who remembers R.J.R. Williams ?

Robert packed it in and now is a player on BF. A particularly pleasant trainer to do business with . Can't remember regular riders but he gave rides to my man,Tony Clark occasionally. Trained Mister Majestic to win the Middle Park 25 years ago and regularly won a big race over 10f at York with a horse beginning CH....?Chaumiere ? Magnet perhaps ?
                  I suppose Ray Cochrane was Robert's most used rider but a bit of a guess.

Tony Ives was the jock i believe in 86 and 87, NGB..

Guessing at dates, btw.. But was mid 80's

Chaumiere won Magnet Cup at York two years in succession (1985/1986) ridden by Tony Ives.

Other big winners: MISTER MAJESTIC – GR 1 TATTERSALLS MIDDLE PARK STAKES, NEWMARKET
DOMINION ROYALE – GR 3 NISHAPOUR CURRAGH STAKES, THE CURRAGH
ENDLESS JOY – GR 3 HENNESSY X O KILLAVULLEN STAKES, LEOPARDSTOWN
CHAUMIERE – JOHN SMITHS MAGNET CUP (LISTED), YORK – 2 YEARS IN SUCCESSION
MYRA’S BEST – FIRTH OF CLYDE STAKES (LISTED), AYR
DOYCE – LADBROKE CHESTER CUP, CHESTER
SWIFT TROOPER – ESHER CUP, SANDOWN PARK
ALPHA OMEGA – QUEENS PRIZE, KEMPTON PARK
VAGUE SHOT – THE RACING POST MILE, DONCASTER
CANTORIS – THE TOTE CREDIT SPRINT, ASCOT
CANTORIS – THE CORAL SPRINT, HAYDOCK PARK

Ray Cochrane, Tony Ives, Richard and Michael Hills, Steve Cauthen, Pat Eddery all rode quite regularly. Darren Biggs, David Eddery apprenticed.

Now plays on BF, but less and less now due to all the various issue well documented on this forum !!

Nearly

nice one chaps,

Cochrane certainly rings a bell as a regular rider and I remember Chaumiere well,

NOW

I remember being at the Newbury Greenham meeting during the early 80's. Williams had just started training, having previously been assistant to Barry Hills. The first race on the card was a maiden for unraced fillies (the Bridget Fillies Maiden ??) and all the top stables - Hern, Cecil, Harwood, Dunlop, Candy, Hills - were represented. Williams also had a runner called Wilderness, the horse being owned by a Mrs. Hills. The feckin' thing won at 33/1 - naturally without a penny on from yours truly!

I've no idea whether the horse was well backed but the Barry Hills connection made think of how Hills had set himself up with a gamble on Frankincense.

nice story Gerry,

maybe Endless Joy can tell us more !

Gerry G...you have a good memory. Wilderness was in fact owned by Barry Hills and ran in his colours. He very kindly sent it to me when I started training. Barry had two others in the race which he trained including jt-fav Taiwanese ridden by Steve Cauthen and owned by Robert Sangster. Barry stood with Sangster while the race was run and when Barry started shouting Wilderness home, Robert Sangster said to Barry "What are you shouting for? - its right at the back of the field. " (Taiwanese). Barry replied "Never mind that, I own the f*****r that's in front!"
Started at 33/1 and 120/1 on the Tote.

I wish I could say that it was a cleverly planned coup.....however I didn't have a penny on her nor did Barry ! - it was only my second winner of my career, the first - GREAT LIGHT-ridden by Pat Eddery a few days earlier.

On Wilderness's next start she was beaten a neck,caught on the line, in the Masaka Stakes at Kempton Park, then a well regarded 1000 gns trial. Steve Cauthen rode her here.

Nice one endless joy. I knew there was link to Hills (other than that you were once his assistant) but somehow had it in mind that Barry's wife was the owner of Wilderness.

Pity you weren't all on - if you had been this story would have become part of Racing folklore.

endless,david johnson owned Mr Majestic bought for about 10,000 punts and sold for £200,000 or more, bought several horses with proceeds without much success,

Barry....Mister Majestic was bought by me for 26000 Punts for David Johnson and sold for somewhere in excess of 200,000 Punts.....would have been a lot more if one of the partners in the horse hadn't interfered and subsequently devalued the horse. PINSTRIPE bought for 13500 Gns, sold for 75000 dollars was another of the better ones.

funny small world we live in,

a name from yesteryear pops into your head and lo and behold, he is right there in front of you,

cyber space like

It's strange indeed telephone! I was also thinking about Kim Brassey the other day (he'd have been around at about the same time as endless / R. J.) as one of his horses - Amigo Menor - suddenly popped into my head. The horse won at Lingfield one day, giving me one of my best wins ever (I was on at 14/1). I wondered what had become of KB so 'Googled' his name..... I see he's become a tipster!

what happened to Darren Biggs - rode some for M Jarvis too didnt he?

used to see him around HQ some time after he stopped getting rides - with dogs and kids iirc.  Haven't seen him for years now.  Think he went abroad.

Darren used to work for Godolphin, but the last I heard of him, he was working for the National Grid

endless joy

Do you mind me asking why you packed in the training game? As your earlier posts demonstrate, you could obviously train and buy 'em!

Gerry G....unfortunately having started training in 1981 with 15 horses and expanded to having 80 horses at one stage, by the time I made the decision to stop training I had only 12 horses and it was no longer financially viable. The decline in number of horses came due to a couple of years of the horses not being quite right combined with the recession in the early 90's, affecting a lot of my owners. It is very hard to get new support and owners under these circumstances, as I am sure a lot of trainers would testify.

I hope you don't mind me calling you a 'middle of the road type trainer' as you would've been in good company with my other also rans like, Charlie Nelson, Ron Boss etc

telephone...not at all....I have been called a lot worse !!

endless joy

Thanks - I assumed that it might have something to do with horse numbers. It's a great pity though especially after you had seemingly done the hard bit, breaking through with winners of big handicaps, listed and group races.

All the best with whatever you're doing now - including the punting!

Gerry G....Many thanks for your kind comments. Sadly punting is becoming less and less due to in running delays on ATR...