The man he respected the most as a horse breaker, was an Aboriginal stockman named Joe Morris. Today, Joe would have been called a horse whisperer. Joe knocked off work at lunch time on Saturday and broke the horse in for dad and he rode it to school on Monday.

On leaving school at 14, Tom started work at Yarrowitch station for the Vickery family as a stockman and he was the last stockman living who had worked on Yarrowitch station.

Dad made his first saddle for his sister Pat to ride to school and whenever he was able to he spent time with the master saddler, Bob Thurlow, learning the art of saddle making. Dad could see the need for the rider to have closer contact with the horse all the way to the knee and back then the saddle panels were stuffed a long way down the underflap so he worked with Thurlow to bring the padding back up. This revolutionised the shape of knee pads on stock saddles and they all began to be made with an almost c shaped knee pad that is still used today.

In 1943 he joined the Gill Brother Travelling Buck Jump Tent Show as rider, whip cracker and rope spinner. Jack Gill was once asked who the best ever rider was and his response was: “Kevin McTaggart was the most polished and prettiest to watch but Tom Brady would ride the toughest horse”. After leaving the travelling tent show Tom carried on with horse breaking and station work before doing a stint of truck driving.It was during this time in 1948 that he was dealt one of the hardest blows of his life when his mother passed away.

He took up shearing with the United Graziers Co-Op Shearing Co Ltd. In Oct 1951 at Europambella Tom shore 1258 sheep and 15 studs for $97.32. He also tried his hand at manganese mining before going back into station work and station management.

Then along came his life-long partner,Dorothy, whom he married on November 8, 1952 and in 1953 they introduced me into the world. In 1959 the family moved to Mingary where Tom gained employment with Bruce Steel. He must have had boundless energy back then because as well as carrying out his duties on Mingary, which included a stint on the long paddock in the drought of 1966, he also found time to lease mum’s family farm at Yarrowitch and volunteer with the Saint John’s ambulance while spending nights honing his saddle making skills.

Throughout those years, dad worked on mastering the art of saddle making and with the order books full we opened Brady’s Saddlery in October 1974. To spread our name we travelled the rodeo circuit. It gave dad great pleasure when champion cowboys (the calibre of Dallas Powell, Ray Hermann, and Bernie Smyth) up until today’s champions like Allan Powell and Carl Green chose to ride in Brady’s saddles.

Ray Herman won two world titles and 7 Australian titles in our saddles. In later years dad went on to hone his braiding skills and made many bespoke whips that have been sold all over the world. 

Tom was a great supporter of rodeos and he was the last man still alive, from the original meeting, to form the Walcha Rodeo committee in 1948. Along with Bob Cross and Geoff Yarnold the idea for the Walcha Campdraft club was hatched in the back bar of the Royal Hotel. He loved cricket and was very proud to be selected in the Yarrowitch 1st 11. He played Rugby League for Bendemeer and also raced motor cycles for a time.

Tom Brady was one of the old school bushmen who could turn his hand to anything.He could strip a motor down and rebuild it. He could trap a dingo or catch a scrub bull or break in a horse or a dog. He could build a fence and he could certainly build a saddle and plait a mighty fine whip.

Ray Herman referred to him as a proper human being and I was so lucky to have had such a fine mentor and good mate for 62 years.