TO win a professional race on a thoroughbred race horse has never been easy.
A lot of hard team work has to take place before the race starts but, when the starting gates crash open, it is up to only the rider to get his horse to the winning post first.
The racing at the Fairview track in Greenbushes is ultra-competitive, and that is why the achievements of jockey Greg Cheyne are quite remarkable. To get to ride a winner, Cheyne has to do some travelling of a different sort. He is based in Cape Town and has done some serious air mileage to get to Fairview and back.
Cheyne doesn’t mind the early morning flights, as he acknowledges he is one lucky jockey to be associated with the Alan Greeff stable.
When he gets on his flight to Gqeberha he knows he will have several winning chances on the day. Not many other jockeys can approach a Fairview meeting with this mind-set.
The reason for this is that Cheyne and the East Cape champion trainer, Greeff, have struck up a wonderful relationship, winning the East Cape titles of champion jockey and trainer.
Shouting the winners home, is part of the enjoyment and one of racing’s traditions. That is why the roars of “go Greg go”, with Greeff leading the chorus, regularly tremble through Fairview on race days.
After a quiet start to last Friday’s meeting, Cheyne finished the day on a high by winning the last two races.
His victory in the last race was his 50th winner at Fairview for the season. The season started in August last year and ends on July 31 this year.
To reach 50 winners in any racing centre in South Africa at this stage of the season is no mean feat.
If you do the maths, Cheyne is on target to win his 10th jockey title and better his own East Cape record, when he rode 116 winners in 2019.
But, as always, if Greeff and Cheyne are not at the top of their game, they will not be winning races at Fairview.
Some of the other stables, especially Gavin Smith’s, are also enjoying a wonderful season. There are still three Fairview meetings this month and the one of 25 February stands out.
The Lady’s Pendant has been moved to be part of the programme on this day, when the Ibhayi Stakes is the other big race.
Someone must have been thinking that the 25th is pay day and wants to make it a (possible) double pay day at Fairview – Go Greg go!
