PRICELESS.

Barry Irwin
(Photo : Owner Breeder)

RUNNER-UP!

Barry Irwin commenting on Igugu’s Equus Champion Three-Year-Old-Filly Award :

“Robin Bruss sent me a text message from the Equus Awards to let me know that Gypsy’s Warning got a special award, Sunshine Lover was Broodmare of the Year and Ebony Flyer was runner-up to Igugu for Champion Filly at 3. 

RUNNER-UP!

That is like saying Germany was runner-up in World War II.”

Extract from African Betting Clan

SOUTH AFRICA'S RACING GRAND SLAM

Please click above to watch a little Durban July history.
The presentation can be paused at any point using the navigation controls, bottom left.
It can be viewed full-screen by clicking the view button, bottom right.

(Photos : Summerhill Stud Archive)

A NEW THOROUGHBRED BREEDERS ASSOCIATION INITIATIVE

The term “Grand Slam” evokes all sorts of emotions, particularly when it’s applied to golf, tennis and northern hemisphere international rugby tours. There is another context though, in which South African racing sees it, and a new initiative by the Thoroughbred Breeders Association of South Africa, intends to bring racing’s Grand Slam back to life.

What is meant by racing’s grand slam? Well firstly, there’s never been an official identification of the events, but under the direction of its chairman, Altus Joubert and through the enterprise of Alan Roux, they’ve identified the three big “majors”, the Vodacom Durban July, the J&B Met and the Sansui Summer Cup as the jewels in the crown. How many people; owners, trainers or jockeys, how many horses and stallions have ever achieved victory in all three. For starters, no one horse has ever done so, which is almost understandable when you recall the fact that they’re up to 1000 miles apart, in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg, two of them are run at sea level and one at almost 6000 ft.

Only four trainers have ever been there, Syd Garrett, Terrance Millard, Syd Laird and Mike de Kock. The mere mention of their names helps to understand why. In the post-war era, the progeny of only two stallions, both of them champions, Royal Prerogative and Foveros, have achieved the grand slam, though obviously through different horses. Just one other pre World War II stallion, the French-bred Cape Metropolitan winner, Asbestos II, did it through his sons Feltos (Met & Summer Cup) and Pat Goss’ diminutive St Pauls (the Durban July). In the modern era, all of Silvano, Fort Wood and Jet Master have two legs under their belts, and it’s a fair bet one or more of them will achieve the grand slam in the not too distant future.

The breeders are another story. Thirty four grand slam victories for the Birch Brothers is an astounding achievement, even considering there were three different farms between them, with an awful lot of mares. No wonder they dominated the Breeders Championship for so many decades. Old man Nourse, who won his first July in the early 1900’s with Nobleman, bred nine grand slam winners, while the Koster Brothers between them have seven. You might well ask how we’ve done. The old Hartford produced three Summer Handicap winners (read Summer Cup), a July winner in Mowgli, the only race of any importance on the calendar to elude them, being the Metropolitan. We put that right when we came here, with two horses off Summerhill; La Fabulous and Angus taking the J&B Met, Luke Bales’ Dancing Duel was a July winner born on the farm, and Pick Six and Emperor Napoleon “exacta-ed” the Summer Cup.

The history books tell us this is as tough as grand slams get, and it’s worth working for. Salutations to Alan Roux, Altus Joubert, Robin Bruss and everyone else behind the project.

MEMORY IS THE LANE : “DUFF” IS THE RACE CALLER

Please click above to load a little Durban July history.
The presentation can be paused at any point using the navigation controls, bottom left.
It can be viewed full-screen by clicking the view button, bottom right.

(Photos : Summerhill Stud Archive)

OF ERNIE DUFFIELD AND THE 1946 DURBAN JULY

My earliest days in racing were ignited by the gravelly voice of the enigmatic Ernie Duffield. A jockey by trade, he was strongly opinionated as he was a great commentator, and Duff was never shy to put his name on the line. We speak of course, of the days before television, when a listener’s only connection to a horserace if he wasn’t on the course proper, was the race call of Ernie Duffield. This was a man who could stand his own with the best in the world, especially if he had a few quid on the outcome.

He was also a publisher in his time, founding the famous Duff’s Turf Guide, which I recall being an avid reader from the time I commenced “potty training”.

Robin Bruss is the unofficial custodian of South African racing history, and he dug out two issues of the 1946 July Duff’s Turf Guide, the one a preview of the July field, and the other a commentary on the aftermath. For those who choose to revisit history, we’ve appended some exercepts from both (click the play button above), and in the process we’ve attempted to capture the era with one or two of the adverts which appeared in the guide. Remember, it was the year after the Second World War, and there were 100 000 people on the course.

When you’ve read Duff’s exercepts, it’s probably worth knowing this as well. My grandfather Pat was a reputedly larger than life character. I’m proud to say he shared my own obsession with horses, and he had a true sportsman’s outlook on the game. He knew how to win, and importantly, he knew how to lose.

In his preview of the July, Duff describes Pat Goss as an optimist, which was something of an understatement. Just recently, we hosted a notable horseman by the name of Alistair Stubbs for lunch at Summerhill, and he related to us that he was a junior farm manager in East Griqualand in 1946. He happened to be at Midgley Halt (the local railway station), when grandfather Pat rode up in his horsebox and his horse, St Pauls alighted. At less than 15 hands, St Pauls was about to be loaded for Durban, and his date with July destiny. In an almost throw-away comment, Pat turned to Alistair and said, “You’re looking at the July winner”.

Backing his judgement Pat booked the Kew Hotel, the smartest hostelry on the Berea, for the victory party some three months before the event. Every Durbanite who shared his reverence for the July, whether he knew them or not, would be invited in the event of victory. The party is said to have raged for two days, and the following weekend, the old Kew burnt down. Nothing to do with the victory party, of course!

For the record, St Pauls was, and remains, the smallest July winner in history. His pre July wins included several in Pony and Galloway Handicaps. And so, we can dream!.

Posted by Mick Goss

CANDIDATES FOR THE EMPERORS PALACE READY TO RUN CUP

“WHO’S IN AND WHO’S OUT?”

I was a fascinated participant in a Tellytrack programme Monday night. It’s only when you’re involved in these things, that you realise just how much research and work goes into putting on a show. For example, among the topics Monday night was Europe’s biggest race this weekend, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, and Robin Bruss had researched every horse’s Timeform rating, and then aligned the ratings to the betting. Since the race is run at weight-for-age, there should be some sort of theoretical correlation between a horse’s best form and his price in the race. Were there’s a disparity, unless there’s something wrong with the horse, there’s usually a betting opportunity in the degree to which he’s fancied, and the extent to which it falls below his best race rating.

In parallel, Robin had a schedule of the horses which looked likely candidates for this year’s R1,5million Emperors Palace Ready To Run Cup. He’d extracted their merit ratings, as the invitation to participate will ultimately rest in the hands of the handicappers, and they’re likely to use the merit ratings as a guide at least, when they get down to the exercising of their discretions.

Thus far, Summerhill has had 19 of the 20 winners graduated from the sale last year, with a further eighteen having earned cheques. Of course, it used to be good enough, as a winner, to qualify for the event, but there will undoubtedly be eliminations among those that’ve already visited the winner’s enclosure, for this year’s renewal. Some of the placed horses have higher merit ratings than the winners (which begs the question, what will the handicappers do?), while there are as yet unraced horses and one or two unplaced horses, who might still get over the line.

It’s an intense affair, and as things stand, herewith the merit ratings :

HORSE	VENDOR	SIRE	SEX	MR
SMANJEMANJE	Summerhill	Kahal	C	96
ASHJAAN	Summerhill	Malhub	F	93
HAVASHA	Summerhill	Kahal	C	92
KHETHANI	Summerhill	Labeeb	C	91
ONEHUNDREDACREWOOD	Summerhill	Malhub	F	90
DIGNIFICATION	Summerhill	Muhtafal	F	89
TRAFALGAR LEGACY	Summerhill	Rock Of Gibraltar	C	88
SMANYO	Summerhill	Second Empire	C	87
MAHUBO	Summerhill	National Emblem	C	85
SICOCO	Summerhill	Muhtafal	C	84
FISANI	Summerhill	Kahal	F	83
COCOA ROSE	Summerhill	Kahal	F	82
MANNEQUIN	Summerhill	Kahal	F	82
SMART AL	Highlands	Al Mufti	C	81
VUMANI	Summerhill	Malhub	C	81
BUKA MINA	Summerhill	Slew The Red	F	80
GUNG HO	Summerhill	Labeeb	F	80
NYAKATHO	Summerhill	Labeeb	C	80
ROSETTA STONE	Ambiance	Jet Master	F	80
WARMONGER	Equine Gr	Kabool	F	80
I’LOLLIPOP	Summerhill	National Emblem	F	79
HEY MON	Summerhill	Requiem	C	78
CRY HAVOC	Sandown	Caesour	C	78
HOLD THE GOLD	Beaumont	Captain Al	C	78
I’GEM	Summerhill	Kahal	F	77
MABHALANE	Summerhill	National Emblem	C	77
MLULEKI	Summerhill	Muhtafal	C	76
GORGEOUS GEORGE	Summerhill	Labeeb	C	75
MACK M	Summerhill	Labeeb	C	75
TOBRUSKY	Summerhill	Lavery	C	75
BABAZANI	Summerhill	Slew The Red	C	74
RAJINSKY	Sandown	Parade Leader	F	74
STANN CREEK	Summerhill	Strike Smartly	F	73
JIKA MAJIKA	Summerhill	Malhub	C	71
LAST TOUCH	Summerhill	Slew The Red	F	71
RUNNING RIOT	Summerhill	Muhtafal	F	70
CRIMSON MOONLIGHT (Aus)	Brian Roux	Untouchable	F	70
GALAXY QUEST	Waterford	Kahal	C	70
SPICE CLUB	Classic	Fan Club’s Mister	F	70

INSIDE RACING INTERVIEW WITH MICK GOSS

Please click above to watch interview with Mick Goss
(Footage : Inside Racing) 

INSIDE RACING DSTV CHANNEL 232

Those who tuned into Inside Racing, DSTV Channel 232, on Monday night would have caught the insightful interview with Bob Yearham, Emperors Palace COO, and Monde Tabata, Peermont Children’s Trust Chairman, discussing the Peermont Group’s sponsorship of the Charity Mile November Handicap as well as the Group’s Corporate Social Investment and Responsibility programmes.

Robin Bruss also interviewed Summerhill CEO, Mick Goss, on topics including Summerhill-bred Phunyuka’s victory in Africa’s richest race on sand, …the R600,000 Emerald Cup, the formidable draft for the 2009 Emperors Palace Ready To Run Sale as well as candidate analysis for the R1,5 Million Emperors Palace Ready To Run Cup …and let us not forget the “Trail Of The Trophy”.

If you are a follower of the Ready To Run and you missed the show, please click above to watch the interview with Mick Goss.