Durban to Newmarket via the Nambiti Game Reserve
I’m in good hands as the guest of Gold Circle’s soon to retire events marketing manager, Ken Tweddell whose charter has not only been to ensure that the Durban July remains the region’s greatest event but also to pen a poem each year to mark the occasion. That he intends to continue to do.
I’m accompanied by a number of journalists and photographers from around the globe and also by Doctors Jill and John Warner who breed and race and generally reside in South Africa despite having spent most most of their lives in England. You won’t find better advocates for racing in the south of this amazing continent.
Jill is clearly blessed so I have no fear confronting the ‘Big 5’ in this extraordinary setting – which really must be more than a drop in your bucket list – under the guidance of South African ranger Raymond Simmons whose father just happens to be Australian born and of some notoriety.
Jill and John concede they are indeed blessed and happily admit they’ve gone from dabbling in horse racing to being totally immersed in just five or six years and all of this came about entirely by chance.
In 2013, fate intervened when a planned visit to studs and the then J&B Met (Cape Town’s biggest race) was amended to stud tours and the Cape Town yearling sales and no races when the Met was moved from its usual date on the calendar.
“We knew that in advance, “Jill explained, “but decided to proceed anyway even though there’d be no races and the original party of 20 couples was reduced to two. I’ve always ridden and seeing horses was the important bit for me. John and I had raced a few horses in the UK but we’d never bought a yearling and we certainly didn’t know anything about South African stallions.
“So, off we ventured to John Koster’s farm where we were so well greeted even though our numbers had diminished. And there we met Captain Al. Later, over lunch, I opened the sales catalogue and it was like fireworks coming off the page where I’d opened the book. I can’t tell you why other than, perhaps, because the horse on that page was by Captain Al.
“I’d buy that horse, I said to John. He said ‘I can’t believe that because that’s the one horse I don’t really want to sell.”
That horse proved to be the Sean Tarry trained five time Group 1 winning sprinter Carry On Alice who’s now domiciled at Arrowfield Stud and the Warners now live in the not entirely fantastic hope that they might have an Australian sales topping yearling, in a couple of years time, as their cherished mare is to be mated with Snitzel.
Raced by the Warners together with Chris Van Niekerk and Koster’s Klawervlei Stud, Carry On Alice won 11 races during a career which saw her become one of South Africa’s most popular horses. She won Group 1 races at two, three, four and five and was honoured as both the Equus Champion Sprinter and Champion Older Filly/Mare in 2016-2017.
Carry On Alice, from Western Winter’s Group 2 winner Carry On Katie, may well emulate another great South Africa sprinting mare in National Colour (also trained by Tarry). She produced Group one winners Mustaaqeem and Rafeef via similar joint venture between Klawervlei and Arrowfield.
The Warners plan a trip to Australia to inspect their mare and doubtless will be back when she gives birth.
“She means everything to us. I loved her the moment I saw her at the sales and she raced in our colours,” Jill Warner said. And, even from the very beginning, fate decreed they would have Carry On Alice. “There was one other we looked at which we liked and John (Koster) gave us a ceiling on both. I was allowed to bid. The first one went above the limit but the second one, Alice, was knocked down to me for 475,000 Rand which was just under John’s half million Rand ceiling,” Jill said.
The Warners have continued to invest. “It could be verging on out of control,” John says, “but five years from our first purchase on and we are really embraced by just about everyone in the industry here. That would never happen in the UK.”
Both are keen riders and are looking forward to Umzolozolo Lodge, which is part owned by prominent racehorse owner Neil Loudon, possibly introducing horse back safaris next year. That’s the hope of manager Lin Pearson who is zoologist, reserve and lodge manger, field guide and passionate conservationist but also a lover of horses.
Me, I think I’m happy to sit in the land cruiser to observe some of the world’s most dangerous animals. Our field guide Raymond Simmons was expert in this craft. He’s also dabbled in horticulture and golf course design and is a qualified PGA teaching professional which is no great shock given that his Australian born father Phil was a fine playing and teaching professional who taught Ernie Els.
Els, quoted in Golf Monthly, said: “Although I could already play the game, I started to really learn about the technique in my early teens first with my father and then with Phil Simmons, the pro at Germiston Golf Club. Phil was a left-hander, he had a great technique, his swing was beautiful and he hit it miles. He taught me a lot but he never really changed my swing. Instead, he showed me what a good trajectory was.”
Simmons junior loves his golf and has a treasured set of clubs given to him by the two time Open Championship winner Els. “But not as much as I love working with these animals.” he said.
As to the racing action today, Brando looks an irresistible bet each way – at the odds on offer – in the July Cup. The Kevin Ryan trained gelding excels at Newmarket, where his form includes a sound third in this race last year, and he excels fresh. He’s also coming off a forgive run behind Merchant Navy in Ireland.