Podcast appearances and mentions of Keith Ballard

REPRESENTATION IN FURRY VISUAL NOVELS? (Dialog Choices Podcast #116) by Keith Ballard

WHEN GRAPHICS SETTINGS HIT BACK (Dialog Choices Podcast #114) by Keith Ballard

TOASTER ON WHY BLOODBORNE IS GENIUS (Dialog Choices Podcast #113) by Keith Ballard

We had our podcast interview with Keith Ballard safely “in the can” before he reported for duty at Saturday's Julia Creek Cup fixture at Mount Isa. It's now history that the legendary jockey went out a winner on the final ride of his 55 year career. Keith was winless in the first four races, but turned it around in the last when he went straight to the lead on Metal Bar and romped home by more than five lengths in the Julia Creek Cup. The fairy tale was enhanced by the fact that Keith's wife Denise trains the winner. Two days earlier we caught up with the 71 year old to reminisce a little about his remarkable career. He began by revealing that Denise had been trying to get him to retire for quite some time. He talks about a recent Cloncurry win on Capiteel for his trainer wife and acknowledges the support of trainer Tanya Parry. Keith talks about Denise's former riding career in an era when female jockeys were battling for recognition. He says Denise isn't too tough on him when his judgement is astray. The veteran says he was humbled in the extreme when the Ballards of Mount Isa were inducted into the Racing Queensland Hall Of Fame in 2021. Keith talks about the likelihood of withdrawal symptoms in the months ahead. The evergreen horseman says his nerve has remained intact.  He gives a few reasons for his longevity as a professional jockey. The Longreach born horseman says he was initially inspired by the riding success of his uncle Jim Ballard.  Keith pays tribute to his stoic and hard working mother, and speaks of his six brothers. He recalls his very first race ride, and an unforgettable first win on the very same horse.  Keith says he's been relatively lucky when it comes to race falls, but he looks back on one bad buster at age 62- the worst fall in his long career. That fall occurred at remote McKinlay best known as the venue for many scenes in the famous Crocodile Dundee movies. Keith remembers some of the best horses he's ridden over more than half a century. His number one vote goes to Mr Ziesel, big by stature and big on ability. He pays tribute to the consistent Kerr Street. He won nine races on the horse in one season including the 1983 Darwin Cup. Keith remembers King Wells. He won 17 races on the former Victorian. The veteran says his career wouldn't have been complete without a Birdsville Cup win. He ticked that one off the bucket list in 2009. Keith talks about Sahara Canadian. He won 11 races on the grey, including one at faraway Ballina. He talks about another prolific winner in Be Somebody. He once drove 1000km to ride the horse at Darwin even though he knew the gelding couldn't win. Keith pays tribute to a handful of jockeys for whom he had special admiration. He makes special mention of a talented bush trainer. Keith pays a heartfelt tribute to son Dan, a very talented jockey whose career has been terminated by weight problems. Ballard says his failure to ride a metropolitan winner doesn't faze him too much. He talks about a handful of other jockeys who rode into advanced years. It was a great pleasure to talk to a genuine Queensland racing icon.

Saturday was an amazing day at Woodbine. The longest shot, Wicked Django won the Autumn Stakesat 24-1. A horse called Nobals won the Kennedy Road Stakes and needed huge cahones to get past Patches O'Houlihan. Earlier in the card, Sahin Civaci won 3 races as he has virtually clinched the riders' title at Woodbine. The 12th race was a mandatory Super Hi-5 payout. The winner was 79-1, and when no one correctly bet the first 5 horses, the payout for 4 was spectacular. Emma-Jayne Wilson joins us on the phone to talk about the terrible accident she sustained in October. Wilson, 43, vows she will ride again. Woodbine's Bill Ford explains the abundance of caution that the track employed, cancelling races after 3 horses died on November 9. At Chelmsford Race Course in England, how close did jockeys and horses come to catastrophe when the starting gate could not be moved off the track? And 71-year-old Keith Ballard, Australia's oldest jockey, wrote a Hollywood ending to his 55-year career.

Sam Lane and Lehmo caught up with Port Adelaide AFLW coach Lauren Arnell, Hobart Hurricanes run machine Lizelle Lee and Australia's oldest jockey Keith Ballard just to name a few. The team also covered rugby, cricket, motor racing and soccer as well as a chat with the Stingers first female coach to lead them to an Olympic Games in Bec Rippon. Catch it all here. 

ANDREW V. HORROR (Dialog Choices Podcast #111) by Keith Ballard

UZUMAKI: BETTER THAN EXPECTED? (Dialog Choices Podcast #110) by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 7 FINALE - JUSTICE by Keith Ballard

WHAT ZELDA GETS WRONG ABOUT ZELDA (Dialog Choices Podcast #109) by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 6 - PAPA COYOTE by Keith Ballard

Wow, I Can't Believe Keith Definitely Actually Hates Astro Bot (Dialog Choices Podcast #108) by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 5 - What's Outside? by Keith Ballard

Black Myth: Wukong Is Garbage and Here's Why (Dialog Choices Podcast #107) by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 4 - The Minotaur by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 3 - The Eye and the Eyeless by Keith Ballard

QUESTIONS WITH TOASTER - Games Lost to Time (Dialog Choices Podcast #106) by Keith Ballard

Is Paid Early Access Scalping? (Dialog Choices Podcast #105) by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape 2 Week 2 - KNIFE RAT by Keith Ballard

The Worst Mechanic in Gaming (Dialog Choices Podcast #104) by Keith Ballard

How Can I Answer Every Question With Mass Effect (Dialog Choices Podcast #103) by Keith Ballard

Can a Prequel Not Suck? (Dialog Choices Podcast #102) by Keith Ballard

Dragon Age: Veilguard - Xbox and Playstation Showcases 2024 Reactions (Dialog Choices Podcast #101) by Keith Ballard

A Critical Look at Indigo Park (Dialog Choices Podcast #99) by Keith Ballard

Scaring a European by Describing American Schools (Dialog Choices Podcast #98) by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #97 - Sony Burns Down Helldivers by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #96 - Dragon's Dogma 2 is a Weird Mess by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 8 FINALE - The Lord of Decay by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 7 - The Lord of Fear by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 5 - The Lord of Hunger by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 6 - What We Run Away From by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #95 - Helldivers 2 Gud by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 4 - The Hero of Southpaw by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 2 - Deal with the Devil by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 3 - Long Horse by Keith Ballard

Deadlaws Week 1 - A Furry Actual Play Played in Deadlands: the Weird West by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #93 - The Death of the Searchable Internet by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #92 - Lethal Company Gud by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #91 - ETHICS IN VIDEO GAMES by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #90 - The Nature of RPGs by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #89 - The Industry Dumps Unity by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #88 - Edgy Sense of Humor by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #87 - “eNvIrOnMeNtAl sToRyTeLlInG” by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape Week 7 FINALE - Breaking the Contract by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape Week 6 - THROATKNOT by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape Week 5 - BOSS FIGHT! by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #86 - TOASTER DEFEATED! by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape Week 4 - It's All Gone Wrong by Keith Ballard

Dialog Choices Podcast #85 - I Am Recruiting All of You to Defeat Toaster by Keith Ballard

Cape Escape Week 3 - There. Is. No. Lighthouse. by Keith Ballard