John Tapp Racing

I caught up with John Wade at the recent Jockeys Reunion and the idea of a podcast immediately sprang to mind. He’s not the kind of bloke to talk about his many achievements in the saddle, but happily I was able to pin him down. John is now in his early 70’s, lives on the Gold Coast and works full time for a Pathology Company.  He tells us more about the job and the enormous number of miles he travels every week. John talks of early days at Newcastle following in the footsteps of his late father Bill, who dominated the Newcastle and Hunter riding ranks for many years. Bill won 13 Newcastle premierships. He recalls one thrilling Newcastle premiership which went right down to the wire. John recalls the Gunnedah barrier trial accident which terminated Bill’s career. He talks of the unorthodox way in which he learned to ride, and his subsequent indentureship to a legendary Newcastle trainer. John looks back on the predictable early career highlights- first race ride, first winner and first metropolitan winner. He