Richard Linley, respected Senior Inspector of Courses, chats to Rolf Johnson as he calls time on his 50-year racing career

One violent night back in 1977, a horsebox arrived from Norway at Fyfield House in Hampshire.
Two horses, one a small chestnut the other a much bigger bay, were hurried out of the storm and into their new homes. One was a novice, the other the Norwegian Champion Hurdler.
Toby Balding’s stable jockey Richard Linley recalls the pair’s first schooling session. “I said, guv’nor this thing that’s supposed to be Norway’s best can’t jump a stick; the other’s a natural.”
The t...