A little piece of history was made last week when Townspark Gem turned over track champion Black Toms Brae in a Monmore 480m open race.

The winner was trained by ‘J Reynolds’ – not the Towcester handler of similar name and fame – but 32 year old James Reynolds who became the first ‘owner trainer’ to win a race at Monmore.

James and his partner Laura and two children live in a small semi in Telford and James has been interested in greyhounds since he was 16.

He said: “I first got involved in the dogs through Pete Richards’, the ‘Elderberry man’. His son and I were the same year at school and I started to go to Pat Cowdrill’s kennel.

“I loved being around greyhounds and worked for Pat after school and at the weekends. She was like a second mum to me.

“I left uni and Pat gave me some work until I got a full time job. I dropped out of dogs for a while but then decided to become an owner with Pat again.

“It was always the dream to train them myself, but I knew I could never afford the kennels. I actually bought Rossa Wonder for racing and thought one day I might even breed with her. Then I heard about the new owner trainer licence and it all went from there.

“After I received the licence, I brought Rossa Wonder home to train myself and then bought Townspark Gem from Ireland. She was owned by a man called Paddy Gerraghty who only has three dogs himself.

“She was a bit older than you might normally want to get top price (Apr ’15) and in the end Paddy let me have her for £1,400. He is a really nice guy and we’ve kept in touch.”

James gets up at 4am to exercise the dogs before heading to work as a service manager for a company making loading bay equipment.

He pops home to let them out at lunchtime and then walks and feeds them when he gets home in the evening.

So what are the memories of that first open winner?

James recalls: “I was very nervous when I got to the track particularly about racing weights. It has been a fortnight between races and I try to keep track of it. I actually use bathroom scales and weigh myself and then weigh myself with the dog.

“Monmore racing manager Tony Williamson gave me a big welcome when I took the bitch into the paddock.

“I have known Tony since I was 16 and he must have suspected I was worried about the bitch’s weight. In fact he tried to kid me that I had a weight variation. I went cold. He then broke into a smile and told me he was only joking.

“I really didn’t expect Gem to win. A few hours earlier she had been laying on the sofa in the lounge.

“I had never even won an open race as an owner, but to do it as a trainer must surely be twenty times better. I was in tears after the race and it was so emotional for Laura too because she was a home with the kids and wasn’t there to see it. They would have loved it too

“The kids come with me when I walk the dogs and are involved as a family hobby. Unfortunately, they haven’t seen the dogs run yet because of the evening racing, but I am hoping they will be a BAGS Sunday afternoon card in the next couple of weeks.”

“After the race, Tony came down from the judges box to the paddock to congratulate me. Pat Cowdrill and Pete Richards had beaten him to it. It was an incredible night.

“In fact the whole experience has been unbelievable. I am living the dream. As an owner you don’t know the dogs that well but when you have them every day you really bond with them.

“I can’t talk enough about what a positive experience it has been. Even the processing of the license could not have been easier. Really straight forward.

“I would also like to mention Perry Barr racing manager Martin Seal for allowing me to grade my dogs there. He didn’t need the runners after Hall Green closed but he allowed me to race there anyway.”

The two Reynolds runners both due to race at Perry Barr tonight (Saturday) and an extended family are booked into the restaurant.

James concluded: “I would say to anyone thinking of training their own dogs – just do it. It is a life changing experience.”

Since the start of the year, 204 new licenses have been granted to owner trainers. Anyone interested is invited to contact GBGB on 0207 822 0900.