Quest for Gold

E Dimmer Michael

Description

Set in the late 1960s, Quest for Gold is an evolving tale of a racing family that realises it owns a potential champion. The handsome black gelding, which bears the family name of 'Bretton', is a treasure, an animal most owners can only dream of.John Bretton is the 'black sheep' of the family. His dubious occupation as a racing tipster, brings an exciting but risky lifestyle in which he thrives. But John's activities have been met with disapproval by his father, Major Bretton, who is the family's licensed trainer. The Major has disowned his eldest son and barred him from visiting the family home and stables.Although not seeing eye-to-eye with his father, John has kept close contact with his sister Felicity, and younger brother Anthony, an accomplished amateur rider. One day, in the Major's absence, Felicity invites John to visit. During his stay, John, himself a competent horseman, accepts an invitation to give 'Bretton' a spin. Following a hair-raising experience in the saddle, comes a chance encounter with the attractive wife of a neighbouring trainer. The instant chemistry between the two leads to a secret affair. But beyond their illicit love affair, dangerous implications are lurking. That autumn, 'Bretton' is back from a summer of grass, and the horse begins his winter campaign. He will be specifically trained for next year's Gold Cup, the ultimate prize in National Hunt racing. In a thrilling winter of racing, the big black gelding faces formidable opposition from Ireland.As the Gold Cup approaches, there is a shock in store for John, and Bretton is moved to another trainer.... Michael E Dimmer conveys the excitement of the racing world in gripping detail, and reveals some of the dark secrets of the tipster's life. Quest for Gold will be enjoyed by anyone interested in the sport of kings.

Sujets

• Thriller

Informations

• Publié par: Hornbeam Press
• Date de parution: 28 février 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780956523686
• Langue: English

Extrait

Table of Contents
Copyright
About the Author
Foreword
Chapter One: The Champion Hunter
Chapter Two: Former Times
Chapter Three: Anna Trenton
Chapter Four: The Foxhunters Cup
Chapter Five: A Plot Is Sprung
Chapter Six: Champagne and Strawberries
Chapter Seven: The Wrath of Tom Trenton
Chapter Eight: The Stowthorpe Set-Up
Chapter Nine: Rivalry Renewed
Chapter Ten: A Cold Wind and Cognac
Chapter Eleven: Disclosures and Departures
Chapter Twelve: The Gold Cup
Look out for...
Copyright
Copyright © Michael E Dimmer, 2014

Michael E Dimmer has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work.

ISBN: 978 0 9565236 86

Published by Hornbeam Press

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

License Notes
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About the Author

Michael Dimmer was born in 1941, in Gosport, Hampshire. He was educated in the town, although childhood asthma hindered his early progress. Despite this, Michael passed the Civil Service exam in 1957, mainly, he was later informed, because of a well-written essay. He then joined the Post Office (GPO) as a counter clerk to begin a career that spanned 34 years. During this time Michael was involved in most aspects of the Post Office and Royal Mail business, and retired from his management position in 1991.
Michael came from a keen sporting family, with three elder brothers. Although cricket was his first love, from his late twenties tennis was very much his passion. Since retiring, he has played a vital role in building and helping to organise a highly successful tennis club within his West Sussex village. This keeps him fully occupied in the summer months, and he still actively participates in the sport. Michael and his wife Brenda also spent many years in Greyhound Racing ownership, firstly at Portsmouth, but mainly at Hove. They had some exciting times, and needless to say, greyhounds have always been their favourite pets.
Michael's favourite era will always be the sixties, when he claims to have lived a little, and in 1968 he met Brenda, who shared a similar career, before acquiring her own Sub-Post Office. They married in 1972, and now they both enjoy village life.
During his twenties Michael was attracted to the Sport of Kings, and especially to National Hunt racing, when Arkle, generally regarded as the Greatest Steeplechaser of all time, crossed from Ireland to light up Cheltenham and many other race courses. He had a game English opponent in Mill House awaiting him, and their clashes were influential in Michael turning back time to create a fictional version of racing in this great era.
Quest for Gold , a tale about a racing family and their treasured and talented young horse, is his first novel.
Foreword

As a young man in my twenties, I was in awe of the many great sporting successes of the sixties, but in none more so than the achievements of the all conquering steeplechaser, who was Arkle.
Arkle, the legend known fondly as ‘Himself’, is acclaimed by many as the ‘Greatest Steeplechaser’ of all time, yet it had been the English-trained Mill House, winner of the 1963 Cheltenham Gold Cup as a 6-year-old, who originally seemed destined for such acclaim. Later that year, in the Hennessy Gold Cup, the two horses met for the first time, and Mill House decisively defeated Arkle into third place.
Gold Cup day at Cheltenham dawned on Saturday, March 7, 1964. Mill House, affectionately known as ‘The Big Horse’, was favourite to confirm his superiority over the challenger from Ireland. It was a work day for me, and I clearly recall timing my tea break accordingly, then seeking the nearest television to watch the race.
Mill House set off in his usual trailblazing fashion with Arkle in his slipstream, and the other two runners were soon outclassed. Mill House held a two-length lead at the third last fence, but at the second last, his lead was much diminished. Arkle went smoothly into the lead approaching the final fence, and quickened away under jockey Pat Taaffe for an impressive victory. ‘Himself’ was the Champion!
Arkle went on to claim the next two Cheltenham Gold Cups, and although the two great horses met on several other occasions, Arkle was always the superior. His career ended prematurely through injury in 1966, after he had won 27 out of 35 races.
My experience of this great era in National Hunt racing inspired me to write Quest for Gold .

Michael E Dimmer
Chapter One
The Champion Hunter


The handsome black gelding circled the parade ring, led by a petite, rather shabbily dressed girl whose somewhat horsey features were partly obscured by strands of blonde hair blown across her face by a teasing breeze.
John Bretton looked fondly upon his sister Felicity and her charge. The horse, a 17h.h. hunter, was trained by Major Frank Bretton, their father, and was about to be ridden by John’s 28-year-old brother Anthony in the Champion Hunter Chase for amateur riders. It also carried the family name; its registered racing name was ‘Bretton’.
John raised his eyes and looked beyond the paddock to the rolling Cotswold hills that surrounded the beautiful Chedbury Park racecourse. Watching the white cumulus clouds sailing across the pale blue winter sky, he reflected on the last ten years of his life.
His mother had died when he was 25 years old, and shortly afterwards he broke away from Bretton House, the farm, his family environment and his job. He had qualified as an accountant two years previously, but had found the life stultifying and devoid of excitement. His main interest was in racing, ‘the sport of kings’, but his father disapproved of gambling, an occasional £10 bet on one of the family horses being the limit of his investments.
With the legacy he had inherited from his mother, John had purchased an attractive cottage in the Malvern hills and had then embarked on the chancy yet lucrative occupation of ‘tipping’ horses to the increasing number of naive punters who responded to his advertisements in sporting journals, under the pseudonym of ‘Captain Carmodie.’
Since his departure from Bretton House he had retained a fairly close relationship with his brother and sister, but his father remained distant and unforgiving. John, moving in racing circles and having acquaintances in the bookmaking profession, was able to glean an occasional piece of genuine information, but he mainly lived on his wits, relying on his alter ego , ‘Captain Carmodie’, to subsidise his gambling ventures.
John’s wandering attention was drawn back to Bretton, who had suddenly reared excitedly, but was quickly calmed by his reassuring handler; Felicity’s affinity with the animal surpassed even that of trainer and jockey.
Bretton, now six years old, had been purchased by the Major as a yearling, on the recommendation of an astute Irish friend with an eye for horse flesh; the package deal of 1,000 guineas included shipping from the Emerald Isle.
His sire, although not fashionable, had won a couple of three-mile hurdles and a two-mile flat race, which indicated stamina in the bloodline, essential for the hunting field. The dam, though of poor stock, also had a staying pedigree.
Bretton had been brought along gradually with care and dedication, and, although regularly hunted at the age of four and five, was never shown a racecourse until his fifth year. In late May 1967, he contested his first point-to-point, an ‘open’ event over 3 miles on a local course. The whispers were loud, quickly reducing the odds to 6-4 on as farming friends and associates realised that they were on to a good thing. Apart from a couple of minor errors the backers were treated to an impressive debut, with 20 lengths of daylight between the ‘black’ victor and the nearest of his inferior rivals. The Major considered this run to be sufficient for the five-year-old until the next season.
It was early March 1968 when Bretton next appeared, two weeks prior to the Chedbury Park National Hunt Festival, which was the centrepiece of the season, and where champions emerged and fell. Bretton, however, was only to be aimed at Chedbury if his next point-to-point performance indicated considerable improvement.
Much fitter than most horses would be for their seasonal reappearance, the black gelding was well muscled and carried only the slightest surplus after a hard preparation of cross-country cantering, road work and schooling over five-foot birch fences. Anthony and Felicity shared this enjoyable responsibility, cantering the horse up to 15 miles daily while their father supervised closely all schooling work. The results exceeded their wildest dreams. Bretton went clear of his field from halfway, hardly touching a twig, and was allowed to cruise home in the hands of a delighted Anthony.