Showing Up: What We’re Hearing Across Racing

Over the past few weeks, the OnTrack team has been on the road, Cambridge and Karaka, Palmerston North, Foxton, Hastings. Training sessions, trackwork mornings, trials, race days, and more cups of coffee than we can count.

But honestly, some of the best moments haven’t been in the sessions themselves. They’ve been in the conversations that start as small talk and quietly turn into something real. The kind you only get when you’re actually there to see how people are doing, not just asking from a distance.

Here’s a theme we keep circling back to, horse people already know how to watch for wellbeing. They just don’t always think of it that way. Every day, you’re clocking the small stuff in your horses. Quieter than usual. Off their feed. Not quite themselves. You notice.

People deserve the same kind of attention.

We talked about this with the Cambridge Stud crew. We used horses as the entry point to talk about wellbeing with the whole team, stable staff, managers, admin, everyone. Many had done OnTrack training before, so it was a good chance to dust off those skills before the season ramps up.

It’s also a good reminder that you don’t need to be a counsellor to support someone. If something seems off, ask. You don’t need to have the answers. Sometimes all it takes is, “You don’t seem quite yourself lately, how are things, really?”

We heard that same openness at Waikato Veterinary Centre, where the team spoke candidly about the pressures of vet work and pushed back on the idea that mental health sits separate from workplace health. They’re keen to keep that conversation going with other teams across the facility.

At NZTR’s Cambridge office, the approach looked completely different. No formal session, just a wellbeing BBQ. Sausages, good company, and a simple reminder that support is there if you need it.

Sometimes that’s all wellbeing needs to look like. Not another programme. Just someone turning up.

That’s been true trackside, too. At the recent Foxton trials, we caught up with more than 40 people from around the Manawatu, trainers, jockeys, stable staff, whole racing teams. In Hastings, we sat with trainers and their crews chatting through the uncertainty of recent abandonments, and the particular strain of prepping a horse without knowing if race day will even happen.

When racing finally got back underway, you could feel it. People glad to be back, glad to see each other, and glad to see OnTrack out there too.

Away from the bigger events, the quieter conversations have stayed with us just as much. Trainers working in isolated spots, driving long distances just to reach a facility. Young trainers building something from nothing. People juggling racing and family. Others carrying weight you’d never guess from the outside.

It’s easy, as a trainer, to pour everything into the horses, the staff, the next race, the never-ending list. But you’re at the centre of all of it too, and you need looking after, the same as anyone in your care.

As the season picks up, take a beat to check in with yourself, not just your team. Are you doing okay? Getting enough support? If things got hard, do you know who you’d call? You don’t have to wait for a crisis to reach out.

We know the busy season is coming, and we know that means the pressure ramps up too. Here’s a quick exercise that can help you reset when things get full-on.

OnTrack is a free and fully confidential wellbeing support service for everyone involved in New Zealand racing. We provide practical support, connection and guidance for people facing challenges both inside and outside of work, whether that’s stress, financial pressure, relationship difficulties, grief, mental health struggles or simply needing someone to talk to. Alongside one-on-one support, OnTrack also delivers a range of wellbeing and suicide prevention training programmes across the industry, helping people build confidence to recognise when someone may be struggling and how to safely support them. We are also currently developing new bite-sized training modules designed to make important wellbeing topics easier to access, easier to engage with, and more practical for busy racing people.