Mustard - Great 14 yr old Aussie Thoro
Apr 14, 2013 21:20:18 GMT -5
Post by cait on Apr 14, 2013 21:20:18 GMT -5
As some know, I’m an avid Aussie racing fan – ever since nycotb began showing aussie races back in the 90’s on old channels 71/73. One of my favorite runners was Mustard who raced until age 14 (15 in the US - aussie thoros have bdays on 8/1), who ran 131 times with 17 wins and 30 placings. He was retired about a year ago.
The best way to tell about this amazing gelding is to post the following articles from the racing pros in aussie as they tell his “story” better than i could.
Maybe this quote from his trainer, John McNair, should be a hint to all of us lol:
“…he loves what he does and is having fun….”
Veteran sprinter Mustard still going strong at 14 years of age
by: Ray Thomas December 23, 2011
MUSTARD, the 14-year-old gelding who still acts like a playful colt, is the racehorse defying time.
Easy does it: Mustard, with trainer John McNair on board at McNair's Somersby property. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: The Daily Telegraph
Trainer John McNair has often thought about retirement for Mustard but the veteran sprinter won't have a bar of it.
Physically, Mustard is as fit as horses half his age and mentally he's sharper than ever - as he proves at trackwork every morning when he engages in a battle of wits with his wily trainer before exercise.
McNair interprets this daily ritual as a sign Mustard still wants to be a racehorse.
"The old horse is always playing mind games with me," McNair said.
"I was having some trouble working him recently so I changed a bit of gear and made it easier to manage him. If he outsmarts me again, I've got to find something else to get him thinking. But that's just Mustard - it's always been a bit of a game to him.
"I think this is probably why he has that longevity about him because he loves what he does and is having fun. I often say he won't retire because he's too old, he'll have to retire when I get too old to ride him."
As McNair prepares Mustard for his 127th race start in the Canterbury Park Handicap (1250m) at Canterbury tomorrow, it is obvious the trainer has a genuine affection for the old horse he regards almost as part of the family.
Which is probably why McNair gets upset when he learns there is some criticism of him for keeping Mustard in training. "You do get people taking pot shots at you for continuing to race him but I'm only doing what Mustard wants to do," McNair said.
"Criticism usually runs off my back anyway, I don't worry about it, but when it comes to Mustard, it does annoy me."
But for every critic, there are 1000 supporters of McNair and his gallant "warhorse".
In fact, McNair reckons the Australian Turf Club should sponsor the ageless Mustard. He wasn't joking either.
Mustard is the oldest racehorse in training, and one of the most popular. He attracts a crowd wherever he races and punters love to have a little something on him, regardless of the odds.
"I see Mustard in the bookmaker's ring at 80/1 but on the tote he is 20/1," McNair said. "Obviously there are a lot of people in Australia who back the horse. He's got a following, that's for sure. Horses like him are good for racing."
There hasn't been a galloper as old as Mustard competing on the flat at this level of Australian racing since ... well, no one knows when. Some steeple-chasers and hurdlers might race on to a similar age but it is very rare for a sprinter like Mustard to retain his speed and remain competitive.
English racing has its own version of Mustard - The Tatling, a 14-year-old sprinter who, like Mustard, has a cult-like following. Earlier this month The Tatling created headlines again when he won his 18th race at his 176th and final start at Wolverhampton.
By comparison Mustard has been lightly raced but his winning strike-rate is superior.
Mustard has already won 17 races, including four stakes races and over $800,000 prizemoney - not bad for a horse McNair purchased for just $16,000 at the 1999 Magic Millions Yearling Sales.
"He's actually been with me since I came over from Perth on a permanent basis," McNair said. "The first year we arrived we went to Magic Millions and bought him. He was in what we call the poor man's sale, the second sale.
"But I think he has won a race just about every preparation and the amazing thing is that since he was seven he has won more than twice as much money as he won in his first seven years."
Despite his enduring race career, Mustard does break new ground tomorrow with his first start at Canterbury. McNair said Mustard is close to winning form after a luckless last start fifth behind So So Sure at Rosehill.Mustard's fast-finishing effort caught the eye of Sydney's leading jockey Glyn Schofield, who then chased McNair for the ride. "Glyn pulled me up last week at the races and said you are right, he went amazing. It's encouraging to know he wants to ride him," McNair said.
McNair conceded the day will come when Mustard's amazing race career will end. He's just not sure when that will be.
"He's going great at the moment, I'm really happy with him and he will be competitive (tomorrow)," McNair said. "You can see in his eye he wants to compete, the fire is still burning.
"Wouldn't it be phenomenal if Mustard could win a week after The Tatling? I'd love to retire Mustard on a winning note - but I'm not saying he is going to be retired just yet."
www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/superracing/veteran-sprinter-mustard-still-going-strong-at-14-years-of-age/story-fn67rc85-1226228864545
Mustard – It’s over
By Clinton Payne March 5, 2012
'I'll see another horse as good as Hay List in my lifetime but I'll probably never ever see one like Mustard again' is how trainer John McNair summed up his resilient warhorse after announcing the horse's retirement on Thursday.
The 14-year-old raced 131 times for 17 wins and 30 placings with his career earning topping $800,000.
The veteran won his first race, a maiden handicap over 1200 metres at Hawkesbury on January 10, 2001. His first metropolitan win came in February 2002 when scoring in a one metro win handicap over 1500 metres.
His final win came in a benchmark 85 handicap at Rosehill over 1100 metres in August 2010.
Four of his victories came at Stakes level. Mustard won the Listed Maurice McCarten Stakes (1200m) and Razor Sharp Handicap (1100m) in 2004 and then in 2006 he added the Group III Concorde (1100m) and Star Kingdom Stakes' (1100m) to his record.
During his long career that spanned 12 years, Mustard covered 161.6 kilometres in race starts. Nine jockeys won races aboard the horse, Rod Quinn (6 wins), Jim Cassidy (2 wins), Larry Cassidy (2 wins), Bernadette Cooper (2 wins), Darren Beadman, Glen Boss, Glyn Schofield, Justin Sheehan and Dean Greville.
Group I winners that Mustard raced against included Takeover Target, Dance Hero, Miss Andretti, Bentley Biscuit, Spark Of Life, Magnus, Patezza, Red Oog, Regal Cheer and Virage De Fortune.
"I think that's it," McNair said. "He's been a great servant to us.
"His owner Terry Rohde and I were in our 40s when he started racing and now we're in our 60s.
"He's had a lucky life and he's sound and happy so that's the main thing.
"It's the end of an era for us but life will go on."
www.racenet.com.au/breeding/news_images/mustard_2.jpg
Mustard
Mustard in a playful mood in 2006 Photo: Bradley Photographers
The best way to tell about this amazing gelding is to post the following articles from the racing pros in aussie as they tell his “story” better than i could.
Maybe this quote from his trainer, John McNair, should be a hint to all of us lol:
“…he loves what he does and is having fun….”
Veteran sprinter Mustard still going strong at 14 years of age
by: Ray Thomas December 23, 2011
MUSTARD, the 14-year-old gelding who still acts like a playful colt, is the racehorse defying time.
Easy does it: Mustard, with trainer John McNair on board at McNair's Somersby property. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: The Daily Telegraph
Trainer John McNair has often thought about retirement for Mustard but the veteran sprinter won't have a bar of it.
Physically, Mustard is as fit as horses half his age and mentally he's sharper than ever - as he proves at trackwork every morning when he engages in a battle of wits with his wily trainer before exercise.
McNair interprets this daily ritual as a sign Mustard still wants to be a racehorse.
"The old horse is always playing mind games with me," McNair said.
"I was having some trouble working him recently so I changed a bit of gear and made it easier to manage him. If he outsmarts me again, I've got to find something else to get him thinking. But that's just Mustard - it's always been a bit of a game to him.
"I think this is probably why he has that longevity about him because he loves what he does and is having fun. I often say he won't retire because he's too old, he'll have to retire when I get too old to ride him."
As McNair prepares Mustard for his 127th race start in the Canterbury Park Handicap (1250m) at Canterbury tomorrow, it is obvious the trainer has a genuine affection for the old horse he regards almost as part of the family.
Which is probably why McNair gets upset when he learns there is some criticism of him for keeping Mustard in training. "You do get people taking pot shots at you for continuing to race him but I'm only doing what Mustard wants to do," McNair said.
"Criticism usually runs off my back anyway, I don't worry about it, but when it comes to Mustard, it does annoy me."
But for every critic, there are 1000 supporters of McNair and his gallant "warhorse".
In fact, McNair reckons the Australian Turf Club should sponsor the ageless Mustard. He wasn't joking either.
Mustard is the oldest racehorse in training, and one of the most popular. He attracts a crowd wherever he races and punters love to have a little something on him, regardless of the odds.
"I see Mustard in the bookmaker's ring at 80/1 but on the tote he is 20/1," McNair said. "Obviously there are a lot of people in Australia who back the horse. He's got a following, that's for sure. Horses like him are good for racing."
There hasn't been a galloper as old as Mustard competing on the flat at this level of Australian racing since ... well, no one knows when. Some steeple-chasers and hurdlers might race on to a similar age but it is very rare for a sprinter like Mustard to retain his speed and remain competitive.
English racing has its own version of Mustard - The Tatling, a 14-year-old sprinter who, like Mustard, has a cult-like following. Earlier this month The Tatling created headlines again when he won his 18th race at his 176th and final start at Wolverhampton.
By comparison Mustard has been lightly raced but his winning strike-rate is superior.
Mustard has already won 17 races, including four stakes races and over $800,000 prizemoney - not bad for a horse McNair purchased for just $16,000 at the 1999 Magic Millions Yearling Sales.
"He's actually been with me since I came over from Perth on a permanent basis," McNair said. "The first year we arrived we went to Magic Millions and bought him. He was in what we call the poor man's sale, the second sale.
"But I think he has won a race just about every preparation and the amazing thing is that since he was seven he has won more than twice as much money as he won in his first seven years."
Despite his enduring race career, Mustard does break new ground tomorrow with his first start at Canterbury. McNair said Mustard is close to winning form after a luckless last start fifth behind So So Sure at Rosehill.Mustard's fast-finishing effort caught the eye of Sydney's leading jockey Glyn Schofield, who then chased McNair for the ride. "Glyn pulled me up last week at the races and said you are right, he went amazing. It's encouraging to know he wants to ride him," McNair said.
McNair conceded the day will come when Mustard's amazing race career will end. He's just not sure when that will be.
"He's going great at the moment, I'm really happy with him and he will be competitive (tomorrow)," McNair said. "You can see in his eye he wants to compete, the fire is still burning.
"Wouldn't it be phenomenal if Mustard could win a week after The Tatling? I'd love to retire Mustard on a winning note - but I'm not saying he is going to be retired just yet."
www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/superracing/veteran-sprinter-mustard-still-going-strong-at-14-years-of-age/story-fn67rc85-1226228864545
Mustard – It’s over
By Clinton Payne March 5, 2012
'I'll see another horse as good as Hay List in my lifetime but I'll probably never ever see one like Mustard again' is how trainer John McNair summed up his resilient warhorse after announcing the horse's retirement on Thursday.
The 14-year-old raced 131 times for 17 wins and 30 placings with his career earning topping $800,000.
The veteran won his first race, a maiden handicap over 1200 metres at Hawkesbury on January 10, 2001. His first metropolitan win came in February 2002 when scoring in a one metro win handicap over 1500 metres.
His final win came in a benchmark 85 handicap at Rosehill over 1100 metres in August 2010.
Four of his victories came at Stakes level. Mustard won the Listed Maurice McCarten Stakes (1200m) and Razor Sharp Handicap (1100m) in 2004 and then in 2006 he added the Group III Concorde (1100m) and Star Kingdom Stakes' (1100m) to his record.
During his long career that spanned 12 years, Mustard covered 161.6 kilometres in race starts. Nine jockeys won races aboard the horse, Rod Quinn (6 wins), Jim Cassidy (2 wins), Larry Cassidy (2 wins), Bernadette Cooper (2 wins), Darren Beadman, Glen Boss, Glyn Schofield, Justin Sheehan and Dean Greville.
Group I winners that Mustard raced against included Takeover Target, Dance Hero, Miss Andretti, Bentley Biscuit, Spark Of Life, Magnus, Patezza, Red Oog, Regal Cheer and Virage De Fortune.
"I think that's it," McNair said. "He's been a great servant to us.
"His owner Terry Rohde and I were in our 40s when he started racing and now we're in our 60s.
"He's had a lucky life and he's sound and happy so that's the main thing.
"It's the end of an era for us but life will go on."
www.racenet.com.au/breeding/news_images/mustard_2.jpg
Mustard
Mustard in a playful mood in 2006 Photo: Bradley Photographers
