- Self Sense and the Australian Jumps Circuit -- The last ten years has been a tough period for Australian jumps racing with the concerns over the horses welfare to the front. It was even stopped altogether for a period in 2009/10 but this season has proved to be a successful one. There are signs it has regained some fluidity as the formation of the jumps have finally been worked out. The future of jumps racing is still in the balance but there are some good signs with the industry stating it has reduced the rate of horse fatalities in Victorian jumps races by 70 per cent and averages 2.5 fatalities per season over the past seven years, a drop from eight fatalities in the corresponding prior period. It is so pleasing to see good figures as i must admit i have reservations myself about the jumps racing. It is an exciting spectacle but the fatalities of this beautiful creature is a concern. I like to look realistically at an issue and horses are an animal that are always going to have accidents in any situation because of their sheer size and if they fall even in a paddock can have fatal consequences. The Warrnambool carnival's headline event the Grand Annual Steeplechase is the longest jumps race in the southern hemisphere, challenging the stamina of horses and riders over 5,500 metres and 33 obstacles for a share of $350,000 in prize money. It brings in over ten million dollars to the Warrnambool area. Jumps racing has long been the subject of intense scrutiny from members of the media, politicians and the general public. For me the distance is a concern here even if they do run at a leisurely speed throughout. I would love to get the fall figures over the final jumps in races ! This tends to be where alot of spills occur.
- Self Sense is Australias new star jumper and in only his second hurdle start romped away with the Australian Hurdle over 3400m at Sandown. After scrambling through the last hurdle he recovered to win by six lengths with jockey Clayton Douglas riding confidently.Then in the $100,000 Kevin Lafferty Hurdle at Warrnambool took his career prizemoney earnings past $1 million. The seven year old led from the first furlong of the race and, despite awkward leaps at several of the obstacles, had too much class for his rivals. Eased down near the line by jockey Clayton Douglas, the son of Street Sense had more than three lengths to spare on runner-up Two Hats. He is now unbeaten in three hurdle starts.
He's a ⭐ in the making!— Racing.com (@Racing) July 8, 2018
Self Sense clearly loving his jumping for trainer David Brideoake. pic.twitter.com/CxEc1u1GvO
- Mum and the Races --I remember as a young boy of nine or ten our family would head off for an afternoon at the races around the Callaghan Park Racetrack in Rockhampton . My sisters were eight and six years old. My dad would love to have a punt on the horses while we all would sit in the grandstand or play on the front lawn and watch the races and have our chips. Sometimes we would wander down to the stables at the back to check out the horses before they went onto the track for the race. My parents had a couple of close friends at that time Eric and Betty Barber who had two children around our age Julie and Des. They traveled from the gemfields of Emerald out west most Saturdays when their horse was racing. It never occurred to me back then why my father was never actually interested in the horse he was only interested in the thrill and adrenalin rush of a bet . He was a gambler ! My eldest sister as she got into her teens would often take off horse riding with her friends, something I regret not doing myself. I have stayed fascinated by the horse and racing but for me nowdays its more the enjoyment of the horse itself rather than a bet.
- Mum would take an interest in the horses probably for dad's sake and often have her own bets picked out. She always had a dream that one day she would find that ultimate system that would win us a fortune. One of those systems was to back the first four most fancied horses on the Melbourne gallops and back in those days around fifty per cent of those first four races were jumps races. Memories flood back and every now then one of those horses names pop into my head. Names like Lots of Time, Scottish John and Royal Arragon but one that always makes an appearance each year at national time on social media here and in the UK is the great Crisp. Until recently he was the only jumps horse in the Australian Racing Hall of Fame and he is one of the most iconic gallopers in the UK. Due to the epic finish of that 1973 Grand National. Just recently Ascot Gold Cup winner, Stradivarious owner, businessman Bjorn Nielson when asked what got him into racing his reply was "That it was the spectacular Australian jumps competitor Crisp that drew him to racing." “Watching the epic 1973 Grand National in which Red Rum caught the gallant Crisp in the dying stages scarred me for life,”. He will be remembered on both hemispheres as one of the greatest jumpers of all time. Its a painful watch over those huge jumps.
- I struggle a little with the health and safety issue of jumps racing but i still have a soft spot for it. I am so glad to see the racing industry making big efforts in both flat and jumps racing to look after this beautiful animal. The horses have such unique personalities and I can understand why my eldest sister has always had a strong love for this animal. It is a large industry and the majority are in it for the love of the sport and the horse. I can see positive steps and money being put into looking after the main participant of the sport and it will never be enough for some people but i suppose if the horse profits. Its all good !
- Karasi -- Up until recently Crisp had been the sole Australian Jumper in the Australian Racing Hall of Fame but two years back he was joined by the great Karasi . Karasi is best known for winning the world's richest steeplechase race, the Nakayama Grand Jump in Japan for three consecutive years 2005, 2006, 2007 but he was a top flat performer as a younger horse, with his best performance being a fourth in the 2001 Melbourne Cup and a win in the Geelong Cup. The great jumper banked about $3.75 million dollars for his connections during his career. Karasi won his third Nakayama Jump at the age of twelve for trainer Eric Musgrove and jockey Brett Scott.
2005 Nakayama Grand Jump 🏆— Racing.com (@Racing) May 15, 2018
2006 Nakayama Grand Jump 🏆
2007 Nakayama Grand Jump 🏆
Supreme jumper Karasi has been inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame. @BScott_Racing
STORY: https://t.co/Vs5EYlJiN4 pic.twitter.com/2nX6S0LiZB
