Ralp near

As a trainer, Ralph believed that there were important things he must do for all of his horses. They must be fed on a reg— ular basis with the proper nutrients. Their water supply must not be neglect— ed. They and their environment must be kept clean. Proper shoeing is a must. Their health must never be ignored. Horses must never be abused or neglect— ed. He believed that they must have a formulated training plan in place and you must not miss too many days with them. You must have sufficient jogging and training miles because, if you cheat in this area, it shows when they race. Ralph remembered a lot of early, cold winter mornings when his hands would be extremely cold while he jogged his hors- es. These are some of the factors that a successful trainer must practise.

Ralph Annear’s best experience or moment in the sport may have been when they won the Dairy Queen in Sydney with Harrods Route. Clare MacDonald was the driver that night and she beat a lot of good ones. Ralph stat- ed, “I think it was Clare. She really stole that race. In the eliminations, she had a real battle after cutting some really quick fractions and we just barely qualified for the final. In the championship the fol— lowing week, she drew inside and nobody would tackle her until it was too late; she really stole that race. That was one of my biggest moments in the game.”

Behind the Gate

The night in 1962 that Morleys Pride died due to an injury in a race was the worst experience or moment for Ralph Annear in horse racing. He remembered the sad experience and related, "I remember it all. Morleys Pride was a good horse called after my younger brother. I was sitting three in the race; he had never made a break in his life. Just past the half something happened and he almost went down but I was able to take him back to his feet. I looked and Junior Downe was three or four lengths behind me. I thought that I was okay but he came plowing over us and Clark Smith came over that. Morlevs Pride had bro— ken his leg so severely that he had to be humanely put down on the spot. I pleaded with them not to put him down. It was pretty tough. The accident sev- ered my right foot and it had to be fused. I was in the hospital for two weeks and in a cast all that winter."

I asked him what advice he would give to a young person who was thinking about a career in horse racing. This astute veteran advised, “If that young person was talented and really serious, he or she might have to leave the Atlantic region to make a good living in this industry. He or she may acquire a good foundation here by starting at the bottom. Successful people in this industry began by mucking stalls. They didn’t start on the track. This is not a game or industry

“77ml was one of my biggest moments in the game. ”

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