Great Horses

THIS VIDEO MAY TEMPT YOU TO BUY A TROTTER

THIS VIDEO MAY TEMPT YOU TO BUY A TROTTER

You’ll be hard pressed to find a horseman who isn’t enamoured of the sight of a talented trotter in full flight. Power Productions have kindly allowed me access to a video production highlighting the poetry of the trotting horse and the devotion of those who train them.

THERE’S ONLY ONE CORRECT HOPPLE LENGTH

THERE’S ONLY ONE CORRECT HOPPLE LENGTH

Stumbled upon this photo of a pacer called Pick On (Percy Hall) winning a qualifying heat of the 1952 Inter Dominion Championship at Harold Park. Note the “snug” hopple length on a horse who stood close to 17 hands.

BRUCE MORGAN PROVED YOU SHOULD NEVER LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH!

BRUCE MORGAN PROVED YOU SHOULD NEVER LOOK A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH!

Trainers who live within earshot of their stables seem to develop an uncanny sensitivity to the sounds made by a horse in trouble. Junortoun trainer Bruce Morgan has been lured from his bed many times over the years by the familiar thrashing of a horse cast in its box, but around 7.30 pm on July 17th he was puzzled by a sound he’d never heard before.

HALWES WAS ONE OF THE BEST HORSES NEVER TO WIN AN INTER DOMINION

HALWES WAS ONE OF THE BEST HORSES NEVER TO WIN AN INTER DOMINION

When it comes to horses I’m a hopeless sentimentalist. I had the pleasure of calling Halwes in all of his Harold Park wins in the late 1960’s and he left an indelible impression on me. He was a horse of high speed, great reserves of stamina and a terrific will to win.

THE BEST HORSE NEVER TO WIN AN INTER DOMINION

THE BEST HORSE NEVER TO WIN AN INTER DOMINION

When it comes to horses I’m a hopeless sentimentalist.

I had the pleasure of calling all of the wins of the great Halwes at Harold Park in the late 1960’s, and he left an indelible impression on me. He was a horse with high speed, great reserves of stamina and a terrific will to win.