Touching Wood

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Touching Wood
Pin Oak Stud
OwnerMaktoum Al Maktoum
TrainerHarry Thomson Jones
Record9-3-4-2
Major wins
Welsh Derby (1982)
St Leger Stakes (1982)
Irish St. Leger (1982)
Awards
Timeform: 91p (1981), 127 (1982)

Touching Wood (1979–2004) was an American-bred, British-trained

Maktoum family.[1]
He was retired to stud and had some success as a sire of winners before his death in New Zealand in 2004.

Background

Touching Wood was a small, dark brown horse bred by

1000 Guineas winner Speciosa.[2]

As a yearling, Touching Wood was sent to the Keeneland July sale where he was bought for $200,000[3] by Maktoum Al Maktoum and sent to race in Europe. The colt was sent into training with Harry Thomson "Tom" Jones at his Woodland stable in Newmarket, Suffolk.[1] He was ridden in most of his races by Paul Cook and usually raced in a sheepskin noseband.

Racing career

1981: two-year-old season

Touching Wood raced only once as a two-year-old, running in the Hyperion Stakes over seven furlong at Ascot Racecourse in October.[3] He started a 33/1 outsider in a field of eleven runners and finished third behind Paradis Terrestre. Timeform described him as being "sure to improve".[4]

1982: three-year-old season

In the spring of 1982, Touching Wood established himself as a fringe classic contender with two defeats in trial races. He finished second to the

Predominate Stakes at Goodwood
.

At

40/1 for the 203rd running of the Derby. Cook positioned Touching Wood just behind the leaders, but the colt came under pressure and lost ground on the downhill section of the course. In the straight he moved up again to overtake the leader Norwick inside the final quarter mile but was immediately overtaken by Golden Fleece. Touching Wood stayed on in the closing stages to finish second by three lengths, just ahead of Silver Hawk, Persepolis and Norwick.[5]

On his next appearance, Touching Wood recorded his first win when taking the Welsh Derby at Chepstow on 6 July from Diamond Shoal and Zilos.[6] Later that month he finished second to the Michael Stoute-trained Electric in the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood and then finished third to Electric and Diamond Shoal in the Great Voltigeur Stakes at York.[7]

On 11 September Touching Wood was one of a field of fifteen for the St Leger over fourteen and a half

blinkers,[8] Touching Wood took the lead half a mile from the finish and held off the persistent challenge of Zilos to win by one and a half lengths, with Diamond Shoal in third and Electric unplaced. Four weeks later Touching Wood raced outside England for the first time when he was sent to the Curragh to contest the Irish St. Leger. He won the race from Father Rooney and Swiftfoot, becoming the first horse to win both the British and Irish St. Legers since Trigo
in 1929.

Assessment

In 1981 the independent Timeform organisation gave Touching Wood a rating of 91p, the "p" indicating that he was likely to improve.[4] The prediction proved to be accurate as he was rated 127 in 1982.

In their book A Century of Champions, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Touching Wood an "inferior" St Leger winner.[9]

Stud career

Touching Wood was retired from racing and began his stud career at the Aston Upthorpe Stud at a fee of 7,000 guineas.[10] In 1988 he was exported to New Zealand where he stood at the Fayette Park Stud until his death in 2004 aged 25 and was buried."The time had come, old age had caught up on him" said stud principal David Benjamin. "It was a beautiful autumn day on Wednesday so after I had spent an hour with him the vet put him to sleep and we buried him alongside our other old favourite, Grosvenor." [3]

The best of Touching Wood's were stayers and included:[11],

Pedigree

Pedigree of Touching Wood (USA), brown horse, 1979[12]
Sire
Roberto (USA)
1969 		Hail To Reason (USA)
1958 		Turn-To Royal Charger
Source Sucree
Nothirdchance Blue Swords
Galla Colors
Bramalea (USA)
1959 		Nashua Nasrullah
Segula
Rarelea Bull Lea
Bleebok
Dam
Mandera (USA)
1970 		Vaguely Noble (IRE)
1965 		Vienna Aureole
Turkish Blood
Noble Lassie Nearco
Belle Sauvage
Foolish One (USA)
1957 		Tom Fool Menow
Gaga
Miss Disco Discovery
Outdone (Family 8-d)[2]

References

  1. ^ a b "Obituary: Tom Jones". Daily Telegraph. 27 December 2007. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  2. ^ a b "Thoroughbred Bloodlines – Feronia – Family 8-d". Bloodlines.net. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  3. ^ a b c Rachel Pagones, Janet Hickman (6 April 2004). "Touching Wood, St Leger winner, is put down at 25". Racing Post. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  4. ^
    ISBN 0-900599-33-2
    .
  5. ^ "Golden Fleece moves like a Bullet". Calgary Herald. 3 June 1982. p. 21. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  6. Glasgow Herald
    . p. 24. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  7. ^ "White and Gold" (11 September 1982). "Electric should shock St Leger opposition". Glasgow Herald. p. 15. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  8. London Evening Standard
    . Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  9. ISBN 1-901570-15-0
    .
  10. Evening Times
    . 2 December 1982. p. 41. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  11. ^ "Touching Wood Stud Record". Racing Post. 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
  12. ^ "Touching Wood pedigree". Equineline. 2012-05-08. Retrieved 2013-05-25.
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