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T H McGIRR

Mr T H McGirr, who died recently, was a well-known figure in the trotting world. Living in the Methven district, it was only natural that Mr McGirr should be closely connected with trotters and pacers, as the district is a strong one for the sport.

The deceased became most prominent when he purchased the Australian pacer Man o' War, who was thought, at the time, to be past his racing career; but to the surprise of many, that fine pacer came out and defeated a very strong field in a free-for-all at Ashburton. It was a splendid contest.

On going to the stud, Man o' War sired a number of good performers, including War Buoy, Sabu, Happy Man, Waress, Warfield, Marceres, Battlefield, Lady Milne, Warplane and Navy Blue.

A pacer who raced very successfully for Mr McGirr was Reporter, winner of two August Handicaps and many other important events; and recently Native Man had carried his colours successfully.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 20Jan1943

W HAYWARD

The death occurred last Saturday week of Mr William Hayward, well known throughout the Dominion for the prominent part he took in politics, local body affairs, and sporting activities. Mr Hayward earned an unrivalled reputation for his many acts of generosity and the interest which he manifested in all affairs pertaining to the good of the community.

Born in Christchurch in 1868, Mr Hayward was the son of the late William Hayward, who was one of the founders of the transport industry in Canterbury. He was educated at St Leo's High School, Christchurch, and started work with his father in the Rink Stables, a company which later became the present firm of Rink Taxis, Ltd. As a youth he worked for his father on the old Sumner coach. When the motor-car was beginning to usurp the place of the horse in transport Mr Hayward's company was the first to introduce motor taxis in Christchurch.

Mr Hayward retained his connections with the transport industry until the time of his death. For many years he was chairman of directors of Rink Taxis, Ltd and was keenly interested in all new developments in the industry. He was chairman of directors of Hayward Brothers and Company, Ltd., and of Lamb and Hayward, Ltd. His other business interests were wide and varied, and he was respected as a man of sound and upright judgement.

Mr Hayward took a very prominent part in local body affairs in Christchurch. At various times he was a member of the Christchurch Tramway Board (of which he was chairman in 1929) and of the Technical College Board of Governors. In 1931 he contested the Mayoralty against the Hon. D G Sullivan, and in 1935 was elected a member of the Christchurch City Council. In 1923 to 1925 he was president of the Canterbury Employers' Association, and from 1926 to 1927 chairman of the Christchurch Citizens' Association. In 1915 he was president of the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association.

In 1934 Mr Hayward was appointed a member of the Legislative Council, but was not reappointed at the expiry of his term of office. He was chairman of the Christchurch branch of the National Party and on the executive of the National Club. About five years ago he was appointed a sinking fund commissioner for the City of Christchurch, and at the time of his death was chairman of the commission.

Of an outstandingly generous nature, Mr Hayward was the benefactor of many deserving causes in the city. For many years he was a member of the committee of the Nurse Maude District Nursing Association and was directly associated with many philanthropic and charitable organisations. A member of the Roman Catholic Church, he did not confine his acts of generosity to the organisations of any one church. He was actively associated with the work of his own church in many diffent spheres, the most notable of his contributions to its social work being the part he played in founding St Christopher's Boy's Club at St Mary's Church, Manchester Street. Mr Hayward endowed one of the 'houses' of this club in memory of his brother and perioically gave lectures to the boys for whom the club was founded.

Dating from the earliest years of his career, Mr Hayward's interest in the sport of trotting was maintained throughout his life. He first took part in the sport as an amateur driver and trainer of his own horses. Later he became well known a club member, owner, and as a member of the board of the NZ Trotting Association, of which he was vice-president and at one time chairman of the licensing committee. Since about 1918 he had been a steward and member of the committee of the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club. The last horse he raced was The Toff, a winner at Addington. Mr Hayward was much in demand as a judge of light horses at agricultural shows and was himself a successful exhibitor.

In his young days Mr Hayward was one of the best athletes in Canterbury and won races in all parts of NZ, competing successfully as a sprinter in Dominion championships.

In 1895 Mr Hayward married Miss Anne Harrington. He is survived by his widow, three sons and four daughters.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar: 16Jun1943

O E HOOPER

O E Hooper was having his 13th drive in the NZ Cup, and his first success in the race, when he drove Haughty on Saturday.

Hooper had his first NZ Cup drive on Dolly Dillon in 1925. She was unplaced, and so were Queens Own(1926) and Audacious(1927). He did not have a drive again until 1930, when he drove King Pointer into third place in a heat. In 1931 he drove the same horse, who was unplaced. In 1933 he drove Satin King, and in 1934 and 1935 he was behind Sunny Morn, who finished fourth in his second effort. Hooper's next drive was in 1937, when he handled Willow Wave, who was unplaced, as was King's Play, whom he drove the following year. In 1939 he drove Cantata into second place behind Lucky Jack. The following year he drove Parisienne, who was unplaced, and last year he had no drive.

Hooper's most important successes until Saturday were with Willow Wave in the Auckland Cup of 1937, the Dunedin Cup in 1937 and 1938 with the same horse, the Free-For-All in 1930 with King Pointer, and the National Handicap the same year with the same horse.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 11Nov42

J S BERRY

The death has occurred of Mr J S Berry, who has been associated with trotting for over 50 years, chiefly, in earlier days, on the administrative side.

He was a member of the old Canterbury Trotting Club, which raced on the show grounds. Later, Mr Berry was a steward of the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club, and when that Club decided to appoint Stipendiary Stewards, Mr Berry and Mr C H Gorton were the first appointed.

Two years ago Mr Berry was elected a life-member of the NZ Metropolitan Trotting Club

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 18Nov42

J J KENNERLEY

It is with regret that we record the death of J J Kennerley, formerly of Christchurch, and later living in retirement in Auckland.

J J Kennerley, contrary to a general idea, was not an Australian. He was born in the Waikato, but at a early age he went to Australia with his parents.

It was in 1911 that Kennerley trained and drove his first winner, Lively Bells. Kennerley later won a Sydney Thousand with Hardy Wilkes, whom authorities still regard as one of the greatest trotters seen in Australia and NZ.

In 1914 Kennerley came to NZ, and won a race with Eminent at Addington. He returned to Australia but in 1921 he came back to NZ, and settled here. He soon became a leading trainer and at one time he had probably the best team of horses under his charge ever sheltered by the one stable in the Dominion. At that time he was private trainer to Mr J R McKenzie, who owned Great Bingen and Acron and many other good ones.

Other champions and near-champions trained by Kennerley about the same time were Peter Bingen, Native Chief, Logan Chief and Pedro Pronto.

Kennerley twice won the NZ Cup with Peter Bingen, and trained winners of five Free-For-Alls in Logan Chief, Acron (twice), Native Chief and Peter Bingen.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar 12Aug42

LEICESTER MAIDENS

Now forgotten, a lesson on how few "legends" last beyond our own time, Winchmore trainer Leicester Maidens produced some amazing results with "has been" pacers and trotters on both sides of the Tasman in the 1930's and 1940's. What was his secret? - and did it later play a role in Bart Cummings winning at least one of his Melbourne Cups?

Maiden's feats with top class veteran horses remain unequalled. In 1941, fresh from a two year retirement on health grounds, he won 23 races just from January to July when leading trainer Ces Donald had 34 for the whole season. More remarkably, the youngest of his winners was eight and the eldest two were 12! Zincali, raced by West Coast All Black, Jack Steel, and formerly with experts Maurice McTigue and "Dil" Edwards, was the leading stakes earner nationally, winning six races and setting an Australasian record for a mile and a half.

In 1936 when asked to take a "lost cause" for Ashburton owner, Harry Nicoll, Maidens agreed - if he could also try the New Zealand Cup/ Dominion Handicap winner Wrackler, then 10, which had been hacked in retirement for more than 12 months. Nicoll reluctantly agreed and within three months Wrackler had won the Addington Handicap beating most of the best open class trotters around.

Born in 1900 into an Ashburton farming family, the personable and popular Maidens first came to prominence with Harvest Child, one of two high class winners from th first crop of the "hyped" expensive stallion, Sonoma Harvester who never repeated the feat. Past his best and a refugee from stables such as that of Freeman Holmes, Harvest Child was rejuvenated under Maidens.

At his 1930's peak Maidens had 30 horses in work near Methven, a huge number then. Rollo, then a 12-year-old, had been retired out of Roy Berry's stable but won several rich races for Maidens. Peter Locanda, Marie Celeste - both 10 year olds - Zingarrie, Jesse Owens - who won four of his six starts for Maidens after being taken over from Dinny Teahen of Certissimus fame - and Palomar were other great successes.

His two best results, apart from Zincali, were Blue Mountain and Peter Smith. Blue Mountain was a tough grey horse owned bt Mrs Inex Sweetapple of Auckland and fornerly with Jack Shaw before Maidens raced him in partnership with his owner. He went within a length of beating Indianapolis in that champion's first NZ Cup in 1934, anothe champion Harold Logan being three lengths away.

Maidens inherited Peter Smith late in his career. He won the rich Olivier Handicap and ran third in three NZ Cup attempts, his problem on Cup Day being that as a fast beginner he was always dragging the field up to inevitable tearaway pacemaker, Gold Bar.

Maidens retired again in 1945 and took over the Royal Hotel in Palmerston North. In 17 seasons training by his count he had been in the top four trainers or drivers seven times and rarely outside the top five. In 1949 Maidens turned up in Melbourne, claiming health reasons though his wife, Margaret, remained in Palmerston North. After a time he took over a free-legged pacer well past his best called Dauntless Peter and decided to train him in hopples, something the horse hated with a passion. "He tried to kick them off every day for six weeks," Maidens recalled.

Largely thanks to a rejuvenated Dauntless Peter who beat the best in the Melbourne Free-For-All in spite of carrying a buckled wheel for most of the way so bad the driver had to sit on one side of the cart, Maidens then won a Melbourne trainer's premiership. Later, in 1953, he was on the front pages (headline "Women Screamed) after surviving a spetacular smash at the Showgrounds when thrown 20ft high in the air, and he was also a guest columnist in the Melbourne Argus.

He was then private trainer for owner/breeder Bob Stewart but after a time there was strife with the stewards over the form of Silver Trigger in two races the same night at a provincial meeting. Owner-trainer and horse were disqualified for 12 months. On appeal Stewart was absolved. However Maidens, who had been in trouble for giving the stewards a "serve" about them talking to him before the start of the race on the night, (he won one race and was second in the other) lost his appeal in spite of several impressive character witnesses in his defence. Stewart sold up in favour of galloping in disgust. Maidens later retired and died in Toorak, Melbourne, in 1973.

The Maidens secret? Various tonics were in use in that era but few were unknown to the top trainers on whom Maidens seemed to improve on time after time. He had either found an effective form of natural hormone treatment or, as he himself seemed to claim, he was ahead of his time in recognising the role of ulcers on the performance of older horses. "Old horses suffer more from ulcers because of stress and the standard training feeding diet ofter makes it worse," Maidens once said in an interview. "Ulcers are painful and have a big effect on diet and work. I pay special attention to diets for my horses (lower oats content, special cooked supplements) and work them less to cut stress."

60 years later, after veteran Rogan Josh came from nowhere to win the 1999 Melbourne Cup, Bart Cummings sang the praises of an ulcer product as the winning edge. Treating ulcers became a racing fad - until an ingredient was found to be a prohibited substance. Ulcer treatment remains large in the training of older horses as a result.

It would have been another story the colourful Leicester Maidens would love to have told.

Credit: David McCarthy writing in HR Weekly 6Feb13

PERCY BROWN

An unpretentious death notice in Christchurch newspapers last week would not have raised much comment among the general public. But to trotting enthusiasts the death of Percy Brown was of some significance. Percy Brown was responsible for the breeding of two great champions in the mid-thirties, Harold Logan and Roi l'Or.

According to trotting enthusiast and breeder Kevin Brown, whose grandfather was a cousin of the deceased, Percy at one stage had two mares Ivy Cole and Gold Queen. Ivy Cole was in foal to Logan Pointer and Queen Cole had a foal at foot by Rey de Oro, both very successful sires imported by Free Holmes.

Percy swapped Ivy Cole for a hay rake and the resultant foal turned out to be Harold Logan, a household name in his day. Percy retained Gold Queen and her foal and Roi l'Or later became Harold Logan's arch rival. They staged one memorable contest during the 1932 NZ Cup carnival. Harold Logan, after winning his second NZ Cup effortlessly off 60 yards, went out odds on favourite to win the Free-For-All. However, Roy l'Or, third in the Cup, had other ideas and downed Harold Logan by a neck in a race record time which stood for ten years.

Roi l'Or won 19 races for Percy Brown, including the 1934 Auckland Cup in world record time when driven by Free Holmes in the twilight of his career. It is interesting to note that both the mares were by King Cole, a horse by the freak Ribbonwood, who at one stage held the NZ mile record.

While Percy Brown was in his 102nd year, longevity is not uncommon in the Brown family, well known Canterbury farmers. Kevin's grandfather himself lived to be 93. At one stage when his brothers and sisters - seven in all - were alive their combined ages totalled 616.

Credit: Frank Marrion writing in NZ Trotting Calendar 6May80

ARTHUR FERGUSON

RUNAWAY HORSES

There are many breathers and spare takers on the pay roll of the Metropolitan Trotting Club but one paid official earns his dirt.

This is Arthur Ferguson, whose job is to parade up and down the course on his hack and when a driver hasn't put enough gum on his pants to keep him in the sulky, "Fergy" has to collect the careering horse and cart. Tis a job that calls for nerve and initiative but Ferguson, in the opening event at Addington on Tuesday showed himself a master of stopping runaway horses.

Ambition and Gemlight lost their drivers and came tearing through the straight. Ferguson couldn't get two at once, so he went for one and made a bird of him. He pulled him up and brought him back to the birdcage gate. By this time the other was coming into the straight, and "Fergy" put to sea again. The masterly fashion in which he judged to the split second the moment to wheel his mount and stick in his heels was deserving of the ovation given him when he brought the bolting horse to a standstill.

Ferguson, who is huntsman to the Brackenfield Hunt, needs only to operate once a day as he did on Tuesday, and he is worth good money to any big trotting club.


Credit: NZ TRUTH 12 Nov 1931

W H G NORTON - Owner

The death occurred on Saturday of Mr William Henry Grantley Norton, at his residence, 24 Mansfield Avenue.

The late Mr Norton was very well known in business circles, being a principal in the firm of Tonks, Norton and Co., autioneers. He was born in Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia, in 1864. In 1888 he came to New Zealand, and lived at Nelson for some years before coming to Christchurch. In 1892 he married Miss Amy Hiorns, of Linwood House. He was employed by D Clarkson and Son, and later by Sclanders and Co., prior to entering into partnership with Mr Tonks in 1907. Their business premises were in Colombo Street, on the site at present occupied by Kincaids, Ltd., but two or three years later they purchased land in Hereford Street, on which was built the present building. The firm had wide business dealings, and was one of the City's leading general auctioneering firms. Mr Norton had many business interests, having several farms. He was also one of the main shareholders in a timber-mill in the North Island.

He was very well-known figure in sporting circles in New Zealand. As a steward and member of the committee of the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club and as a prominent owner for very many years he was interested in both galloping and trotting and in the former connexion, racing under the name of Mr Grantley, he owned Ability, Gold Braid, Quickfire and Stroller, amongst others and also imported from Australia the mare Edna May II, who at stud left several useful performers in Town Talk, Chaplin, and Autumn, the last named a well-known Gisborne sire.

It was as a trotting enthusiast that Mr Norton came more prominently before the public, for in partnership with the Riccarton studmaster, Mr Free Holmes, he owned many noted performers, including Florin, Trix Pointer, winner of the National Cup, New Zealand Cup and Free-for-all, Bonny Logan, one of the most consistent performers the Dominion has known, Gay Wilkes, and many others. The partnership also imported a number of mares from America, Trix Pointer, Bonilene (dam of Bonny Logan), and Stella Amos being amongst the number

Mr Norton was decidedly popular with all sporting circles, and he will be sadly missed from Meetings at Addington.

Mr Norton leaves one son and two daughters to mourn their loss.


Credit: The Press - 18 August 1928

FRANK MacFARLANE

One of the biggest trainers in Victoria in the 1920's, the wealthy MacFarlane (From movie theatres) brought his top pace Nimble Direct here in 1927 with moderate results but returned with a six strong team in 1928 and stayed for a year.

Nimble Direct was still up to the best classes but the star was the trotter Huon Voyage who won the Dominion Handicap for local trainer, Dick Humphreys soon after MacFarlane's return. Frank was popular, if controversial figure in his home state. At one stage he triggered an owner's strike in his support when his nominations in Melbourne were refused after he criticised stake levels.

He was the first Australian owner to win a Dominion Handicap.

TRIVIA FACT: When auctioning his horses to return to Australia MacFarlane would only auction the lease on Nimble Direct ("like a member of the family") and Jack Shaw won the bidding at 21%. MacFarlane guaranteed payment for the horse's return trip to Australia whe she retired.

Credit: David McCarthy writing in Harnessed Jan 2017