The education...
A jockey's education lasts three years in Scandinavia. The normal weight for a jockey is app. 53 kilos, which means that the actual height of the rider isn't the real issue.

A typical day in the life...
Work starts in the stable at six a.m. by feeding the horses and mowing the boxes. There after the horses are being divided between the stable lads before the training can begin. The actual training can consist of good, long walks in the forest, or canters and fast work before an upcoming race.
An apprentice typically has four or five horses to excercise every morning.

Around noon the morning training is over, but in most cases the apprentices return to the stable in the afternoon to check and feed the horses.

As an apprentice in a professional stable there will plenty of opportunities to ride races during the three-year education.

The weight!
Many jockeys have a hard time keeping down their weight, especially on the non-racedays. It is a constant plague to think about what to eat and drink through the whole racing season from April to October. Many jockeys choose to jog or ride their bicycles to loose the last pounds, others even go to the saunu for several hours before riding races. It doesn't only take a good physique to be a jockey, you also need a good mental health.

Travelling
As a jockey you have to be prepared to travel a lot.
In Scandinavia there are racetracks near Copenhagen, Aalborg, Århus, Odense, Malmö, Stockholm, Gothenburg and Oslo. While the smaller Danish racetracks attracts the local apprentices and amateur riders, the professional jockeys travels all over Scandinavia almost every day during the week.

A day in Marks life...
A typical day in Mark Larsens life can start early in the morning at the race track, or by getting ready for going abroad to ride races.

After maybe going to the sauna, he will pack his saddles and all the other gear before leaving to the airport or simply travelling in his car. On a race day he will look up the horses he is about to ride, getting mentally ready for the upcoming job.
Before the race he will talk to the trainer to get the last tactic; then he mounts the horse and is on his way to the starting gate. A few minutes later he will be the winner or the loser. And this will be repeated race after race, day after day, week after week, year after year.