Next month will mark Noeline Stoddart's 60th anniversary "working the totes" at race meetings throughout the South Island.
Mrs Stoddart (80) was working as a typist and book-keeper when she saw a job advertisement to work the new automatic totalisator machines at Forbury Park.
The Dunedin woman said they were the first in the country.
Out of the hundreds of people that applied, she was chosen and so began her career.
She now travels all around the South Island attending race meetings, or "doing the circuit", as she called it.
This month has been a busy one for her with the two Omakau meets, as well as the Roxburgh and Waikouaiti and, this weekend, the Cromwell trots.
As she takes each punter's money and gives them their ticket with a warm smile, it is clear she loves her job.
Mrs Stoddart said she had two favourite parts of the job - "meeting all the people, and the travelling".
As it was a cool, overcast day in Roxburgh for the club's first twilight meeting, frocks and fascinators lost out to jackets and jerseys.
Roxburgh Trotting Club secretary Russell Freeman said the meet usually drew 2000 to 3000 people but he was expecting fewer due to the weather.
This was the sixth year the trots had been in January - previously, they were held on Easter Tuesday.
Mr Freeman said the Easter meeting was "economically unviable" because a lot of people were back at work then.
That prompted the move to a January date, and the Southern Harness Racing Club had asked the Roxburgh club to change to a twilight meeting.
Photos by Sarah marquet and Tayler Strong; prints available from otagoimages.co.nz.
