RACING POST SUNDAY JANUARY 15th 2012

RACING POST SUNDAY JANUARY 15th 2012

RACING POST WEEK MONDAY JANUARY 9th TO SUNDAY JANUARY 15th 2012

RACING POST ON SUNDAY
 THE PAPER YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO MISS

WILLIE MULLINS Ireland's champion trainer on his best chances at Navan today in 

his exclusive column. page 6

FESTIVAL FORENSICS Get all the latest Cheltenham clues as Graham Dench focuses 

his expert eye on yesterday's action. page 3

THE PUNTERS CHAMPION PRICEWISE  keep an eye on Tom's punting clues 

every day in the Racing Post. A master class of info and sound reasoning for all keen to

 follow the horses.  Keep your racing file up to date. (your back up reference)

RACING POST SUNDAY SPECIAL 

EIGHT PAGES OF FASCINATING READING

TODAY PETER THOMAS TALKS TO PADDY BRENNAN ON BUILDING HIS CAREER. THE HIGHS AND THE LOWS TO DATE.

RP SUNDAY TALK OF THE TRACKS YESTERDAY AT THE RACES

TOM KERR  On how a syndicate’s hopes were dashed in the cruellest of fashions. Tom joins a group of owners as the unthinkable happens.  page 10

“YESTERDAY I was invited to follow the owners of MONTEGONIAN, a four-year-old making his second start over hurdles in the first race at Kempton. I wanted to discover the joys and disappointments of ownership; to witness the anticipation and nerves first hand. Monty, as he was known to his owners, did not survive the day he fell at the second hurdle, fractured his shoulder, and had to be put down.

“But this is not just a story of death and disappointment: it is a story of modest hope and genuine passion, of bonds formed by shared ownership of a racehorse, and of the impact their life and death can have on a large and disparate group of people.

“It is a story that proves once again that racing, with its soaring highs and crushing, painful lows, is a sport with an emotional resonance like no other.

“For Monty’s owners, and Nick Brown, who runs syndicates under the name Nick Brown Racing, the day began with the usual heady mix of hope, expectation and, inevitably, trepidation.

“In one of those poignant twists of fate the meeting had almost been cancelled but by the time Monty’s owners began arriving, the frost had almost cleared from Kempton’s wide expanse, its legacy a slick covering of meltwater on the turf and steady cascade of icy-cold drips from the grandstand’s metal canopy, prone to slither down unwitting racegoers’ necks and making them shiver.

“Tom McCreadie was the first of Monty’s owners to arrive, buzzing with excitement despite his long experience in these matters. “I’ve been in it all my life and I just get hugely excited,” he said.

“I haven’t drunk for three years – this is my high now.”

“Then there was the newcomer to racing, John Mottershead, who was given a share in the horse as a Christmas present. His wife tricked him into going to the yard of Renee Robeson, trainer of Monty, on Christmas morning. He was manipulated into Monty’s stable, despite a fear of animals, before he even knew what his gift was.

“I thought it was odd on Christmas morning,” He said understatedly. But his fear of animals proved without foundation, at least in Monty’s tender care. “He’s a complete softie and I didn’t understand the athleticism of horses until he put his neck on my shoulder.” Mottershead said.

“Betfred shop manager Kevin Copperwheat, who’s wife and son joined us at Kempton, and who’s daughter Stephanie works in Renee Robeson’s yard, was next to arrive.

“The nerves are jangling, but racing is all about the thrill,” he said when asked about how he felt with the race nearing, “What would be good? If he comes home fourth or fifth, but the main thing is he comes home safe and sound. You live to fight another day.

“It was something I noticed only later when reading my notes, but every one of Monty’s owners whom I interviewed expressed the same sentiment. What did they hope for from Monty, I asked? To come home safe and sound, they said.

 

“Owners will talk of Cheltenham, of Aintree, of landing a big gamble - and so did Monty’s = but it usually all boils down to the same simple hope of survival. That’ll do.

“The race neared. Sam Jones, the jockey, received his instructions and the owners clustered round, eager to hear his thoughts. Bets were placed, prayers may well have been uttered, and then there was just waiting. “If Monty wins shall I do a full Monty?” McCreadie joked to ease the tension.

“The starter let them go. Monty took the first, then the second, and he went down there, loosing his footing on the slick grass in front of the grandstand. A horrible silence descended on the group as they watched with distress the scenes unfolding less than 100 yards away.

“Monty tried and failed to stand – the heart sank at that – and Jones, reacted as quickly as anyone could ask, held the horse down. The last any of Monty’s owners saw of their horse was as he lay prone on the turf, Jones stroking his neck, offering what comfort and care he could. Then the screens went up, the horse ambulance started moving, hope faded.

“Brown later told the owners, some of whom were moved to tears: “I am terribly sorry and I hate to have to say it again, but rthat is racing. The jockey is fine. Monty’s jumped it well but it’s just snapped; a freak accident.”

“Racing may not long mourn the loss of MONTEGONIAN, but others will.

 “Among his owners, his stable staff, even punters in Kevin’s Betfred shop, who follow all his horses, there are many who were and will continue to be moved by his death.

“Brown provided the final tribute to Monty: “He was not brilliant in terms of talent – he was just a lovely horse.” His owners never asked for more, except for him to come home safe.”

END

J MARGARET CLARKE TURFCALL
THIS TRUE STORY knocks on the door of every person who works  and regulates the sport of horseracing, nationwide and worldwide, as does this new film WAR HORSE. 

Do we want the sport of horseracing to be regulated as a war?

Or do we want horseracing to be regulated as a sport?