TDN Q & A: Tom Wood

[Wandering Eyes]

Tom Wood is the latest addition to the talented group of presenters at the Hong Kong Jockey Club and will be working his first Longines Hong Kong International Races meeting this coming Sunday at Sha Tin Racecourse. A New Zealand native, Wood ascended to become the primary racecaller for the Singapore Turf Club in 2017 before accepting the Hong Kong position earlier this year. He is currently the number two commentator for the Club, backing up Brett Davis and does the majority of the race calling during the Wednesday evening meetings at Happy Valley, supplemented by barrier trials and the occasional Sha Tin assignment.

TDN: How did you get into racing?

Tom Wood: I got into racing through my family. My parents trained in partnership for many years and I was always around the stables back at home in Cambridge. My father was also a successful jumps jockey back in the day. Other than than my parents, my grandfather also used to race a few horses. So the interest was there from a young age, but I never ever wanted to get into the stable side of the industry.

TDN: At what point did you know you wanted to become a commentator?

TW: When I was younger I was always interested in commentating. Back at the stables we had a yard where I would make my brother run around it, while I stood on the roof of the stables (real safe) and calling out names. Probably dates back to then, and I used to go to the races and spend time with top NZ race caller George Simon. I was probably more of an annoyance at that stage but here I am today.

TDN: Where/when was your first job?

TW: I would call the odd trials meeting here and there, and every Boxing Day there was an equalisator meeting at a place called Pirongia–a mixed card of Thoroughbred and harness racing. That led to an opportunity to work for the New Zealand Racing Board (Trackside TV/Radio), firstly as a broadcast cadet working in Christchurch with retired NZ race caller Reon Murtha, who would critique my trial calls. My first live calls were at the Westport Harness on Boxing Day 2009, 10 races on the grass with big fields. I was then given the opportunity as the Otago Region race caller in August 2010, broadcasting thoroughbreds, harness and greyhounds. That was about 110 meetings a year and I did that for three years. Then I got the opportunity to be the Central Districts race caller (bottom half of the North Island) and was in that role from August 2013 to Dec 2016.

TDN: Describe briefly your experience in Singapore?

TW: I really enjoyed my time in Singapore, it was a lucky break and it was a chance to get my name out there further into the race calling landscape. When you can get an opportunity like that, it definitely gets your name out there more on the world stage. It was a big step having not lived anywhere outside of New Zealand before, but it was a no brainer. I was lucky to work for my first 13/14 months there under Matthew Jones who was the number one caller. He gave me plenty of feature race opportunities. Matt decided to move on and I was given the role as number one caller. Singapore was a great steppingstone in my career.

TDN: How has the transition been to calling races in Hong Kong? Has being involved in barrier trials has helped you in that transition?

TW: Having a bit of Asian racing experience certainly helped the transition, but it has not been easy. With every meeting and every day I continue to learn and develop. This is a field where you never stop learning and it’s so hard to get that perfect call. It rarely happens and that’s why you keep doing it to strive for that perfection. There is no shortage of barrier trials here, it helps keep your mind sharp. I did a few weeks of trials before I kicked off on raceday and that was a great decision, easing into it rather than going it boots and all.

TDN: You are predominantly charged with calling the action from Happy Valley. What unique challenges does that present?

TW: Happy Valley is unlike anywhere else I have called, it’s really challenging. Things happen so quickly there and being in a broadcast box so far away from the winning post (30m before) makes it very tricky. When they come off the home turn the and sprint for home the race can just totally change in the last 150m. Not only watching the horses out wide finish fast, you can get caught out by something flying up the rails when you least expect it, so it’s a place where you have to keep your guard up. More often than not there are blanket finishes as well and you can have horses stretched across the track far and wide. The atmosphere there is something else though on a race night and that adds to the theater of the place.

TDN: Which of the HKIR are you most looking forward to and why?

TW: This will be my first HKIR week, so that is exciting just in itself, but being able to see the worlds best jockeys and riders on one stage racing for nearly HK$100m will be a career highlight. Being able to work on a broadcast seen by millions around the world will be a big thrill. I am looking forward to the Sprint actually. The local charges will be hard to beat, but a good friend from Singapore, Kiwi Stephen Gray, is coming over to compete with Lim’s Cruiser. Stephen was very good to me in Singapore, a great sounding board on all things life and it will be a big thrill not to just see him run, but hopefully run well since I had the privilege to call him home in Singapore’s premier sprint race (Lion City Cup) back in May.

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