MAORI’S IDOL
I may as well state this right at the beginning so as there is no misunderstanding as to my thoughts on this horse. I consider Maori’s Idol the greatest harness horse I have ever seen, FULL STOP!
To fully understand why I have that view read on and learn, just a little, about the horse they called the Marnoo Marvel, Maori’s Idol.
He was bred by Rick Healy and was officially foaled on 1st September 1972. Maori’s Idol was by Ike Frost from Maori Miss, she being a dual heat winner during the 1966 Inter Dominion Trotter’s Championship in Sydney, when trained by George Gath and driven by his son Neville. Maori’s Idol was owned and trained throughout his career by Rick Healy and driven by his son, Bryan.
Maori Miss had 13 foals between 1968 and 1983 by 11 different sires but her 5th foal, Maori’s Idol, was easily her best. Maori Miss is also the great grand dam of Trotter’s Grand Prix winner, Sumthingaboutmaori.
Given time to mature, Maori’s Idol had his first start as a 3yo on 25-10-75 at Globe Derby in a 2.37 class Trot. He started at 6-4, won easily by 15 metres, and rated 2-15½. It would be 3 years before he would start ‘in the black’ again! He only had one more race as a 3yo, this time at Kilmore on 24-11-75. Off 10 metres, he started at 2-7 and beat Joker’s Pride by 4 metres with Takil 40 metres further away in 3rd place. He was then given a long spell before resuming as a 4yo.
He returned to the racetrack 9 months later on 3-8-76 at Stawell off 20 metres in a 2.37 class Trot and won by 50 metres after starting at 4-9. Six days later he raced at Cranbourne off 30 metres and won by 30 metres. Two weeks later, at the same venue, he won from the same mark by the same margin, this time at 2-5. He then travelled to Bendigo and started off 20 metres in a faster class trotter’s race but still won by 30 metres, this time starting at 1-6. Eight days later he raced at Bendigo again off 20 metres in a 2.33 class Trot, started at 1-7, and won by 16 metres. Next up was a 2.35 class Trot at Ballarat off 50 metres where he ‘only’ started at 1-4 and won by 30 metres and ran a new Australian record, for a S/S race of 2550 metres, rating 2-7 3/10. A bit over two weeks later he raced at Bendigo off 40 metres and won by 15 metres from Storm Rider with Jigs and Reels a further 40 metres away in 3rd place. It was his 9th consecutive win. It is
interesting to note that his AVERAGE winning margin for his only seven 4yo starts was almost 30 metres a race! And then the ‘impossible’ happened, he got beat!
Off 60 metres in a race at Bendigo he struck trouble when negotiating ‘traffic’ and finished 2nd, beaten 6 metres. His next start was in a pacer’s race at Maryborough where he finished 2nd again, this time being beaten 3 metres by Gyressa. It would be a LONG time before he would be beaten again!
He started his, now famous, 24 consecutive win streak with a win at Kilmore on 4-7-77, off 40 metres, and won by 25 metres. Five nights later he made his debut at the Valley. Starting off the front in a 2.30 class Trotter’s race he broke and lost around 80 metres before he found his gait, but then proceeded to embarass some pretty handy Metropolitan class trotters by beating Silken by 25 metres with Bold Apepa 3rd and ran a new race record while only in ‘second gear’! A week later he started off 10 metres and won a similar event by 20 metres, again from Silken, after starting at 1-8. He was outside the leader early but went to the front with 2½ laps to go. With 400 metres to go he was 5 lengths in front and just ‘cruising’ in second gear before winning easily. He had his last start as a 4yo twelve days later at Kilmore. Off 60 metres and starting at 1-7, he gave nothing else a chance, beating Silken by 40 metres. In his initial year as a 3yo he had 2
starts for 2 wins and as a 4yo Maori’s Idol had 13 starts for 11 wins and 2 seconds.
Maori’s Idol had his first start as a 5yo 2 weeks later on 8-8-77 at Cranbourne in a heat of a PACER’S 2.28 class race. Despite coming from 20 metres he won easily by 10 metres and 2 weeks later won the Final by 20 metres in Australian record time. In between the heat and final he raced at MV in a trotters race from 20 metres, beating Silken (again!) by 25 metres in race record time. From his 20 metre handicap he was last early and still 3rd last with 2 laps to go, but at about the 1500 metre mark he took off and led at the bell. In the last lap he adopted his, now, customary style of clearing right out and left the opposition well in his wake. He raced at MV again on 27-8-77 from 30 metres, ran another Australian record and won by 30 metres! As was his style, he took off from the rear at the bell lap and opened up a huge gap to win easily. Almost 4 weeks later he won there again, after starting from 40 metres, and beat Hilton Adios. Five days later he
raced at Kilmore in a 2.25 pacer’s race, started off 10 metres and won by 30 metres. It was his 10th consecutive win.
On 7-10-77 he came off 40 metres at MV, started at 1-8, and won by 20 metres. A week later he was off 60 metres and set a new track record while beating Hilton Adios by 30 metres. From his back mark he was away well but stayed at the rear of the field until a lap and a half from home when he sprinted up very fast, 3 wide, to take the lead. With a lap to go he was 8 lengths in front and absolutely ‘bolting’, and increased his lead to around 15 lengths going down the back straight to eventually win by a big margin while still only in second gear. After the race the course broadcaster said for the first, but not the last, time that he was quite probably the best trotter in the world at that time. Two weeks later he raced at Maryborough off 10 metres in a 2.24 (C3) pacer’s event and won by 20 metres. There was just no stopping him! Two weeks after that he contested the Hamilton Pacer’s Cup, started at 1-10, and made no mistakes, winning the event by 50
metres! Four nights later he was back at the Valley for a trotter’s FFA over one mile from the mobile barrier.
On an average night in November, Mooney Valley would get around 10,000 to the track, but on this night over 14,000 turned up. Bruce Skeggs once said that whenever Maori’s Idol raced he increased attendance by 25%! Well this night about 40% more than normal turned up to see this trotting ‘machine’ in action and they weren’t to be disappointed. From the mobile he was severely checked early and broke but once he had settled down was sent around the field to lead at the bell. Going down the back the last time he opened up an ENORMOUS lead and was about 50-80 metres in front of the entire field, sending the crowd into a frenzy of excitement awaiting their very first sub two minute mile by a trotter in a race in Australia. At the wire he was 30 metres ahead of El Cordobies with Touch Merchant 3rd and the time WAS a new Australian record of 1-59 3/10. It was his 15th consecutive win. Win number 16 came a week later at Globe Derby in another FFA. This time he
started at the unbackable odds of 1-20, won by 16 metres and set a new track record rating 2-6 1/5 for the 2650 metre event.
Three nights later he came off 40 metres in the S.A. Trotter’s Cup. He struck all sorts of problems with traffic from his back mark but just got there by a ½ head to beat Rodilo Bronze with Corop Bird 3rd. Five nights later he had his last start at GD in a 2250 metre FFA. He started at 1-15 and led by a conservative 100 metres at the bell and was eased right down to win by ‘just’ 60 metres from Lunar Pride. Even though he was only going half pace, or trot, in the straight, he STILL set a new track record rating 2-3 7/10.
Two weeks later he was back at Kilmore contesting a fast class pacer’s event (C6) and beat Great Divide by 8 metres with the very useful Tan Heel 3rd. Nine nights later he was back at the Valley in a FFA over 1800 metres. He started at 1-9, beat Bold Apepa by 15 metres with Rodilo Bronze 3rd, and still set another new track record, rating 2-2 3/10. He went straight to the front, raced well clear in the last lap and won as he liked. It was his 20th consecutive win. Win number 21 was achieved in sensational fashion almost 3 months later in a MV FFA on 11-2-78. He was badly away, lost about 25 metres, and was tailed off, but once he got trotting Healy sent him around the field and he was 3 wide and challenging at the bell. Down the back the last time he raced right away and eventually won by 25 metres from Bold Apepa with Touch Merchant 8 metres further away in 3rd place. Sixteen days later he contested a FFA at Cranbourne, started at 1-10, and beat Hilton
Adios by 15 metres with Touch Merchant 3rd and, despite just ‘jogging’ in the home straight, set another new track record. He then contested the 1978 Inter Dominion Trotter’s series at MV.
The first heats were on 4-3-78 and, off 25 metres, he won his first heat easily from Waipounamu and Storm Rider. Win number 23. His 24th consecutive win came 4 nights later in the second round of heats. Despite his 30 metre handicap he won easily from Bold Apepa and Hilton Adios and ran a new Australasian record to boot. In the Final on 11-3-78 he was going for a new Australasian record of 25 consecutive wins, having equalled Lucky Creed’s old record of 24 straight the previous week. From his back mark he was last early in the 2 mile event and with 2 laps to go was still last about 40 metres off the leaders. When Waipounamu, the logical 2nd favourite, made his run at the beginning of the last lap Healy sent Maori’s Idol up 3 wide to sit behind the Kiwi and get a ‘cart up’ into the race, rather than do ALL the hard work 4 wide. Coming towards the home turn Waipounamu seemed to be struggling and Healy suddenly realised that his main opponent had nothing
left and was about to start going backwards! Whipping him around the tiring Kiwi he set sail after the leaders who had a huge start coming into the home straight. Healy had realised, a fraction too late, that he was not going to go any further behind Waipounamu, and despite storming home down the outside of the straight failed by 5 metres to get there. So fast was he finishing that 20 yards past the post he was 20 metres in front and extending, but it had all been too late! Derby Royale had won with Bold Apepa 2nd and Maori’s Idol 3rd. The winning sequence was over! It was enormously disappointing for the connections as they CLEARLY had the better horse who lost because of ‘racing circumstances’.
For some time I had been trying to get away from work to get down to Melbourne to see this champion in action but had been unable to get time off for the ID series. Just as well, as I would have been very disappointed to have made the trip to see him beaten by MUCH lessor trotters. There was then some talk about him contesting the Miracle Mile, which was very exciting, but that, eventually, came to nothing. What he, Rick Healy, really wanted to do was take on the best pacers in the upcoming Grand Circuit event, the Sir Clive Uhr Championship at Albion Park. As the rules stood, however, he was ineligible, as the rules stated “for PACERS assessed at 2.18 or better”. No problem! The Albion Park committee, in record time, altered the conditions to read “for HORSES assessed at 2.18 or better”! HE WAS IN! Once it became clear that he WOULD be contesting the series I made arrangements to take my holidays and be there for this monumentous event.
Over the years many, if not ALL, the top trotters, had, at various times, raced against pacers. Most of them, the very good ones, could beat the average pacer but NONE had ever taken on Grand Circuit pacers in a Grand Circuit event! In 1956 the great Victorian trotter, Carlotta’s Pride beat Maestro’s Melody by 36 yards in a pacer’s race. Maestro’s Melody later finished 3rd in the 1960 ID Final won by Caduceus. In 1965 the absolutely outstanding S.A. trotter, Gramel, took on Minuteman, in a pacer’s FFA and had him ‘flat as a strap’ to beat her by just 3 metres. Minuteman was one of THE outstanding pacers of the 1960’s and won an Inter Dominion Final as well as 2 A.G. Hunter Cups! However NONE of the best trotters had ever taken on a task like Maori’s Idol was about to undertake. This would be, to my way of thinking, the ULTIMATE test of his greatness. The heats and Final series attracted a top class lot that included Paleface Adios, Sammy Karamea,
Sporting Son, Roma Hanover, Koala King and the pre post favourite, Rip Van Winkle.
The first heats were on 3-6-78 and Maori’s Idol started at 4-1 on the first night, the longest price he had been in his entire career, due to the fact that Australia’s favourite pacer and Albion Park idol, Paleface Adios, was expected to lead all the way. Paleface jumped straight to the front and set a solid pace with Maori’s Idol sitting behind him. Down the back the last time he made his run and astonished the huge crowd by sprinting straight past ‘Jacko’ and racing to the front. He was headed slightly by Right Action on the home turn but Healy just gave him more rein and he came away to win well from Right Action and Sporting Son. He was immediately installed as the new favourite for the Final.
All great harness horses have at least one, and sometimes two or three, really great runs that define their greatness. With Mount Eden it was DEFINITELY his Miracle Mile win, with Hondo Grattan, his first Inter Dominion victory. And so, unbeknown to anybody before the race, Maori’s Idol was about to produce HIS personal best, HIS unforgettable run, His performance that would, for the rest of his career, be held up as proof of his greatness! The second set of heats.
His heat attracted a good field but his main danger was a mare called Roma Hanover. Not just ‘any old mare’, she was the fastest race mare of all time in the Southern Hemisphere courtesy of her win in the inaugural Ladyship Mile at HP a little over two weeks earlier. In that race she broke the HP track record rating 1-57 4/5 and went faster than ANY horse, ANY Miracle Mile winner, had EVER gone at HP. She was a high speed mare with a withering final sprint and was the winner of 37 races, 17 of them at HP. She had Time Trialed at Albion Park a year earlier in 1-57 1/5 which remained her personal best. She was WITHOUT DOUBT the horse to beat and an awesome hurdle to overcome!
Maori’s Idol galloped for a short distance at the start but soon got down to a trot and raced up to sit outside the leader for a short distance before going to the lead. He was challenged mid race by Tarport John but retained the lead, however he DID have to use up some ‘juice’! Roma Hanover, driven this night by John Binskin instead of her usual driver, Clarrie Sweeney who was on crutches, was beautifully placed in 5th spot just waiting for the right moment to make her run. Down the back the last time Maori’s Idol raced 3 lengths in front and started to ‘spreadeagle’ the field, but Roma Hanover ‘hadn’t spent a penny’ and was angling for a run. Binskin extricated her from the pack about 150 metres from the home turn and began her sprint. She was at least 10 lengths off the leader, who was starting to really stretch out, but when she saw daylight she sprinted, BOY did she sprint! She made up those 10 lengths in the space of 100 metres and coming to the
home turn was just a half a length behind the leader. So fast was she coming that I, and probably everybody else on course, thought that she would give Maori’s Idol ‘wind burn’ as she sprinted past him, but then an amazing thing happened. Healy ‘clicked up’ the ‘Big Fella’ and he went up a gear, or two, and left her absolutely standing! She was only half a length from him on the home turn, in the middle of her sprint, one of the fastest sprints in the country, and at the peak of her form, but Maori’s Idol, without ever being shown the whip, just left her for dead. At the line he was 10 metres in front and extending with Sammy Karamea ( no slouch himself!) 15 metres further away in 3rd place. It was the greatest performance by a harness horse I have ever seen in 55 years of ‘going to the trots’.
For the Final Maori’s Idol was at 6-4 with the favourite, Rip Van Winkle, 5-4. Rip had beeen the outstanding 2yo of his year and followed that with NSW Harness Horse of the Year in 1977, the first 3yo ever to win the title. He had begun his 4yo season in absolute ‘killer’ mode winning the Australasian 4yo Championship, HP Spring Cup and Australian Pacing Championship. He had a form slump early in 1978 and was spelled for 3 months, but had now come back as good as ever. He was one of the fastest pacers ever bred in this country and was in top form. He was the obvious favourite for the Final.
At the start Maori’s Idol was away well and went to the front at the 1900 metre mark. Rip had settled in the middle of the field at this stage. At the 800 metre mark Healy had Maori’s Idol about 5 lengths in front and trotting powerfully but Michael Vanderkemp, the owner/trainer/driver of Rip Van Winkle, took off after the leader and went past him on the home turn with ease. In the straight Rip ran away easily to win by 6 metres in track record time with Maori’s Idol 2nd and Sammy Karamea 15 metres further back in 3rd place.That was his last start for the season which saw him have 24 starts for 22 wins and 2 placings. Interestingly his 24 consecutive wins had an AVERAGE winning margin of over 22 metres per race!
Given a 3 month spell, he resumed on 20-9-78 at Geelong in a FFA, winning by 10 metres from Hec’s Hope with Derby Royale, the Inter Dominion winner, a further 15 metres back in 3rd place. Four weeks later he took on the pacers again, this time in the Kilmore Cup but from his handicap of 10 metres he never got into the race and finished 11th to Taronga. Back at MV on 4-11-78, off 30 metres in a Discretionary Trot, he had no trouble beating El Cordobies and Derby Royale in race record time, and two weeks later won a FFA there as well. In this race he sat outside the leader for most of the event, went to the lead on the home turn and won without ever getting up a sweat.
On the 25-11-78 he contested the V.L.Dullard Cup off 40 metres. From his back mark he began well and settled down last. With 2 laps to go Healy sent him up 4 wide to get to the lead and from there he was untroubled to beat Proud Stella and El Cordobies in new track record time. However he did something ‘funny’ right on the finishing line, he broke for no apparent reason! In retrospect, it was a warning that all was not well, but was not seen as such on the night. Then disaster struck.
Contesting his next race, a FFA at MV, he galloped several times in running and was pulled out of the race by Healy who suspected something was wrong. He was found to have a chipped, or broken, bone in his leg. The decision was made to try and save his racing career so he was sent to the Werribbee horse clinic where he was operated on and a steel pin inserted into his leg to try and hold the bone together. He was then put out for a long period to recuperate.
Mid way through 1981, 2½ years later, he was looking so well he was put back into work. He progressed so well he was entered for an Invitational Trot at MV on 29-8-81, almost 3 years after he had broken down. Now a 9yo, he was handicapped off 40 metres over the 2850 distance. I drove down to Melbourne just to see his comeback race, and I wasn’t to be disappointed. He began well but was, of course, last early. He caught the field with 2 laps to go and at the 1½ lap mark took off 3 wide and led at the bell. At the 600 metre mark he was headed, briefly, by Cal Bryden, but he had plenty in reserve and came away to win by 10 metres from Cal Bryden with Jodie Armagh 3rd. He returned to scale to one of the loudest, longest, and most emotional receptions ever accorded a horse ANYWHERE! After the race he was found to be sore in his ‘bad’ leg and he was immediately retired. Maori’s Idol had a lifetime career of 46 starts for 40 wins and 4 placings. He was 1978
Trotter of the Year, and again in 1979, but in 1978 he was ALSO Harness Horse of the Year, the first trotter ever to win the award. He received 41% of the votes to beat Pure Steel who received 30%. At his retirement he had won $98,821.
In 1977-78 his sire, Ike Frost, was voted Australia’s leading trotting sire, this was despite the fact that he had only ONE winner, Maori’s Idol who won 22 races for $63,149. That same year Delvin Dancer sired 9 individual winners! There has been much controversy over the years in regards to Ike Frost appearing as the sire of Maori’s Idol. He never sired ANY other trotter and there are many who say that Maori’s Idol is the ‘spitting image’ of another stallion who stood alongside Ike Frost, a TROTTING stallion named Bank Note! Wherever the truth may lie, the fact remains that Ike Frost is oficially listed as his sire.
Maori’s Idol was an absolutely magnificent individual, looking more like a Thoroughbred than a Standardbred, and had the ability to match his looks. He will go down in history as the best trotter NEVER to win an Inter Dominion!
Maori’s Idol left an indelible mark on my memory. He did things that NO other trotter, before or since, has done, he took on, and BEAT, Grand Circuit pacers in a Grand Circuit series. We may never see his like again and I feel privileged to have been there at that time.
By Jim Hogan
Approved By Dean Baring for www.harnessbred.com
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