at 23 vizag girl aparna das battula has some enviable achievements to her name she is the first indian woman to get a jockey license in the us and has also won her first race there this june now with the winter meet all set to commence in december aparna is already in florida training for the big event just before she left for the us we caught up with the young achiever for a quick chat talking about her tryst with horse riding aparna says horse riding was not my childhood passion i was 19 when i first saw a horse in full flight it was love at first sight aparna who did her primary schooling in visakhapatnam and completed her b sc biotechnology in bangalore says that she being a jockey is an adventure in itself considering the risk factor involved with riding horses i have been a speed enthusiast from my early years i was a national speed skater and i was also into athletics and hockey in college and i was keen on gokarting too till i met horses and since then i have dedicated my time and energy in accomplishing my goal of becoming a jockey she saysrecollecting her winning moment in her first professional race with her horse river north aparna says at that time i only knew i was very close to riding my first professional race it was exciting but the thought of being the first indian to do it never crossed my mind i had put in a lot of hard work and so when i first got my license i was naturally super thrilledthe pro that she is now aparna says that river north and brook lass are her two lucky horses river north was the one i rode in my first race and he got me my first win with brooks lass i won four races i love her so much that i hope when she retires i could take her as my pet just because she is very kind and easy to be around with says aparna whose existing career track has seen 38 starts two first places three second places and 3 third places talking about her hometown she says vizag is one of my favourite places my friends always catch me bragging about how awesome it is vuda park was where i first learned to skate and i love the beaches trust me riding by the beach is an awesome experience apart from horses aparna likes to watch tennis f1 and cricket during her free time her favourite players are michael phelps roger federer rafael nadal michael schumacher and rahul dravid i am very easily inspired by people who are positive and always look forward to make the best of their lives she says and like every trueblue telugu aparna loves watching tollywood movies i love actor mahesh babu and i watched almost all his movies with my family she signs off