Top jockey Fran Berry's Sporting Life column

I'm looking forward to the Flat turf season getting underway tomorrow and there's always a real buzz around the stables at this time of year.

Looking back at last year, I only rode for about six months and spent the other six months out injured. I'm just hoping that was one of those things and that we'll have a good clean run this season, that I keep healthy, enjoy a bit of luck, ride a few winners and keep the Sporting Life readers entertained along the way.

The injury did mean that I had a good long break and we went home to Ireland for most of December and fitted in a week away in the sun with the Smullens so I'm recharged and raring to go now having done some intensive rehab in early January.

I have to say a big thank you to all of the team at Oaksey House in Lambourn for their help in getting me fit again. The facilities and the support that they provide for injured jockeys is fantastic.

I was back riding out in mid-February and had my first ride back in the first week of March, which was the doctor's target, and it was great getting riding again and getting a few winners under the belt.

No matter how much rehab you do, there's no substitute for race riding to get you mentally and physically fit again. I started out with no expectations so to ride a double and get a few winners was fantastic.

Ralph [Beckett] had his first century of winners last season and the yard's full for the year ahead which is fantastic. The stable's horses have been running well on the all-weather and the strike-rate's been good. You can see the difference in the horses' coats from week to week as the weather improves.

I'm looking forward to getting back on board Crimson Rock who has done really well over the winter. She was an expensive filly who did well to win her maiden at Newbury on debut last backend and we're hoping she can only do better.

On the same weekend, I won on Sound Bar for Khalid Abdullah. Sound Bar is a half-brother to Carntop who started off last season with a close second in the Derby Trial at Lingfield and this fellow could start off in one of the Classic trials in early May.

I'm on the all-weather at Kempton on Saturday where I start off on Secret Soul in the Betfred TV EBF Maiden Stakes. She is a half-sister to Ralph's Oaks winner Secret Talent as well as Sir Isaac Newton.

She was disappointing the last day but is a little better than the form on paper suggests. We wanted to be positive with her and I probably got racing too soon with Agathonia and she got tired and weakened back to fourth.

She's better than that and does have a chance but she will have to step up. It's hard to gauge where we are with her as she's a lazy worker at home but it's a good starting point and then we can see where we go.

I'm back on board Fire Fighting for Mark Johnston in the Magnolia Stakes. I was second on him at the All-Weather Championships Finals Day last season and won a Listed race on him at Dundalk back in 2015.

I was actually asked to ride him at Dundalk last week but couldn't due to commitments at Lingfield so it's nice to be given the opportunity again. He was chinned on the line last time but that was his first run back and so for a tough horse who takes a lot of racing, you'd have to be hopeful he can improve on that.

This is his best trip and he's got every chance. He's straightforward and although he's possibly better with a lead, if there's no pace he's quite happy to make it.

I'll have to go forwards on Go Far in the six-furlong handicap as that's the way he tends to run.

Also, he's drawn 12 of 12 which is a major negative over six furlongs at Kempton and if you try to sit in, you can get shuffled back to last so you're often best to go forwards from the gate. He travels really well so there's a chance he might be able to overcome it.

It's nice to get a ride for Harry Dunlop who I rode for a couple of times last season and Storm Rock is a good spare to pick up in the Rosebery Handicap.

He won a competitive handicap at Salisbury and then had no chance after getting hampered here in November on his last start. I've not had a sit on him before but we're hopeful of a good run although the Rosebery is really competitive and this is his first run of the season so he should improve for it. 

I've got two rides at Doncaster on Sunday starting off with Free Code for David Barron in the opener over seven furlongs.

David's been very good to me since I moved over here and we've enjoyed some success in the past. I rode Hitchens to win the Greenlands Stakes for him back in 2011 and was second in the Wokingham twice on Waffle.

His horses have been running really well on the all-weather at a good strike-rate and Free Code comes into this race match-fit which has to be a plus. It's a typical big-field handicap but he's fairly treated and has won at the track before.

I ride Western Duke for Ralph in the Yorkshire Wildlife Park Handicap and he's a very interesting horse and one to keep an eye on through the season.

He's a big, long horse who did well to do what he did last season, landing his maiden at Doncaster before going close at Ripon in a messy three-runner race.

He's rated 89 and it's hard to know how he'll go against the others as they're all handicapped on one or two runs and maiden wins but we do think he should be competitive.

He's in good shape at home and has done well from two to three. He was a big, weak colt but he's really filled out and is training well.

The ground shouldn't be an issue and 10 furlongs should be perfect for him and I'm looking forward to getting him going.