Dylan’s not Dunn in the racing world
FORMER apprentice jockey of the year Dylan Dunn might have retired from the competitive racing circuit at the beginning of the year, but the 22-year-old has not been lost to the industry.
Employed by Racing.com as a form analyst and on-course interviewer, Dunn provides punters with the thoughts of the winning jockey directly after the race on horseback.
An essential tool for those who like to get the thoughts of the competitors directly after the race, Dunn admitted the challenge of getting his interviews right – with the added pressure of being aboard a horse – can prove troublesome.
“It can be pretty difficult,” Dunn told HorseBetting.com.au.
“Obviously horses are pretty worked up after a race and the adrenaline is still going through them, they are bouncing around and want to keep running, especially the better ones.
“Over the longer races they pull up okay, but when they are acting up a bit it makes it hard when you’re trying to think of questions and you’re also half playing a clerk role with the horse.”
Surprisingly for the former apprentice, watching the racing unfold is the onerous part of his job.
Dunn said he is sometimes forced to watch the race on his phone so he can devise his questions.
“The hardest bit is probably just trying to watch the race from the other side and then try and come up with a question that smart and relevant enough to make sense to what has unfold.
“Sometimes I will watch Racing.com as the race is going, but other times I just go off my knowledge as a rider as to how that horse went and what unfolded.”
The spring is the time of year where racing comes alive in Melbourne, and that is not lost on Dunn.
The former hoop said the report he has built with his former contemporaries has assisted in putting together a coherent and enjoyable post-race interview.
“It’s always a great time of year to be able to interview these types of riders,” Dunn said.
“I competed against a lot of these guys, it’s always great to interview those blokes, like I did with Craig a few times at the start of the night.
“It’s great to see guys like him bounce back after being hammered following Wednesday’s meet, and I get to see all the emotions of the winners and the guys who just missed out.
“Because I rode previously I know exactly what they’re going through, so I try and harness my best questions to try and get that out of them.”
Many racing enthusiasts were happy that Dunn was not lost to the industry following a terrific burgeoning riding career, and his astute mind is a vital part of the Victorian race day coverage.
While quite content being out of the saddle in a competitive sense, Dunn did admit he gets that racing itch around this time of year.
“Seeing a night like this, it does get the competitive juices following,” he said.
“As I said, you see all the emotions that I have felt and know too well myself and there is times like in the big group races where you hear the other jockeys talking and patting each other on the back and you just get that fire in the belly.
“It makes you want to get back out there, but I’m loving what I do now.”