1868 -1934
Amateur rider James McKie Bell was born in 1868 at Hillaton Castle, near Douglas, in Scotland. He rode 120 winners under National Hunt rules between 1891 and 1908 but is best remembered as training seven winners of the Imperial Cup including three in successive years with Trespasser, the greatest hurdler in the first half of the 20th century. He also trained a wartime Grand National winner.
James had his first two rides – and his first winner – at the annual Cumbrian fixture of Burgh-by-Sands on Easter Monday, March 30, 1891. After finishing unplaced on Virginia in the Maiden Hunters’ Chase, he guided 7-4 chance Wild Cat to win the Beaumont Selling Hurdle “in a canter by eight lengths” according to the form book.
He came closest to winning a big race when finishing second, beaten a head, on Mimram in the 1894 Grand International Hurdle at Gatwick. He also finished third in that year’s Valentine Chase over the Grand National fences on Musician, and third again in the 1898 Scottish Grand National on Redhead.
Numerically, his most successful year was in 1899 when he rode 20 winners, placing him joint sixth in the amateur riders’ table. His wins included three National Hunt Flat races on Rochdale, two at Hamilton and one at Birmingham.
He briefly trained at Carlisle before moving south in 1900. He maintained that no man could train more than eight horses and put this into practice by dividing his string between Epsom and premises in Berkshire. From 1900 until 1914 the licenses were held by himself, his brother Stuart, Samuel Archer and James Platt, using Priam Lodge as his Epsom base. From there he sent out Perseus to win the 1908 Imperial Cup, ridden by Stuart.
That same year, James journeyed back north to ride his last winner on Jacob II in the Adamhill Cup Chase at Bogside on April 2, 1908. He rode for the final time when finishing sixth on St Emilion in the National Hunt Selling Flat race at Harpenden on May 14, 1908.
In 1910 he began training at Epsom’s Woodcote Rise Stables. He won the Imperial Cup for a second time in 1914 with Vermouth, whom he later trained to win the 1916 Grand National substitute race, the Racecourse Association Handicap Chase, run over the full 4m 856yds at Gatwick.
James won the Imperial Cup three times running with Trespasser in 1920, 1921 and 1922, followed by Peeping Tom in 1926 and Hercules in 1929, all of them ridden by ace hurdle race jockey George Duller. In those days, before the arrival of the Champion Hurdle, the Imperial Cup was the most important hurdle race of the season.
He was also successful on the Flat, gaining his biggest success with St Eloi, partnered by Brownie Carslake, in the 1919 Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot.
He relocated to Epsom’s Heathcote House Stables in 1930, where he spent the remainder of his training career. He maintained his idiosyncratic methods of training; always keeping a small string that he could manage personally, and having the horses led to the gallops by lads mounted on ponies. At the time of his death on August 29, 1934 he was training only three horses.
