Aspiring trainer building for the future at Nanango Race Club

By Andrew Smith

Jimmy Smith always loved being around horses and racing, but could never fully pinpoint where his enthusiasm for the industry stemmed from.

It wasn’t until he moved to Nanango and discovered his grandfather Frank Mills was a long-time horse trainer that he suddenly understood why he loves racing so much.

Smith is now busy putting that passion to good use as a jack of all trades through his volunteer work at the Nanango Race Club.

For his dedication and commitment to the club, the 33-year old is the latest winner of Racing Queensland’s Cheer A Volunteer award.

Smith explained how a move to the South Burnett town in July 2024 sparked his interest in becoming involved with the club.

“My grandfather's been a trainer in Queensland for 45 years, and part of us moving out here was to eventually start training out of the Nanango Race Club,” Smith said.

“When we first moved to town, I wanted to get involved with the club, and it's just evolved from there.

“It’s a huge honour, I can't thank Racing Queensland enough and I can't thank the club enough.

“Especially our team of volunteers that helped me out and allow me to get our jobs done - I couldn't do it by myself and I just want to thank them from the bottom of my heart.

“Volunteers are getting fewer and fewer as the years go on - especially younger volunteers - and that's a big reason why I wanted to get involved is to show that young people can still do their bit for the community.

“The best part about being involved is the friendships you make and the people you meet, and also working for something better for your community, learning new skills and basically helping families and punters and the community alike enjoy their race day.”

The club hosts multiple race days a year, with Nanango Cup Day their next meeting on Saturday, August 8.

Smith and his fellow volunteers will collect and set up all the tables and chairs in the lead up to a race day, as well as setting up the Fashions on the Field stage, stocking the canteen and bar, and ensuring the track is ready to race on.

On race day, he will be found in the BBQ hut cooking up a storm with the rest of the team.

But it is Smith’s work in between race days that has proven to be the most valuable for the Nanango Race Club.

A builder by trade, he will use his skills at no cost to the club, helping save thousands of dollars.

“The tie-up stalls is one of the biggest ticket items we've ticked off - to get a professional company in there, they would have charged us probably up to $30,000-$40,000 if not more,” Smith said.

“But we were able to do it all ourselves at a cheaper rate and it was very viable for the club.

“There was a lot of rust and everything like that happening at the bottom of the tie-up stalls, so we treated all the rust, did all the structural works…we put rubber in front of all the tie-up stalls for the horses, so they have a bit more of a comfortable race meet.

“We've also replaced every single external door in the whole place, and we’ve also installed a door to the stewards’ room at the request of QRIC so no public could get in there.

“We also did the rest of the picnic tables under the seating areas too.”

Committee member Tom Freeman paid tribute to the hard work of Smith and his team behind the scenes, which has proven to be financially valuable for the country club.

“We’ve asked him in the past to build stuff around the place to make a race day successful, and Jimmy's never balked at that - he'll just say 'yeah when do you need it?' and you can be assured it'll be done,” Freeman said.

“Finance is important to any club, and you’ve got to watch every dollar.

“It'd be quite easy to get contractors in and to do whatever needs to be done, but if we can rely on volunteers and expert advice from our volunteers, it's certainly a saving.

“That way we can use our funds for good reasons and a good purpose, and it adds to the longevity of the club.

“Jimmy has given us a lot of technical support and given us ideas on how things should be done.

“With his enthusiasm combined with his knowledge, it's been a good combination, and it's helped the club move forward and gives a bit of direction in that field.”

While he will continue his volunteer work, Smith has now turned his attention to emulating his grandfather and taking out his training licence.

Mills trained a runner-up in a Magic Millions race back in the 1990s, something his grandson is hoping to go one better in.

It’s a lofty ambition for Smith, but the passion for the industry has always been in his blood.

“I want to get my trainer's licence solely on the fact that my grandfather's been involved in it for almost 50 years,” Smith said.

“I actually didn’t know my grandfather before I moved out here and we reconnected upon moving out here and found out the reason why I actually loved horses and loved going to race tracks and all the rest of it.

“The top goal would be to buy a horse out of the Magic Million sales and have a horse run in the Magic Millions, like my grandfather did back in the 90s.

“He actually got a second place - so I want to atone that for him, get him a first place, and it was a protest on how he lost, so that's the whole reason why I want to get into it, and give him a Magic Millions winner.

With a handful of trainers in the region, the club is hopeful of having up to 10 trainers based there in the future following the refurbishment of the training track.

Boosting the training ranks and introducing younger people into the industry will be key to the future of Nanango and other country clubs.

Freeman said Smith would head into the training caper with the full blessing of the Nanango Race Club committee.

“I wish him all the best, and I think there should be more of it, regardless of your motivation,” Freeman said.

“His is motivated by family and the want to be around horses, and that's a good thing…I like to support him as much as we can”

“He's got youth on his side, enthusiasm, and he gets on with people, he's a good people person.

“He's a good, reliable, dedicated volunteer, and he's the sort of bloke that we need to get into clubs like this to ensure the future of clubs - not just this club, but any race or sporting club for that matter.”

Clubs are encouraged to nominate their valued volunteers for the award, which is sponsored by Mittys.

State-wide, there are more than 8,300 volunteers who make an invaluable contribution to the industry, providing their time and expertise to sustain Queensland’s three codes of racing.

Click here for more information on Cheer A Volunteer and to nominate.