Ron, feel free to change the title thread it is early i have a hangover ) Grendel mentions Le Cressionaire in the all time greatest filly thread so it got me thinking about greats we could have had that cut down too soon. I will start with Golden Fleece. 4 runs and 4 wins including the Derby before getting cancer and never running again. Won the Derby in fine style, not sure what he beat in his 4 runs but looked the real deal and Eddery thought so to. Big imposing animal i would love to of seen a full career from him.
Sadly, some folk like John Randall and Tony Morris who wrote A Century of Champions, believe Golden Fleece to be just an average Derby winner. I think I'd rather take the word of Pat Eddery who rated Golden Fleece above Dancing Brave, El Gran Senor, and Pebbles, all of whom he rode. That's a big wrap. Here's a nice bit of film.
Lovely film that Cyc - many thanks for posting. It was interesting to see the old film of (I think) Bechers Brook - what a fearsome obstacle it was in those days,
I guess there are more candidates in the NH sphere because of the inherent dangers? Golden Cygnate is the one that springs to mind there, together with the brilliant Brindisi Breeze and of course his ill-fated jockey Campbell Gillies
I forget the name for the time being (brain not working and it's driving me mad) but there was a 6yo destined for great things who came to grief in the Gold Cup several years ago
Some guys on here will know about this horse i will wait instead of googling. The Grey Bomber, i was only about 9 when he came to grief, i think he was electrocuted somehow. I just remember in the paper he had a row of 1s next to his name.
The Grey Bomber won all of his 5 races before losing his life after stepping into a pool of water which was electrified by power lines brought down by gales. He was on his way to the gallops. The 4 year old had won the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham in December of 1982. As sad as this death was, a greater toll was realised across Europe which was lashed by these storms. 13 people lost their lives, 4 of whom were British.
Same trainer and jockey as Valiramix, who came to grief when travelling like a dream in the Champion Hurdle. No wonder McCoy never really liked the Cheltenham Festival
Good morning, Oddy. Hope you are well. With your Germanic exactitude, I'm surprised you can't spell Cygnet correctly. Yes, Eddie O'Grady's Golden Cygnet was potentially the best hurdler of my lifetime. His win in the Supreme Novices was breathtaking and, when he came to challenge at the last flight at Ayr in the Scottish Champion Hurdle, Jonjo O'Neill (aboard Sea Pigeon) commented afterwards that he was in an absolute canter and "wouldn't have blown a candle out." Sadly, he fell on landing and broke his leg. However, the same thing had already happened previously to two other horses at that final flight at Ayr, and yet the stewards had not investigated the problem. There was evidently a hollow or some false ground on the hurdle's landing side. A tragic loss! Sometimes, racing stewards make my blood boil. Look at Cheltenham last weekend. After fifty years of incompetence, they're still bringing the horses on a bend to the starting tape. Horses either get left at the start or lose lengths when the tape goes up. End of Wednesday morning rant! All the best, Oddy!
Good morning Tam, how nice to hear from you . I'm not too bad, thanks - still trying to fight off a minor lung infection but have now got some cortizone to snort so hopefully that will do the trick. I now have my German citizenship but find that any exactitude I may have once posessed seems to be dwindling as I rapidly approach my half century . I find my fingers don't always do what my brain tells them to whilst typing, but I try not to worry about it too much. No one is perfect The starter at Cheltenham didn't exactly cover himself in glory with the conditionals race - I was screaming for him to let them go whilst he was having them take one turn after another. As you say, maybe more thought should be given to the starting point of races such that there is adequate room for everyone. I think it is pretty irrelevant if a race is 2m 4f 159y or 2m 5f 25y if it helps to get a safe, fair and even start. (My Wednesday morning rant is this fad of giving the exact yadrage for a race - none of the horses run exactly that yardage as they do not run on the exact shortest route round on a laser tracker. Just call it 2m 5f and have done with it for goodness sake . Rant over). Keep posting Tam, your erudte contributions always brighten up the day
I don’t know about “erudite contributions,” Oddy. You want to see the list of my faults! I still think the start should be somewhere level, even in a three mile chase. A horse loses 10-15 lengths at the start; fiddles the first; and ends up 20 lengths down and in a poor position. Then he’s got to expend energy threading through the field. That’s why Tony Dickinson always instructed his son, Michael, to ride from the front to keep out of trouble. Philip Hobbs and Richard Johnson often use the same tactic nowadays- though not always. I hope your lung infection clears up soon, Oddy. That’s something you don’t need. As for sniffing cortisone, don’t take too much of that- or I’ll have to consider entering you in the big hurdle at Newbury in February! You won’t remember the Hill House saga- the horse that won the Schweppes Hurdle by a street, and was then deemed to ‘ manufacture its own cortisone.’ As for approaching your half century, you won’t believe how quickly you’ll get to sixty, never mind fifty. Still, you’ll be able to return to the UK and get your bus pass and free hearing aids. Take care.
