Leigh woodgate biography of barack

A bush horse race celebrating the history and culture of Australia's mountain cattlemen is working to attract more women to the male-dominated event.

The Cattlemen's Cup tests the horse and stock handling skills of some of the country's most talented riders.

It has traditionally been the domain of men, and although some women have taken out the top prize, few enter.

Elle Woodgate is one of a new generation of women who are becoming more actively involved in the race, thanks in part to a decision by the Mountain Cattlemen's Association of Victoria to open a women's division.

"I'd want to do well in the ladies' event before I went over into the open, just so you get a bit more used to the racing and that sort of stuff," she said.

Ms Woodgate grew up in the remote Victorian town of Buchan and is the third generation of her family to compete in the race.

She is the niece of bush-racing legend Leigh Woodgate, one of the first women to compete in many of the country's top cattlemen's competitions.

"I like going fast, it's a lot of fun, I like doing the whip cracking, so it's skills that you use every day when you're working on the farm,"

Now a jillaroo in the Northern Territory, Ms Woodgate said stepping into the arena on her borrowed horse Tequila was a nerve-wracking experience.

"You get there and you're shaking and you never know how you're going to go," she said.

"It could go good or it could go bad depending on the cattle or the wind and all that sort of stuff."

The race is part of the Mountain Cattlemen's Association of Victoria's (MCAV) get together, which attracts thousands of stock handlers and farmers, along with their dogs and horses, to the state's high country every year.

'If you want adrenaline come for a ride with those

Leigh tells her story in a candid and honest manner, she is confident on stage and enjoys meeting with and talking to people after her presentation. She received the only standing ovation of the many great speakers we had at Conference.

Leigh’s presentation is inspiring, at times funny, and told in the ‘no holds barred’ manner of a born and bred high country girl, who from an early age was keen to do all she could to mix it with the men in what could be, at times, a challenging environment.

Leigh’s resilience is remarkable, not only for the recovery she has made but even more so as she not only reached the point of being able to ride again, but has also returned to track work for a supportive trainer and longtime mentor.

Janne Speirs

Rotary International District 9820

A woman who was horrifically injured while competing as a jump jockey has revealed how she uses Botox as a treatment for her legs.

Leigh Woodgate, 50, was leading a race in rural Victoria in 1994 when her horse got tired and he buckled after making a jump - sending her flying head first into the ground.

She suffered two broken shoulders, punctured lungs, a broken jaw and five broken ribs.

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Her teeth were wired in, her left hip was broken and her third optic nerve in her left eye died. 

The accident put her in a coma for 17 days and leaving her with a severe brain injury. 

'I had to learn how to breathe without pain and swallow - they were the main things,' she said.

'I had to do it for survival - it wasn't a choice. I just had to do it.'

However, her injuries were far more severe than first thought - ten years later she found out her right ankle had been broken in five places and doctors hadn't realised as she'd previously been in a wheel chair.

Her ankle was fused and she has had five eye operations over the years. 

When she got out of the chair a lot of physiotherapists indicated that her legs would not progress from there