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JOHN McLENNAN - Horseman

JOHN McLENNAN - Horseman

John McLennan, now in his early sixties, trained and rode his first winner, at a Geraldine meeting, before he was 17, and rapidly rose to be one of the best known and successful riders and drivers until he retired from the game about a decade ago. He holds a record of having ridden 70 winners of saddle races run over a mile, five of them on straight-out trotters. At the 1920 Cup meeting at Addington he and F G Holmes each handled six winners, just half the programme between them. At the previous Cup meeting he drove Cello Sydney Wilkes in his four victories, a performance which was another record up to that time.

Cello Sydney Wilkes was a pony stallion by Harold Dillon from Cremona Wilkes, bred and owned by Mrs T L Morrison at Balclutha, and who afterwards lived at Waimate. He commenced his racing career as a two-year-old in the 1914-15 season at Ashburton. During that season he won the Amateur Handicap in 2m 21s and was driven by H B Hubbard. He was lightly raced until six years old (did not start at all at four years), and in the 1919-20 season scored his record at Addington by winning the Riccarton Handicap, 13f from 7 sec mark in 3m 42 1/5 on the first day,



















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Credit: W A Saunders writing in Pillars of Harness Horsedom