Emily Harrison didn’t know if she’d ever walk again, let alone race ride, when confronted with the life-changing news that she had a tumour growing in her spinal cord.
Coincidentally, it was horse racing that ‘saved’ Emily’s life, with a trackwork mishap leading to the diagnosis.
“A horse at trackwork flipped over on me, and funnily enough, the horse ended up saving my life,” Harrison told Country Punter.
“I rode at Bedgerabong last year, and after that, I was on a horse at the track for Scott Aspery, as his trackwork rider didn’t turn up, and as we were walking to the track, it flipped over on the concrete.
“I had a bad concussion and sore neck, and they were doing all these scans, and then a couple of days later, they told me they had found a tumour between the C7 and T1.
“With the size of the tumour, it was putting pressure on my spinal cord, and at any point in time, it could have put enough pressure on it where I became a complete paraplegic.”
Labelling it a ‘tough recovery’ is putting it lightly. The popular picnic jockey underwent major spinal surgery followed by months of rehabilitation.
“I didn’t know if I would get back on a racehorse,” Harrison said.
“I went in for the surgery within two weeks of them finding it, and after that, I lost all sensation from my chest down, and I had to learn to walk and do everything again.
“The majority of the tumour is gone, and now it’s about monitoring it for the rest of my life, so it doesn’t grow back.”
With a sensational support network, including her fellow riders at Kris Lees Racing and especially, Matteo Scorsese, the 24-year-old worked hard to get back to trackwork riding before making a race-riding return at Bedgerabong earlier this month.
“I’m so lucky for my family and friends who helped me through a tough period,” Harrison said.
“I managed to get back to riding my horse, and Kris Lees helped me get back to trackwork riding, and before the Bedgerabong meeting, I got the all-clear to go back to race riding.
“When I was first able to start riding at the track, they brought in the pony to let me ride it around the track to build confidence and strength before I was able to get on a proper racehorse.
“They looked after me. They don’t put me on anything a bit cheeky, and Kris has been able to give me a few trials, along with jumpouts and gallops.”
Harrison rode at Condobolin on the weekend and will be in the saddle at Yass this coming Saturday.
“I’m just happy to be back race riding, and I’d obviously love a winner,” Harrison said.
“The best thing is being amongst that community at the picnics, and at my first meeting back at Bedgerabong, everyone was welcoming, and it meant a lot to have that support.
“I missed that a lot when I was out, and now I’m looking forward to hitting every meeting I possibly can and getting as many rides as I can.
“I’ve got to build my strength up, so I’m not going crazy, but I want to get back to where I was.”
To book Emily Harrison for rides, call 0475 073 529.
