Apprentice rider Andros making good impression

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – If hard work is one of the ingredients to success, then apprentice Corrine Andros is on her way to a solid career as a jockey. She also displayed burgeoning talent when she won four races at Hastings last Saturday.

It is difficult to track down Andros in the morning because she’s one of the hardest-working jockeys at Hastings and is usually exercising or working a horse. She wouldn’t have it any other way.

“This isn’t work,” Andros said. “I go a bit crazy if I’m not on a horse.”

Andros, 21, started getting on horses at a very young age when she was growing up in Vanderhoof, B.C.

“I was pretty much born on a horse,” Andros said. “My mom and sister taught me how to ride western. As soon as my sister could lead me around, I was riding in barrel races at rodeos. I think I was just 2 years old.”

Andros knew she wanted to be involved in horse racing but didn’t know anybody in the industry. She decided to take the exercise rider and jockey training program at Olds College in Olds, Alberta, about 45 minutes outside of Calgary.

“I wouldn’t have gotten into the horse-racing industry without going to Olds,” Andros said. “My family didn’t know anything or anybody that raced horses. We watched the Kentucky Derby every year. That’s what made me want to become a jockey, but that was about it.”

After graduating in 2011, Andros gravitated toward Hastings. She was close to beginning her career here last year but sustained rib injuries when a saddle on a horse she was riding broke. When she recovered, she ended up riding at the bush tracks in Alberta at Grande Prairie and Lethbridge, where she won 11 races.

“I actually wanted to ride there and get some experience before I rode on a bigger track,” Andros said. “It was a lot different riding there, but I gained a lot of experience and came into this season a lot better prepared.”

One of Andros’s biggest supporters is trainer Dino Condilenios. Two of Andros’s wins last Saturday came on horses he trains, Willamette and Modern.

“I said last year I thought she was going to be a good rider, and I still maintain that,” Condilenios said. “She galloped and worked a lot of horses for me, and they all seemed to run for her.”

Condilenios also is impressed by how she gets along with horses who can be a handful at times.

“A lot of young, light riders can’t handle tough horses,” Condilenios said. “If they get a little headstrong, the next thing you know they’re on heels and getting in all kinds of trouble. I think the reason she can handle them is the way she sits on a horse. She’s very quiet, sits nice and still, and most horses tend to like that.”

Condilenios cited her ride on Modern as an example of how she can get a tough horse to relax. Modern looked completely relaxed while he dueled with either Stole It or Go for Guinness in the 6 1/2-furlong first-level allowance sprint for 3-year-olds and up. He looked like he was beaten when Go for Guinness edged past him inside the sixteenth pole, though.

“Modern is a very nervous horse, and I told Corrine not to pick at him or bug him,” Condilenios said. “She rode him perfectly. When Go for Guinness made the lead, she went to work on Modern, and he came back and won the race. It was a great ride.”

It is hard to find anyone more excited about what they are doing with their life than Andros. Her work ethic combined with the unbridled joy she gets from riding horses will take her a long way.

“This is it for me,” she said. ”There is really nothing else I want to do.”

She’s also open to suggestions from other riders on how to improve her skills.

“I know I still have a lot to learn, and the really good riders here have been very helpful to me,” she said. “They not only point out my mistakes but also when I do something right.”

Andros didn’t make many mistakes last Saturday, and with her enthusiasm and willingness to learn, her future looks bright.