Off to a Flying Start in racing

By Chris Roots
Updated September 15 2014 - 11:13am, first published 10:17am
Dane Robinson has been studying with the Darley Flying Start program. Photo: Sylvia Liber
Dane Robinson has been studying with the Darley Flying Start program. Photo: Sylvia Liber

The most elite racing school in the world will be based in Australia for the next six months as the Darley Flying Start 2015 class takes the next step in its development.

It is a system that has delivered some of the leaders within the Australia racing industry. Newgate Farm's Henry Field, Eden Harrington from the China Horse Club and racing managers such as Jason Walsh at Godolphin and Adrian Bott at Gai Waterhouse's stable have all completed the course.

For the past decade, Flying Start has become the Rhodes Scholarship for racing. It has a remarkable success rate at producing high achievers. Of 120 who have started the two-year course, only two have not finished it, and 21 graduates have become business owners.

"We get more than 100 applications a year from around the world. We interview about 30 of them for only 12 places. We are getting these young people when they are a bit older and they understand what a brilliant opportunity it is," Flying Start's course manager Clodagh Kavanagh said.

Applicants are required to have completed a university degree and have at least one year's working experience in the racing industry or five years' full-time experience in the thoroughbred industry. Part of the selection process includes showing their horse handling and riding skills.

 "They come to us ambitious and get to do a business and leadership course as well as getting to meet industry leaders, including Sheikh Mohammed," Kavanagh said. "We are proud of our record at developing industry leaders."

Flying Start is basically a finishing school for racing professionals from around the world, with graduates working in 20 countries on five continents.

The Flying Start class was at Golden Rose day, as racing days are important in the program. As is study ... and they have been doing a module of their course at Sydney University.

In coming weeks the trainees will go out for work placement while on the Australia leg of the course, which has already taken them to Ireland, England and the US in the past 12 months.

Kavanagh has been with Flying Start since it has began and helped to develop the course. Her role in Sydney was to interview trainees and work out placements and look at their progress.

"Each of them is an individual and wants to focus on different aspects of the industry. In the past we have had trainees go to Inglis, Gai Waterhouse and New Zealand Bloodstock as well as stud farms," she said.

"There are so many different options within the industry and everyone has a different focus, so we try to match them with the right area for them."

While this class of Flying Start is in Australia, including Queenslander Kathryn Barr, the next intake has begun its travels around the world in Ireland. There are three Australians in that class, including Berry's Dane Robinson, who gave some insight on being selected.  

"The good thing about the course is it gives you experience in everything, so hopefully, it will give me time to really think about what I want to do and, hopefully by the end of it, I'll be set on the right path," Robinson said.

"The syllabus covers everything from business management to accounting for the equine industry. There's hands-on experience all the way through to veterinary and farrier work."

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