As if racing isn’t hard enough.
Being a trainer in the bush is one of the most rewarding jobs, but it’s also one of the toughest. We put our blood, sweat and tears into these horses every single day, only to head into race week wondering who going to ride them?
The current rider situation is becoming one of the biggest challenges I face. It’s not that there aren’t enough riders—it’s that getting riders to travel to our meetings is becoming increasingly difficult.
These days you need to book riders two or three weeks in advance or risk being left without. Even more frustrating is the lack of communication. Hearing, “I’ll get back to you,” and then waiting days with no response makes an already stressful situation even harder.
I can understand why riders make the choices they do. Racing Queensland’s Head North initiative offers riders an $800 rebate to travel to places like Mount Isa. With no similar incentive to travel west, it’s easy to see why many choose other meetings.
A huge thank you to the riders who take the time to reply, even if they’re unavailable. A simple response allows trainers to make other plans and is greatly appreciated.
I don’t know what the answer is, but I do know that something has to change.
I love this industry and I love training racehorses, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult when one of the biggest challenges isn’t preparing the horses—it’s simply finding someone to ride them.