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Phar Lap
Phar Lap raced only once in North America, yet seldom has a horse made such an impression in a single appearance. Like the lightning for which he was named (“phar lap” is said to mean “lightning” in either the Javanese language or an Aboriginal dialect, depending on the source consulted), he flashed a brief and searing light across the American racing landscape of 1932 and was dead before the thunder of his victory had had time to rumble into silence, in a tragedy that touched two continents. The “Red Terror,” as he became known, was foaled in New Zealand on October 28, 1926, and was purchased by the partnership of Australian trainer Harry Telford and American businessman David Davis for 160 Australian guineas, then the equivalent of about eight hundred American dollars. Australasian horsemen have historically been much freer with the gelding knife than their equivalents in North America, and in Phar Lap’s case, there seemed to be no pressing reason not to geld him. The gangling youngster was hardly a prepossessing physical specimen, and his pedigree -- by Night Raid out of the Winkle mare Entreaty -- was far from outstanding. So gelded he was, and entered training as just another juvenile. As might be expected for so large and backward a horse -- he eventually matured at a height variously reported between 16.3 and 17.1 hands, and was said to weigh 1,450 pounds as a six-year-old -- Phar Lap was not outstanding as a two-year-old, taking five starts to break his maiden. His three-year-old season also began slowly, but he found his feet in time to win thirteen of his twenty starts, including one streak of nine consecutive wins. His victories included the Australian Jockey Club (AJC) Derby, generally considered to be Australia’s premier Classic race, and he also won the AJC St. Leger and the Victoria Racing Club Derby. Phar Lap was better still at four, winning fourteen consecutive stakes including the two-mile Melbourne Cup under 138 pounds. At five he was almost unbeatable, winning eight of nine starts. His one losing effort that season was in the Melbourne Cup, where he was asked to carry 150 pounds -- conceding over fifty pounds to some of his rivals -- and ended up eighth. By this time, Phar Lap had clearly run out of competition in Australia, and there were also indications that he might be in danger from criminal elements with an interest in racing. He routinely traveled with armed guards to ensure his security, and even with those precautions, gunshots were reportedly fired at the horse during a workout. So plans were made to send Phar Lap to North America in search of new (and perhaps safer) worlds to conquer, and in December Phar Lap boarded the S. S. Monowai for his trip to America. He was accompanied by five special attendants (at an estimated cost of $5000) and trainer Treve “Tommy” Woodcock, who would handle the horse in Telford’s stead. The Agua Caliente Gold Cup was a logical first target for Phar Lap; its timing offered him some time to acclimate from his sea voyage, and its $50,000 purse was the most lucrative in North America. To sweeten the deal, Caliente’s president James N. Crofton offered $5000 in appearance money to Phar Lap on condition that he be shipped to Agua Caliente within two weeks of his arrival in San Francisco, guaranteeing that the Australian wonder horse would make his first North American start at the Mexican track. After ten days’ rest at John Marchbank’s Heather Stock Farm near San Francisco, the “Red Terror” was sent to Agua Caliente, where a special security barn with a high steel fence awaited him. Despite the media hooplah that surrounded the horse, the skeptical shook their heads, and their doubts did not lessen as the weeks passed. Not only had the horse just completed a three-week, 10,000 mile sea voyage with no exercise other than bracing himself against the movements of the ship, but his workouts prior to the Agua Caliente Handicap were, to say the least, leisurely; in fact, Woodcock often didn‘t even work him at the track, but rode him cross-country as a rancher might ride his favorite cow horse. In addition, the horse’s regular rider had remained in Australia, meaning that he would have a new pilot for his first North American start. (Speculation on Phar Lap’s probable jockey ranged from the top American rider Mack Garner to six-time Epsom Derby winner Steve Donoghue, who happened to be visiting Southern California at the time; Woodcock eventually settled on fellow Australian William Elliott.) And the field, while not stellar, was quite solid, with ten good stakes winners lined up to take a crack at the big money and the Australian invader. Nonetheless, Phar Lap’s reputation was such that he was sent off as the 3-2 race favorite. The fans were not the only believers, either, as the Agua Caliente track handicapper assigned Phar Lap top weight of 129 pounds for the track’s feature race. The impost, while quite respectable by North American standards, must have felt like a mere feather to Phar Lap, who showed his gratitude for the handicapper’s considerate treatment with a two-length victory in track record time for the mile and a quarter despite running very wide. As if his victory were not impressive enough on the bald facts of it, it is still more so when one considers that the horse’s final preparation had been held up by a minor crack in a forehoof. While the Agua Caliente Handicap field had not contained any North American standouts such as Equipoise, Plucky Play, or Gallant Knight, the ease with which Phar Lap had dominated his field electrified the press, and there was great anticipation for an invasion of the East by the “Wonder from Down Under.” Before this could happen, however, Phar Lap suffered a slight tendon strain and was sent to Edward Perry’s Menlo Park near San Francisco to recuperate. To the shock of the entire racing world, the great gelding died suddenly on April 5, 1932, of apparent colic. Tests later revealed that Phar Lap had fatal levels of arsenic in his system. How Phar Lap was poisoned remains a mystery. The most likely source of the poison was insecticide that had been used to spray a nearby orchard, with some of the spray being driven by the wind to Phar Lap’s pasture. But other horses had grazed in the same area without being affected, and rumors sprang up that clay pellets containing arsenic had been found in the horse’s stall. To his dying day, Woodcock held fast to the belief that his beloved “Bobby” had been deliberately poisoned by gangsters who had suffered heavy losses in betting against the horse. Many fans clung to similar beliefs; over a decade later, any number of barroom brawls between Australian and American servicemen in World War II began with the question, “So, mate, how come you Yanks poisoned Phar Lap?” In a somewhat bizarre twist, Phar Lap was skinned before his burial at Menlo Park and his heart was removed for examination. His hide was mounted by a taxidermist and exhibited at Belmont Park on Futurity Day, after which it was sent home to Australia and was placed on display at the Museum of Victoria in Melbourne. As for his heart, it was measured and weighed before also being sent back to Australia, where it was put on display at the Australian Institute of Anatomy. It was indeed a remarkable specimen, for Phar Lap’s heart turned out to weigh fourteen pounds, over half again the size of the average Thoroughbred’s heart. The world’s second leading money winner at the time of his death (behind only Sun Beau), Phar Lap held the record as the world’s leading money-winning gelding until surpassed by the great Armed in 1946. His many time records in Australia, as well as his track record at Agua Caliente, did not last nearly as long, but his memory lingered long after he was gone. One particularly devoted fan, who chose to remain anonymous, for many years left a floral wreath in the red-and-black colors of the Telford/Davis stable at the gates of Australia’s Randwick Racecourse on the anniversary of Phar Lap’s death. What might have happened if Phar Lap had lived and taken on America’s best will never be known, but he left an indelible impression on the minds of all who saw him. The late Charlie Whittingham, who trained such standouts as 1987 Horse of the Year Ferdinand and 1989 Horse of the Year Sunday Silence, perhaps said it best. Reminiscing in his autobiography about seeing Phar Lap’s Agua Caliente victory, the “Bald Eagle” said, “I never got to see Man o’ War. But he’d have to be a helluva horse to be better than Phar Lap.” Millions of Aussies and New Zealanders would agree. Text © 2005 by Avalyn Hunter Artwork © 2006 by Pat DeLong. Used by permission and may not be copied or distributed in any form without the express permission of Pat DeLong. For information regarding purchases, reproductions, or licensing, please contact Pat DeLong at patdelongart@aol.com. |
