I AM the sole remaining member of an original staff of seven which made up the workforce of RACE which was based in Curragh House in the early eighties. This month I will celebrate 31 years in the job, although I can tell you, I am not ready to retire just yet!

As a child growing up in Rathcoole, Co Dublin, I had no interest in racing and it may surprise many, that despite my job, I have never attended a race meeting in my life. From as early as I can remember, I always wanted to be a secretary in an office and once I finished school, I set about achieving that childhood dream. Initially I got a job in the typing pool of a local paper mills, where I spent five years. I then advanced to the secretarial area and spent a number of years working in different companies gaining experience as I went along. Having met and married a Kildare man in 1979, I settled in Kildare town and travelled daily to Dublin to work for five years. The travelling got very laborious so I set about finding a job in my adopted county. I heard that RACE were looking for someone to do a few hours a day, so I put my name forward and the rest is as they say history.

RACE was established in 1973 and when I joined, the academy comprised the late Derek O’Sullivan, five others and I. Derek was in charge of the office at RACE and managed it singlehandedly until I joined the team in 1984. I was employed to look after the administration and payroll - a tedious process in those days, as all the account ledgers had to be written by hand. I prepared the financial accounts for the academy and passed them to the accountant at the end of the month.

Derek and I were the only staff in the office, and when the new training centre was opened, the administration became too great a task and we had to take on more staff. At the present time, I look after the administration for the trainee jockeys, submit the Solas paperwork, do the payroll (which now caters for a staff of 30), telephone and reception. I get great job satisfaction from my role in RACE, the staff are a pleasure to work with, and it is gratifying to feel that in some small way, I may be able to help the young people as they start off on their chosen career path.

The Academy has changed a great deal since I first started 31 years ago. We now have a staff of 30, both full and part-time, whereas I was one of only seven, 30 years ago. The new training centre boasts state of the art facilities and is a credit to all involved. The gym is particularly impressive and having stables and our own horses is a wonderful asset for all the students. The student accommodation has also greatly improved over the past three decades - the original ‘pre-fabs’ being replaced by proper dorms.

I have seen a number of staff come and go over the years and I am proud to be still here doing the best I can to help the young men and women who will go on to make a name for themselves in the racing industry. I have got to know many of them over the years and can put faces to some of the names - I think it’s the ones that continuously got into trouble and were in and out of the office, for some reason or another, that made the most lasting impression!

Away from work, I am a big GAA fan and support Kildare who have not been doing very well this season. Hopefully there will be better days ahead and having followed the ‘Lilywhites’ through thick and thin over the years, I am hopeful they will soon see better times. My family are all grown up now so I have some time to myself, which also allows me to indulge in my other passions - reading, walking and gardening.

Dorothy Patterson was

in conversation with

John O’Riordan