Training & Racing 2013: Dark Fox

A horse never runs so fast as when he has other horses to catch up and outpace ~ Ovid

The spirited horse, which will try to win the race of its own accord, will run even faster if encouraged ~ Ovid

If you haven't realised yet how special Dark Fox is, then here's a whole post dedicated to him to demonstrate it!

Dark Fox, or as he's known to all his fans, Sammy, is a bay gelding by Gothic Dream out of a mare called Venture Lady. We started on this journey together back in 2008, when Sammy was a three year old embarking on his racing career, and I was a university student in need of a summer job. I couldn't have asked for a better horse to learn the tricks of the trade on; he has been the consummate gentleman from day one.

On our first day at the races together he was the only horse we'd taken, and to be honest The Boss probably didn't need my help harnessing him up. I was probably more nervous than Sammy about the whole affair. I'd never been to the spring Tregaron meeting, nor had I ever arrived at a race meeting and parked in the paddock. There were so many lorries and horses and I didn't know a soul! Sammy on the other hand took it all in his stride. He ran in a qualifier, and only four weeks later he won his first race, a maiden at Walton.

Sammy is now 8 and is starting this season in Grade 5 in the handicap system (I believe at one point he was a Grade 7 horse). As of today's date, he has so far run 71 times, winning 9 times and being placed on 36 occasions. His owners, Mervyn & Isobel, have been so lucky as Sammy was their first racehorse. They absolutely love watching him race and they are great supporters of the sport. If Sammy runs well, no matter where he finishes, they are happy. It's seldom that Sammy doesn't run well, because he is honest, genuine and focussed on the job entirely.

Sammy is probably the easiest horse to work with that The Boss and I have ever come across. He is a true professional; he doesn’t waste a drop of energy before a race, very often falling asleep whilst tied to the side of the lorry, but when I put the overcheck up and The Boss takes him onto the track he gets down to business! He pretty much pulls The Boss’ arms out; he doesn’t think he can ever be ‘too close’ to the start car (he once even tried to duck underneath it at Tir Prince because it wasn’t going fast enough!) and if he’s in front by the first bend then it’s pretty much game over. There is one thing our Sammy doesn’t like and that is being passed when he’s in front!

The list of his quirks and habits are endless, and even though I have only spent four months out of every twelve with him for the last five years I feel like there’s nothing he could do to surprise me now. For a horse that is so laid-back at home and at the races he’s surprisingly high maintenance – he won’t pee anywhere except his stable (he runs off the lorry when we get home from the races because he’s bursting), he won’t travel on his own, he has to travel at the back of the lorry regardless of how many horses we have on, he won’t eat his breakfast on a race day, he blows his belly out when I do his girth up and he’s really funny about having a bridle put on as he doesn’t like having his ears touched (he suffers from warts in his ears). But other than that, he’s easy peasy!

One of my best memories of Sammy is his win at Cilmery races last summer. Cilmery races is organised in the main by The Boss and Mrs B, with the first meeting held on their son-in-law's field in 2011. I joined the committee in 2012 and last year was another fantastic meeting, with our first final won by Howards Contender. Anyway, this is not an advert for Cilmery races (that could be another post...), this is about Sammy. The Boss hadn't been very well in the few weeks leading up to the meeting but he's not one to give up his drives easily, and he came home in front of the home crowd several lengths clear with Sammy in one of the heats. He said himself that as he was leading down the back straight for the final time he was waiting for them to catch him...and they never came! Like I said, once Sammy's in the lead he doesn't take kindly to being overtaken, and he seems to dig deeper than ever to stay in front. He's got the heart of a lion and I absolutely love the bones of him.

This season he's been trained under saddle by Mervyn and a friend of his, so he's come back to us semi-fit. He helped Julie regain her saddle licence at Leominster and should she decide to compete in the saddle races this summer then he may well be the horse she rides.

Here's some photos of our boy Sammy, just so you can see what all the fuss is about: