Chase Maujean

27 year old CHASE MAUJEAN’s recent riding career has been a revelation and his success is a perfect example to youngsters on why never to give up. After battling for many years in KZN, Chase was holidaying with his family in Gauteng when he was offered a ride. He won on that mount as well as on his two subsequent rides. Hardly surprisingly, he was offered a full-time job and the rest as they say is history. He is currently having the best season of his life with 28 winners, a far cry from his previous best. He has struck up a fine partnership with ex-jockey and now accomplished trainer Lucky Houdalakis for whom he won the Ipi Tombi Challenge on Demanding Lady. Chase has enjoyed guidance from the great former jockey Garth Puller and with Anton Marcus as his icon, he will continue his resurgence. We continues to be mesmerized by Chase’s achievements on the Highveld and wish him even much more success in the future.

 

What is your name and age?  Chase Ryan Maujean and I am 27 years old.

What is your star sign and birthdate?  Sagittarius, 17 December 1985.

Where were you born and where did you grow up?  I was born in Durban and grew up on the Bluff in Durban South Africa.

Where do you live?  I live in Vereeniging, Gauteng, South Africa.

Tell us about your family?  I am married to Kerry and we have a daughter Jénelle.

Do you have a ‘nickname’?  No I am known as Chase.

Favourite food?  Beef curry with rice or a bunnychow.

Favourite drink?  I drink fruit juice and coke.

Favourite music?  I like most music but would have to say rock would be my favourite.

Favourite book?  I don’t really read. The bible is the only book I read.

What are you reading at the moment?  The latest computaform.

What is the characteristic you like most about yourself?  I like my honesty and hardworking attitude.

What is the characteristic you like least about yourself?  I am very shy when I meet people for the first time.

Favourite sport?  It’s a tie between rugby and soccer.

Are you interested in soccer and, if so, which is your favourite soccer team?  Very interested and I support Manchester United.

Favourite holiday destination?  I have never been on a proper holiday but when I do go I would like to go somewhere tropical like the Bahamas or Hawaii.

What tertiary qualification did you achieve?  I have a matric and qualifying certificate from the academy.

Where did you go to school?  I went to Grosvenor Boys High School and then to the academy when I was 15.

Was any of your family involved, or interested, in horse racing?  My dad always had an interest in becoming a jockey but unfortunately he never got the opportunity.

When did you first start taking an interest in horses and more especially horse racing?  I never really had an interest in horses until I went to the academy and then fell in love with them.

As a youngster did you have the opportunity to be involved with horses?  No.

Did any family members have any association with owners, trainers or jockeys?  No they did not. I was the first in my family to get into racing.

When did you decide you would like to be a jockey?  I only decided to be a jockey when I first sat on a horse at the academy.

Who was responsible for getting you into the jockey academy?  My high school teacher, Mr. Puren and my parents who took me for the interviews.

When did you start at the academy?  I started in January 2001.

Who were your fellow apprentices when you joined?  Randall Simons, Sean Veale, Lance Pagel, Chris Puller and S’manga Khumalo to name a few.

How different did you find life at the academy?  Very different. To start off with it is very difficult. At 15, being away from your family and making new friends. The new routine took time to get into.

What did you find the most difficult for you to fit into?  Adjusting to not having my family around me and learning to look after myself.

Did you find it easy to accept the very disciplined life at the academy?  At first it was hard but you quickly get used to it.

Who were your riding masters at the academy?  Mr. Vincent Curtis and Paul Gadsby and the principal was Mr. Keely.

How long were you at the academy before you rode in your first race?  I had my first ride in March 2002 after signing my papers.

Tell us about that experience?  I had a long list of instructions for my first ride, but I forgot everything as the pens opened. The race was over before I knew it.

What horse did you ride and who was the trainer?  I can’t remember the horse’s name but the trainer was Ron Phillips.

Tell us about your first winner?  My first winner was an outsider called Popular Soul at 66/1 that I picked up on the day. I came from off the pace and did not use the stick. It was for trainer Clodagh Shaw.

Were there any trainers who mentored and took a big interest in you at that time?  I was assigned to Colin Lee who is a very wise man.

Which of the senior jockeys did you attempt to emulate?  I did not try to emulate anyone. I tried to find my own riding style but I look up to Anton Marcus.

How many winners did you ride as an apprentice?  I rode 40 winners.

What were your immediate ambitions on coming out of your time as an apprentice?  To try and get as many rides as possible and have as many winners as possible. I was battling at the time.

Who was the first trainer you worked for on a regular basis?  I rode for Ivan Moore for 1 year, and then moved to Garth Puller until I moved to Jo’burg.

Tell us how long you were with him and how valuable that experience was?  Riding for Garth was very tough as he was a great rider and was always strict on me but guided me and taught me a lot of things, many of which I still use in my riding. He saw potential in me and got me to see it. I am forever grateful to him for this.

Which were the best horses you worked with early in your career?  Key Of Destiny, Dancer’s Daughter, Pocket Power, Ebony Flyer and River Jetez as I helped Mr. Bass for one season.

Which is the best horse you have won on?  Personally, my best is Demanding Lady.

Which KZN trainers have you been most successful with?  Garth Puller.

Have you ever been the stable jockey to any trainer?  I work for Louis Goosen.

In recent times you have been riding with success in Gauteng, mainly for Lucky Houdalakis, but also for a variety of trainers. How did it come about that you decided to make this move?  I came on holiday with my wife and daughter to visit my in-laws and by chance picked up a ride for Paul Peter which won. I then picked up two rides for Louis Goosen and won on both. Mr Goosen approached me with a job offer. I saw an opportunity and accepted the job. I have never looked back.

When do you ride work?  I ride work on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays but if asked will ride on other days. I ride work for Lucky Houdalakis, Louis Goosen, Craig Mayhew and anyone else who needs my help.

Do you have an agent to help you get the best rides possible?  No, I do not have an agent at present. I do my own rides.

Which of the horses you ride would you really like to be involved with during the KZN season?  Demanding Lady.

How many Gr 1 winners have you ridden?  None to date, but hopefully lots soon.

How many feature races have you won and which feature races have you won?  I have won 2 feature races. I won the Yellowwood Handicap on Enchanted Kingdom and the Ipi Tombe Challenge on Demanding Lady.

How have you done this season?  I have ridden 28 winners, 21 seconds and 29 thirds this current season.

How have your views on being a jockey changed as you settle into your career?  Yes. Very much. When I was riding in Durban I felt as though I was a bad rider and I was doing something wrong and actually felt like giving up. I have since realized that you are only as good as what you sit on and that confidence is a big thing. I would like to thank Lucky Houdalakis for playing a big role in that.

Is being a jockey as exciting to you now as it was when you first started or, has it settled into an everyday type of job?  Yes, it is even more exciting now. It will never be an everyday normal job.

What is your riding mass?  I can ride at a mass of 52kgs.

Describe a day in the life of Chase Maujean?  On the days I am not riding work or racing, my day starts off by taking my daughter to school. I then go to the gym. I go home, catch up on racing and check up on rides and future rides. Relax a bit. Some days I play golf then collect my daughter from school and take her to her riding. I then go home, have dinner, bath, then bed. Get ready for the next day because I am very family orientated.

If you got an offer to ride overseas would you take it?  I would have to weigh up the pros and cons before I could make a decision, but most likely yes.

Do you think the attitude of apprentices has changed since you were an apprentice?  Yes, I do think their attitudes have changed.

Do you do anything, apart from work and race riding, to keep you super fit?  Yes, I go to the gym and sometimes play golf.

When you have free time how do you like to spend it?  I try to relax and spend time with my family.

How interested in the breeding side of racing are you?  I look at the breeding of my rides, but I have not really followed breeding as a whole.

What advice would you give to any young man who asked you about becoming a jockey?  My advice would be to ride out the hard times, keep your head down and work hard. Always be humble as you are never bigger than the game.

What other members of your family are really keen on racing?  My father-in-law is an ex jockey, was a trainer and is now an assistant trainer for Louis Goosen. My father watches racing all the time.

What does the future hold for you in the racing game?  Hopefully a very great future. I hope to one day be champion jockey.

From what you have seen and experienced do you think racing is ‘straight’?  Yes I do, I always go out to win and, as far as I know racing is straight and everyone is trying to win.

The saying is “Behind every successful man is an equally successful woman”. Does this apply to Chase Maujean?  Yes very much so, my wife stands behind me 100% in everything I do.