On the track: jockey

Courage, strength and unyielding determination are just a few of the things that make Clare Lindop one of Australia’s top jockeys. Linda Peatling reports.

When Clare Lindop was 10 years old she joined the ranks of thousands of little girls and asked her dad for a horse. Clare’s request was denied, but her parents instead enrolled her in a pony club, in the hope of satiating her infatuation. Little did they know that 14 years later Clare would become the first female jockey to ride in the Melbourne Cup. Now, at 26, she is South Australia’s leading metropolitan, country and provincial jockey.

4am: While most of us are still tucked up in our beds, Clare’s alarm clock goes off as it has done almost every day since she left high school to become an apprentice jockey at the age of 15. “It was a bit of a shock to the system when I first started out but I’m pretty used to it by now,” says Clare. She tiptoes out of the bedroom to avoid disturbing her partner, McLean, who still has another couple of hours’ blissful slumber ahead of him. “McLean is a financial adviser so he keeps much more normal hours… sometimes he gives me a little shove to help me out of bed.”

4.15am: Clare quickly guzzles 500ml of water as part of her long-standing health regime. “Dehydration is a big danger on the track so I have a thing about drinking at least two litres of water a day,” she explains. It’s too early to eat breakfast but Clare makes a thermal mug of coffee to drink on the way to the track. At 149cm tall and just 51 kilograms she doesn’t have to go to the extremes many jockeys do to maintain her tiny racing frame. “The minimum racing weight is 53 kilograms and I’m naturally lighter than that so I’ve never had to go to a sauna or do crazy amounts of exercise to drop an extra kilo, but I do try to eat fairly healthily,” she says.

4.30am: Clare heads out the door for the 15 minute drive to Morphettville Racecourse in Adelaide’s western suburbs. As a freelance jockey, Clare carries out trackwork for various owners and trainers in the hope that they might book her for a future race. She is paid by the racing club of the state in which each race is held. “Everyone wants a jockey who is the flavour of the month so your performance in a race is crucial, but I try to look after the trainers who ask me to ride regularly.” 

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