Race ends for 'real character' Veandercross

Chris Turner and Veandercross, who won 15 races and $3.5 million in stake money by the time he was retired in 1997. PHOTO/FILE

THE racing fraternity lost a real character with the demise of Wanganui galloper Veandercross.

The unfashionably-bred Crossways-Lavender gelding died on Caulfield Cup day at 26.

The irony is that same day in 1992 marked Veandercross' most controversial race with ex-pat Kiwi jockey Shane Dye opting to guide the horse to the extreme outside in the run home only to get pipped on the line by Mannerism, who had taken the short way home.

Dye's ride is still subject to criticism today by racing folk on both sides of the Tasman.

Veandercross was part of a three-in-one package bought by Wanganui teacher Chris Turner for the paltry sum of $1400. Turner had bought the mare Lavender in-foal with a foal at foot - that foal at foot was Vandy, the stable name Turner had given him.

Turner raced Veandercross in partnership with his father, Basil, who died three weeks before their horse.

Already grieving, Turner was forced to make one of the toughest decisions of his life when a foot infection threatened to cripple his mate's life.

"The vet, Bill Stewart, said it appeared he had something prick his frog [sole of the foot] and that had become infected. Despite doing everything we could to fix it, the infection got worse and travelled into his tendon and up his leg.

"We had no option in the end of humanely putting Vandy down.

"It was gut-wrenching and an emotional moment. Vandy had become part of the family and a best mate."

Once the decision was made, Turner had to leave the paddock while the business was done.

"He's now buried under the fruit trees in an orchard on dad's farm in Putiki."

While Turner had ridden horses since he was 3 years old, he readily concedes he was a greenhorn at the training caper and, to make matters even more difficult, Veandercross was a real handful to deal with on a daily basis.

He was not a nasty horse, but rather a galloper who had the natural arrogance of an elite athlete - and an athlete he was.

Veandercross raced every season since he was two in 1991 until he retired from the track in 1997 after winning 15 races from 40 raceday starts and amassing $3.5million in stake money.

"His first race was at Wanganui in an open two-year-old event and his next 39 starts were in black type company [town hall company in racing parlance]," Turner said yesterday.

"From those 15 wins were eight in Group One company and never once did I have to scratch him from an event through injury or illness.

"He was a real character who had a personality all of his own and was often difficult to handle during training but, on raceday, he was focused."

The horse was raced in Australia with John Wheeler as the trainer, although Turner was never far from the action.

Veandercross had one shot at the Melbourne Cup (1992) four days after winning the Group One McKinnon Stakes at Flemington. He finished second.

"I'm still convinced that if Shane [Dye] had managed to get him out [of traffic] at the 1000m mark, he would have won but, unfortunately, Subzero had stolen a march and it was just too much ground to make up."

The depth of his love for the horse was illustrated by rejecting a $1million offer from the late Australian media magnate, Kerry Packer.

Turner then ignored another offer from Packer to name a price.

"I couldn't sell him. He was my mate," Turner said.