EX Jockey RIP?

[crustyngrizzly 1,518]

Saw a death notice in Herald for PHILIP JAMES KEMPTON aged 84.I presume it was the ex jock.

Was a prominent jockey many years ago especially during the Whangarei consecutive Frid/Sat meetings.

Have a memory that one of his daughters married a Hillis boy.

[gubellini 3,254]

Phil rode 152 winners. He was apprenticed to Lionel Pratt at Orari alongside the Skelton Brothers. His first win was on Whipsnade at Geraldine on the 26/9/55. His biggest win in the South Island was the 1959 Oamaru Cup on Brookfields Lad trained by Phil Stock. He later moved north to Takanini and rode a lot for Baggy Hillis. He won nine races on Sandpiper for Baggy including the 1970 Northern Wairoa Cup and the 1971 Whangarei Cup. 

[Insider 2,343]

Crustyngrizzly, thank you for posting about Phillip Kempton. When I was a kid his family lived diagonally across the road and I alway thought that it was cool that we had a famous jockey from our street. (Queen Street)

(Obviously he wasn’t famous in the real sense of the word but at least he was always in the newspaper every week )
 

[crustyngrizzly 1,518]

14 hours ago, Insider said:

Crustyngrizzly, thank you for posting about Phillip Kempton. When I was a kid his family lived diagonally across the road and I alway thought that it was cool that we had a famous jockey from our street. (Queen Street)

(Obviously he wasn’t famous in the real sense of the word but at least he was always in the newspaper every week )
 

Jockeys were held in the highest esteem in those old days.We lived about 50m from a jock described as "famous"by my non racing parents.That was Reg Turnwald a better than average jock according to my mate and his property backed onto stables owned by the late Jack Hayes who was the dad of the late Jimmy Hayes a top jock until a fall.

All of them famous according to my parents.

[Insider 2,343]

8 hours ago, crustyngrizzly said:

Jockeys were held in the highest esteem in those old days.We lived about 50m from a jock described as "famous"by my non racing parents.That was Reg Turnwald a better than average jock according to my mate and his property backed onto stables owned by the late Jack Hayes who was the dad of the late Jimmy Hayes a top jock until a fall.

All of them famous according to my parents.

Well it was the time of..........Rugby, Racing & Beer,  so why not have the jockeys on the same pedestal as the All Blacks and the top Provincial players?

Incidentally, the Queen Street that I mentioned in my earlier posting was in WESTPORT.

Talking about the "Coast" when you consider the Skelton Brothers, the next Mayor of Auckland [ex jockey] and Phillip Kempton, in the grand scheme of things it certainly box well above their weight!