Suraj Narredu

Winning a derby is special… always, anytime and anywhere in the world. Winning the Pune derby is, therefore, very special. What makes the win even better is that its taken me a few years to get there, and so crossing the winning post in style means a lot to me. It’s been a hectic week of festivities but the excitement and the winning feeling from the Pune derby is yet to sink in.

After 3 second-position finishes within the month, in group races, it began to get a bit frustrating. That’s why this win is well timed… I needed the win so badly to boost my confidence and it’s the same for any jockey in that phase. “Hills and Stars” is a very small and light looking filly and if u go by looks, she is no where close to looking like a great horse. But she definitely has the heart of a champion! I have always said to win big races you need great teamwork… and this win was a result of that. My trainer Vinayak has done a marvelous job to keep this filly going. She is a temperamental filly and very hard to train and the boys in the yard have worked hard too. They’ve made my job easy and my smile really big.

Coming to the actual race, everything went as planned… I wanted to make the first move in the straight and everything fell in place correctly. Full credit to the filly… she showed tremendous acceleration everytime I pushed her.

I have seen my father and uncle notch up several wins at the Pune derby… especially my uncle, Malesh Narredu, who has won the Pune Derby a record 7 times… I’m not there yet, but it’s a great start to be among the league of stars within my family.

Last week had another special win… I rode my fist winner for my uncle in the million. I wish I had ridden his first winner since he turned trainer, but winning a million race is also great. He’s been working really hard in his avatar as trainer and I am looking forward to ride many more winners for him.

Till then, wishing you all a happy festive season.

Firstly I’m extremely sorry for not blogging for so long. Frankly speaking I’ve just been lazy. Not that I don’t like chatting and airing my thoughts, but to put everything down to words if often tough.

A lot of people want to know why I’m not winning many races… that’s simply because I’m not riding that much. I’m trying to be selective, picking tougher races that strengthen a jockey and centres that are more demanding.

Also, as much as I love riding in Mysore, especially in the main season, the bitter experience I had last year in Mysore is still etched freshly in my mind.

It was a kind of torture I went through during that period. And since that horse has not won a single race after that, I am accepting less rides and being careful. It’s all a learning experience but some are harsher than others.

Anyway, recently I visited Calcutta for the Derby and was highly impressed with the way Dandified won. Had he run the Hyderabad Derby, I think he would have impressively won there too. He is a horse to watch out for in the Indian Derby, early next year.

More to come soon… appreciation, as always, for those to take time out to read and follow.

So finally, I am back from my short stint in the US and it was a unique learning experience. Back home, I am grateful to all those who have supported me through this phase. Fans and friends have regularly been following my races and they’ve kept me motivated all the time that I was in USA.

It was a great learning experience in terms of trackwork, working on a left-handed course, adapting my riding style and the whole racing environment was totally different. I feelmuch better after this stint… I feel fitter, stronger and more confident. The racing standards are unforgivingly tough and one has to give their 100% all the time. I did about 16 rides, one successful one which I won, had one second place finish, one third place finish and couple of 4ths. I wish I could have notched up a few more wins, but for that, there is next year and I look forward to coming back here and gaining more experience.

Despite the hectic schedule, I did have time for some relaxation and travel. I took a break for a week and visited New York and New Jersey where I did some shopping… which is something I rarely do. Unfortunately I could not visit the race-course because I was running short of time.

I missed racing in India, especially my home track. But this was a much needed break… and it was like going back to school, to a new class and learning something different… something which will shape my eventual professional career and personality. In fact, I encourage all Indian jockeys to move out of their comfort zone, and come abroad for a short stint. There is so much to learn, and any improvement in our abilities benefits the standards of racing in our country.

Personally, this confidence boost will do me good… and I’m now eager to prove myself in front of my home crowd, fans and followers of the sport. I ride ‘Lovely Kiss’ in the Derby this weekend… and this year’s Bangalore Derby will be the richest race on Indian soil. I’m hoping she will run well… it’s an open race and anyone can win it. I’m keeping my fingers crossed!

Yes I finally made it !!!

Riding Invisible Star to a 1 1/2-length win in at Arlington Park !

The victory has still not sunk in… the race is still very fresh in my mind. It was pouring like crazy on Sunday afternoon, and it was pitch dark from noon onwards with thunder, lightning and the works. Unlike in India, they don’t cancel races in America in such weather, especially given that the race was on a ‘polytrack’ surface, which is known to hold racing in such kinds of weather. Polytrackshave the best drainage facility, soaking in water quickly and effectively. A polytrack, or synthetic track as it is called in some places, is a mixture of fibre, wax and rubber. We don’t have such tracks in India, and riding on one has been a different and challenging experience for me. Riding to a win on such a track, is even more special.

I owe this win to Mr Tom Krish… I call him Tom Uncle, as he and Mrs Krish, whom I call aunty, have become a part of my family now. He has worked equally hard for me to achieve this goal. Tom Uncle backed me right from the start of this journey, which started 5 months ago, and it is he who laid the foundations for this process. This success would definitely have not been possible without his support. His dedication is so intense that he drives me to the track at 5:30 every morning, and the track is a good 40 minutes drive each way.

It’s not been easy here, with the amount of hours and the kind of effort that I have been putting in, along with all my support system which has helped me and made things comfortable for me. The hard work since day one has finally paid off. This victory is not just about me finishing ahead at the winning post, but it’s about taking Indian racing to the next level. People have begun acknowledging that Indian jockeys too, can ride well at this international standard and it’s a victory for all of the country.

And I promise you all that this is just the beginning. I plan to make a habit of winning. And your support is just what I need. So thank you all for being around, and watch this space for more from my travels and races in USA.

April turned out to be quite an action packed month with 3 back-to-back weeks of riding towards the end of the season. I rode 9 winners and although I missed my chances in the early weeks before, I felt I made a good come back towards the end.

It’s been a dream and I have been planning to ride abroad for quite some time now.  And the moment has finally arrived now to take off! I’ve got an opportunity to ride in the States. I’ll be riding at Chicago’s Arlington Park and race courses in and around the area.  This has taken us 5 months to get going and I wouldn’t have managed without the efforts put into this by Tom Krish.

No matter what lies in store for me ahead, I will always be grateful to Krish for the kindness and support he has shown to me. He says my success would be his reward! For nothing else, I know I will put in more than my best and make sure I live up to his expectations.

This is the first time an Indian jockey is attempting to ride in the West. No one from our country has ever managed to get this opportunity and while I feel blessed and privileged to be in the position that I am with all the support and encouragement I have received, this is also a position of great responsibility. There are many people who have asked me why I want to ride in the States when I am at the top here already. My answer for them is that getting any kind of experience and exposure and tapping in new avenues is always worth taking the risk. As they say, to gain something one must be ready to sacrifice something else.

Riding abroad has been on my mind for a while now and things have finally fallen into place. It’s important to challenge oneself and grow. While riding winners is a thrill, I was beginning to feel stagnated and felt the need to upgrade myself.

I am looking forward to my experience in Chicago, and no matter how rough the turf is in the West, I hope to make India proud.

Cricket fever has been the flavor this season – with the World Cup finally over and the IPL in full swing… It was a great new experience for me to be a contributing writer on the World Cup in Bangalore Mirror and sharing my experiences as viewer of the sport and a sportsperson from an alternative sport. I hope everyone enjoyed reading them as much as I did writing them…. It was a truly fantastic World Cup weekend – I remember watching the final with my friends at Fireflies. A fantastic atmosphere and we had a blast and of course Indian won to boot! Moments like these are what memories are made of – it was truly worth the hype and excitement! I’ve also just about gotten back to riding in the last couple of weeks and it feels great to be back on ‘horse-back’!

While there is joy and happiness in life there is also great sadness that goes along with it. Last weekend, I received a message from a friend that someone I was very close – a dear friend and colleague and one of my biggest well-wishers – a fellow jockey and batch mate – D. Mahendran had passed away. It was a serious accident a couple of months ago had left him in coma… So difficult to comprehend the loss of close friend – I remember him being the first one to call me after a race – and it didn’t matter if I had won or lost and especially if I had had a fall or was suspended. Always full of life and energy, he was ‘comic relief’ and loved to joke round and make every one laugh. He was always someone who did things for others and those he cared for – I remember it was only a week before his accident that we met for dinner at my hotel room in Mysore We had races the next day and he had a light weight ride, but because I am fond of the biryani from Hotel RRR he brought me just that! He tried to control himself and not eat but he said “Suraj, I don’t know if I’ll live tomorrow or not, so let me just enjoy the biryani for now and I’ll reduce my weight tomorrow morning. I’ll walk one round extra to reduce my weight!” It was a week later; we heard news of his accident. It really left me with nothing to say… how does one deal with a loss? – Especially one so jovial and friendly and full of life?

May his soul rest in peace. We all loved him and will miss him dearly.

Last year my attempt at blogging was mostly about racing and considering I haven’t really managed to that keep up I am going to try and talk about things other than my profession! This was the original idea for my blog anyway – to be able to communicate my ideas and opinions not just on racing but my life outside of that world as well… It would be nice to at some point in a later blog recap 2010 as the year gone by, reflect on the highs and lows personally and professionally… but for now, I’d like to start with sharing some of the fun things I do.

It’s been a hectic week… in the last 2 race days I’ve had 12 rides. Tiring as it was, I was keenly looking forward to a break and I got just that on the weekend. A fun Saturday night out partying with Riya (my wife) and some friends at a new place called Skye, was just what I needed. This, followed by a lazy Sunday morning lounging at home…

Off to watch 127 hours now… I’ve heard it’s a great film – nominated for several Oscars too. Shall talk more about that in my next post…

It’s almost been 4 months since my last blog post. A LOT has changed since then…. and so has the year! It’s 2011, a brand new year… and a brand new decade… and it all spells of great new achievements.

Writing a new post has been on my mind for a while now but its been a hectic start to the year, and I’m enjoying every bit of it.

It’s 2 months into the new year and I promise all fans lots of racing action, as well as plenty of wins from my end.

I don’t quite make resolutions… No one ever sticks to them anyway! But I am keenly looking at classics, graded and some racing abroad… and those are targets I plan to achieve this year. Mauritius was a great trip towards the end of the year and it’s always a learning experience. I’d like to be the highlight of Mauritius in 2011, and hopefully even get a run elsewhere in Asia.

My focus continues to be on the winning post… and my fan support will be just the right inspiration to gallop ahead of the rest of the competition.

I have often come across the cliché, “life is a rollercoaster”, but have never fully understood what this saying meant… until now. Life hasn’t been smooth sailing at all – I’ve had to work hard for each victory and just when I thought things were only going to get better, they didn’t! Consider this, I was a handful of wins short of the landmark 1000 on home turf, when the Bangalore weekend got disrupted. My entire family and support system was in Pune egging me on for that coveted 1000, but I fell short and headed to Hyderabad alone, on 999. And now, the latest twist – one suspension that will keep me out of action till mid-October and possibly another that will see me on the racecourse not before January next year.

What do I have to say about the suspensions? Obviously, they aren’t fair! I didn’t intend to be rude, aggressive or run a race below my abilities. I could have been let off with a warning – which is the norm – but had to sit on the sidelines for ‘misconduct’. And right when I am serving that red card penalty, another one came along for the race result in Mysore. No one races to lose and I don’t belong to the club which would sacrifice a race for monetary or other gains. The horse wasn’t good enough, and I couldn’t make it go beyond the limits it set for itself. Period!

Before I call myself a jockey, I am an ‘Indian sportsperson’ and I have never let down that sporting spirit. I promise an exciting comeback, to make up for all the lost time. I also plan to use this time for a lot of other work, which I wouldn’t have had the time for. Family remains priority, and so do my fans. I am planning a trip to Europe to catch some racing action and see how I can improve myself. I also have a lot of charity work, my old-school visit and similar stuff planned out for this period. I miss the race circuit, and the thrill of competition but I know this phase will only make me stronger!

Anxiety had been building up in the run up to my last few wins; I was very keen on hitting on that 1000 win mark in Pune, particularly because my family was with me. 10 rides in 2 days and all I needed to notch up to join that coveted club was 3 wins. It was a very intense weekend; I ran 5 seconds some very close verdicts but ended up with only 2 winners… there was a saddle slip in one of the races and I lost the race by a short head…

I wasn’t just racing for myself here, I was racing for my family, friends and fans… who’ve supported me, encouraged and pushed me through all my hardships to reach where I am today. Obviously, I wasn’t too happy with the way things were shaping up…

The next day in Hyderabad I was 1 win short with 4 rides in for the day. Having lost my first 3 rides – frustration started to build up inside me… and I was losing hope. Although I didn’t want my anxiety to hamper my performance, I was mentally preparing myself for a possible loss in the Nizam’s Gold Cup…

Looking back, however, I realize that there is always a plan – that when you want something bad enough the universe conspires to make it happen for you… and in a way you wouldn’t expect.

As the race started, I rode Becket with supreme confidence and he gave his heart out… and as destiny would have it… I won on Becket to a thrilling finish.

By the time I won the Indian Turf invitation Cup, I had ridden almost 950 winners but it was only then that I found my favorite horse – Becket. So riding my 1000^th winner on him is very special to me and will always be close to my heart.

Things happen for strange reasons and with this win i realized you can’t script your own destiny… I wanted to finish my 1000th in Pune, instead I won in Hyderabad at a graded race as prestigious as the Nizam’s Gold Cup Gr III and that too on Becket, my favorite.

I guess this was destined to happen and that’s why they say – whatever happens, happens for the best!