The Royal Chatter

Once in a blue moon

2011-01-17T17:29:00.057-05:00

The National Fence (Douglas Lees photo)

Once in a blue moon, we all have the opportunity to make a significant change to a community. This opportunity presented itself over three years ago when I considered building a new fence that our steeplechase horses raced over at speed.

Since 1973, when Secretariat hit the scene as a three-year-old going on to win the Triple Crown, there isn’t anything I have not loved about horses, particularly the Thoroughbred. As an owner of steeplechase race horses since 1992, I have probably owned outright or in partnership over thirty race horses, most of them jumpers. So intrigued with this beautiful sport, my wife and I also founded the QUEEN’S CUP STEEPLECHASE in 1995, now considered by most horsemen to be one of the finest (and safest) steeplechase racecourses on the sanctioning body's National Steeplechase Association's (NSA) circuit.

Safety has always been my mantra, though I am realistic to know that sometimes, horse and rider get hurt; sometime catastrophically. Riding horses in general, and race riding in particular, is by its very nature, a very dangerous sport. In the eighteen years I have owned race horses, I have had a number of my own horses maimed and a couple suffered the ultimate fate while racing. Two exceptionally nice ones paid the ultimate price. Interestingly, both horses were talented jumpers but for whatever reason, decided to go long, landing squarely on top of the frame, both with devastating results. Over the past few years, I have had jockeys, owners and trainers share their stories of their favorite horses being lost or seriously injured due to the fence they competed over, not to mention the serious injuries some jockeys have received due to their mount taking a fall.

The loss of horses and those stories were the impetus to investigating and eventually creating a new, state-of-the-art fence that would be more forgiving in the event of a jumping mishap yet lighter and easier to set up and move about. As part of my mission, it was clear that steeplechase racing here in the United States and some other parts of the world had lost the art of jumping. Fences were getting smaller and the pace of the race faster. This lead me to think - could an artificial fence with a bigger, fuller presentation allow jumping to get back in the game thereby slowing the pace of the race, in hopes for making safer racing? Many experts in the game believe this is the case and therefore, my friend and retired champion American jump jockey Jeff Teter and yours truly, along with my fence consultant and fence builder, Bill Watt of Watt Fences, Ltd. of North Yorkshire, England went down the path of investigating a new fence design along with a number of other interested NSA horsemen.

SafTfence at Thornton Hill Races

Three years in the making and hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in research, design and mistakes, March of 2010, we introduced the patent pending SafTfence™ plastic fence frame and birch branch system in a state-of-the-art, yet fully portable design. Since the system was designed from the ground up, the SafTfence hedge can be made as stiff or soft and tall or small as need be and is generally more forgiving to error of judgement by horse or rider. The fence’s presentation is as impressive to look at as it is to jump. Riders tell me the horse really looks at the fence and is less likely to take liberties with it.

The new fence was first presented to horsemen late March 2010 to much fanfare and general acceptance by NSA horsemen. Last fall, the SafTfence steeplechase fence was raced over at two non-sanctioned race meets in Virginia. We learned a lot from those two races along with the performance of the plastics from weather changes particularly from the 2010 hot fall to the sudden arrival of early winter. Months of errors, mistakes and a number of successes, the SafTfence is will be ready for its debut at the upcoming Queen's Cup Steeplechase where the jockeys and their athletic thoroughbred steeds will be racing over the new SafTfence steeplechase fence in three of six races.

It really goes to prove that necessity really is the mother of invention and once in a blue moon, one can make a difference in small and one hopes, powerful ways creating safety for horse and rider alike. See the new fence for yourselves at the Queen's Cup Saturday, April 30th.

Remembering Dick Francis at the 3rd Annual Queen's Cup Steeplechase

2010-02-15T14:23:00.000-05:00

My son Jamey texted me Sunday to share with me the passing of prolific mystery writer and retired twice champion steeplechase jockey, Dick Francis, who died at age 89 earlier that morning at his home in Grand Cayman.

This rather abrupt news immediately brought home fond memories of the third annual Queen's Cup Steeplechase in 1998 when one of American steeplechasing's deceased benefactors and retired amateur steeplechase rider, George Sloan, made all of the arrangements to invite Dick Francis and HRH Princess Anne to our little old race meet in very southern Union County! What an honor to have not one, but two VIP's, and not just any VIP's but the daughter of the Queen of England and the most famous mystery writer of our time and retired British steeplechase jockey, Dick Francis.

I'll save the story of entertaining HRH Anne for another time but I will tell you, Mr. Francis was an amazingly vivacious, very British gentleman who began his morning that day at 5:00 am in Lexington, KY to catch a private jet with HRH Anne, all courtesy of Skee and Gil Johnston of Coca Cola Enterprises.

At the age of 77, crippled from arthritis from the numerous falls and broken bones he sustained during his many years as a jump jockey, he made me feel quite comfortable the moment I met him. When we first met at the bottom of the plane at Lancaster's airport, as we climbed into the stretch limo, just me and HRH and Mr. Francis, to ease my uncomfortableness with the situation, I shared stories of how I first was introduced to his books while spending a summer in England as a young teenager. I also shared with the both of them how I aspired to be a jump jockey but never had the opportunity or talent to pursue those dreams. Starting the Queen's Cup was the next best thing. Having both of them at arm's length away, all alone in the limo was both exhilarating and down right scary. Oh my head was apounding.

We arranged through a local book store to have Mr. Francis book sign his latest entry 10 LB. PENALTY to any patron who cared to meet him. Expecting a light turn out, I took him down in a golf cart, showed him his seat and table underneath a 20'x 20' tent and some three hours later, he still had a line of Queen's Cup patrons waiting to meet him - his day just got longer and the poor man was totally whipped. Later that day, when I had the chance to sit down with Mr. Francis and HRH, he proclaimed that he had "writer's cramp" from all of the book signings but was quite and pleasantly pleased with the patron turn out, book signing and the racing that day.

He was right; racing was pretty good that afternoon and there was plenty of drama on the course as jockey Michael Traurig came a cropper in the third and was subsequently carted off in Carolina Medical Hospital's Medivac, but not before the helicopter took a wrong turn down NC Highway 601 and got lost in the process of trying to find our racecourse, holding up racing for over an hour. By the time of its untimely arrival, Michael was his old self (sharp, loud and combative), Her Royal Highness was getting rather impatient while Mr. Francis was just tired from having written personal notes in over 150 books! Michael was eventually airlifted back to Charlotte, against his will and was later released that evening, none the worse for wear.

At about half past four, the VIP entourage announced that it was time for their return back to their private jet, who would be making it's final leg to Atlanta that afternoon with flights back to England that evening. We rushed to the limo with the North and South Carolina Highway Patrol leading the charge back to Lancaster's airport. By then, my headache had turned into what felt like a migraine and I was almost pleased to see the two of them leave, as will be explained in the rest of the story on a future story about HRH. But what a day!

Several years later, I put in a call to Mr. Francis at his home in Grand Cayman, inviting him back to participate in the Tenth Anniversary Queen's Cup in 2005 in hopes of reliving the past. I left him a message on his answering machine on a Sunday and a couple of hours later, he called me back, remembered me as though I had seen him yesterday and kindly and graciously declined on account of his ailing health. He was none the less "honored" to be considered as honorary VIP of the Queen's Cup. I was even more honored that he returned my call, speaking with me for over fifteen minutes.

Well, that's just the kind of man he was; gracious, kind and a true gentleman. He was also one heck of a mystery writer and the world is better for having Mr. Francis provide hours of unadulterated fun and good reading to millions of readers throughout the world. I am better for having met the Gentleman of Steeplechase Racing.

Introducing Bill Price and his "Words of Wisdom"...or not

2010-02-11T15:29:00.001-05:00

Lords and Ladies,

Welcome to the first post of "Royal Chatter". Our very own Bill Price, Race Chairman of the Queen's Cup Steeplechase, will be the voice of reason...hmmm

Be on the lookout

for race day info
tailgating buzz
fashion and
Queen's Cup history

AND...anything and everything you ever wanted to know about a horse!!!