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GEORGE SHAND

George Shand, who died in Invercargill on his 83rd birthday, was a successful horseman and administrator in harness racing.

Shand was a former president of the NZ Trotting Owners, Trainers and Breeders' Association and president of the Waitaki Trotting Club when living at Waskdyke, where he operated a successful stable and farrier business.

Shand drove his first winner Lochella at Wanganui in 1951. He rode in jumping races for amateur riders about the same time. Lochella was trained by his father-in-law, Peter Gallagher. Shand was raised in Waikouaiti and shifted to Washdyke to complete an apprenticeship as a farrier with Bill Gallagher, brother of Peter. He married Peter's daughter, Aileen.

Shand won 373 races as a reinsman. Shand rated the 1976 Ashburton Flying Stakes with Mighty Gay as his major training and driving success. He bought Mighty Gay for $250. "I always had a soft spot for Mighty Gay," Shand said. Mighty Gay won the 1973 Waikouaiti Cup as a 3-year-old, the only horse to win that race at such an age. Gay Gordon, the sire of Mighty Gay, won the TAB double including the Waikouaiti Cup at the Waikouaiti meeting in 1965.

Another big thrill for Shand was winning a race at Mildura with Eastwood Jaunty, whom he raced with his daughter Pauline Hillis, of Invercargill. Eastwood Jaunty won 13 races including the Methven Cup in 2001 and 2003 and the inaugural Green Mile at Methven in 2000. Eastwood Jaunty won the 2001 Timaru Cup from a 45m handicap. Shand had his last race drive at Methven on Eastwood Jaunty when close to his 76th birthday.

Shand trained and drove Satyr to win the McCloy Memorial Handicap, the main race at Methven in 1960. He also won a race with Satyr at Forbury Park despite mistaking the number of rounds and easing up with five furlongs (1000m) to run.

He drove Dreamy Morn to win the 1973 Hannon Memorial at Oamaru. He trained and drove Borana to win the Forbury and Oamaru Juvenile Stakes and NZ Champion Stakes in the early 1980s. Borana won the 1985 NZ Cup when trained and Driven by Peter Jones at odds of 75 to one.

Shand had worthwhile success training for Timaru breeder Sam Woods snd racing the horses in partnership. He trained 10 winners out of the broodmare Worthy Scott, owned by Woods. They included open class trotters Pointer Hanover, About Time and Conclusion and Glentohi (1973 Kurow Cup). Pointer Hanover won the 1979 Canterbury Park Trotting Cup when driven by Peter Shand, a son of George. Another son, Gary has also had success as a reinsman.

George trained the galloper Waitohi when she won three races over two days at Westport in October, 1964. Co-owned by Woods, Waitohi won twice on the second day of that Westport meeting.

Credit: Taylor Strong writing in HRWeekly 19 Dec 2012

GEORGE SHAND - Trainer & Driver

George Shand had his last drive on the unplaced Eastwood Jaunty in the Green Mile at Methven on Sunday. "I just haven't been too good health-wise and decided to stand down," Shand said.

He trained and drove Eastwood Jaunty to win the inaugural Green Mile in 2000. The gelding has contested the six Green Miles. He finished second to Bruzem in 2001 and third to Oaxaca Lass and Niobium in 2002. Eastwood Jaunty has won 13 races including the 2003 Methven Cup.

Shand, who turns 76 on Friday, drove 373 winners including Satyr who won the main race, the McCloy Memorial Handicap, at Methven in 1960. He drove his first winner, Lochella, at Wanganui in October, 1951. Lochella was trained by his father-in-law, Peter Gallagher.

"One of the highlights was winning the Ashburton Flying Stakes with Mighty Gay. I always had a soft spot for the horse," Shand said. "Another was winning a race in Australia (at Mildura) with Eastwood Jaunty."

Mighty Gay won the Flying Stakes in 1976. Shand trained and drove Borana to win the Forbury and Oamaru Juvenile Stakes in the early 1980s.

Credit: Tayler Strong writing in HRWeekly 14Dec05

OUR MANA

'Old Tom' Our Mana was retired in May, the winner of $331,900, the result of 96 starts for 20 wins and 20 placings for his Loburn owner, Mrs Jenny Barron.

"It will be sad not to see him racing again but he's lost a little bit of his kick," said trainer-driver Colin De Filippi of Our Mana, whom he transformed from being a regect to a top-line pacer. Our Mana made astonishing progress for De Filippi after being virtually given to Mrs Barron for a token $200 after he had been tried and found wanting in several stables.

The impressive bay burst on the scene in the 1982-83 term winning eight of his 12 starts and being awarded 4-Year Old of the Year honours over NZ Messenger winner Hilarious Guest. He won the inaugural $10,000 West Coast bonus for winning his first three races on the Christmas curcuit and ended the season by taking a 1:57.3 mile record at Addington.

The Schell Hanover-Taimoni gelding attained open class ranking in just his 15th start and went close to winning one of the major cups on three occasions. Unfortunately the history books will show Our Mana was the runner-up in the 1984 NZ Cup behind Camelot, the 1984 Auckland Cup chasing home Enterprise, and the 1985 NZ Cup when he ran second to the boilover winner Borana.

Our Mana's big win came in the 1985 Lion Brown Easter Cup at Addington, while other major wins for him came in the Lion Red Mile at Cambridge(twice), the Castlemaine XXXX Handicap(now the Henkell Trocken) at the Auckland Christmas meeting over 3200m.

The horse that put De Filippi on the map as a trainer, the successful Pukekohe-based horseman also rated Our Mana "as good as any he has driven. 'Old Tom' proved a grand money-spinner for Mrs Barron, earning a cheque in 69 of his 96 starts.



Credit: NZ Trotting Annual 1986

1985 was a year of upsets and turmoil. Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior was sunk at its moorings in Auckland Harbour, Lieutenant Colonel Rambuka led a military coup in Fiji, Auckland lifted the shield of Canterbury and from the racing viewpoint Borana won the Cup!

Borana’s $76.65 winning dividend still stands as the highest for a Cup winner, as in most punters eyes, Borana would be well held in a field that included Preux Chevalier, Roydon Glen, Camelot, Entreprise, Comedy Lad & Our Mana. The race for the Toyota New Zealand Trotting Cup was billed the “Clash of the Century” between the West Australian Preux Chevalier which had finished no further back than second in his last 26 starts, and Roydon Glen who had 12 wins in a row and was undefeated the previous season. They finished 4th and 3rd respectively in the Cup.

These two champions shared the spoils later in the carnival with Preux Chevalier winning the Benson & Hedges Free-For-All on Show Day and Roydon Glen winning the Airport Travelodge Free-For-All on the final night, however on Cup Day both had to bow to the unfancied Borana.


Credit: Colin Steele

Owners Doreen & John Murray, Borana, Bobby Allen & a young Mark Jones

1985 TOYOTA NZ TROTTING CUP

Thirty-year-old Templeton horseman Peter Jones was shaking. His wife Lois was nearly in tears. The couple's daughter Philippa was completely overcome. And their young son Mark just wanted to give his hero a hug and pat the horse. Borana had just won the $225,000 Toyota NZ Cup at Addington with Peter Jones at the helm. The joy of the Jones family said it all.

Five years earlier - 1980 - Peter Jones had driven in his first NZ Cup and reined home Hands Down in a great tactical victory over North Island idol Delightful Lady.

That was a feat that Jones cherished. Last Tuesday, however, Jones not only drove the Cup winner but was also the trainer. With his first runner in the NZ Cup, Peter Jones, just over 12 months into his professional training career, completed something all New Zealand trainers dream about.

This year's NZ Cup had been won by Australian visitor Preux Chevalier before the race had been run, according to the pundits. The much vaunted West Australian pacer was backed down to very short odds. But, like most short priced Cup favourites, he was beaten.

Roydon Glen was to offer the Australian his toughest opposition. A noted Australian journalist was quoted in the local Christchurch morning daily that Preux Chevalier would win by a "street". Roydon Glen's trainer-driver Fred Fletcher was in something of a quandary before the race. "I'm still trying to figure out how far a street is," said Fletcher. "Just how much do I have to get beaten by?"

Borana's chances of beating the first and second favourites were not accorded much public support. At totalisator close, he was the rank outsider of the field. His chances indeed looked remote after being well beaten in atrocious conditions in the Kaikoura Cup then finishing out of a place in the Cup trials the previous Thursday.

Someone, however, forgot to tell Borana and Peter Jones of the situation. After giving all but an earlier breaker in Spry Joker a start with 1000 metres to run, Borana came with the last run to win going away by one and a quarter lengths, returning his backers over $76 to win, the biggest Cup upset of all time. Closest to him at the line was Our Mana. He was three quarters of a length clear of Roydon Glen with a short head back to Preux Chevalier. Comedy Lad, Camelot and the pacemaking Premiership were close up next. Borana returned to a great reception, although one section of the crowd gathered by the birdcage decided they had the right to spoil Jones' occasion with booing and cat-calls.

For Borana, a six-year-old stallion by Boyden Hanover out of the Out To Win mare Aoranam, the Cup victory was his 18th career win. The $135,000 winner's cheque doubled his stake earnings to $247,645, a total brought in from 95 starts.

"It's every owner's dream to win this race, and we did it today," said Borana's part-owner John Murray at the presentation. "We owe a lot to Peter (Jones) and his boys for the way they have prepared this horse," Mr Murray added, "this win is as much for them as it is for us." Mr Murray, an administrator with the IHC in Dunedin, races Borana in partnership with his wife Doreen. The couple acquired Borana when the horse was just seven months old. The then colt was advertised for sale in the NZ Trotting Calendar. Peter Shand, son of Washdyke trainer-driver George Shand noticed the advertisement and, because he knew the couple were looking for a horse, told John Murray, who purchased the colt soon after for $2,000.

Placed in the care of George Shand, Borana quickly showed ability and at two raced 12 times for six wins, including victories in the Rangiora Raceway Stakes, Forbury Juvenile Stakes and Oamaru Juvenile Stakes. A leg injury at two sidelined the colt for a while and he missed a chance of competing in the major juvenile events.

Back at three, Borana competed with the best. He raced 18 times, winning four and being placed in 12 other races, bringing in stakes of $28,185. Two of his wins were recorded in the NZ Championship Stakes and the Mercer Mile, the latter victoy in 2:00.7.

At four, Borana was second best pacer of his age behind Nostradamus. He raced 34 times, recording seven wins and 13 placings, returning his owners $45,095. Wins at this age came in the Te Awamutu Cup (2:00.1), Cambridge Classic, DB Superstars heat and a heat of the Messenger. Borana raced 24 times last season without success. His first eight appearances were from George Shand's stable, then the stallion changed quarters soon after the NZ Cup meeting last November and joined Peter Jones' team.

A successful junior driver, holding the record for the most wins as a junior until recently beaten by his nephew Anthony Butt, Jones decided to branch out into training and acquired a property that backed on to his father's establishment at Templeton.

Borana had his first outing in Jones' black and white colours at Alexandra Park on December 22. Not 12 months later, those colours were brought back at the head of the NZ Cup field. "I was lucky I suppose," said Jones. "Not many trainers get a horse with an open-class assessment to begin with." Lucky or not, Jones has quickly made his mark as a trainer, not only with Borana but with other horses including Laser Lad, likely favourite for the $125,000 Fay, Richwhite Sires'Stakes Final last Friday. "It was a thrill to win with Hands Down in 1980," said Jones, "but to win today and also train the winner, well, I can tell you it's an incredible feeling." Jones added that he felt for the Fred Fletchers and Barry Perkins of the world. "Those blokes had all the pressure on them, press, radio, television, everything. We had no pressure on us at all, no one even came out to get our autographs during the week leading up to the race. It was nice to be able to relax and take the race as it came."

Jones said he was slightly confident of success before the race. "As confident as you can get when there is opposition like Preux Chevalier and Roydon Glen," he said. "I knew this fellow was the best I had had him since he came here, and I knew he would go a top race. It was just a matter of getting a good run and staying out of trouble. Peter Jones has no set plans for the horse. "I will take them as they come." A trip to Brisbane for the Albion Park Inter-Dominions in April? "No, no thoughts on that at this stage."

Our Mana, so often the bridesmaid in big cup events, again had to play second fiddle, as he had done to Camelot in last year's event. Left in the open early Colin De Filippi gave the Schell Hanover gelding a beautiful run in the one-one from the 1800 metres after Preux Chevalier looped the field to sit without cover. De Filippi had Our Mana poised on the leader's wheels as they swung for home. He loomed up to Premiership 150 metres out and looked set to win. "We had every chance," said Colin De Filippi. "I thought we had a chance when we got to the front inside the 200 metres but I could hear Borana coming and knew he was going much too well for us." Some consolation for owner Jenny Barron was that the $45,000 second prize money boosted Our Mana's earnings over $200,000. The gelding has now won $240,720.

Second favourite Roydon Glen was third, and looked decidedly unlucky. Away well, he ended up five back on the fence early, then four back. He had a wall of horses both in front and beside him with 600 metres to run and had no pacing room at all. Clear late, Roydon Glen accelerated too quickly and paced roughly. Once balanced by Fred Fletcher, he roared home down the outside but it was too late, Borana had the race in safe keeping.

A short head away in fourth was Preux Chevalier. Slow then into a break in the first 50 metres, the West Australian settled several lengths off the leaders early. He had caught the bunch with 2400 metres to run, then driver Barry Perkins sent his charge on a sweeping run towards the lead. Instead of continuing on, Perkins elected to sit without cover. There they stayed until the home turn. Preux Chevalier issued a challenge and kept on fighting, but the expected winning margin of a "street" was nowhere to be found.

Comedy Lad was a length back fifth. Tony Herlihy had the gelding handy on the fence but try as he might in the straight the gaps did not come.

Camelot was sixth. The 1984 Cup winner was given a good run by Robin Butt. He improved three wide to be challenging on the turn and kept coming, though not suited by the slow pace.

Premiership was next in, a nose back. He set the pace, not the 3:59 pace many had expected, but a muddling pace. He looked to be going well on the turn and still had control as close as 150 metres out. He was dive-bombed only in the final few metres.


Credit: Brian Carson writing in NZ Trotting Calendar

1983 NZ DERBY

The season's leading driver, Bob Cameron, took advantage of a dream run behind the pacemaker Borana to land Mighty Me home an upset winner of the $60,000 NZ Derby.

While Cameron and Mighty Me were receiving a run drivers dream of, warm favourite Lyndon Robert and his driver, Robert Dunn, were in all sorts of bother and eventually wound up fourth. Mighty Me, whose lead-up form had been disappointing, was given a mixed reception by the small crowd on his return to the birdcage, but this was not enough to dim the delight of owners Colin and Sylvia McLachlan and Bob Cameron.

For the season's premier three-year-old classic, the race could only be described as tame, with the nine contestants dawdling along for most of the journey and only sprinting home the last 800 metres. Mighty Me's winning time of 3:25.6 for the 2600 metres was a slow one considering the ideal conditions, though he paced his last 800 metres in slightly better than 58.8.

Purchased two years ago by Mrs McLachlan at the National Yearling Sales for only $2,300, the Out To Win-Believe Me (by Fallacy) gelding has now won $62,090, the result of seven wins and four placings from only 20 starts.

Cameron described Mighty Me's run throughout as "perfect" and added he was travelling so well at the 800 metres, he was confident of getting some of the money. He did not have to cover an inch of extra ground as pacemaker Borana eased off the fence under pressure in the run home, and it was this that helped Mighty Me hold out the fast finishing Glamour Chief by half a neck. Glamour Chief was three back on the rails for most of the way and sprinted home well to push Mighty Me to a close decision, with less than a length to tough stayer Borana who made a game attempt to lead all the way.

Up until the 400 metres, Robert Dunn had driven a copybook race on the favourite, easing him off the fence after 400 metres to enjoy a perfect trail on the outer behind Dunhill. But things went wrong approaching the 400 metres when Braedoon swept forward and trapped Lyndon Robert in a pocket - a pocket Dunn was unable to clear in spite of some desperate efforts. Lyndon Robert clipped the wheel of the tiring Dunhill approaching the straight entrance and broke, checking Steady Edition in the process and dropping back to last. Once balanced again, he came home strongly for fourth, but his chance was gone. Dunn was later suspended for careless driving.

Credit: NZ Trotting Calendar

STRAIGHT - Mystery Mare

Colin McLaughlin was a man who did things his way. So there is mystery how a mare he bought as a young man in Ladbrooks(where his father Andy bred trotters) and did not produce her first winner until she was 17, led McLaughlin on a magic racing journey. The stream of unfashionably bred top class horses from one owner/trainer in a relatively short time is un-equalled and in these days of mass production will probably remain that way.

The first mare was Straight and her trip toward the limelight really began when McLaughlin, by then battling to make a go of farming in Mt Hutt, sent her to Young Bob, a Methven based stallion. The result, Sedate, won four for him and when she went to stud, her first three foals, Morsel, Flying Mile and Allakasam began a stunning run of form. Allakasam won an incredible seven Cup races including the Auckland, Easter and New Brighton editions. Flying Mile left the famous 'ugly duckling' Manaroa, one of the real characters of harness racing whose NZ Cup run was so phenomenal and then Manawaru with her first two foals. Morsel left the Auckland Cup winner, Royal Ascot.

McLaughlin had made the outwardly strange decision to breed his own stallion to his mares and bought Prince Charming for the purpose. Like Young Bob he was a Globe Derby line horse and the unusual double cross results were simply amazing.

Then, like a tap turning off, the Straight tribe wilted then virtually disappeared. There were winners of course and one or two good ones because Colin bred a lot of horses. Allakasam left Jaunty Hanover and Allspice and Morsel left Nimble Yankee and Remorse. Because he had so many mares Colin tended to mix visits to top studs with cheaper 'Hail Mary' stallions who didn't make the grade. The new generation of American blood did not seem to click and the blood thinned.

Then, in the mid 1980s, an unfashionably bred horse called Borana became the longest odds winner in the history of the NZ Cup for Peter Jones. Straight was his fourth dam. The family had finally won the Cup. These things happen in breeding but not often however does a back country farmer who went to Ellesmere instead of the U.S. to buy a stallionachiev so much with the results.

Credit: David McCarthy writing in Harnessed June 2016