Grylls bears up despite lack of rides
Jockey has not ruled out returning to Australia and Cup win a big boost
No name in Australia is too sacred to not be shortened. And everyone is susceptible to a nickname. It was a given that when B Grylls — Bridget to us Kiwis — appeared on the Brisbane jockeys’ board in Queensland four years ago she was going to be re-named Bear Grylls.
Bear that she did and although the pay packet was not quite the same as the so-called television daredevil, the former New Zealand apprentice jockey did very well.
That was for the first two years. Then she broke her wrist and the rides slowed down on the comeback trail. Queensland is not quite the same as town hall class in Sydney, but the same rule exists throughout horse racing — you are as good as your last winner and when that winner is three of four months back, people forget.
“I was flying for those first two years and got a lot of support. More recently that same support wasn’t quite there and although I was getting good rides at the Gold Coast on Saturdays, the good rides in town at Brisbane were not quite as frequent.”
A return to New Zealand presented and here, only weeks later, Bridget Grylls rode the Baker/Forsman trained Rodrico to win Saturday’s feature $65,000 Taumarunui Gold Cup. The former Australian stayer, with Group 1 form as a 3-yearold, ploughed through very testing conditions to outlast Trisha Lea and Jochen Rindt. “I’m delighted for Bridget,” said cotrainer Andrew Forsman.
“We’ve been impressed with her professionalism.”
Grylls admits she received plenty of help and advice from senior Brisbane jockeys Jeff Lloyd, Robbie Fraad, both former South Africans, and from Jim Byrne. “You are their opposition, but each of them, particularly Jeff Lloyd, will help if you ask them something and even tell you if they think there is something you could improve on. I’ve got nothing but good to say about them.”
Lloyd is a remarkable man. He is in his mid-50s and if ever there was an opportune moment to retire it must surely have been early last year when he suffered a stroke. But he came back and has taken away this season’s jockeys’ premiership.
One feature Bridget Grylls has not followed is Lloyd’s jump-up-anddown style in the saddle, which you would swear would give a broomstick a sore back, but it works and works brilliantly. “Jeff and Robbie Fraad are real South Africans with their style. Robbie does the same thing, but probably with a bit more style than Jeff.”
Grylls has not ruled out one day returning to Australia, but for the moment she is back and working hard, although that’s not a weight issue — she can “walk’ at 50kg. She rides work at Cambridge, Te Awamutu and Matamata.
“I got a bit tired of riding so much work in Brisbane and not getting to ride them raceday. Brisbane can be a clicky city, you need to be riding winners to get rides, but you need to be getting rides to ride winners.
“I was so pleased to win the Cup yesterday and that, hopefully, will give me a good lift.”