When Zoe-Lee Cruickshank returned to Inverell and started riding trackwork again, she didn't think a return to competitive racing was on the cards.
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But it didn't take long before the itch returned and with a little persuasion, Cruickshank was back on the track for race days.
The Inverell jockey rode Rubel for Mark Stewart at Gunnedah on September 26, more than four years after her last race.
"Once I started riding trackwork, I missed going to the races and riding my horses," the four-kilogram claiming apprentice jockey said.
"I was only going to come back to trackwork and then a couple of trainers talked me into getting my apprenticeship again.
"It's great. I get a lot of help from a lot of people around Inverell. I get a lot of support so that's great."
That support stretches well behind the horse racing community.
Cruickshank has a three-year-old son, Eli, and said support from her family made it a lot easier to juggle parenting duties and riding.
"It's pretty good. I have my family around. Nan and Dad help a lot with him if my partner can't get him from school or anything like that," the 23-year-old said.
Back on the track, Cruickshank said she's matured since her first stint as an apprentice in 2016.
However, she admits there's still a lot to learn but she's ready to do just that.
Bill Perrett - who Cruickshank is apprenticing under - agreed.
"She does [want to learn]. She's really keen. She wants to ride," Perrett said.
"Raymond Spokes, he's been helping her out.
"And Shane Edmonds, he's been a bit busy, but he's going to jump in with her and help her out. That'll be great. He was a leading apprentice jockey in Sydney for a while."
Since Cruickshank has returned, she's claimed two wins.
The first in Grafton, and the second at her home track.
The apprentice will get another chance to ride at Inverell on November 14.
It'll be a big day at the Inverell Jockey Club as the club hosts a six-race TAB meeting.
The day includes the Bush Battler's Cup and the Diggers Cup and Cruickshank can't wait to get out there.
"I've got a few rides lined up already," she said.
"It's a great track to ride at. We really need more race meetings here."
In the future, there's couple races on New Year's Day she wants to win.
"I would love to win the Inverell Cup and the Inverell Shorts. I've wanted to win those races since I've been a jockey," Cruickshank said.
Ben Jaffrey
Ben is a content curator and journalist for The Land. He has been with ACM since 2015 and first worked at The Area News and then at the Northern Daily Leader. Ben first joined ACM Agri as a digital journalist for all seven agricultural mastheads in 2022 before shifting to The Land full-time in 2023.
Ben is a content curator and journalist for The Land. He has been with ACM since 2015 and first worked at The Area News and then at the Northern Daily Leader. Ben first joined ACM Agri as a digital journalist for all seven agricultural mastheads in 2022 before shifting to The Land full-time in 2023.
