While "stoked" to have won the junior shearing final at the recent New Zealand Shears, Ms Martin (27) said she did not want to be treated any differently as a shearer, nor play the female card.
"I’m at the bottom of the grades . . . I just feel it’s a good win. I’m just another person," she said.
Ms Martin became only the third female to win a New Zealand Shears title and the first in 13 years at the recent event in Te Kuiti.
In 2010, Sarah Goss (now Hirini) won before embarking on a hugely successful rugby career.
Asked whether a Black Ferns career was in the offing, Ms Martin laughed that "rugby’s not really my code".
"Unfortunately I don’t think that’s where I’m heading."
Today Ms Martin will make her debut in the intermediate grade in the shearing competition at the 125th Mackenzie Highland Show in Fairlie and she was looking forward to seeing how she got on.
Ms Martin grew up near Gore and, after leaving school, spent several years at Victoria University studying law, criminology and psychology.
She was young in her year-group and the move to Wellington was "quite a lot to take in". Not only was there the heavy course content but also the lifestyle change to the big city.
After several years, she decided it was not sitting well with her and she returned home, completing a cookery certificate at SIT and then on to Palmerston North for a baking certificate.
She ended up doing some shed work as a weekend and holiday job and, on leaving Palmerston North, she studied for a business diploma through correspondence while working full-time as a shed hand.
From there, she wanted "the next challenge" and did some pressing for a season before her boss gave her the opportunity to start shearing.
That was something she jumped at as she relished the physical, mental and personal challenge of the job.
It was a lot more individualistic but still had the benefits of working as part of a team.
She has been shearing full-time since December 2021, working for Cody Waihape whom she described as a "fantastic" boss, in terms of opportunities and mentoring "and any kind of help I’ve ever needed".
He was also very supporting and encouraging of her shearing competitively which was also of benefit to her day job, she said.
"If you want to do well in the show arena, you can’t do that unless you’re practising at work. It really kind of cements and encourages you to keep that quality.
"That’s going to take you far," she said.
Ms Martin initially started in woolhandling competitions and entered shearing events before she had started shearing full-time. Already at shows to do woolhandling, she "jumped in" and did some novice shows.’
The shearing industry was very much a whanau and that was the same at competitions, where it was a gathering of similar, like-minded people who were passionate about their job and the industry.
"I really enjoy the vibe of shearing shows, from other competitors and shearers and supporters as well. Between networking and making friends, it’s a fantastic environment," she said.
Ms Martin was delighted to see increasing numbers of women shearers, saying there had been some inspirational and influential women in the shearing industry who had paved the way for a lot more women to get into it, and removing the stigma that shearing was a male industry.
That included the likes of record-setters Megan Whitehead and Sacha Bond.
Asked whether she would ever be keen to tackle some record attempts, Ms Martin said she was "just taking baby steps" and keeping her expectations realistic.
"I’m just trying to figure out what my capabilities are at the moment. Never say never," she said.
At the moment, she was also more focused on the show side of things, particularly her speed which was "not quite there". Keen to progress in the grades, ultimately, she would love to win a Golden Shears title.
Asked what made a good shearer, Ms Martin said a good attitude was required, along with putting in the work.
"It’s going to be hard at times, you need to be resilient and tough. You just need to have the right attitude to give it a go.
"If it’s something you really like, stick at it and take the good days with the bad.
When she started shearing, she decided to shear for a summer and see if she could handle it, both physically and mentally.
"And I have. I wouldn’t say I’ve nailed it, I definitely did better than I expected."
Ms Martin said she did not necessarily have the brute strength of her male counterparts to handle the sheep, so she needed to make sure she was nailing the basics and her technique, so she looked after her body and did the job right.
While not from a shearing family, Ms Martin grew up in an agricultural background, primarily dairy and then sheep and beef, so she was no stranger to agriculture and hard work.
"I’ve always had quite physical agriculture-based jobs outside my studies . . . I definitely wasn’t a stranger to hard work.
And across those hard jobs, shearing was "definitely pretty much top of the list".
She did not see shearing as a life-long career but, in the interim, she was focused on enjoying the journey.
"I still feel fit and strong. I’m in a really good mental space to enjoy this journey," she said.
