The Horse Breaker
Host: Lake Nash Station
Written by Luke Chaplain – Horsebreaker/Bronc Rider, Lake Nash Station.
G’day Central Station patrons! Good to be having a yarn with you all.
My name is Luke Chaplain, and I am originally from a cattle station North West of Cloncurry.
After graduating from high school I spent two years working on Boomarra Station (also North West of Cloncurry) owned by The North Australian Pastoral Company. Since then I’ve spent various other stints working on properties up north. I have however been getting my fix of urban activity from living in Melbourne for the past year. My main priority being based down South has been taking on the Victorian rodeo circuit and studying at the Australian Stunt Academy.
Luke bronc-riding.
I’ve decided blokes in Melbourne can be a little bit precious for my liking, so I recently headed back up North to where the men drink real beer that even contains carbs!
I’m very grateful to Fred and Sarah Hughes, managers of Lake Nash Station for throwing some horse breaking my way. Before arriving to Lake Nash I spent three weeks on Tierawoomba Station, owned by Hughes Pastoral Company, working closely with horse breaker Peter Moffat. It was fantastic to spend time with Pete and gain such valuable knowledge. Together we handled sixteen horses and broke in eight. One of the best tips I picked up from Pete is to ensure a low stress and calm environment when working with horses and to take your time. You want to work with the horse, not against it.
I went on to break in 12 horses at Lake Nash. All have potential and with more work and experience, they should turn out to be solid working horses used for mustering cattle. I will use this opportunity too to give a quick shout out to Fred – thanks bud for giving me some good practice for the National Rodeo Finals at Warwick this month. The stallion (father) of all the breakers, ‘Sovereign,’ has a slight reputation for breeding horses with a bit of buck in them! I didn’t hit the dirt but went close on several occasions!
Luke handling one of the young unbroken horses at Lake Nash.
Anyway, I loved the time I got to spend up North again. There’s a kind of magic about the bush you can’t explain . . . and it’s not just because of Veda’s (the Lake Nash cook’s) corn beef fritters . . . although they make every horse more worthwhile! If you’ve never ventured up to the outback, you’re missing out on life . . . and quite frankly, it’s very un-Australian of you!
Brood mares and foals to be broken in two years’ time.