Sally out and about coaching
© Sally Kirkwood
By Sally Kirkwood
I have seriously been trying to write this blog for the last 12 months – the hectic pace and frantic workload that has made me want to write it is the same thing that has kept me from slapping it together.
And now I’ve noticed that the very lovely Edwina Tops-Alexander has beaten me to it. However, she hasn’t slapped hers together, oohhhh noooooooo. Her video includes the most stunning footage and compelling words of wisdom on finding balance in her life. There’s footage of a swanky jet flying and then landing in perfect balance. It makes you imagine kicking back sipping on champagne in its leather seats. Then I see a vision of what my life balance currently looks like. It’s a very badly made paper plane that has nose dived into the wall, crushed the front in and then been eaten by a Labrador. Then because it’s a Labrador, he half chokes and requires a $1,000 visit to the vet.
Sally Kirkwood’s labrador eats paper plane
When your life gets to the crushed paper plane scenario, what do you do?
A – Cry, rocking back and forth in the foetal position on the floor?
B – Drink enough beers to make you not want to cry and rock back and forth?
C – Totally loose your marbles, curse, then let off an explosive tirade of abuse to the universe for not making you a trophy wife while you moon walk out the door never to been seen again?
D – Kick the stinking Labrador?
E – Pull up your big girl pants, pull down your hat, knuckle under and work until you can straighten that paper plane up and find your balance.
Ok I may have done all of the above except kicking the Lab, mainly because he is always covered in poo and I don’t want to touch him.
For those who don’t know what I have on my plates to balance, let me shed some light for you.
Cattle – The romantic dream of riding out to herd the mob while your hair blows in the breeze is only on the movie screens and the reality is far from romantic! There is drought, flood, more drought, lick to feed out and waters to check, all while trying to juggle enough money through buying and selling to keep yourself afloat.
Keeping the cattle in check is a big job!
© Sally Kirkwood
Race horses – Now I don’t just own them and receive lovely updates sent to me, letting me know how wonderful the feed burners are going and show me the blistering times on the stop watch. Nope! I ride them, muck out, feed up, do their book work and invoicing, then provide the therapy sessions for those involved – sometimes for the stressed and pressured trainer who is my husband and other times to console the owners when it’s time to admit their equine athlete is in fact a donkey in disguise.
Sally lending a helping hand at the races
© Sally Kirkwood
Children – Bless their little time consuming socks with all of their time consuming sport and homework.
Sally and her wonderful busy children
© Sally Kirkwood
Dressage horses – Now not only do I have my own fancy pants ponies to train but I also train for The Western Owner and have a couple that come in for tune ups now and then.
Sally Kirkwood riding her fancy dressage pony
Coaching – A job I love but there are sometimes many miles driven and long days and let’s be honest, some “tear your hair out” moments.
One would think that this is more than enough to try and keep sane and find a work/family balance.
Turns out I have many qualities that makes me who I am and I am starting to think one of these qualities is stupidity. My husband and I have always volunteered over the years – on many committees for lots of different community organisations. The Trainer and I have always been involved in our local race club. He was President of the last club for 13 years and joined the committee when he was knee high to a grasshopper – wait he was a jockey once and isn’t much taller than that grasshopper’s knee now. Hahahahahahahaha, I often crack jockey jokes at his expense. I try to make him talk like he has just sucked on a helium balloon, then say, “Yeah g’day mate I really like your horse, he’s got a big heart”. Then I laugh and laugh and laugh and he informs me it isn’t funny but I beg to differ.
Team work makes the dream work!
© Sally Kirkwood
It wasn’t long after moving to south of Charters Towers, that we joined the Towers Jockey Club. Over the last 7 years we have chipped away helping where we can, running the bar, working bees, raising much needed funds and enjoying our country racing.
Well somehow the stupidity kicked in and our roles evolved into The Trainer becoming the President, which should make me the first lady that should theoretically be allowed to swan around in fine fashion. Clearly that dream is on the same page as trophy wife and it seems that both are unattainable for me.
Not happy to be the swanning type, I have somehow managed to become the CEO and GM and along with our fabulous committee, thought we should take this club forward into the future by putting together a strategic plan to showcase just how important our club is for our town, region and racing in North Queensland and how we can take it into the future. What a fabulous idea!
Except it turns out that this fabulous idea takes a massive amount of work. And who better to pull this work load on? You guessed it, the TJC committee and mostly little old me with the knee high to a grasshopper trainer, both two finger typers and can only use a computer to check racing results, noms and sales! I should mention that I love being outdoors and I am very good at lifting heavy things. The one place I detest the most in the universe is the office. I am like a haunted colt avoiding the yards and will find any excuse not to go in there. The office work for our own business is bad enough and now I have to be a highly efficient functioning CEO who now has worked in the field of quantity surveying, forecasting, promotions, events coordinator, sponsor schmoozing, letter writing and lobbying just to name a few.
It has all been worth it and very rewarding and you can only imagine my excitement when we were invited to deliver our plans to the Queensland Minister for Racing.
Sally was invited to deliver her plans to the Queensland Minister for Racing
© Sally Kirkwood
However all of this workload on top of my already full workload took its toll and something had to give. That something was my precious fancy ponies and my dressage diva ways. Oh how I cried when I missed Sydney CDI then I missed Brisbane CDI and not to mention the training trips to The Coach in Sydney. The horses were still in work but we missed many many many competitions and events.
My time out from the madness of the world is riding; it is the best therapy session. While I ride, the only thing that I think about is horse and rider. It is where the noise of the outside world stops. It gives me time out. It allows me time not to worry about lack of money, lack of rain, family issues or just that the Lab is covered in crap again. It is my time out while I get to do the thing that I love – ride horses especially fancy dancing pony pals. Well, some days they aren’t so fancy and it’s more like the devil has possessed them and I threaten death or at least the threat of no treats ever again.
As you can imagine the balance has been very close to the point of no return where the paper plane is about to burst into flames so the Lab can eat chargrill and at least it might save him choking on the ashen ruins. I would sometimes worry that I had developed a slight twitch and I knew things were spiralling out of control when there were more dreams about the TJC than dressage diva ways. Oh the horror.
One day while on a phone conference to a very important affiliation, one poor person who meant very well told me some bad news but said reassuringly, that they knew I wouldn’t let this little blockage stop me and that I would be able to put in the hard yards to rectify it. That poor poor poor person, they didn’t know how on the edge I was when, it happened. I exploded. The words flew out of my mouth before I could stop them. I think I rambled on about their paid position as a pen pusher behind the desk while I was a slaving foot soldier who had trudged a mile in the trenches making their job easier, and it was then that I told them that I was meant to be a dressage diva and not putting myself through this. I may or may not have threatened the insertion of a pineapple where the sun doesn’t shine. I am pretty sure they were scared by the time I hung up the phone. It was about here in the story that I realised how important it was to get the ratio of workload/dressage diva back in balance.
I flew The Coach up for a clinic and he said all lovely things and didn’t even yell at me!! Maybe he heard about what I wanted to do with the pineapple. I trapped The Trainer and made him be my groom for some dressage competitions. Furstinus was so excited to be out, he over excelled himself with added moves for all to see, such as pigroots with the extended canters, unwanted flying changes down the centreline and just in case there weren’t enough people watching he even threw in a squeal while warming up. He was thrilled to be back out and doing his prancing pony thing. The young horse and The Western Owner’s horse were both fabulous with many wins and placings and I was back in my happy place once again. In our last competition Fursty pulled out his best tests yet and even cracked 73% in the Advanced.
My time out from the madness of the world is riding; it is the best therapy session
© Sally Kirkwood
Now that all is right in the world, I have once again been able to enjoy the challenges of homework and watching kids sports. The children even told me that I am “One of the good parents”. Office work, cattle, race horse, counselling sessions, and the challenges of coaching haven’t seemed so dramatic. The workload is still there but instead of feeling like I am drowning, I think I am achieving and can tackle the challenges in front of me.
I finally have time to write this story of balance while The Trainer is driving to Cairns for racing – I am back to being his strapper extraordinaire. Hopefully next week I will pack up my prancing ponies to finally make the long awaited trip back to Sydney where The Coach and I will be reunited for some dressage magic and no doubt he will have me confused with Charlotte or Isabelle and then we will have to celebrate my return with champagne.
One last thing. I know that everyone is busy and many out there are busier than me. However volunteering for a community event, sporting club or even the school P&F is so important and vital for these organisations to exist. Nearly every club relies on volunteers and even if you can only donate a cake, buy a raffle ticket or pencil at your local dressage competition, please take the time to give back to these clubs in anyway you can. It really is very rewarding.
Oh before I forget, I have exciting news, the TJC has been awarded $275,000 for a track upgrade. It has made all the hard work worthwhile and it is the start of a very exciting future and I am very proud to have played an important part in helping the club to achieve this and have been very lucky to have made new friends and contacts along the way.
Until next time…
May your work/dressage ratio be balanced
Your stress levels low
May your ponies be fancy
And please be nice to your Labradors!!
Sally
Xoxoxo
IN BREAKING NEWS……………..
Our favourite jockey/track work rider has been hurt and will now be out of action for some time. PLEASE SEND HELP!!! This now requires me, the dressage diva, to stay home to ride race horses.
My paper plane is about to burst into flames and here’s hoping I can rise from the ashes like a phoenix, however I think I am going to be the drunken pirate’s parrot complete with a potty mouth and may bite. IF you happen to have a spare track work rider, please post send to Charters Towers QLD 4820.
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