that first year 1 was with them,” Aitcheson said. He continued to win on some freelance mounts for his father, including the 1958 and ‘59 Radnor Hunt Cups with Grand Chal and the 1958 International Gold Cup with the improbably-named Curly Joe, but most first-string rides of Smithwick’s stable went to Paddy, who was leading rider in 1950, ’56, ’57 and ’58.
It wasn’t until 1961 that Aitcheson accumulated enough wins to top the rider’s table. From 155 mounts, Aitcheson booted home 37 winners over fences and two on the flat for a win ratio of .25. That year, he won the Deep Run Hunt Cup, Virginia Gold Cup, the International Gold Cup, the
See Champ, Page 23
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