| HORSES |
YEAR: 1982
 |
| Hal Tryax & Bob Buchanan |
Article by 'Stopwatch' in NZ Trotting Calendar 23Sep70
From the lush 'blue grass' pastures of Tennessee, in the United States, to the remote bush-surrounded clearings of Chaslands, South Otago, represents as big a change as any horse could experience. But 23-year-old Hal Tryax, who wrote a notable niche into standardbred breeding records in this country, seems to have taken the transition in his stride.
While his most illustrious son, Cardigan Bay, has recently made a triumphant tour of this country after becoming the world's first million dollar winner, his sire is inconspicuously living out his days in happiness on the Chasland's property of Mr Bob Buchanan. "He's spending his days with me as nature intended - nobody to worry him, plenty of grass and no forced fodder," Mr Buchanan said as he looked up a steep slope, recently cleared of bush, on which the celebrated progenitor was grazing, oblivious of any visitors approaching.
His final home is a far call from the Spring Hill Farm in Tennessee, where Mr Allen Campbell bred him. Long left behind are the days when he fashioned a notable racing record on the major American raceways. Still fresh in the minds of many trotting men is his stud career at Mr George Youngson's Gore Stud, and later at the late Mr Hugh Gamble's Edendale Stud. After sweeping all before him as a sire in NZ, the Tryax horse was struck down by infertility and withdrawn from public service in 1964, when at the pinnacle of his career. Standardbred breeding suffered one of it's stiffest blows in NZ as a result of this tragedy.
This career of extremes was very much in the minds of an Invercargill party to Mr Buchanan's Chaslands property as the visitors tramped the steep slopes and waded creeks in miserable coastal weather to view the 'forgotten horse.' What would he look like? Would his appearance capture and aggravate the tragic disappointment felt at his premature stud retirement? While crossing a gully to where Hal Tryax was sheltering, one wondered if such a humble final home was befitting such a horse, who had made such a dynamic impact, not only on the race track, but also on NZ breeding.
On closer inspection however, these reflections quickly vanished. The old horse, looking 'as fat as a seal' carried his 23 years remarkably well and pranced sprightly along the fence when aroused by the party. It had been a year since Mr Buchanan had last handled him, and, understandably, Hal Tryax was in no great hurry to be fondled by his veteran owner. It was not long, however, before the old horse 'came round' and man and horse showed the strangers the affection they have developed for each other over the last six years. Nobody need fear that Hal Tryax is being neglected in his twilight. He has the 6-year-old Brahman stallion, Lachlan, and a few head of shorthorn beef cattle for grazing companions and his veteran owner to look him up every day, to see that all is still well. His gross condition, alone, is ample testimony to the kind of treatment he is receiving.
Bob Buchanan has spent a lifetime among horses and dogs. Reluctant to divulge his age any further "than well past 70" he has spent most of his life as a drover, stockman and farmer. Born in Ireland, he came to NZ when a boy. After working as a drover on the Mt Ross station in Central Otago, he later worked in and around Gore, before shifting to Tokanui. He has spent the last 31 years on his present Chaslands property. It was while working on the Mt Ross Station that he met the late Hugh Gamble. He was a close friend of Mr Gamble until his death in 1964 and took on the responsibility to look after Hal Tryax.
Bob clearly remembers the bush picnic race meetings which were held at Pine Bush, Waikawa and Tokanui. "Any fellow who had a hack had a go in the races," he recalls. "We raced for stakes the equivalent of about $10 today and had to obtain a permit, even though it cost us nothing." A trot and a gallop race was held at each of these picnics and the events were invariably the highlight of the gatherings. "Those were the days of the saw-mills, when there were many more people in Chaslands than there are today," he said.
Bob Buchanan has always had the odd horse. One of his most successful racehorses was Lady Voison, a useful mare, who won the Invercargill Trotting Cup. "Tautuku was about the only other winner of much account I have raced," he added. Tautuku was named after the Tautuku beach, one of the country's most picturesque beaches, not far from Bob's farm. Probably the most interesting feature of his career with horses was his association with Stella Frost, NZ's star race mare. "I bought her dam, Stella Grattan for $20 off Mr R D Butterick, of Christchurch, in 1954," he recalls. "I bred an Andy Derby colt from her and loaned her to a cobber, who bred a Whipster colt, but as neither of them were any good at all, I practically gave her away to Les Tilson." Having to more or less discard her was a disappointment for Bob, as he liked the breed very much, but was disheartened by the mediocrity of the Andy Derby and Whipster colts. Stella Grattan is also the dam of the Van Hanover 4-year-old, Willsher Bay, a winner late last term.
Bob Buchanan has become a personality of the Chaslands. The remoteness of his home might suggest he is a lonely man, but this is far from the case. Opossum hunters, forestry workers, neighbouring farmers and numerous other friends look him up frequently. He has become known as a friend to all those developing the remote, bush-clad area in one way or another and takes time off to assist at a near-by youth camp when the occasion arises. His energy is remarkable for a man of his age. He was still shearing most of his sheep up until two years ago and walks around his property with ease. He possesses an encouraging philosophy to life. "You're never finished until you stop, so you just have to keep active at my age," he claims.
Bob has four broodmares on his Chaslands property and recently brought the Brahman 6-year-old Lachlan, to mate with them. Lachlan is out of the Light Brigade mare, Pibroch, a close relative of champion pacers Highland Fling and Caduceus. "If only that old fellow up the hill could serve them, I'd be right wouldn't I?" he remarked with a touch of regret. But Hal Tryax will never leave another mare in foal. He has failed to respond to treatment and after several operations all hope has been lost, and he has been left to live out his days in peace.
While driving back to Invercargill over the picturesque Chaslands road, one's thoughts could not help but linger with an old horse in a bush fringed paddock and an old man with a remarkable zest for life.
-o0o-
Hal Tryax, the sire of Cardigan Bay and the maternal sire of Young Quinn, died recently in the remote Chaslands area at the grand old age of 35. It was an occasion which passed largely unnoticed in the New Zealand trotting world, in which he had such a great influence.
The death of the champion sire was confirmed by Mr Ken McKenzie, who had cared for him for the past few years, and a spokesman for the trustees of the estate of the late Mr Hugh Gamble, his last owner. Hal Tryax died peacefully of old age and had maintained physical condition which belied his advancing years. Mr McKenzie had devoted much care towards him after taking him over from the late Bob Buchanan, who cared for him for several years after the death of Mr Gamble.
The American import's career was one of extremes as a sire in NZ. After sweeping all before him, topping the NZ sires' list in the 1963-64 season, his rapidly-waning fertility had written him off as a progenitor. He was soon after pensioned off to the rugged coastal Chaslands area and some attempts were made to restore his fertility. But it was to no avail and he was left to live out his days in contentment
Breeding in this country, and especially in Southland, where he stood for his entire stud career, suffered an irreparable blow. Hal Tryax took over from Dillon Hall in keeping Southland to the fore as one of the country's premier breeding nurseries. His remarkable affinity with southern mares, many of whom were rich in the blood of Peter The Great, soon saw the unfashionably-bred Axworthy line horse make an immediate impact. And there seemed no stopping him. That was, until his tragic impotence had written him off.
Hal Tryax and his stock continued to break records for a while, but it was inevitable that as his quickly-diminishing band of representatives fell by the wayside, he would assume less significance. His influence has been sustained by the deeds of his few daughters at the stud and three of his star sons, Holy Hal, Jurist and Tactile, furthered his male line at the stud in Southland. Other sons in Dale Axworthy, Congruent, Kudos, Blue Prince and Student Prince have sired winners throughout Australasia. In America, his star daughter Robin Dundee is the dam of the crack Meadow Skipper horse Genghis Khan (1:54 3/5).
Cardigan Bay, of course, was his star son, winning more than $1 million and becomming the first standardbred to achieve that feat. There were also pacers of the calibre of Robin Dundee (1:59 and $228,312), Tactile (1:59.6 and $189,415 and the only standardbred in the world to win five Derby classics), Holy Hal (2:00.8 and undisputed champion colt pacer of his time), New Zealand Derby winners in Student Prince and Bass Strait, Two Great Northern Derby winners in King Tryax and Tutta Tryax, and a host of others including Blue Prince (2:04.8).
Hal Tyax's premature impotence has also been reflected in the limited number of daughters he has at the stud. But they have made a real impact. They have produced horses of the calibre of Young Quinn, Bachelor Blue (eight wins), Fait Accompli (seven wins), Young Cardigan (nine wins), Happy Hal (2:01.2), Tuapeka's Garry (2:03.4 at 2 years in Australia), Courtier (2:05.8 at 2 years), Marcus John and Newport Tryax.
In America stock of Hal Tryax won $1,456,660 in stakes. He first topped the NZ sires' list in the 1963-64 season. Two years later, he again headed the list, at a time when NZ's greatest-ever sires, U Scott and Light Brigade, were formidible rivals. During the 11 seasons his stock raced in NZ, they won nearly 460 races and gained almost 1300 placings for close to $600,000 in stakes. Taking into account the earnings of his American runners, his stock won just in excess of $2 million.
As one leading trotting scribe termed it, his career "was a studmaster's dream that ended in a nightmare." That aptly summed up the career of the Tryax horse who was foaled at Mr Allen Campbell's Spring Hill Farm, Tennessee, 1947, and later took a sub-2:00 mile record for Alabama-based horseman Sanders Russell. Hal Tryax was launched on his siring career in NZ by George Youngson of Gore, who later sold him to the late Mr Gamble.
Credit: Don Wright writing in NZ Trotting Calendar 2Mar82