Timon

She was due to ride him again in Race 7. We're heartboken. Lost for words, so sad

yep, 100% correct. My parents weren't racing people but knew people who were and had been invited to the Members Stand on Wellington Cup Day. I didn’t know much about racing back then but remember poring over the field and picking Timon for reasons I can't understand, though Glengowan I recall was hot favourite. Timon won by a nose in a bobbing finish over Guest Star, who came back and won the Cup the following year

Fellow cafe posters - I wanted to acknowledge on behalf of Cubes family the heartwarming posts in Scooby's thread Cubes Sadly passes away And thank you also for the magnificent bouquet that was delivered to his house yesterday and the beautiful accompanying message to his boys. Nige's passing was sudden, unexpected and way too soon but his was definitely a life well lived. His posts were rightly the stuff of legend ... though there was certainly no point letting the facts get in the way of a good story He and I shared the ownership of a few horses which graduated to the stage of being "promising" .... but like with all things with Nige we had big and bold plans and remained the eternal optimists. However if the racing gods do the decent thing, then we'll all be cheering his Bad Flamingo home at the front of the field on Friday We figured Riccarton would be a fitting venue to farewell him so if conditions permit we'll throw the casket on the roof rack, shove in whatever cassette happens to be lying under the front seat, wind the windows down, crank up the volume and let the Kingswood give Cubes a final lap of honour around the track. And then, in Nigel's immortal words, it will be Cubes and out Love to you all Cubes family

Well done Cubes, I'm sure Mrs Cubes (RIP) was cheering her former filly on. A nice win in her memory

Fellow Cafe members, please join me in passing on our heartfelt condolences to Cubes, following the sudden and tragic passing on his, and our, much loved Mrs Cubes. Cubes we're all thinking of you, Tetrahedron and Dodecahedron at this terribly sad time. As Mrs Cubes now looks down on us from that great Kingswood in the sky, we will forever marvel at her unwavering support of you and your equine investments, her infectious presence on any raceday, a love of a generously poured G and T and her generous support of the tipping comp when we were all holed up feeling miserable about life in lockdown. And who could forget her on Cup Day when Our Premonition nosed through right on the line to win the Mohua Classic As someone privileged to have raced a couple with you and your Mrs C, thank you for those memories and know that we're all thinking of you. Some things really suck, and this is one of them.

Rosehill R4: 1, 6 R5: 2,15 R6: 3,5 R7: 3 ,15 R8: 2,11 Flemington R4: 1, 6 R5: 2,6 R6: 2,4 R7: 1,7 R8: 3,11

Thanks Gubellini. My school years were in Wanganui which explains it - probably a favourite of the Wanganui Chronicle reporter cheers Timon

Cubes now that your good missus is back I assume she's switched to cocktails by the fireside

Winner of Race 10 at HB today - I could swear there was a horse of that name running around when I first got interested in racing back in the 70's. Nothing shows up on a search through NZ Racing website - anyone able to recall another of that name?

I think Johnsonville's one is still going. i remember taking the kids there when they were nippers. Arrived home and they proceeded to tell my wife they'd been to the "horsey shop"!

Felaar Donizetti Scott Base Heroic Valour Contessa Vanessa Quote Quote this

Notice the on track sponsors - Ansett, Benson & Hedges and Lion Brown - no one misses their passing

I think you're missing the point Sharrock is making. If you look at his stomping ground around the Rangitikei, Taranaki, Horowhenua, Manawatu area you've got (or had) race courses at Otaki, Levin, Foxton, Bulls, Marton, Wanganui, Woodville, Awapuni, Hawera, Waverley, New Plymouth and probably several other places I have missed. It's total nonsense. Put it this way if you didn't have any race courses in any of those towns would you now go a build one in each of those places, knowing it requires capital outlay for a large stand, stables, course, and other facilities? Of course not. You have to give up hankering for how ii was and create a vision for the future.

The trainer is the skilled horseman and if they're playing the long game then sudden changes of tack based on circumstance can stuff up that longer term plan. Having said that, a strong 1600m at Ellerslie against your own age group v. a 1800m at Riccarton don't seem so different in the context of your filly's current preparation. Having once had a starter (and runner up) in the Derby I know the buzz of expectation and excitement at having a runner in a big one (especially at the home of racing) - hoping you get that chance sometime soon at another venue. best of luck, Cubes

you summed it up brilliantly. I was there that day standing on the lawn and nothing was going to stop him. Rod and Rachel were just the icing on the cake. I can't remember who rode him - was it Noel H?