Brooke Stower mustering Darling Downs support

By Jordan Gerrans

Hoop Brooke Stower believes she has the best of both worlds.

After establishing herself as a consistent jockey on the provincial circuit in Queensland and New South Wales over the last decade, she has split her time between mustering, among other tasks, on a station and riding in recent years. 

Stower has been based on a station 120kms north of Julia Creek for the last couple of years and has ridden at North and Central West meetings when it fit into her work schedule.

“I was riding for the fun of it, which was really nice,” Stower said.

“It has been really good to find the passion of it again, actually. I am living the dream, really. 

“The plan is to head back after the wet season, but we will see what happens.”

With the wet season slowing down the work on the station, the 31-year-old has headed back to the Darling Downs for a stint back riding where she cut her teeth in the caper.

She has already picked up two winners closer to the coast and is hopeful of nabbing a third in quick succession at Kilcoy Race Club on Wednesday.

The top jockey has one engagement in the Benchmark 62 Handicap over the speedy 800 metre journey as she will partner I'm Pinker from a wide alley for Toowoomba mentor Paul Wallace. 

The mare is only a newcomer to the Wallace camp but after two recent local trials, senior hoop Stower thinks the five-year-old should be competitive over the sprint trip. 

“They think the horse will go all right,” Stower said.

“Paul is a trainer in form and all his horses are very happy. This horse will be a chance. Paul has his eye in at the moment; all his horses are firing.

“I have ridden a bit of trackwork and jump-outs for him recently.

“He trained a winner at Chinchilla the other day and one on Saturday night at Toowoomba.”

City-level jockey Stower is a Toowoomba product and has ridden at a metropolitan level and across South East Queensland earlier in her career.

Stower has ridden in black-type races earlier in her career, as well. 

She was based in Tamworth and had ridden on the provincial and country circuit throughout NSW before relocating to regional Queensland in 2023. 

When she did ride in the bush over the last few years, Stower was prolific and displayed her class in the saddle.

She rode 14 winners last season at a touch over 22%.

It was the best strike-rate of her career to date. 

Stower only took the 62 rides in the 2024-25 season as she was mostly engaged in her role at the station.

Her season tally of rides last term dwarfs her 843 race day engagements just four seasons ago.

“I am so excited and lucky to be able to ride anywhere,” she said.

“I am getting offered plenty of nice rides and my weight is really good, I am really, really enjoying it being back around Toowoomba. I am happy to be back.”

Stower has already collected two winners this month, riding Equal Power to victory for Ben Waldron at Chinchilla as well as Kevin Sims’ Mr Evans at Clifford Park on Melbourne Cup day.

“That horse deserved it to, he has been running good races,” Stower said of Mr Evans.

“Kev has been poking about and he really looks after his horses.

“He does well and it was good to ride a winner and show that I can come back here and be back again.

“It was good to hit ground running and then back it up at Chinchilla, as well.”

Following Wednesday's Kilcoy meeting, Stower has rides booked for the Clifford Park meeting under lights on Saturday evening.