It was not Santa Claus who delivered the Bowman children, Bambi and Paige, their favourite Christmas present this year. It was Alan, the driver who transported their fortunate father, Hugh, from Union Hospital to their home late on Christmas Eve.

Just nine days after Kiwi jockey Megan Taylor lost her life at Ashburton on New Zealand’s South Island, Bowman’s fall in Saturday’s voided fifth race on the Sha Tin dirt once again highlighted the ever-present dangers associated with sitting on 1,200-pound thoroughbreds galloping in proximity to a dozen or so other horses at speeds greater than 60km/h.

And once again, those of us for whom riding a fake filly on a crawling carousel is more than enough to send our heart rate through the roof respect Bowman and his fellow jockeys for their ability to – pardon the pun – get back on the horse.

Cleared to ride at Happy Valley on Wednesday night, Bowman has a full book of nine at the midweek meeting.

“As far as falls go, although I got a decent bump to the head, it was a pretty soft fall because I didn’t come from high. I went down with the horse,” said Bowman about Saturday’s incident involving Caspar Fownes-trained galloper Fast Pace that had racing fans around the world worried about his welfare.

“I thought the horse was running for the gap, which was unusual because it’s a gap where the horses come on to the track – not go off – so I thought it was weird. He just didn’t corner.

“After a couple of strides, I could feel he’d nothing, so then I’m thinking I’m going through the fence. But his legs were just like jelly, and he just stumbled over.

“I had a pretty good knock to the head, but I was conscious, so my first thought was to get away from the horse. Then soon after that, I realised he was dead, so I stopped worrying about the horse and thought I’d better get off the track, thinking the other horses would be coming back around.

“The medical people were there by that stage, but I didn’t know they’d called the race off. Matthew Chadwick texted me and said, ‘I’ve never seen a race called off in my entire career here’. If it had happened down the back, it probably would’ve been safe to carry on, but not where it did.”

Bowman was full of praise not only for the decision of the Jockey Club stewards to abandon Saturday’s Class Four Holly Handicap (1,650m) on Sha Tin’s all-weather course but also the care he received.

“They monitored me thoroughly,” Bowman said. “I went to the Prince of Wales Hospital. I got CAT scans of my neck and head. The scans were all clear. Up until that point, I was nil by mouth, so I was thirsty and desperate for a drink. Until they were satisfied I didn’t need operating on, I was forbidden. Once those scans were clear, they let me have some water and a packet of chips. I felt much better then.

“They kept me at the Prince of Wales Hospital until the end of the day. They did what they needed to do, and Dr Ho came from the races after they’d finished. They wanted me to stay overnight, but I insisted I go home once the MRI scans were clear, so I went from the Prince of Wales Hospital to the Union Hospital in an ambulance. Doctors were with me the entire time. Dr Ho was very, very good.

Master trainer Lui seeks to improve on Hong Kong’s best strike rate

“The MRI scans of my neck and head came back all clear – no concerns. I went home at 10 o’clock on Christmas Eve. I went back to see Dr Ho at the Union Hospital on Christmas Day. I went through what we go through to receive our riding licence, and he was satisfied I’m fine to resume riding on Wednesday.”

Bowman missed a winning ride when his mount, Packing Treadmill, won Saturday’s card-closing race under replacement rider Dylan Mo Hin-tung. The Poinsettia Handicap (1,600m) worth HK$1,653,000 to the winner was an unexpected gift for Mo, who had not saluted the judge this season.

However, the greatest gift of all was Alan’s expedited delivery of Hugh to Bambi, Paige and the Australian jockey’s wife, Christine. The 42-year-old rider could have missed so much more than a Class Two win.