And who can blame the Ballarat 17-year-old apprentice jockey.

Melham finds himself with the stable of Australia's premier trainer Lee Freedman at Rye.

Although the arrangement is for just three months, Melham knows it is an opportunity of a lifetime.

Not only is he working under the eye of the master horseman, Melham is also getting the opportunity to ride trackwork alongside the cream of Victoria's riders, such as Nick Ryan, Blake Shinn, Danny Nikolic and Noel Callow

on a daily basis.

Melham could not have wished for a better Christmas present than having his riding indentures temporarily shifted from Darren Weir to Freedman.

Melham has been with Freedman almost a month and he could hardly be happier with the way the move is progressing.

"It's exciting ... a great opportunity," Melham said after finishing trackwork yesterday.

"It is a great privilege to be working for one of the best trainers in Australia, if not the world."

His days are much the same at Freedman's as they were with Weir, although starting at 5am means an extra hour in bed.

The later start is owing to the absence of lighting at Freedman's property.

"I muck out five boxes and then ride (trackwork) from six to nine.

"Then if it's a race day, it's off to the races," Melham said.

The biggest difference to his schedule is the bigger focus on riding at city meetings.

"I'm getting at least six rides most days."

Melham had eight rides at Sandown Hillside on Wednesday for a double, including a win on Blue Royalty for Weir.

This took his metropolitan tally to 40 and cut his claim to 1.5kg.

Another 20 wins and he will lose his claim.

Melham said his main objective was to make the most of the opportunities going his way and laying the foundation to be the premier metropolitan apprentice this season.

He leads the way with 23 wins, eight more than Blake Shinn, and believes a strict diet, which is giving him better control of his weight, will also help.