John Tapp Racing

A nasty fall in the 2005 Doomben Roses brought down the curtain on the stellar career of Michael Pelling who won over 900 races and 4 Brisbane premierships. Eager to find a new project Mike developed a gold driving range at Carseldine. Mike talks of the sale of the driving range and his move to a new challenge- a wedding reception centre and resort at Maleny on the Sunshine Coast. The former champion jockey looks back on a Supreme Court case in 1998 in which another jockey sought damages for injuries sustained in an accident 14 years earlier. He lost the case and was left with a huge bill. Mike recalls the Eagle Farm fall which left him with a ruptured disc. He overcame sciatic nerve pain to get back into the saddle less than a year later. He talks of the constant back pain and his staple diet of anti inflammatories from that point on. Mike takes us back to childhood days on the Atherton Tablelands, and recalls the work ethic of his remarkable parents. He looks back on the fun days of riding ponies on t