2009 Trainee Views

September, Australia 2010

After another upheaval of all our belongings into suitcases the 2009 Darley Flying Start trainees touched down in Sydney to begin the Australian phase of the programme based in the Hunter Valley. With no Australians in our group it was down to the two Kiwis to become honorary Aussies and assume the role of team leaders. A case of the blind leading the blind during our first trip to Sydney resulted in what could best be described as a serious case of taking the scenic route. Having got through this initial misadventure the group has had a whirlwind introduction to the Australian industry so far.

The first couple of weeks involved getting familiar with the Darley management and farms in Australia with lectures from several of the management staff as well as visits to different locations in the Hunter Valley. Woodlands had been described previously to the group as the ‘jewel in the Darley Australia crown’ and the rolling 6000 acres of beautiful farmland surrounded by the National Park did not disappoint. Introducing the Northern Hemisphere group members to some of the farm practises Down Under has been an eye-opener for them, particularly learning the art of driving a quad bike with one hand and leading a broodmare with the other.

The onset of spring has not only brought the arrival of new foals but it is also the time that Darley showcase their stallion roster to the industry. The stallion parade is always a great spectacle, with the Australian roster having the advantage of being able to combine the best European, American and Australian blood. We enjoyed the opportunity to get stuck in helping with the setup of the parade and view the Darley stallions; particularly those we haven’t seen in our travels so far.

The academic side of the programme kicked off with the beginning of our Equine Nursing module at TAFE. We have had lectures from several veterinarians on areas such as laminitis, clinical pathology, diagnostic imaging and intensive care of foals. One of the highlights was a visit to Hunter Nursing Nannies to practice what we had learnt on foster mare foals. The group got invaluable practice taking bloods, stomach tubing and folding foals onto the ground. Part of this experience also includes working a few hours a day for a week at the intensive care unit, Clovelley, providing a great opportunity to put what we have learnt into practise.

As always a key component of our learning has been our practical rotations within the Darley system. In Australia our rotations are split between the Kelvinside and Woodlands properties, covering a wide variety of areas including mares and foals, yearlings, stallions, prep shed, farm maintenance, foaling and stallion nominations.

One of the highlights so far was the week the group spent in Sydney visiting key industry people and studying leadership at the University of Sydney. We were lucky enough to spend time with trainers Peter Snowden, Guy Walter, John O’Shea and Gai Waterhouse. Each of the trainers was very open about their philosophies on training and gave us a great insight into how training horses here differs to other parts of the world. On several mornings we rose before the birds to accompany Gai and John while they put their horses through their paces at Randwick, providing a fantastic opportunity to observe two masters of their trade at work. Gai’s ability to explain everything to the group while rider instructions, horses and sectional times were coming at her from all directions was something to behold. We were quickly schooled in the appropriate way to stand “don’t lean on the wall!”, shake hands “look me in the eye”, and posture “hands out of pockets!”. The group also got to visit the newly build Osborne Park which will provide support to Peter Snowden at Crown Lodge. David Charles and the team explained how the set up would give a great environment to bring on the Darley two-year-olds and provide a place for some of the Crown Lodge horses to get a change of scenery. We have been very privileged to visit many great properties during Darley Flying Start but the combination of training tracks, stables and additional training features at Osborne is right up with the best.

Other visits in Sydney included a visit to Denise Martin at Star Thoroughbred who took the group through the fundamentals of how she has built up such a successful syndication business. We were welcomed by Dr Treve Williams at the Randwick Equine Centre who shared his vast experience in the industry with the group. And of course a week in Sydney wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the Inglis’ sale ground where Mark Webster and the team showed us the new plans for their state of the art sales complex at Warwick Farm. The week was topped off with a great days racing at Randwick. Making the day even more enjoyable was Gai training three winners including Star Thoroughbred’s pin-up horse Theseo.

The combination of weekend racing, stud visits, work rotations and lectures will ensure the next few months in Australia will be busy, stimulating and sure to provide a fantastic learning experience for everybody. Spring is a great time for racing in Australia and already the group has witnessed many of the best horses in the country. With last season’s top two-year-olds returning to the track and the ‘Cup’ horses beginning their racing preparations, we are eagerly anticipating November and the excitement of great racing ahead.

Scott Calder and Vicky Leonard

Click here for a list of all 2009 trainee views

Preparations for the Darley Stallion Parade