Richard Tate

1947-2022

Dual champion amateur rider Richard Tate was born in Wolverhampton on March 6, 1947, the son of trainer Martin Tate, who was noted for engineering a series of successful betting coups from his Chaddesley Corbett base near Kidderminster.

Richard rode his first winner on Puffkin, trained by his father, in the Caynham Selling Handicap Hurdle at Ludlow on April 25, 1963. He progressed steadily from there, riding four winners in 1963/64, seven in 64/65, eight in 65/66 and seven in 66/67.

Then came his banner season of 1967/68 when he was crowned champion amateur rider with 30 wins. This was a highly notable achievement when considering that racing was shut down for six weeks between late November and early January due to the foot and mouth epidemic. Furthermore, with the West Midlands area being particularly badly affected, meetings scheduled for the likes of Stratford, Ludlow, Worcester, Wolverhampton and Bangor-on-Dee were transferred to other tracks and it was well into March before some of those courses were able to hold meetings again.

Richard retained his title of champion amateur rider in 1968-69, this time with 17 wins.

He rode a total of 75 winners – 74 over jumps plus one on the Flat. That sole success on the level was gained in the Burgh Barony Races Commemoration Cup at Carlisle on June 30, 1965, aboard nine-year-old Morland Jack, owned and trained by Arthur Thomas at Guy’s Cliff, Warwick.

During his seasons in the saddle, Richard’s injuries included a broken collarbone and a dislocated shoulder. Ironically, his riding career was ended in a non-racing incident, when he damaged his neck so badly in a water-skiing accident that he was forced to quit the saddle.

He subsequently turned his attentions to farming.

Richard Tate died on January 19, 2022, aged 74.