More Than Mail

Judging horse racing has come a long way.  Arthur Wearing has been judging for over 40 years, and only remembers one controversial race in that time.  Hugh Westcott has always enjoyed racing and wanted to give something back to his community, so learned the ropes of judging. Arthur and Hugh have shared the judges tower at Hughenden for the past few years, but Arthur has decided that at age 80, 202...

Bore Head was owned by Robert Chaplain from Cloncurry and his sister Carmel Burke, and won the 1965 Caulfield Cup. He won five major cups in his career - Queensland Cup, Ipswich Cup, Australian Cup, Doomben Cup and the Caulfield Cup. Once his racing days were done, Bore Head retired with the Chaplains at Boomera Station where Bob's son Damien remembers riding him as the night horse. More Than Mail...

In 1959 a horse owned by RN Brown from Nonda Downs in North West Queensland won the Melbourne Cup. THE MELBOURNE CUP! Macdougal took The Cup by three lengths, and was lead back in to the saddling paddock by his owner Reg, who had made the long trip to Melbourne.  Reg's daughter Heather Pascoe continues her father's genuine affection for horses and continues the family tradition of breeding winners...

Jay Morris wears two hats in the North West racing industry, trainer and club president. President of Mount Isa Race Club is time consuming, with the Club hosting a minimum of 14 race meets per year. On top of that Jay has around six horses in his stable. Jay does all of this around running his own building company. Jay's training has taken him all over Queensland, and a well earned trio to the Fl...

We're tackling the big issue today - how a photo finish camera works.  Jockey Emma Bell talks me through the confusion within the racing industry when jockeys, trainers and connections view the photo finish image. And I try my best to explain why certain things happen they way they do and the the difference between regular photography and strip photography. Here's hoping we clear up some misconcep...

Josh Fleming started racing calling at age 14.  It was Longreach, December 5, 1998. The following September Josh called his first Birdsville races.  Fast forward to 2023 and Josh is Brisbane's #1 race caller, calling Eagle Farm, Doomben and the Sunshine Coast. His voice is familiar to racing enthusiasts everywhere. And yet it's Birdsville that Josh holds the fondest memories of, calling the iconic...

Central West Queensland has a long pedigree of race callers, and so Andrew Watts had to wait his turn to break in. But break in he has, on track to call over 40 race meets in 2023.  Wattsy has been involved in the racing industry since his school days, buying a dog on a whim; meaning he had to quickly get his owner/trainer licence.  He has and does own horses and he's been known to have a punt or...

School principal to race caller is an easy leap to make, both require meticulous research and planning and rarely does the outcome match the plan.  Rob Luck has always enjoyed the races and loves to unearth the stories that unfold in the industry. Arriving in Longreach in charge of a school, Rob's interest in horses soon lead him to the Longreach Jockey Club where he started emceeing race meets, j...

Grant Wiles has called races for 40 years.  He's covered North West Qld and beyond.  Grant has also always trained horses and has had some great adventures going to and at the races.  Like every caller, Grant has had fun trying to get horses names right and making sure he has the colours correct for each horse before they hit the track. He's also not fond of heights, which isn't ideal for the man...

Pam O'Neill fought her way into the male dominated jockey world with perseverance, leading the way for female jockeys to ride as equals to men. Pam saddled up in a professional race for the first time in 1979, becoming Australia's first female to ride out on to the track with the boys. At a time when the women's movement was only beginning to gain momentum, Pam was finally issued her jockey's lice...

Angela Jones grew up on a property between Charters Towers and Clermont and now rides winners on the biggest race tracks in Australia. Winner of the 2022/2023 Metropolitan Apprentice Jockey Premiership, Angela out rode her claim on the last day of the season. Stepping up to being a senior jockey, Angela has new goals and a lot of things to tick off her bucket list. More Than Mail is proudly brough...

Tyler Leslight won the 2022/2023 Country Apprentice Jockey Premiership. With the new season underway, Tyler has new goals. Two months in, he is already on the way to achieving them. There are a lot of things jockeys need to think about during a very short period of time to get a race win. Tyler shares what happens in that minute or so on track, how he finesses his skills and the hoops he had to ju...

Four friends who love fashion, coming together to celebrate country racing and fashions on the field. Sounds like a hoot! Central West and Western Queenslanders Jacquettaa Arnold, Georgina Fernie, Courtney Bylett and Sarah Taylor enjoy participating in fashions on the field so much, they created  Red Dirt in Heels to share their love with the rest of us. Jacquettaa and Sarah tell us how the four m...

Toby Fitchett is the self proclaimed Duke of the Downs, and we love him for it. Toby grew up in a racing family, with days out at the races just part of life for him from a very young age. Fashions on the Field (FOTF) took Toby's eye in his teenage years, and he has competed here and there ever since. Toby always makes an effort to look good at the races, and has even turned his hand to judging FO...

Back in 2011 when social media wasn't the norm, and Fashions on the Field (FOTF) wasn't as prominent as it is now, Emma Scodellaro started It's All About the Sash. Emma saw a gap in the FOTF circle, wanting a one stop place to promote upcoming FOTF events, admire competitors outfits, educate participants on FOTF etiquette, and inspire more people to take part in the concept. It's All About the Sas...

Tash Ferrif moved from Sydney to North West Queensland to chase cows. She's living the dream. Tash enjoys the North's social scene and attends local race meets across the district, where she noticed Fashions on the Field (FOTF). A bit of a fashion lover, Tash decided to give FOTF a go. Despite the nerves, Tash enjoys jumping on the catwalk and has taken home a few wins. She might have even caught...

A country race meet wouldn't be complete without a bustling bookie's ring.  You'll find bookmaker Denis Comerford at every race meet in North West Queensland. No matter the crowd size or the weather, Mr Comerford rarely misses a meet. Mr Comerford has seen huge changes in his time on course, from full manual recording and teams of five or more per bookmaker, to being at the forefront of introducin...

Ray Smith is known widely across the racing industry in North West Queensland.  Despite being a steward, in charge of race meetings every weekend and ensuring everyone sticks to the rules, Mr Smith has created friendships in every town he has officiated in. In the police force for 40 years, it made sense that Mr Smith would become a steward upon retirement from from the Force. Very recently retire...

The initials K.B. are synonymous with country racing in Queensland. Keith Ballard has been riding for 55(ish) years, celebrating his 70th birthday on race day at Corfield. He's had over 9,300 race day rides and has well over 1,700 wins.  Keith Ballard is one of the most geniuine blokes you'll ever met, and North West Queensland is privileged to have had him as a leading rider for decades.   After...

Sedan Dip celebrated 75 years in 2023, and it was another brilliant weekend. Formed in 1948, Sedan Dip Sports and Recreation Club began a race meet. Campdrafting and rodeo was added in later years. Racing has taken various forms over the years, with the excitement of sprint racing drawing a crowd these days. This year's Sedan Dip Cup was hotly contested. Events like Sedan Dip don't just happen, it...

 MORE THAN MAIL IS BACK! It's been a while between episodes, but the wait is over.  Have a listen to catch all the details.  More Than Mail is proudly brought to you by Brodie Agencies, McKinlay. Contact Jim Brodie on 0427468713 or Lachy Smith on 0401168915.  You can follow More Than Mail adventures on Instagram , on Facebook , or at morethanmail.com.au  Or, you can send me an email hello@morethan...

It's a big task to bring a State Conference of any description as remote as Julia Creek. But hard work and determination saw the convening comittee get the 2023 ICPA QLD State Conference conference over the line.  Today we hear from those who put in the work to bring it all together, some of the guest speakers who travelled far to deliver their message, local ICPA members who tell us what ICPA giv...

Julia Creek played host the 2023 QLD ICPA State Conference. And after talking all things education advocacy in Ep. 20 | Advocating for education with Kimberley Wilson, I went along to see what it was all about. In More Than Mail's first two part podcast, I speak to the organisers of the Conference, local ICPA members - current and past, and hear from State Concillors, as well as some special guest...

Educating kids in regional and rural Australia requires policy makers to understand the different and specific needs of the children learning. From maintaining teacher accommodation to internet accessibility, education can look very different in the country. And that's where the Isolated Children's Parents' Association (ICPA) comes in.  Kimberley Wilson from Rutchillo Station is the current Julia...

Carol Real and husband Don took up Carodon in 1968, drawing it in a ballot. Originally part of Eulolo, Carodon had very little infrastructure when the Reals moved there, and so they literally had to start from scratch. After 51 years, the Reals sold Carodon in 2019 and moved to Mt Isa. The postcode changed three times while the Reals were at Carodon, receiving their mail orginally from the Gilliat...