The Vo Rogue Show

Lynley Small

Description

The Vo Rogue Show is the story about a small, gelded weanling of poor breeding initially called 'Erky' and purchased with the proceeds of a punt, that blossomed into a superstar. This once in a lifetime racehorse captivated the nation, created a cult following and enriched the lives of those who knew and loved him. But this book is not just a story about horse racing. It is a story about life, death, resilience and the undying love for this one horse.

Sujets

• Sport
• Autour du sport
• Histoire du sport
• Recreation
• Sports
• Animal Sports
• Horse Racing
• Sport équestre
• Sports équestres
• Sports équestres
• Sports équestres

Informations

• Publié par: Melbourne Books
• Date de parution: 01 novembre 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781877096532
• Langue: English

Extrait

This book is dedicated to the loving memory of Vo Rogue, our once in a lifetime champion, who took us on the ride of a lifetime and made a nation of racing followers so very happy.

FOREWORD
From first light on Sunday March 29 2009, you could tell South East Queensland was in for another day of high temperatures and oppressive humidity. Conditions had been stifling at the Parklands Paceway the previous evening when American import Mr Feelgood thwarted Blacks A Fake’s quest for four consecutive Interdominion Grand Finals.
The humidity was punishing when I arrived at Cyril and Lynlea Small’s Tallebudgera Valley property with a Sky Channel camera crew the following morning. I didn’t want to spend time on the Gold Coast without paying a visit to long-retired champion Vo Rogue who was spending time with the Smalls as he battled with a chronic bout of laminitis. He’d spent most of his time following retirement in the care of part-owner Jeff Perry, who owned a property just four kilometres away. The sensitive nature of the laminitis made it difficult for the 25-year-old gelding to move about on the undulating terrain of the Perry farm. He was clearly more comfortable on the flatter acreage of the Small property.
The camera crew had barely rolled tape when the unthinkable happened. The old horse toppled to the ground as Cyril Small led him from the paddock. The champion’s former jockey reacted quickly. He grabbed a nearby hose and sprayed water over Vo’s prostrate form from nose to tail. The result was astounding. Vo Rogue clambered to his feet after a couple of minutes, looking none the worse for wear. Cyril’s diagnosis was correct. The grand old horse was a victim of heat exhaustion.
We couldn’t wait to get into the house and to the blissful relief of air conditioning where interviews with Jeff Perry and Cyril could be recorded. The audio operator delivered the grim news that the aircon motor was too loud and would have to be switched off. It was still as hot as it gets, but a big improvement on the outdoor location. We got the interviews underway.
Jeff and John Murray had jointly purchased Vo Rogue as a weanling and raced the horse in partnership until early 1988, when John decided to put his 20 per cent share on the market. That share was purchased by Victorian Garry Roberts whose timing couldn’t have been more fortuitous. The horse had won a Group 1 and four Group 2 races to that point, but his glory days were all ahead of him. Jeff Perry’s devotion to his once in a lifetime horse extended far beyond the racetrack and endured until the champion took his final breath in 2012.
Almost as clear in my mind as that sultry morning at Tallebudgera Valley is the visit I paid with a Channel 9 News crew to the stabling complex at the back of Kembla Grange racecourse in the spring of 1989. Vo Rogue was stabled there for a short Sydney campaign. To this point in time, the gelding hadn’t won in the harbour city, and some detractors were doubting that he ever would. This was the first time I’d been close enough to lay a hand on the popular horse. It was also my first encounter with his trainer Vic Rail, whose unorthodox methods had garnered almost as much publicity as Vo Rogue’s spectacular front running wins.
I got the shock of my life when the nuggety former jockey greeted us in the stable breezeway. Vic was garbed in a T-shirt, stubby shorts and thongs. He was obviously oblivious to the golden rule that you never wear thongs around horses. I couldn’t help but think of Tommy Smith and Bart Cummings who usually wore a jacket and tie whenever media people visited the stables. I wondered if Vic would do anything to substantiate the popular opinion that he was a tad eccentric. The Queensland horseman duly obliged.
‘This is the quietest thoroughbred you’ll ever see,’ said the Queensland horseman. ‘Watch this and I’ll show you what I mean.’
The Channel 9 cameraman captured a priceless piece of footage as Vic handed the lead rope to an assistant and proceeded to do something that most horsemen would never risk. He stooped low and slid between the horse’s front legs before continuing on with his head brushing Vo’s belly. He calmly exited between the horse’s hind legs with a huge smile on his face. That remarkable gelding didn’t blink throughout the well-rehearsed procedure.
I thought of that special morning at Kembla Grange when the sad news filtered through from Brisbane five years later that Vic Rail had died after becoming infected with Hendra virus.
Nobody can tell you why this unique racehorse failed to strike his best form in eight Sydney runs, recording just one win and finishing unplaced in the other seven. I’m glad I was there to call his all the way win in the 1989 Group 1 George Main Stakes. He looked vulnerable when Groucho and Don’t Play threatened danger in the straight, but it was almost as though he knew his reputation depended on that Group 1 win. Cyril got him home, the crowd loved it and the Randwick fans forgave his previous failures in Sydney.
The Cyril Small factor added greatly to the romance of the Vo Rogue story. The hard-working Brisbane jockey partnered the amazing horse in 22 of his 26 wins. It’s a pity that he’s credited with only six Group 1 wins on the gelding. Under today’s rankings, Vo’s three Orr Stakes wins and two Turnbull Stakes victories would be classified as Group 1s.
Vo Rogue exited the racetrack in 1991. Cyril Small is still going at age 63. His opportunities are infrequent these days, but Lynlea says he’s as keen as a fledgling apprentice when offered a race ride. The veteran rode his first winner in May of 1974 and has less than two years to go before he realises a burning ambition to complete 50 years as a professional jockey. Is it any wonder Cyril Small and Vo Rogue got on so well?
Cyril and Lynlea are the proud parents of Daniel (33), Braidon (31) and Jessica (28). Braidon is already an accomplished jumps jockey in Victoria, while Daniel made his debut in the same business on 18 April 2022 in a steeplechase event. Just 25 days later, on 13 May and at his fourth ride, Daniel rode his first winner Ferago in a highweight race at Geelong.
Lynlea has made her mark as a trainer, posting notable success with a handful of horses. How she handles her whirlwind lifestyle is a source of wonderment to family and friends. In 2019 she was confirmed with her Doctor of Philosophy after completing a three-year course while working full-time at a local university.
This book has been high on Lynlea’s list of priorities for several years now. In her trademark style this dynamo has painstakingly researched press clippings, viewed race replays until her head spun and sought anecdotes from those whose lives were touched by Vo Rogue. The result is a touching, sensitive and beautifully written account of one of the greatest racehorses of his generation.
Incidentally, a few years ago a friend gave me a framed photograph of a modest monument standing just inside the boundary fence of a property near Timaru on New Zealand’s South Island. The monument marks the spot where Phar Lap was foaled in 1926. After that, I did a double take when, for the first time, I spotted an expertly painted sign at the front gate of a Pitt Town property on the outskirts of Sydney. The inscription was brief. It said ‘The birthplace of Vo Rogue’. How fitting it was that the 1980s super horse should be afforded a similar honour.
John Tapp OAM
INTRODUCTON
Vo Rogue is without doubt one of Australia’s most beloved racehorses. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Vo Rogue was the people’s champion and star of The Vo Rogue Show that played to packed grandstands on Australia’s best racecourses for five years. Vic Rail, Cyril Small, Jeff Perry and, to a lesser degree, Garry Roberts were the support acts.
It has been over 30 years since Vo Rogue—or Vo to his family, friends and fans—last raced and a decade has passed since he crossed over the rainbow bridge. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and for the old and new fans of Vo that expression stands true. The horse is loved as much today as he ever was. His racecourse feats are replayed over and over again on Racing.com, much to the delight of his legion of fans. Each year in March he is remembered for his sterling wins in two Australian Cups and his courageous seconds in the same race. ‘Doing a Vo Rogue’ has become a catchcry for race callers across Australia when horses go out with big leads in races.
But Vo was more than a racehorse; he was family to those that cared for him and loved him.
People think they know Vo’s story and that of the people who were instrumental in bringing ‘The Vo Rogue Show’ to life. No doubt they know some of it, bits and pieces accompanied by what they read in the press, hear on the television or hear from a mate, none of which are always reliable. I thought it was time that racing fans and the general public were given a factual account of what is, in reality, many stories.
This book tells the story from beginning to end, commencing with how Jeff Perry, Vic Rail, Cyril Small and later Garry Roberts, found themselves teaming up with a horse who in simple terms made people happy and took them all on the ride of a lifetime. The story details how a small, gelded weanling of poor breeding initially called ‘Erky’ and purchased with the proceeds of a punt, blossomed into a superstar racehorse. This is a love story between the horse and his senior part-owner Jeff Perry. It is also a story of the solidarity of one man for his mates whose individual talents he respected and trusted despite some tumultuous moments in their relationships.
For some, the story has continued well after Vo retired and so this book moves beyond Vo’s racing days and follows the lives of his connections and their trials and tribulations as they navigate life without their superstar galloper by their sides.
This book is not just a story about horse racing. It is a story about l