Greyville Racecourse on the big day
The 2012 Vodacom Durban July (no, that’s not a typo). I loved it. It had been a cold, wintery day. The SO and I had organised food and wine and a fire and settled in front of the TV for the afternoon. The racing was fantastic, despite the best efforts of the SABC presenters the coverage was really not bad if you were deft enough to flick between the channels judiciously and by the end of the day I was thoroughly exhausted after all the highs and lows and my thumbs were numb from holding them for my fancies. Fast forward to 2013. Where to start?
There had been rumblings about the entries almost from day one. The rumblings turned explosive after the final field was announced on 25 June, sparking strong criticism that seemed to gather momentum as the week progressed.
The official gallops day dawned cold and dark (clearly the sun rises a little later in Cape Town than it does in KZN!), but out in the colonies, we were up in time to see our fancies do their thing. Well, some of them. Love Struck was only asked for a light canter to save him for the weekend’s KZN Breeders’ Million Mile and the footage of the Gauteng runners went missing entirely.
As did the promised panel discussion. However, while I wondered whether I’d misheard the original announcements or was experiencing a premature ‘senior moment’, we moved onto the barrier draws. Why oh why does anyone (other than folks in the used car business) still think that under-dressed dolly birds are a good idea?
This year’s unfortunates were trussed up in French maid outfits no less.
Allowing the benefit of the doubt, I rang up to query the thinking behind these and was told it was to go with the ‘Posh’ theme. Erm, I’m sorry to have to be blunt about this, but apart from making steady sales at Anne Summers’ stores, the Carry On franchise realised that French maid outfits were only fit for ridicule as far back as the 1950’s.
How is it possible that Gold Circle still haven’t caught the joke?
Track condition
Despite assurances that Greyville’s track was in mint condition, it was announced that the KZN Breeders’ Million Mile meeting would move from Greyville to Clairwood’ sparking debate on the state of the tracks.
Commenting on the inevitable repercussions the move would have, Mike de Kock voiced the thoughts of many in questioning the wisdom of even contemplating a race meeting at the Greyville track so close to the Vodacom Durban July.
Response
Interestingly for once, last Monday saw a response to the selection debate and something in the way of an explanation from ‘Head Office’. The attempt at transparency was both refreshing and interesting, albeit showing evidence of dissent among the ranks by damning the official handicapper.
The debate continued playing out in the public domain with a few more spirited responses and a fair amount of opinion and then additional controversy from a different corner when Derek Brugman appealed the Merit Ratings of Whiteline Fever and Hill Fifty Four.
Will we, won’t we?
Then the entire meeting was put in doubt surrounding concerns regarding the health of former president Nelson Mandela, but by Wednesday we were assured that things would go ahead, with the addition of commemorative badges and the observation of 67 seconds of silence to honour ‘Tata’ Madiba.
Inquiring Minds
The crowd at Greyville on Saturday
Thursday brought a press release from the NHA that the appeals regarding Whiteline Fever and Hill Fifty Four were overruled, as well as the intention to launch an inquiry into “the circumstances surrounding the selection of this year’s final field and to review both the selection criteria and the conditions of the race which will be applied in the future.”
Shortly afterwards we learned that ruling Champion Jockey Anton Marcus had stood down from all his July rides, sparking a scramble for replacements and a flurry of activity at the betting windows as punters reconsidered their bets.
Blame it on the rain
Friday heralded more rain and a tough task for the team erecting the tent village in the Greyville infield, turning the access into a muddy mess. Saturday brought some sunshine, but it was too little too late and the first two races were abandoned, the Gold Vase adjusted from its traditional 3000m to 2400m and some fancy footwork around the false rail. And of course more activity at the betting windows as punters tried to assimilate all the new changes.
Nonetheless, I had pretty high hopes (entirely the wrong way to approach anything as unpredictable as racing, but I never learn). I’d forsworn a dressage clinic with one of the world’s leading instructors, I’d done my chores, worked my horses early and got in enough fortifications to ensure I wouldn’t have to leave the couch for anything but the briefest second.
After all, this is our biggest race day and with terrestrial TV coverage and mainstream media interest, our biggest shop window for the year. What else could go wrong, right?
The Sounds of Silence
As it turned out, the sound for a start. Fortunately we did get the race commentary and coverage right up to the line in most cases, before it cut away to other, presumably more interesting things than the country’s premier race day. There were no winning interviews for a good portion of the day, although plenty of pre-race reminders of how much time was left to ‘get your bets on’ and the size of the current pools (what is it with men and size?).
These were largely unhelpful as I understand Interbet crashed too. Ugh. Fortunately I did get to see a few familiar faces on the Champ de Mars feed, so that was nice. I tried the SABC 3 feed for a while and they seemed similarly afflicted with sound gremlins, only in their case they couldn’t seem to switch it off and we were treated to all sorts of inane background chatter.
Mind you, some of the on-air chatter wasn’t a lot better and the subtleties of ‘canary yellow’ vs ‘neon yellow’ sadly remain a mystery to me.
After what felt like an eternity and serious damage to my patience and resolve, it was time for the big race. Craig Peters introduced the jockeys and we got a bit of needle and parade ring flavour from Rouvaun Smit and Jono Snaith. And then the formalities were over and it was down to business.
D Day, H Hour
The moment of truth had arrived and the gates crashed open. And finally my pulse sprang into life. Despite the French maids and the fighting and bickering and the jockey changes and the track conditions, we’d got to race day, we’d got to race time and by golly, we had ourselves a race. And despite all the misgivings, it delivered.
In her wonderful book, The July Handicap, Molly Reinhard wrote “Many July Handicaps have been won by fine thoroughbreds, and others have been snatched before stunned crowds by unexpected outsiders who made fools of knowledgeable men.”
And so it proved (or not, depending on whose camp you were in). But as always, our horses saved the day. The tableau unfolded on the Greyville battlefield, favourites were vanquished and new heroes were born. Despite the furore, Run For It produced the performance all his supporters knew he had in him. Do You Remember did exactly as Geoff Woodruff predicted, squeaking through without anyone even noticing.
And of course, the fairy tale ending. S’manga Khumalo with that infectious grin winning the country’s biggest race. A number of trainers have commented that S’manga can get the best out of a horse without taking everything out of it and I’ve often heard that his horses pull out fresh and as though they’ve not seen a race.
Well, he harnessed all his talents and Heavy Metal ran right out from under his 59.5kgs as though it didn’t exist, flying down the straight to claim the prize. And that just about saved the day for me.
Bah humbug!
Now I know I’ll be branded a scrooge for not being kinder about the day and to be fair, there were some good bits. The horses loaded into their correct stalls, the starting gates worked perfectly all day, there were no objections or false starts and all the horses got to the end of their races in one piece.
But other than that, I’m sorry. From a Joe Public spectator point of view, I hated the coverage from start to finish and quite a bit more after that. Which is terribly unfair as I know what an incredibly big deal it is to get a horse to the races, nevermind the July and you all deserve your name in lights and an entire column to yourselves.
There were as always, some wonderful performances and colourful stories, but this year’s event just wasn’t for me. It was just too much hard work as you never seemed to know quite where you were from one moment to the next.
No more fools
Chris van Niekerk’s 2012 comment “I’ll remain a fool and buy more” made everyone want to rush out and buy a July runner, but there was no interview this year! This was possibly the greatest tragedy of all as judging by some of the footage, he’d have produced another cracker. Ah well.
I did enjoy the evening replays though and did get one soundbyte from Chris van Niekerk after his Golden Slipper win. When asked about his hopes for the main race he replied “I expect nothing and hope for the best.” Sage advice indeed. So with another July behind us, hopefully some lessons learnt and lots to reflect on for next year, I’ll leave you with some more words from Molly Reinhard.
“The Durban July is the one race in the South African racing calendar that above all others, every owner, trainer, breeder and jockey wants to win. Months of sweat, frustration, fears and hopes are geared to 3 o’clock on the first Saturday afternoon in July…
A few minutes later the dream is shattered, or a rainbow is blazing across a cerulean sky. The greatest ecstasy and the bitterest agony are hidden behind the bright silks and the emerald turf. Trainers, owners, jockeys, big time gamblers and small punters are revealed in their true colours when the chips are down.
“Many can take the triumphs, but not all can face the defeats. If you can’t take it, you shouldn’t be in it – much better to go into a nice quiet profession like undertaking – the only job in the world where you can rely on dead certs.”
Yes indeed. And yet, despite the ups, downs and occasionally downright ridiculous, I wouldn’t want it any other way.
