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Here’s an extraordinary achievement.
Last Sunday, at Blue Ribbon Downs in Oklahoma, 16-y-o Silent Cash Dasher won a quarter horse race under 68-y-o jockey Roy Brooks. That’s a combined horse/jockey age of 84 years.
It was the horse’s first win since last year, although Brooks has been a successful rider for over 40 years, winning around 1500 races.
I can’t think of anything even vaguely approaching this feat in Europe, or anywhere else for that matter.
Here’s a link to the story: http://www.aqha.com/news/2009PressRelea … asher.html
Well, a 19yo Arab won a race at Barbury Castle back in 2002, and finished 4th in a race in 2003… Not sure how old the jock was though!
The only thing I can think of that comes close to this are the feats of Pal Kallai, a Hungarian jockey who rode quite regularly in Germany, and was still active in his homeland right up until his death aged 73. Erwin Schindler was still riding in Germany into his 60s, but I’m not aware of either of them piloting a 16 year old horse to victory!
Darren – AngloGerman
________________________________________‘The Hungarian’s going hell for leather’ – Jim McGrath
Didn’t Jim McGrath include a 68 year old winning jockey in his top 20 ‘Jockey Feats’ on Channel 4 this week? Doubt the horse was 16 though.
American playboy Tim Durrant rode in the 1968 Grand National when well into his sixties. He fell at Becher’s second time round, remounted and finished having backed himself to get round.
The oldest winning Grand National Jockey is Dick Saunders who rode Grittar to win in 1982 at the age of 48 his only ride in the race after which he promptly retired. He is also the only member of the Jockey Club to win the race. I met him several times at various Midland point to points and also at Burghley Horse Trials where he was on the committee.
I think Jim McGrath’s reference was to somebody who rode a match against the late Clement Freud
Rider-wise, the nearest equivalent I can think of in recent times is David Robinson riding Bee An Bee to victory in the Mid Surrey Drag Hunt Members’ race at Godstone point-to-point in February 2008, aged 66.
Older horse honours go to Bold Navigator and Jemaro, winners of Hunt Members’ races at Friars Haugh (Jedforest Hunt) and Chaddesley Corbett (Wheatland Hunt) respectively during 2008. Both were 17 years of age.
Further reading; http://www.theracingforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=69722&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
gc
The patron saint of lower-grade fare. A gently critical friend of point-to-pointing. Kindness is a political act.
Rider-wise, the nearest equivalent I can think of in recent times is David Robinson riding Bee An Bee to victory in the Mid Surrey Drag Hunt Members’ race at Godstone point-to-point in February 2008, aged 66.
Older horse honours go to Bold Navigator and Jemaro, winners of Hunt Members’ races at Friars Haugh (Jedforest Hunt) and Chaddesley Corbett (Wheatland Hunt) respectively during 2008. Both were 17 years of age.
Further reading; http://www.theracingforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=69722&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
gc
Jeremy, I was at Charing when Bee An Bee went through the wing 4 out which brought David Robinsons career to an end. If you have a copy of this year’s Big Greenn Annual, John got a spectacular picturre of the incident.
I was at Brighton for an Arab race meeting about seven or eight years ago when an 18 year old horse won a 5f sprint. I saw Sonny Somers win over jumps at the same age at Lingfield in the 1980s.
Other 18yo winners, according to The Complete Record, a splendid source of NH statistics, were Wild Aster over jumps; and Revenge, Marksman and Jorrocks on the flat, the latter winning 65 races in Australia in the mid 19th century.
Jeremy, I was at Charing when Bee An Bee went through the wing 4 out which brought David Robinsons career to an end. If you have a copy of this year’s Big Green Annual, John got a spectacular picture of the incident.
I have and he did. The black and white shot in the
Weekender
at the time did it scant justice. Good to know horse and rider recovered eventually, and that the gelding was back in winning form in 2009 under David’s son Stuart (well, when not getting out-thought by Noakarad De Verzee in matches at Godstone, that is
).gc
The patron saint of lower-grade fare. A gently critical friend of point-to-pointing. Kindness is a political act.
As if all this wasn’t enough, Colonial Downs’ third race on the card yesterday saw the finish fought out by two drivers whose combined ages amount to
153 years
, when 78-y-o Jim Larente edged out 75-y-o Sam Miller in a one mile claimer.
Both of these men were born before Lester Piggott, they must be seriously tough men!
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