Confession time – I’ve never attended the July (yes, I know, I know). Anyway, I finally had the opportunity to fill the glaring omission in my CV and decided I may as well jump in boots and all and signed up for the full experience – July day, Summerhill stallion day, Winter School the lot.
It’s warm up in KZN
First impressions were that the KZN folks are super welcoming (and bearing in mind the flak they put up with, this really deserves a big mention). We popped by Greyville on Friday to find an unexpected carnival air. Gill Simpkins was hard at work marshalling her troops, but kindly arranged for Warren Lenferna to give us a tour of the grounds. There was music on the tannoy and the course was a hive of colour and activity with people setting up stalls and adding last minute flourishes. The revamped hospitality areas look very smart, but it was also fun to pick out the old, recognisable features and see exactly how the buildings I’ve been looking at on TV and in old pictures all fit together. Far from feeling a fish out of my cold, Western Cape water, we bumped into familiar faces at almost every turn, with everyone wanting to chat, catch up and show off their handiwork. We joined the noisy contingent of Indian Mynah birds out on the track to check out the new poly as well as look at the hallowed Greyville turf up close and personal. I’d never thought about the road crossing before and it was a bit of a surprise to see that the track really does cross an actual road (the clue is in the name, I guess!). We also got to examine the starting gates – already dressed in their July day finery – and paused to imagine what was to come.
World Stage
2014 Vodacom Durban July fashion (hamishNIVENPhotography)
Liesl King had rounded up a stellar list of visiting media and we got to shake the hands that create some of the most memorable footage in the racing game over dinner at the Oyster Box. Appropriately, we were hosted in a beautiful dining room adorned entirely with old racing photos and July finishes. While a few of the visitors were back for a repeat visit, quite a few were first timers and they were unanimous in their praise for our facilities – Summerveld in particular – and our horses and riders in general.
The big day dawned warm and sunny and while the card promised comfortable gaps between races, we needed every minute to get from the parade ring to the track and back. With folks from all over the country in Durban for the sales and the big race, there were even more familiar faces to catch up with which made it all the more fun. The capacity crowd was all dressed up and in the mood for a party and the 12 race card delivered. Gill Simpkins, who is probably best placed to judge, gave us friendly warning that there is nothing quite like the July and she was right. It was an experience like no other. It was loud, it was colourful and it was dramatic and as the horses swept past the post in that desperately close finish, I unexpectedly burst into tears. And I was only standing on the sidelines! Lord only knows how the affected parties must have felt. I don’t want to dwell on the controversy – no-one wants to win like that, but obviously no-one wants to lose like that either and one can only feel for everyone involved. However, with another 5 races on the card, the show had to go on and there was still plenty of good racing to be had before the lights came down and we all headed home in the light drizzle.
CATHSSETA Summerhill Stallion Day
Mick Goss – It’s all about horses and people (hamishNIVENPhotography)
Mick Goss is fond of Les Carlyon’s quote that what makes racing interesting is horses and people. ‘The rest’, writes Carlyon, ‘is dross.’ With his fascination for both, it’s fitting that Mick and Summerhill host the annual Stallion Day and two day Winter Workshop which are devoted entirely to these two things. With their minute attention to detail, any event carrying the Summerhill brand is a guaranteed treat and last weekend was no exception.
The temperature dropped almost as fast as our intrepid hire car wound its way up into the Midlands and our breath hung in white puffs when we decamped in the car park. As we crunched our way up the path, a herd of horses swooped across a field on our left and a chorus of African voices sang us into the venue and we just knew we were in for an adventure. After a warming cup of coffee, we grabbed blankets and rushed to find a good vantage point under the tent. Friends waved and shouted hello, saving spaces for one another and there was a brief pause while we waited for King Letsie and the royal entourage to arrive. It was surreal to find myself sitting cross-legged in the KZN grass on a Sunday morning, in the company of kings and queens. There are few as deft with a quip and a tale as Mick Goss and he brought tales of the farm and local history to life. The fact that Summerhill have been champion breeders for 9 consecutive years was not lost on anyone as the trophies glistened enticingly just beyond the school doors as the stallion arsenal paraded past. We were in for another treat with the farm dance troupe performing their award-winning Zulu dance and then a viewing of the wonderful new sires film over a sumptuous 5 star Hartford House lunch.
Winter Workshop
2014 Summerhill Stallion Day (hamishNIVENPhotography)
We had just about digested our lunch and all Sunday’s festivities before it was time to be back at the School of Excellence for the two-day Winter Workshop on Monday morning. John Stuart kicked off affairs with some of the challenges facing Phumelela and Tellytrack. Andrew Harding, Director of Racing and convenor of the Asian Racing Conference shared his views on racing’s intellectual property rights and how the market is evolving to cope with the digital and social media era. The morning was rounded off with a fascinating presentation by Andrew Harrison and Wes Bowman of the 3A Racing Syndicate with the story of how they have evolved and their views on how to cultivate a younger race going audience. As Wes pointed out, one cannot learn unless you attend class, and they believe strongly that we desperately need to get people back to the track and physically expose them to racing in order to convert them into fans. The pair obviously struck a chord as their talk generated lively debate, which spilled over into the lunchroom afterwards. With racing in sore need of fresh blood and new ideas, one only hopes that their ideas and energy will reach receptive ears.
The afternoon session comprised the opportunity to listen to Mike de Kock and Jehan Malherbe talk about the challenges facing our horses and people just trying to get access to the world stage. It was a fascinating insight into the frustrations and challenges of trying to keep horses fit and sound – in mind as well as body – through the punishing export process and also Mike’s experiences at some of the world’s biggest race meetings. Barley Ward-Thomas, stud manager at Darley Australia spoke about their breeding, rearing and early education programme for their horses. The Australian industry is very focussed on their juveniles and has a prestigious 2yo Triple Crown. To cater for this, Darley have developed an interesting system which Barley describes as getting their horses ‘to go, not to show’. The emphasis is very much on practical, methodical preparation. Youngstock are fed and monitored in such a way as to regulate their nutrition and growth rate. When they’re old enough, young horses are backed using Australian horsemanship methods – interestingly first being ridden bareback before being introduced to a saddle – and gradually habituated to the sights, sounds and demands that they will face in their competitive careers. By the time the young horses reach their trainer, they have been trotting and cantering in company, jumped through starting pens and even been swimming. Barley is characteristically modest and says that good rearing, handling and breaking in might not necessarily win you races, but at Darley they feel that it certainly makes the job a lot easier. And their results certainly seem to bear this out. Peter Gibson rounded off the afternoon with a look at the history of African Horse Sickness, the evolution of the export protocol as well as the challenges currently facing our industry. And if the day hadn’t already provided lots of food for thought, our pre-dinner speaker was the wonderfully charismatic Fee Halsted-Berning, the energy and creative genius behind Ardmore ceramics. She told us a little of her story and how horses had helped shape her life and her career and also how her daughters are now picking up the baton and continuing her work.
Day 2
2014 Summerhill Stallion Day (hamishNIVENPhotography)
Day two was another action and information-packed day kicking off with an enormously entertaining and thought-provoking presentation by Dr Gavin Symanowitz on Disrupting Your Industry, why and how one should do it, the dangers and pitfalls of success and also why one should ignore what your customers think they want and present them with the solutions they need instead if you want your industry to remain successful and relevant. Andrew Harding took to the lectern again to talk about A Decade of Celebration, the methods behind the success of the Hong Kong Jockey Club and the role that South Africa has played in it. The Sporting Post’s Karel Miedema gave a highly illuminating and interesting talk on handicapping and helped make the dark art of handicapping seem just that little more accessible. The lunch room buzzed again as everyone chatted and discussed the morning’s speakers and more ideas and business cards were exchanged over the excellent Hartford fare. It was wonderful that almost all of the speakers stayed on for the full two days, so if you weren’t brave enough to raise your hand in the Q&A, there was always an opportunity to corner your victim over lunch! The afternoon session started with a presentation by Mike Solomon, who gave a layman’s interpretation of the economics and scale of the local racing and breeding industry and where we fit in the global picture. Margaret Nolan explained the science and technology behind light therapy, the Equilume mask and how it can optimise mares’ breeding cycles and then Graeme Hawkins, Warren Kidd and John Bescoby told us the Beach Beauty story, which had everyone reaching for their hankies and really ended proceedings off on a heart-warming high.
I could not possibly do justice to everyone who participated, but it was an enormous privilege to listen to all the presenters as well as to share a room with the audience, which included King Letsie and Queen Masenate, representatives from CATHSSETA, breeders, journalists, administrators, owners, trainers, scientists and authorities from all different spectrums of the equine history from all over the world. If my recommendation isn’t enough, then it is worth saying that almost everyone there was back for a repeat visit and already planning to come back in 2015.
Mick Goss and the Summerhill team (hamishNIVENPhotography)
Kudos
The Summerhill team really deserves every thanks and credit for a thoroughly stimulating and thought-provoking few days that left one inspired and excited about the future. It was an opportunity to pick the brains of the best in the business as well as a chance to make new friends and connections. So if you like horses and people and think all the rest is dross, then make sure you extend your next July visit, take a meander to the Midlands and stay for the Winter Workshop.
