YOUTHFUL APPRENTICE JOCKEY Chris Husbands is already looking ahead to riding in Canada.

Husbands, who returned home on Wednesday after winning the Trinidad and Tobago Royal Oak Derby at Santa Rosa Park in Trinidad, disclosed in an interview that his ultimate aim was to ride in Canada.

"I am looking forward to riding in Canada, so hopefully I should be able to go over from next year," he said.

But more immediately, he said he should be returning to Trinidad to ride on October 7, 14 and 28.

"However, I would also like to ride at Caymanas Park in Jamaica, so I am also examining that possibility," the red-hot champion apprentice added.

He explained that trainer Andrew Nunes, for whom he is expected to ride a couple of horses when he returns to Trinidad, has a brother who is also a trainer in Jamaica and he had invited him to ride there.

"I am excited at the prospect of also riding in Jamaica, but I have to see how we can get it worked out, bearing in mind my commitments both in Barbados and Trinidad next month," Husbands noted.

Big impression

Barbadian jockeys have created a big impression at a number of race tracks in Canada, none more so than Patrick Husbands, three-time champion jockey at Woodbine where he also won the prestigious Sovereign Award four times.

Quincy Welch has been champion jockey at Stampede for a few years now, and he, along with colleagues Rickey Walcott and to a lesser extent Desmond Bryan, have been dominating at Stampede and Northlands race tracks for some time.

Other Barbadian jockeys doing well on the Canadian circuit are Jono Jones, Slade Callaghan, and Simon Husbands at Woodbine; Chris Griffith at Fort Erie; Andy Ward, Paul Leacock, Keveh Nicholls, and Renaldo Cumberbatch at Assiniboia Downs.