For most of us, the thought of waking up every morning at 4am to go to work is far from pleasant.
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Bendigo’s Zach Scullie wouldn’t have it any other way.
For Scullie, rolling out of bed at 4am to ride trackwork at the Bendigo Jockey Club is a privilege, a way of life and a distraction to the tough times that lie ahead.
The 23-year-old was recently diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease – a genetic neurodegenerative disease that presently has no cure.
Symptoms usually don’t appear until a person is aged between 35 and 55 and from the onset of symptoms people with HD have a life expectancy of 10 to 25 years.
Scullie hasn’t let his life changing diagnosis weigh him down and he’s using the industry he loves to raise awareness of HD.
Scullie’s partner Montana Philpot is the daughter of Bendigo horse trainer Gus Philpot.
Through the assistance of Gus and Donna Philpot, Scullie has registered HD jockey silks and the colours will be sported for the first time by the Philpot’s filly She’s Beneficial in Saturday’s Elmore Cup at the Bendigo Jockey Club.
“Everyone takes news like that (HD diagnosis) differently and I’ve been lucky enough to have these guys (Philpot family) and the horses to help me,’’ Scullie, who is also a barrier attendant for Racing Victoria, said.
“I love being part of the racing industry and getting these colours organised has actually been a big thrill.
“This is just something little we can do to help get the awareness out there.’’
The owners of She’s Beneficial have agreed to have the horse race in the HD silks every start she has, while Scullie part-owns two other horses in the Philpot stable that will also sport the silks.
“It’s a credit to Zach, instead of being negative about it he’s trying to take the positives out of it,’’ Gus Philpot said.
“We were sitting around having a beer one night and he said “why don’t we get some colours made up to help raise awareness of HD”.
“Huntington’s Victoria and Racing Victoria have been a great help. If these colours can help raise a little bit of awareness and money for the cause that would be great.
“Hopefully, punters see the colours going around and if they have a win they can jump on the Huntington’s Victoria website and donate some money.”
Anyone wishing to donate money to Huntington’s Victoria can log on to www.huntingtonsvic.org.au
