BRITISH 2yo RACING Spindrifter, Provideo & Timeless Times

A purely informational article prompted by looking at the lists of input to Internet Search engines (90% Google) which then direct people to the B2yoR site. Regulars in the list are versions of the "Which 2yo won most races in a season?" question. Some go further and ask about three juveniles in particular - Spindrifter, Provideo & Timeless Times. Important history for the 2yos and this article is a place to gather some information about those three horses together to tell the 'Most Wins' story.

Mainly of historical interest now and the changes in race planning mean that their totals are unlikely ever to be removed from the record books. In the last ten seasons one horse, Peak To Creek trained by Jeremy Noseda, has managed 7 wins but there have been years where 4 or 5 successes have been the best achieved.

To put the development into context the records for 2yo wins in a season had stood since the 1880s until some movement in 1975. A horse called The Bard won 16 races in 1885, one a walkover, to hold the record for the males. Three fillies had managed 12 wins and they were Catalogue (1864), Lady Elizabeth (1867) & Semolina (1889). It would be interesting to know what changed in 1890 to put those records out of reach for a long time.

In 1975 a filly called Nagwa (Tower Walk ex Tamarisk Way) trained by Barry Hills won 13 of her 20 outings. That bettered the level of the other three fillies and also could be used as a 'Modern Day Record' considering that racing in the 1970s was presumably a different place to be than in the 1880s. If by a lesser margin than one might imagine.

In 1980 Spindrifter, trained by Mark Prescott, won 13 of his 19 starts which left him 3 short of The Bard's record for males. But, he had matched the 'Modern Day' mark set by Nagwa. The story then comes to a climax with the training career of Bill O'Gorman. He had been producing multiple winning 2yos since the late 1970s and had more than one example of juveniles winning 9 races in a season in that period. In 1984 the experience and the horse came together with Provideo who had 16 successes from his 23 outings. This surpassed the 'Modern Day' level and matched the historical record set by The Bard. Provideo had won the Brocklesby Stakes as the first race of the season in March and won his 16th race on November 1st.

Mr. O'Gorman has said that he had other horses that he could have pressed into winning this high number of races but targeted higher class races with them instead. In 1990 the right type of horse, of the 'right' quality, came along in Timeless Times and he won 16 of his 21 starts. He had won 16 by September 15th but then got an injury otherwise he might well have surpassed the record held by The Bard & Provideo rather than joining them at the top of the list.

To get a feel for the quality of these horses Nagwa was rated 8 points below the Champion filly of her year and was probably better than the three later males. Spindrifter was rated 102 by Timeform when the champion males typically rate between 124-128. The O'Gorman trained pair both tried Listed races with Provideo managing to win one and were rated a little higher than Spindrifter at season's close.

The three sections below give more information about the three subject horses of the article including full, date ordered, listings of their runs. The short answer to why we do not see these types of winning totals anymore is the changes in race planning brought in by the 'Competitive Racing' ideal. This takes as it's target producing larger fields of closely matched horses which will maximise the amount punters bet on races and therefore the funding Horseracing receives via the bookmakers' Levy contribution.

Look through the lists below and the majority of the races had 3-5 runners and perhaps two really competitive horses and often just one apparent and a short priced favourite. Punters do not bet as much on these races so they get sidelined. The Northern 'Stakes' events on the list are mostly gone with a few remaining as the small number of 'Conditions' races left in the 2yo calendar. Whether taking 'Levy maximisation' as the primary goal produces the best type of races to develop juveniles and test them through the season is an issue which provokes a variety of responses.

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• 2yo Season = 1980, 13 wins from 19 runs.
• Pedigree:- Sandford Lad - Late Spring (Silly Season). Chestnut.
• Cost 10,000gns as a yearling, 7,600gns as a foal;
• Trainer:- Mark Prescott; Owner = Graeme Waters; Jockey = George Duffield;
• Ran twice at 3yo placing in a handicap & winning an Amateurs' Race. Kicked at exercise, broke off-fore & euthanised after that win. Owner presented perpetual trophy for race named after the horse at Pontefract. The race was still being run in 2011.

Note that STCK = Stockton-on-Tees racecourse, aka Teesside Park, which closed in the early 1980s and became a housing estate. Despite the dire warnings at the time, and at intervals since, of the financial problems with British Horseracing it remains the last racecourse active at that time to have closed. Since then Great Leighs in Essex & Ffos Las in South Wales have both opened. Great Leighs closed within 12 months of a rushed opening in 2008 and at the time of writing this article people were still working to try to re-open the track with all the facilities at the course still in place in late 2011.

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• 2yo Season = 1984, 16 wins from 23 runs.
• Pedigree:- Godswalk - Nadwa (Tyrant). Brown, 15.2hh.
• Owner Bred;
• Trainer:- Bill O'Gorman; Owner = Ahmed Fustok; Jockey = Tony Ives;
• Ran 3 times at 3yo, 2nd on debut in a minor Stakes race at Haydock on April 3rd, then unplaced in a 6f event at Thirsk on April 20th and a long break then unplaced in a 5f minor Stakes race on September 20th.

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• 2yo Season = 1990, 16 wins from 21 runs.
• Pedigree:- Timeless Moment - Lovely Hobo (Noholme). Chestnut.
• US Bred, cost $15,000 as a yearling;
• Trainer:- Bill O'Gorman; Owner = Times Of Wigan; Jockey = Alan Munro;
• Ran 9 times at 3yo beginning with a 2nd place in a minor 5f event at Carlisle on March 30th. Ran in 8 handicaps after that, between 6f to 8f, and unplaced on all runs with his Official Rating declining from 106 to 83 on his final start on October 12th.
• Stood at Norton Grove Stud until his last covering year of 2007 when he was advertised at a fee of £1,000.

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Spindrifter	Provideo	Timeless Times

The picture of Provideo shows him winning the Star Stakes at Sandown on July 26th. The two pictures of Timeless Times show him winning his 16th race of the season at Pontefract on September the 4th. Trainer Bill O'Gorman is in the light jacket talking to jockey Munro in the second picture. The location of the picture of Spindrifter is unknown to the author, possibly returning to the entrance gate at Pontefract? Right clicking on any of the pictures for Provideo & Timeless Times link to the full sized versions.

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