30/04/14
Jockey Larry Allen, then aged 30, rode six of the eight winners at the Gold Coast TAB meeting on 18/11/1984. His winners on the day were Dandy Miss (10/1), Alchera (2/1), Amboina (4/7), Burano (1/1), Lunch With Reeta (1/1) and Cruise Missile (1/3). Larry Allen also rode York Street into third placing in Race 3 on the card.
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Queensland Turf Club Chairman of Stewards, Andy Tindall, was forced to resign in December 1984 after his doctor ordered him to take two months complete rest due to high blood pressure health issues.
Tindall, it seems, never did quite get over the Fine Cotton ring-in from earlier that year. But the QTC did look after Tindall, as he took over supervision of the Apprentices School and tutored honorary stewards on the country circuit.
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Present Brisbane trainer Barry Baldwin trained all five winners at the Roma meeting on 9/4/1977. His winners were Bamboo Bill, Ballanjui, Hailmid, Todbrio and Aztec Gem. Baldwin at the time was noted as being 32YO and he’d taken up training horses after he started working in a bacon factory at age 14. He became apprenticed to trainer Mal Barnes at Nudgee Beach soon after and then spent time with Jack Clayton, Alby Pratt and a Roma trainer named Joe Farndon.
Baldwin later became stable foreman for Brisbane trainer Tony Mazzaglia who had a couple of handy apprentices at the time – Tony Erhart and Kerry Smith.
Whilst Barry Baldwin is probably best known for training 2006 Group 1 Stradbroke winner La Montagna, he achieved a wonderful feat in his earlier days as a trainer by winning 10 races in a row around Injune, Dalby, Mitchell and St George with a galloper called Veil Kingdom. Following a track accident when riding one of his own horses trackwork, Baldwin suffered major lumbar injuries and spent six weeks in hospital. It was in this time that Veil Kingdom was transferred to Toowoomba trainer Norm McCallum and the horse then became a classy city middle distance type.
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Imagine trying to get this plonk set today?
In December 1984 at Bundamba track in Ipswich a 3YO gelding named Paddy O’Hickey had $20,000 outlaid on him in the betting ring prior to his starting in a Maiden Handicap over 1100 metres. The huge plonk saw the horse firm from 7/1 ($8) to run at 4/5 ($1.90).
Paddy O’Hickey was trained by Viv Christensen and ran third, but never looked likely to win and finished six lengths behind the winner Chandeles. Straight after the race Christensen went to stewards complaining about the manner barrier attendants had used to put the horse in the stalls. Stewards ruled the placings stood and the orchestrators of the plunge did their money.
Paddy O’Hickey was having his first Australian start in the Bundamba race and he hadn’t started since 12 months earlier when he’d run unplaced in a 2YO race in New Zealand.
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In the same month as the failed Paddy O’Hickey plunge (above) the father and son trainer and jockey combination of trainer Arthur Thompson and his jockey son Robert, who still rides to this day, ripped a veritable fortune out of the Wyong betting ring when 4YO gelding Bijou Lane led all the way to win by two lengths in a 1000-metre Maiden. Bijou Lane was first up from a spell since running an inglorious eighth and ninth at his two runs prior to spelling.
After the race trainer Arthur Thompson revealed why the horse had improved dramatically whilst spelling. He explained it was simply that Bijou Lane had been gelded.
Thankfully these days gelding operations appear in the gear changes.
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9YO Mr Magic was responsible for one of the most amazing wins of the 1984 Melbourne Spring Carnival. Lining up in the final race of the four-day Flemington Carnival, Mr Magic ridden by apprentice Robert Hume, sat down in the barriers, holding up the start. The attendants got him back to his feet only to have him sit down again. Third time lucky and Mr Magic jumped okay and came down the grandstand rail. Unfortunately he couldn’t catch Reformed Rogue over on the flat rail, so had to be content with second. However they say “the shows not over ‘till the fat lady sings” and the jockey of the third horse Bold Jet – Pat Hyland – lodged a protest against the winner and the protest was upheld, meaning Mr Magic, which hadn’t raced within 25 metres of the other two during the run, was awarded the race.
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Amazingly two top racehorses – Gunsynd and Charlton Boy – had to be euthanized humanely early in their life due to contracting cancerous polyps on their nose.
Gunsynd had to be put down in 1983 and Charlton Boy was euthanized, aged 16, in late 1984 at the Bundaberg property of Faye Galea, the daughter of Charlton Boy’s trainer Tommy Dawson.
Charlton Boy raced 67 times for 20 wins and 19 placings and $166,310 in prizemoney earnings.
Gunsynd raced 54 times for 29 wins and 15 placings for earnings of $280,455.
Today on www.brisbaneracing.com.au there’s the first of two montages of photos from Eagle Farm last Saturday, plus other photos of interest. On www.sydneyracing.com.au long departed Australian breeding matron, Denise’s Joy, has had her name linked to a winner in Dubai, whilst Matt Nicholls on www.melbourneracing.com.au is all the Warrnambool Carnival like a bout of the measles.