HARKAWAY CLUB CELEBRATES 100 YEARS AT CHADDESLEY CORBETT: 1985-1994
- jakeexelby
- Dec 2
- 4 min read
The years in question saw the emergence of the formidable Dick Baimbridge-Alison Dare trainer-rider partnership, with Russki being the star horse. The Harkaway Club was fortunate with the weather and all ten fixtures during this period took place.
1985 had a nine-race card, with a plethora of leading horses and jockeys among the winners. National champion Peter Greenall had a four-timer, two of which were dead-heats – on Naughty Niece in the Mens Open and Pride Of Tullow in the Maiden. Greenall also took the Adjacent on Sliebemore and the opening Club Members on classy mare National Clover. Another winner from a successful distaff family was Fruit Farm in the Ladies Open, the mount of future champion Lucy Crow. And Alison Dare, who would go on to win six titles and become one of the all-time greats of the sport, took the Restricted on Kiltra Boy, trained – unsurprisingly – by Dick Baimbridge.
Peter Greenall was again champion jockey in 1986 and had three more winners, repeating his 1985 success in the Adjacent on Sliebemore. Indeed, there were several follow-up winners, including Solidity and Luigi Carenza in the Mens Open (they had won the other division the previous year). Ridgeman had dead-heated in the Mens Open in 1985, but took the Ladies equivalent this year and Rockin Berry regained the Club Members crown she had worn in 1983. The Maiden went to Corvedale Corfton and Guy Opperman, who would go on – more than 30 years later – to become the only sitting MP in modern times to win a point-to-point as a jockey.
1987 maybe lacked the quality of horses of recent renewals, but some of the winning names remain familiar to racegoers nearly 40 years on. South Midlands Course Inspector John Pritchard won the Open on Hasty Storm and Steward and former West Mercian joint-Chairman Stuart Dickin scored in the Cub Members on Edged Gold.
The Baimbridge-Dare axis struck again in 1988 with Allen Lad in the Ladies Open, while among the male jockeys to taste success were current National Hunt trainers Gary Hanmer (Tangle Trial in the Restricted) and Matt Sheppard (Deep Prospect in the Adjacent). The latter pair went on to take the John Corbet Cup later that season.
Alison Dare won the Ladies Open again in 1989 with Le Kingdom, while the leading rider on the day was Steve Brookshaw, who had a double with Mount Argus, whose career totalled 21 wins, and the useful mare Cute Pam.
1990’s double scorer was Willie Bryan, on Shannon Castle in the Club Members and Master Spartan in the Adjacent. The Ladies Open went to… you guessed it, Alison Dare for the third year in a row, this time on Russki, taking the first of what would be four wins in this contest, while the Mens Open went the way of 1989 Lady Dudley Cup winner Border Sun and Simon Sweeting.
There was another nine-race card in 1991, when Border Sun and Simon Sweeting repeated their Mens Open victory, and Dick Baimbridge and Alison Dare helped themselves to a double. Fennelly took the Club Members and Grademount the Restricted, but they didn’t have a runner in the Ladies Open this time – that race was won by Third In Line and Sophie Edwards.
1992 belonged to Baimbridge and Dare again. They notched up a treble through three previous winners at the fixture – Fennelly (Restricted), Grademount (Club Members) and Russki (Ladies Open again). The Mens Open went to the classy Frome Boy and Damien Duggan.
Russki and Alison Dare took their third Ladies Open in four years in 1993, which also saw victories for two talented mares, Fine Lace (Jimmy Tarry) in the Club Members and Ancella (Tim Stephenson) in the Mens Open. Treyford – who was runner-up in the Lady Dudley Cup three years in a row from 1992 to 1994 – and Anthony Steel repeated their Adjacent success, and Alan Phillips had a double with Scallys Choice in the Restricted and Bradford Beau in the Maiden.
In 1994, the Harkaway Club fixture was held in late May, and the new date could be a factor in their being less equine star talent than in recent seasons, but the same could not be said of the jockeys. Four-time champ Julian Pritchard enjoyed his first successes at the meeting with Shadow Walker (Mens Open) and Eddie Kybo (Club Members). There were no Alison Dare victories – or even any rides – for the first time since 1987 and the Ladies Open saw a sad postscript to Pikeman’s success in the Ladies Open under Candy Thomas. As the Mackenzie & Selby Annual put it, “The excitement sadly proved too much for owner John Panniers, as he dropped dead when cheering his horse home (what a glorious way to go!)”.
Comments