Chantal Sutherland is approaching the 1000 win as a jockey milestone. A few months ago it did not appear she’d ever reach that benchmark, as she was married, and dabbling in interior design and real estate. The fire still burned however, and after the marriage didn’t work out Chantal resumed her career and now 1000 wins looks like a when and not an if. Welcome back to the saddle Chantal.
She said: “I remember doing my yoga class and mentally getting myself ready,” she said. “This is a huge commitment, so I had to ask, ‘Is this really what I want to go back and do?’ Because it’s every weekend. It’s a lifestyle. I wondered what the other options were, so I weighed it out. Staying home, which meant staying home on the weekends. I’d get to watch football and racing, or maybe go camping. That wasn’t very interesting to me.”
“I thought I wanted to retire and be married and try being a wife,” Chantal Sutherland said. “I took an interior design course and did real estate. I did that, but I wasn’t totally fulfilled. There was something still missing. Being married was good for a few years and got a little rocky.
“Divorce is never fun, and that was sad. But we’re friends. I’m moving forward. I think he’s going to be good, and I’m better off here. Coming back to [racing], it was good to have a break again, but I did want to come back to it and it wasn’t the same idea as what my husband had in mind for me. We decided to part ways because my lifestyle to be a jockey doesn’t really work with his.”
Physically, Chantal Sutherland said when she returned to the track it wasn’t as hard as she thought it was going to be because she always works out and keeps great fitness. Her routine even if she is not riding, includes cardio, yoga, and indoor spin classes. Of course, nothing can replace riding a live horse, she did tip her hat in regards to being sore from returning to riding.
There’s no set timetable as for how long Chantal Sutherland will continue to ride as she stated she would take it day by day and see where it goes. We wish her all the luck in the world.
