Red Rower

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Red Rower
SireRameses the Second
Grandsire
Grand Annual Chase (1942)
Cheltenham Gold Cup
(1945)

Red Rower (foaled 1934) was a British

Grand Annual Chase and started favourite for the Gold Cup but was beaten into second place by Medoc II
. On the resumption of National Hunt racing after a two-year break he finally won the Gold Cup at the age of eleven in 1945.

Background

Red Rower was a bay gelding bred and owned by

Irish 1000 Guineas). This made Red Rower one of the few high-class racehorses to emerge from Thoroughbred family 52.[2] Red Rower was initially sent into training with Ivor Anthony at Wroughton in Wiltshire
.

Racing career

Red Rower showed early promise as a steeplechaser, winning three races over two miles before stepping up to three miles and winning the Lilley Brook Chase[3] as a six-year-old at Cheltenham in April 1940.[4] The gelding made his first appearance in the Cheltenham Gold Cup as a seven-year-old in 1941 in which he was ridden by Danny Morgan and started at odds of 8/1. He led the field approaching the final fence where he was overtaken by his stablemate Poet Prince and lost second place by a short head to Savon in the final strides.[5]

Wartime restrictions meant that major sporting events were confined to the weekend and the 1942 Cheltenham Festival was run over successive Saturdays rather than consecutive days. On 14 March, Red Rower contested the

3/1 favourite and was in the leading group until the last ditch fence when he was badly hampered by the fall of the leader Solarium. He came away from the fence well adrift of the new leader Medoc, and although he steadily reduced the margin he was beaten eight lengths into second place.[5]
In the following September National Hunt racing was suspended in Britain and the next two Cheltenham festivals did not take place.

National Hunt racing resumed at the end of 1944 although several leading jumpers including Medoc and

flat race jockey Davy Jones started the 11-4 favourite ahead of Paladin on 100/30[8] and Schubert on 11-2 whilst the other runners included the thirteen-year-old Poet Prince. Red Rower tracked the front-runners before going up to dispute the lead with Paladin and Schubert at the last fence and drew away on the run-in to win by three lengths.[5]

Red Rower's last major race was the 1946 Grand National the first edition of the race for six years. Now a twelve-year-old he carried the third highest weight of 161 pounds and was pulled up in a race won by Lovely Cottage.[9]

Assessment and honours

In their book, A Century of Champions, based on the Timeform rating system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Red Rower a "poor" Gold Cup winner.[10] Red Rower is remembered in the name of Red Rower Close, a residential street in Cheltenham.[11]

Pedigree

Pedigree of Red Rower (GB), bay gelding, 1934[1]
Sire
Rameses the Second (GB)
1927 		Gainsborough (GB)
1915 		Bayardo Bay Ronald
Galicia
Rosedrop St. Frusquin
Rosaline
Grand Rapide (GB)
1921 		Hurry On Marcovil
Toute Suite
Mademoiselle Pictet Picton
Morette
Dam
Red Maru (GB)
1927 		Kosciusko
1909 		Melton Master Kildare
Violet Melrose
Simena
St Simon
Flying Footsep
Red Light (GB)
1917 		Minter Minting
Dissipation
Fair Wind Succoth
Windward (Family: 52)[2]

References

  1. ^ a b "Red Rower pedigree". Pedigree Online. 2016-03-19. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
  2. ^ a b "Sir John Sebright's Arabian Mare - Family 52". Thoroughbred Bloodlines.
  3. Glasgow Herald
    .
  4. ^ "Home Front: Fine Lepper". Townsville Bulletin. 1 May 1940.
  5. ^
    ISBN 1-84018-381-0
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 9781848760349
    .
  7. Sydney Morning Herald
    . 22 Nov 1944.
  8. ISBN 978-1-873626-15-3
    .
  9. ISBN 0-340-58515-3
    .
  10. ISBN 9781901570151
    .
  11. ^ "Cheltenham Areas: History of Swindon Village and Wyman's Brook". cheltenham4u.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2010-02-18.
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