The Melbourne Cup tour and one of the race’s most famous winners, Michelle Payne, brought some much-needed joy to the town of Rochester on Friday.
The racing industry gave Rochester a much-needed hug on Friday – the sort of warm embrace that can lift the spirits of a town still dealing with the mental scars and ongoing financial fallout of devastating floods.The hug came in the form of the Melbourne Cup tour. People and children lined the now-dry streets, as the cup rolled through town, hand-in-hand with this year’s Melbourne Cup Carnival ambassador Michelle Payne.
People were uncertain and afraid. They were forced out of their houses, overnight bags hastily packed and slung across their shoulders, and they waded to waiting tractors and trailers to be pulled to safety. Those in deeper waters had to wait for a boat.For Atley, it felt like something he had only ever seen on TV – footage of natural disasters unfolding in Third World countries. It was the start of 48 hours from hell, followed by another two years of heartache.
It is fair to say, she is now glad she did. Payne posed with excited members of the club and their ponies on Friday before a question-and-answer session.The pony club went under in 2022, covered by a metre of water. Acocks said they had to band together and start again, even those who had to deal with damage to their own homes.
It was during this time, she says, she learned to milk cows, tend calves, feed chooks and work race horses.“Living on a dairy farm just shapes you in ways you can’t even imagine because of the hard work and discipline every single day,” Payne said. He first met the family when he was at teachers college in Ballarat and his father had a horse trained by Paddy snr.“I used to call out and say g’day to Mary and Pat,” he said. “And it’s nice that I can tell Michelle that I have met her mum.
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