Five Minutes with Vanessa McLennan
This is what I was born to do "train".
"Ever since I can remember I have always loved horses, especially racing
horses.
I was born in Goulburn and moved to Grafton at a young age.
Starting out at Westlawn Public school. We lived just around the corner from the race track. Mum always went to the July carnival. Me of course always wanted to go, and as i grew up and into high school, I stopped
in and watched the horses race, when ever the meetings were held at Grafton.
Eventually I was allowed to have my own horse.
My first horse was a stock horse named Crystal. She was the best horse a girl could ask for, anything you
asked from her she just did it. I continued on and went to pony club and started
work with Karen Johnstone " Jockey", and Tom Dunn "Trainer".
I would go out evey day with Karen in the big back paddock and place a jockey pad
on my stock horse. Once I was going well, Tom placed me on a strapper ticket and
off I started in the racing industry at a young age. I continued on to start
riding with Karen on the race track on a Sunday, Yes, a Sunday. That was back in
the time where the track was always open 24/7. Tom & Karen watched me learn
and grow professionally in my riding ability. Once thay were happy, they
continued to start placing me on their race horses and thus started my riding
career.
I continued on to work for John Mathewson with Loud
Speaker and Sue city Sue, "what great horses they were!"
After finishing school, attending three weeks of year 11, and realiising this is not
me, all I could think about was a life in racing.
I soon met up with a new horse trainer to the area, Norm Wheeler, which I became apprenticed to for a
short career in being a jockey, as I had a race fall and broke C1 vertabra. This
placed me out of action for two years.I got back in the saddle eventually and had a go again, trying to get back into race riding, but I just
could not get the right weight and mental approach.
Norm continued on to hand the training over to myself and was happy to be the foreman and owner of the horses
My journey as a trainer started in 2000 and still is going strong today.
In 2003, I went to work in Sydney with the one and only Bart Cummings." The Cup King"
I loved every part of my time in Sydney. This was a highlight in my career.
"Ever since I can remember I have always loved horses, especially racing
horses.
I was born in Goulburn and moved to Grafton at a young age.
Starting out at Westlawn Public school. We lived just around the corner from the race track. Mum always went to the July carnival. Me of course always wanted to go, and as i grew up and into high school, I stopped
in and watched the horses race, when ever the meetings were held at Grafton.
Eventually I was allowed to have my own horse.
My first horse was a stock horse named Crystal. She was the best horse a girl could ask for, anything you
asked from her she just did it. I continued on and went to pony club and started
work with Karen Johnstone " Jockey", and Tom Dunn "Trainer".
I would go out evey day with Karen in the big back paddock and place a jockey pad
on my stock horse. Once I was going well, Tom placed me on a strapper ticket and
off I started in the racing industry at a young age. I continued on to start
riding with Karen on the race track on a Sunday, Yes, a Sunday. That was back in
the time where the track was always open 24/7. Tom & Karen watched me learn
and grow professionally in my riding ability. Once thay were happy, they
continued to start placing me on their race horses and thus started my riding
career.
I continued on to work for John Mathewson with Loud
Speaker and Sue city Sue, "what great horses they were!"
After finishing school, attending three weeks of year 11, and realiising this is not
me, all I could think about was a life in racing.
I soon met up with a new horse trainer to the area, Norm Wheeler, which I became apprenticed to for a
short career in being a jockey, as I had a race fall and broke C1 vertabra. This
placed me out of action for two years.I got back in the saddle eventually and had a go again, trying to get back into race riding, but I just
could not get the right weight and mental approach.
Norm continued on to hand the training over to myself and was happy to be the foreman and owner of the horses
My journey as a trainer started in 2000 and still is going strong today.
In 2003, I went to work in Sydney with the one and only Bart Cummings." The Cup King"
I loved every part of my time in Sydney. This was a highlight in my career.