Cameron Lammas
Trish Dunell
Cameron Lammas attributes his best season in a decade to loving his work and staying injury free.
The Rotorua jockey and No.2 rider to Matt Cameron for the powerful Te Akau Stables has racked up 64 wins this term, his best tally since the 2005-06 season when he accumulated a career-best haul of 77.
"I'm just enjoying the riding," Lammas said. "When you are enjoying it, you make better calls. I'm doing a lot of travelling so I'm working for it, but with the good results, it's really paying off."
Lammas has been plagued by injury over the past few seasons, most notably breaking his leg in a horrific fall at Wairoa in February 2013 when doctors considered the need to amputate before managing to straighten the bones in two operations.
Famously, Lammas was reported as saying: "It's not very good when you're looking at your foot and it's touching your knee cap."
But despite the frustrating run of injuries, 32-year-old Lammas believes they may have been the catalyst for his resurgent form which has him equal seventh on the jockeys' premiership.
"It's my first full season in the last three years and it's been great being injury free. My body is right," he said.
"With those couple of years off I missed it, but I've always enjoyed riding. When you're not going so flash you don't enjoy it as much, but the day I stop enjoying it is the day I give up."
Lammas, who drives 45 minutes from the farm he leases with partner Tracey Parnwell to ride trackwork at Matamata, rode 22 winners in his comeback season last term, but said he had set himself the target of reaching 50 winners for this season, a goal he had to reassess after reaching the target with several months to spare.
"I've always set my goals to be in the top 10 on the premiership and to ride 50 winners in a season, but halfway through I changed that to try and ride 70 and I'm about six away from that now. I'm quite happy with what I've done.
"Riding trackwork for Te Akau has helped a lot. They've got a lot of horses and they send a lot down the line [to the central districts] and that's why I've ridden down there a lot.
"It works out. We share a lot of rides, me and Matt and Michael McNab does a few for them as well, and it works out pretty good. I'm just back into it and enjoying it."
Lammas rates his second placing in the Gr.1 Auckland Cup at Ellerslie aboard the Lance Noble-trained Rose Of Virginia as both his highlight and disappointment of the season.
"It was Lance's last runner as a public trainer and while it was a highlight, I would have loved to have won that for Lance," Lammas said.
Lammas will continue his quest to reach 70 winners with a useful book of rides at Te Rapa on Saturday, rating Our King Sway as the pick of his mounts.
"He burst through like he was going to win last start at Ruakaka, but he just came to the end of it late so maybe I went a touch early on him," Lammas said.
"Remind Me Again only just got beaten at Te Teko last start and he's a good honest horse and he'll be a good chance too. And I've got a couple of nice chances for Moira Murdoch there too." - NZ Racing Desk
The Rotorua jockey and No.2 rider to Matt Cameron for the powerful Te Akau Stables has racked up 64 wins this term, his best tally since the 2005-06 season when he accumulated a career-best haul of 77.
"I'm just enjoying the riding," Lammas said. "When you are enjoying it, you make better calls. I'm doing a lot of travelling so I'm working for it, but with the good results, it's really paying off."
Lammas has been plagued by injury over the past few seasons, most notably breaking his leg in a horrific fall at Wairoa in February 2013 when doctors considered the need to amputate before managing to straighten the bones in two operations.
Famously, Lammas was reported as saying: "It's not very good when you're looking at your foot and it's touching your knee cap."
But despite the frustrating run of injuries, 32-year-old Lammas believes they may have been the catalyst for his resurgent form which has him equal seventh on the jockeys' premiership.
"It's my first full season in the last three years and it's been great being injury free. My body is right," he said.
"With those couple of years off I missed it, but I've always enjoyed riding. When you're not going so flash you don't enjoy it as much, but the day I stop enjoying it is the day I give up."
Lammas, who drives 45 minutes from the farm he leases with partner Tracey Parnwell to ride trackwork at Matamata, rode 22 winners in his comeback season last term, but said he had set himself the target of reaching 50 winners for this season, a goal he had to reassess after reaching the target with several months to spare.
"I've always set my goals to be in the top 10 on the premiership and to ride 50 winners in a season, but halfway through I changed that to try and ride 70 and I'm about six away from that now. I'm quite happy with what I've done.
"Riding trackwork for Te Akau has helped a lot. They've got a lot of horses and they send a lot down the line [to the central districts] and that's why I've ridden down there a lot.
"It works out. We share a lot of rides, me and Matt and Michael McNab does a few for them as well, and it works out pretty good. I'm just back into it and enjoying it."
Lammas rates his second placing in the Gr.1 Auckland Cup at Ellerslie aboard the Lance Noble-trained Rose Of Virginia as both his highlight and disappointment of the season.
"It was Lance's last runner as a public trainer and while it was a highlight, I would have loved to have won that for Lance," Lammas said.
Lammas will continue his quest to reach 70 winners with a useful book of rides at Te Rapa on Saturday, rating Our King Sway as the pick of his mounts.
"He burst through like he was going to win last start at Ruakaka, but he just came to the end of it late so maybe I went a touch early on him," Lammas said.
"Remind Me Again only just got beaten at Te Teko last start and he's a good honest horse and he'll be a good chance too. And I've got a couple of nice chances for Moira Murdoch there too." - NZ Racing Desk
