Frank Thompson rode seven winners, three on the Flat and four under National Hunt rules.
He was apprenticed to Walter Easterby at Tadcaster and rode his first winner on the three-year-old filly Leoda in the Apprentice Plate at Carlisle on July 3, 1946, scoring by three lengths. They won again next time out, in the Topcliffe Apprentice Plate at Ripon on August 6, 1946, beating Norman Stirk’s mount Pay Packet by a head.
Leoda was a bay filly foaled in 1943 by Fairchance out of Honorary Member. Altogether, Frank rode her in nine races, as follows:
June 22, Pontefract, ninth of 19
July 3, Carlisle, WON (see above)
August 6, Ripon, WON (see above)
August 23, Thirsk, last of eight
September 17, Edinburgh, fourth of seven.
September 20, Ayr, last of three, the other two riders being top jockeys Eph Smith and Edgar Britt.
April 12, Catterick, not in first six of 12.
April 18, Bogside, fifth of nine
June 13, Pontefract, seventh of eight.
Having completed his apprenticeship, he held a professional Flat jockey's licence from 1953-1960, continuing to ride for Walter Easterby. He was essentially a work rider who had the occasional mount in public. He rode one winner during that time, a two-year-old named Little Psalter, trained by Walter Easterby, making all the running to land the Robin Hood Maiden Plate at Nottingham on April 5, 1955. He had less than a dozen rides on the Flat that year, including three more on Little Psalter, as follows:
April 9, Stockton, sixth of eight.
July 23, Doncaster, second in a two-horse race against a very good two-year-old named Vigo.
August 24, York, unplaced in Rous Selling Stakes.
His name appears in the list of jockeys in the ‘Horses in Training’ annuals as follows: 1953 and 1954 (weighing 8st), 1955 to 1959 (weighing 8st 6lb) and 1960 (weighing 8st 7lb).
He also held a National Hunt jockey’s licence between 1952/53 and 1960/61 and rode four winners under NH rules.
His first ride over jumps was at Manchester on New Years’s Day 1953, when Mixed Jury finished fifth of 13 runners in the Knutsford Maiden Hurdle. He had his first NH win when Mr Hern, trained like Leoda by Walter Easterby, landed the Middleton Handicap Chase at Sedgefield on May 14, 1955, the nine-year-old coming with a strong run on the flat beat Pearl-Oyster by three lengths. Frank had ridden the winner three times earlier in the season and managed just one fourth place. Indeed, on their previous start at Doncaster on March 14 Mr Hern had whipped round at the start and lost all chance.
Frank’s next win came on December 5, 1955, when Aviation, also trained by Walter Easterby, won the Hopeful Hurdle at Manchester. The four-year-old had finished second at Wetherby six days earlier with Frank on board, but this time they made most of the running and held off the challenge of Seventh Baron to win by a length and a half.
He had his next victory at Market Rasen on September 22, 1956, when Golden Butterscotch ran on strongly from the final flight to take the Hambleton Juvenile Hurdle.
There was a long gap between that and his final win, which again was at Market Rasen, with Blackpool Stanleys, trained by Ronald Dick and named in honour of the two star Blackpool FC Stanleys, Matthews and Mortenson, led from halfway to take the Risby Selling Hurdle by three lengths on March 7, 1959.
He had one of his last rides on the Flat on Monition at Beverley on August 11, 1960, finishing sixth of seven. His final ride over jumps ended in a fall from Last Legend in the Juvenile Hurdle at Wetherby on Boxing Day 1960.
Frank Thompson’s winers were, in chronological order:
1. Leoda, Carlisle, July 3, 1946
2. Leoda, Ripon, August 6, 1946
3. Little Psalter, Nottingham, April 5, 1955
4. Mr Hern, Sedgefield, May 14, 1955
5. Aviation, Manchester, December 5, 1955
6. Golden Butterscotch, Market Rasen, September 22, 1956
7. Blackpool Stanleys, Market Rasen, March 7, 1959