Some of the greatest names in jumps racing will be out on a course in this part of the world come the end of August.

But the course in question is not the race track at Prestbury Park in Cheltenham… they will in fact be walking the course at Gloucester Golf Club.

That’s because the club’s captain Darren Smith, who is a big racing enthusiast, has organised a charity day in aid of the Injured Jockeys Fund on Friday 24th August.

And some top National Hunt names are certainly taking part including John Francome, Kim Bailey, Carl Llewellyn, Aidan Coleman, Paddy Brennan, Graham Bradley, Michael Scudamore and Sam Thomas to name just a few.

Others including Fergal O’Brien, Sam Twiston-Davies and Jason Maguire will also be there but in a non-golfing capacity.

“My chosen charity as captain of Gloucester Golf Club is the Injured Jockeys Fund and the aim is to raise £10,000 during my year in charge,” said Smith, who took over on 1st April after serving as George Chapman’s vice-captain for 12 months. “We raised £2,500 in the first two months.”

Smith, who first joined Gloucester Golf Club in the late 90s and has a handicap of 10, has played with some of the racing legends before, including Francome and AP McCoy.

So is Francome, now 65, a better golfer than him?

“No way,” Smith laughed. “He’s a good golfer but put it this way, I played with him and AP in a charity event in Oxfordshire and I took £50 off both of them.

“When we went into the dinner John said I would kindly donate my winnings to the charity so the money was in my pocket for about 10 minutes!”

Smith’s love of all things racing started close on 40 years ago when he was aged just six or seven.

“I grew up in Newent and lived there until I was 23,” said the 45-year-old, who these days lives in Tuffley with his family and works in financial services.

“I used to go round to my grandparents on a Saturday afternoon and my grandmother always had a little bet. From that point I think I was hooked and I always wanted to own a horse.”

He’s now realised his dream because these days he’s a part of four syndicates that own horses.

“Three of the horses are in training with Kim Bailey,” said Smith.

One of them is Vinndication, who was pulled out of the Cheltenham Festival the Ballymore – where he was due to take on the mighty Samcro just six days before he was due to race because of sore shins. The other two are Dusty Pearl and Arthurs Sixpence, the latter having the same dad as Vinndication.

Smith also has a share with five mates in U No Like, who is trained by Grace Harris in Chepstow.

And that’s not all because Smith, along with two others, also sponsors Mikey Hamill, a jockey who is based at Bailey’s yard in Andoversford.

Racing clearly plays a big part in his life. He is delighted to be able to support a charity that is so important to the sport and his big day near the end of August, which is being sponsored by Associated Taxis, should hopefully swell the coffers considerably.

“There will be 18 fourballs playing 18 holes and there will be a current or past jockey or trainer in each fourball,” said Smith.

“The day will begin with a breakfast for everyone at the club and there will be shotgun start at 11am. After the golf there will be a four-course a la carte meal followed by an auction and then a Q&A with guest speakers.”

Each flag on the course will have a racing theme – they will all be signed – and for non-golfing race fans, there is the option of just attending the dinner and evening entertainment.

The cost for anyone wanting to take part in the whole day is £99 per person and it is £69 per person for those who just want to be there in the evening.

For more details, call Darren Smith on 07792 576378 or email him at darren@us4life.co.uk