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but I still reckon he was a nice horse, nicer than people thought at the time!
He was a lovely horse ~ just not a great lepper
I’ve seen him called Splendid lots of times but never Spending as Mikkymo referred to him!
re Roman Holiday – was going to ask if anyone could think of a horse that never fell throughout his career – @ which time was he racing? Sadly some of the horses that I thought of at the time as good jumpers took crashing falls and paid the price, Strong Promise and Monsieur le Cure spring to mind, whereas the bad jumpers learned how to make mistakes and get away with it [are you listening Kauto Star?]. Agree that Best Mate was a superb jumper, but was never really put under pressure, Dessie was a brave natural one. Longshanks was foot perfect in the Grand National this year. and Red Rum wasn’t bad!! does anyone remember a horse called Simply Dashing, he had a breathing problem and really struggled in his races, but ran his heart out every time.
Wayward Lad was a fine jumper of a fence but I’ve always maintained it was his speed away from – in the stride or two after – the fence that set him apart.
Very true, he was a very athletic and well-balanced horse, but as a proficient, effortless, clean, shapely jumper of fences I maintain he hasn’t been bettered.
Fortunate enough to be on-course for both his Charlie Hall wins and having become enamoured of the horse anyway and with Wetherby being such a good viewing track, made a point of fixing my bins on him and him alone during the races; I found it mesmerising and they remain treasured memories.
And I owe him an awful lot: it was he above all who turned my head from a blinkered obsession with the Flat to a relatively late-flowering love of NH.
There’s been some cracking fencers mentioned on this thread fully deserving of the plaudits given, but for all the hugely entertaining foot-sure flamboyance of the likes of Tingle Creek, Desert Orchid and Edredon Bleu give me the grace and economy of a Wayward Lad every time.
Roman Holiday ran throughout the 70’s and early 80’s – still jumping immaculately at the age of 14. The BBC used to always cover the Friday of the Ascot meetings and RH was a standing dish in the 3 mile handicap chases that always seemed to be scheduled.
Roman Holidays second greatest fan is David Ashforth of the racing post – he borrows my rose tinted’s when the best jumper subject crops up!
REMITTANCE MAN, STEARSBY and JODAMI are my 3 from many many great jumpers i have watched
Showing my age here but 2 of my favourite chasers were The Dikler and Spanish Steps. The Dikler, in particular, I adored with his big flashy white face and his game, low head carriage.
Crisp……………just for his jumping around Aintree. I have never seen a horse, before or since, who jumped those fences with such abandon. Dickie Pitman must have had the thrill of his life that day. A day that was only spolied by a horse called Red Rum! I have never forgiven him!
Colin
My sentiments exactly.
It chokes me every time I see the run in and Rummy collars him. If there has ever been a bigger injustice in NH racing then I haven’t seen it.Best Mate the best i’ve seen anyway in recent times
Desert Orchid even better [in my opinion]
but Arkle and the way stylishly crossed his front legs while jumping! What a horse, wasn’t born to see him in the flesh but I’ve read the book and saw the videos to know he is some horse!
Thinking about it now though, Desert Orchid certianly had the boldest of jumps, I would say Arkle and Desert OrchidArkle and the way stylishly crossed his front legs while jumping!
An interesting point. I’ve long been of the opinion, based on no more than watching races, that leg-crossing is a sure sign a horse is confident at its obstacles and is enjoying the experience.
Can any of those TRFers who work with horses confirm/ridicule my opinion and furthermore, explain why horses do it?
It does indeed look stylish and elegant.
REMITTANCE MAN, STEARSBY and JODAMI are my 3 from many many great jumpers i have watched
I’m gobsmacked again ~ Remittance Man and Jodami were damn fine jumpers of a fence (although nobody seems to remember RM’s crashing fall in the Queen Mother) but Stearsby is one of the clumsiest jumpers I can ever recall. He was a monster of a horse and nearly black so the sight of him jumping well would be memorable, but he ploughed through at least two per race.
I’d call it a scoring draw with Stearsby, Rory – in the Trent Handicap Chase (3m4f) at Nottingham, his last run before a crack at the 1989 Grand National, he jumped immaculately, whereas divine intervention alone got him as far as the 11th at Aintree next time out.
gc
Adoptive father of two. The patron saint of lower-grade fare. A gently critical friend of point-to-pointing. Kindness is a political act.
I’ve seen him called Splendid lots of times but never Spending as Mikkymo referred to him!
One of the pitfalls of being a touch typise DJ, I type words that end in ‘ING’ so much that as soon as I type ‘I’, the ‘NG’ follows, even when it’s not supposed to lol.Mike
as a one off i agree it has to be crisp………….as an armchair jockey i still say that if pitman hadnt hit crisp as they reached the elbow it would have won. if you watch, just as pitman gives it a slap its tail flashes as if to say, what more do you want mate. im not having a go at pitman if i were leading at the elbow and could hear somthing approaching i would have done the same but like many others i watch it now WILLING crisp to hang on, halcyon days,chipmunk
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