Teenager sets sights on becoming a jockey to follow family tradition

Loy is the youngest of three sons of former jockey and trainer Norm with his older siblings Brodie and Rylie also involved in the industry.

Brodie is an accomplished jockey who has ridden more than 500 winners.

Rylie also had intentions of becoming a jockey before weight issues forced him to switch paths and focus on becoming a stable hand.

He presently works for the Annabel Neasham stable on a full-time basis.

Josh's mother, Natalie, also had a stint in the local training ranks.

The 17-year-old recently completed Year 11 at Albury High School but has left to pursue a career as a jockey.

Loy has joined the Martin Stein stable where he rides track work and jump outs for the Albury trainer.

The next step to becoming a jockey is riding in official trials and gaining further valuable experience before formally applying for his jockey's licence to allow him to ride at race meetings.

"I always had ambitions of becoming a jockey and now I have quit school to pursue my dream," Loy said.

"So I've started my traineeship and the first step is to get ticked off for my track work certificate which will probably take about six months.

"Obviously dad is a former jockey and Brodie is riding in Queensland at the moment.

"To be honest, I haven't got many memories of dad being a jockey because I was a bit too young.

"But I've been riding horses since I was three which was when I first started in the pony club and have been involved with horses most of my life."

While constant weight battles have threatened the riding career of Brodie as he has gotten older, Riley weighs just over 50kg.

"The last time I jumped on the scales I was 51.8kg," Loy said.

"That's without watching what I eat and dieting.

"When I start riding, I want to be around 51kg... I'll be happy with that."

Brodie also started his jockey apprenticeship under Stein.

He enjoyed a dream start to his riding career when he partnered the Stein-trained L'Aubaine to victory at Donald in 2002 as a 15-year-old in his first race ride.

Norm was also the regular jockey for the Stein stable and had a good association with Trust In Dreams who broke the track record over a mile at Albury racecourse in 2002.

The record still stands today.

Loy said he was grateful for the opportunity Stein had given him to start his fledgling career with the stable.

"I can't thank Marty enough," Loy said.

"He only has a small team but has a fairly good strike rate considering.

"Obviously I'm still learning and sometimes a horse might bolt on me in track work but I've found that you learn from your mistakes.

"So Marty offers me some advice on what I'm doing wrong and if I want to be a good jockey I know that I've got to be able to handle some constructive criticism.

"Sometimes I know I test his patience but to Marty's credit he keeps putting me on and the more you ride the same horse, the better you get to know it and know what to expect.

"I've just started doing a few jump outs and that's the closest thing I've done to being a jockey so far.

"I've loved every minute of it and you get that adrenaline rush as the horse jumps out of the gate.

"So I can only imagine what it's going to be like in a race."

Stein said Josh was showing good potential as a jockey and expected him to gain his licence midway through this year.

"I've had the three boys come through the stable now and as most people know, had a bit of success with Normie as well," Stein said.

"Normie and I won a Berrigan and Riverina Cup and Trust In Dreams still holds the track record at Albury over a mile.

"I see a lot of similarities between Brodie and Josh in regards to their riding style.

"Josh has progressed to riding jump outs which is similar to a trial but not official.

"All the other jockeys and track work riders and getting around Josh and support him.

"Simon Miller especially has been working closely with him at the jump outs showing him how to hold a horse in the barriers.

"So the next step for Josh is official barrier trials.

"As a trainer I gave Simon Miller and Brodie their first winners and hopefully can do the same for Josh later in the year.

"Brodie was only 15 when he rode his first winner but Josh is starting out a bit later as a 17-year-old.

"But Josh was basically born on a horse and has been at pony club since he started pre-school.

"While Brodie was interested in playing AFL as a kid and didn't really start showing interest in being a jockey until he was a teenager.

"Josh is a very reliable kid and hasn't missed a day and has the potential to go a long way with his work ethic."