WALLY Welburn has been king of Callaghan Park for longer than most people could remember. He was in primary school when he first started hanging around the racing stables in his hometown Rockhampton where he is a racing legend.
At 14 he had his first race ride-on a gelding named Lord Pree. It ran last but it didn’t bother Wally. He was destined to be a top jockey and he had all the time in the world to realise that burning ambition.
He was 16 when he rode his first under a “’tough’’ apprenticeship to Reg Coombes. It was a horse named Winton Road trained by Vince O’Brien- not to be confused with the world famous Irish mentor of the same name. Coombes was one of five trainers to whom young Wally became indentured.
“I was a buggar of a kid,”’ he confesses with the standard wry grin.
Wally gave away race riding 15 years ago - but not Callaghan Park. He works ever raceday as the clerk of scales and general factotum for the Jockey Club. And six days a week he is first to arrive at track work where he still rides a dozen or more work for local trainers.
Because he loves it.
“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” says the man who rode around 1500 winners (I never kept count) and almost all of them in Central Queensland and the majority at Callaghan Park.
He won the premiership 13 times- a record that is likely to stand forever.
Wally rode on the Rocky track against some of the best. He rates Mel Schumacher high on the list with Mick Dittman, a regular Rocky visitor, Harry White, Colin O’Neill, Glen Boss and his great friend Ken Russell close behind.
And the best horse he ever rode in a race - and he rode most of the local champions - was the locally bred King Piper.
‘He was the best; He won the Farewell Handicap with 62kg and ran 57.6 seconds
“No other horse could do it”.
But the BEST horse he ever rode was in an exhibition gallop at Callaghan Park... The immortal kiwi Rough Habit.
Wally Welburn, son of a jockey, William, who the record show won the 1955 Queensland Cup on Yukon River and a Doomben Ten Thousand on Red Smoke, has experienced much change in racing at Rocky over the years.
When he kicked off his career in 1967 the track was sandy loam.
“It used to bring a lot of the visiting horses undone”
But says the change to an all turf track in the mid-1980s created a big difference to racing and the way races were run. And the way horses were trained.
He also believes the switch to mid-week TAB race days took a lot of the glamour away for local racing.
“Saturday used to be a day out for many people. They dressed up and made Saturday something of a treat
“In those days you would never see people turn up dressed in shorts, T shirts and thongs. Anyway you wouldn’t get in the gate.
But since the advent of the TAB and mid-week racing there has been as marked decline in turnover, money and decorum.
Ï think it is sad really, “he says.
“Everyone in the racing game seemed to survive and always had a quid in those days. It is a bit different today,” he laments.
Wally rates his biggest thrill as winning two of the three $100,000 classics for 2YOs that were staged run during winter carnival- before the advent of QTIS or QRIS.
“It was a big promotion and a race everyone wanted to win. It was a lot of prizemoney for a country race.
Wally’s winners were Bonslot and Slotalot, both owned by the Acton family, great stalwarts of Central Queensland Racing, and both trained by Clem Jackson with whom he had a long and successful association. The only other 2YO classic was won by the speedster Johnnycake Girl.
In spite of all the races Welburn won at Callaghan Park he has only one Rockhampton Cup trophy in his overflowing cabinet. It was Pathfinder Force for Barry Rosel on the sand.
And he won two Newmarkets on Bamako and Piper King.
“I ran plenty of seconds in both races and definitely should have won on Earlwill the year that Wagga sprinter King of Indies beat me,” he recalls.
The Welburn association with Rocky racing doesn’t stop with Wally. His wife of 43 years, Meryl who is not enjoying the best of health these days, has been an enormous help and influence on her husband, all the way and daughter Kylie is one of the most sought after track work riders and race day strappers in Rocky - and has been for years.
Meryl’s father, Horace Huff was an RJC employee for over 50 years and officiated as clerk of course of many of them.
Callaghan Park you might say - is and always has been, the Welburn family’s back yard.
