Leslight completes his apprenticeship through the Oakey-based Mesken barn while also riding track work on a full-time basis for the Sears team at Clifford Park.
Respected Toowoomba conditioner Tony Sears, who trains in partnership with his daughter Maddysen, hopes to play a role in Leslight’s dreams of making his mark on the riding ranks in the Sunshine State.
“He has been very good and helpful, I have seen him grow from being a pretty inexperienced track work rider to what he is today,” Sears said.
“He is an accomplished track work rider and he is a big help to our stable.
“One thing he is as a person is very reliable, I have never seen him not turn up for work, he is there every day until when he is required before he heads off to ride work for Stacey.
“We are very happy he can ride work for us before he goes to Stacey’s place, which helps him gain experience at different places.
“Hopefully he can make the grade as a jockey in the future.”
Leslight was set to add to his one career race ride at Dalby last weekend, booked to ride a Sears-trained galloper, but a tumble at track work the day before forced him to the sidelines for the next few weeks after suffering ligament damage to his thumb.
He is a popular member of the racing fraternity on the Darling Downs, with countless participants – including experienced trainer Lindsay Hatch, stopping in to check on Leslight and the cast on his arm during Tuesday’s jump-outs.
To detail and explain his personal struggles over the years, Leslight hopes others in the racing game can take solace from his message.
“I have got nothing to hide and I see my position now as using this as an opportunity to make it easier for other people in my position that want to get involved in racing,” he said.
“If you have got a question, I would prefer you come up to me and ask instead of making assumptions or gossip around.
“I am more than welcome to help educate people, you aren’t telling them anything, you are just educating them so they know and understand going forward.
“I am involved with social media and there are so many people around in my position and those people have so little worth and they think they will never be able to amount to anything in life.
“Hopefully me doing this, it does not matter what industry you are in, you can do it, you need to be true to yourself and work hard.
“You can’t be that person that thinks they can’t have something, if you work hard for something you can achieve anything.”
Set to turn 23 years age in September of 2022, Leslight’s path towards transitioning started when he was 15 years old.
It is not a simple situation to medically transition, for the up-and-coming hoop it included dozens of visits to clinics and psychologists for almost three years up until his 18th birthday when he was permitted to start using hormones.
As soon as the doctors allowed him to begin taking hormones, he did.
“I was lucky enough to figure out who I was as a person, so I started my medical transition” he said.
“It was really, really tough, mentally…you spend a year-and-a-half with a counsellor making sure this is the exact thing that you want and mentally for me, it was a big deal.
“I was scared but at the end of the day, I was not happy the way I was and at the end of the day, I knew if I medically transitioned then I would be happier and that is exactly what has happened.”
One of the main side effects of the hormones was weight gain – which for a person aiming to make their way as an apprentice jockey could prove disastrous.
Leslight has knuckled down and is at the gym three times a week – on top of riding work every morning – as he keeps his weight at a manageable level as he takes his first few rides.
Tyler mentions being unhappy as a teenager.
As a 22-year-old man living and working in racing, he has never been happier.
“Honestly I ride horses every day for a living and I have got great people around me that are willing to help me,” he said.
“Even if you lose people in your social life or your family life, at the end of the day, if they do not want to support you in your life and your decisions, then they are not worth having anyway.
“I may have lost a couple of family members due to their judgements, but you need to surround yourself with people that support you.”