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In 1965, a Herefordshire farmer called Tom Price bought a broken down, ex point to point mare for £25 at Ludlow Market. He then risked another £10 to have her covered by a stallion called All Red. The resulting foal was named Red Dove and she became the foundation mare of a remarkable family, a positive flock of Doves.
The most famous of them was her grand-daughter, Flakey Dove, winner of the 1994 Champion Hurdle, but this tale is about a cousin of hers. Grey Dove was a daughter of Red Dove, who raced in the 70’s - she was a tough mare that raced twenty times over hurdles in the 1975/76 season, and the same again the following season. She continued racing up to the age of ten before being retired to the paddocks in 1980. Six years later, she was sent to the St Leger winner, Julio Mariner, and in 1987, that mating produced a grey colt foal.
The training operation on the farm had grown, and was now under the control of Tom’s grandson, Richard Price. Their policy, as I remember it, was to keep and race the filly foals, but to sell the colt foals. So at some point, the grey, now a gelding, arrived in the yard of Philip Hobbs, where his name was registered as Dextra Dove - the prefix explained by the fact that he was owned by Dextra Lighting Systems. He made his debut in a 2M novice hurdle at Newbury in November 1991, finishing strongly to take sixth place after being well behind for most of the race. He was ridden that afternoon by Simon Earle, who would be a constant throughout the career of Dextra Dove, first as jockey, then as trainer. A circumstance explained by the fact that the owner of Dextra Lighting Systems was his brother-in-law!
Dextra Dove showed the benefit of that experience with a win in a novice hurdle at Warwick in December, followed by a good third under a penalty at Windsor, a race won by the very useful Baydon Star. Those three runs earned him a hurdle handicap mark of 100, an indication of how different the system was thirty years ago - the same form now would certainly result in a rating of at least 115 and probably closer to 120. For his handicap debut, he was tried over 2M 5F at Sandown, but faded after looking a threat at the second last.
This was the year that I started out as a full time punter, but I missed those three runs as I had opted for Newbury rather than Warwick, Ludlow over Windsor and Taunton over Sandown. And I’d still been a working man when he made his debut midweek at Newbury. So the first time I saw him in the flesh was at Wincanton on a Friday afternoon, two weeks after the Cheltenham festival. He was back at 2M and he must have made an impression on me, as my diary records a bet at 9/1 and he justified that support by half a length in a driving finish. My appreciation for the family increased the following day at Ascot, when Flakey Dove also helped recoup my heavy festival losses!
Dextra Dove didn’t run again in the 1991/92 season, but after two runs in the autumn of 1992, he had a five month break before returning to Wincanton in late March to repeat his win of the previous year. That was followed by a win at Chepstow on Easter Monday, showing his indifference to ground conditions, as it was firm at Wincanton and soft at Chepstow. Four more runs over hurdles from his new mark of 116, produced three seconds and a fourth before the end of the season. During the summer of 1993, he was moved to the stable of Robert Alner, a move I think was down to Simon Earle taking a job with Alner as part of his preparation for setting up as a trainer himself.
Alner switched Dextra Dove to fences and he ran in four novice chases that autumn, winning the last of them at Wincanton after being placed in the other three. The handicapper gave him an initial chase mark of 96! Six more runs in handicap chases that season produced four wins at distances from 2M to 2M 3F, as his mark rose to 115. He could be forgiven the defeats as he was trying to beat a future Champion Chase winner in Martha's Son (then rated 107) over 2M at Huntingdon and another progressive youngster running up a sequence in Around The Horn at Folkestone.
In the first half of the 1994/95 season, he won four more handicaps over 2M 3F, but was beaten twice over 2M, giving his worst ever performance at Chepstow in November, when he was pulled up after being totally outpaced. That was the last time he was asked to run over the minimum trip and after a 30L success at Fontwell in late December (he was put 3lbs for that!) in a race that only two finished, he had a break. Whether that was down to an injury, or the fact that he now changed trainer again, being taken over by Simon Earle, I don’t know.
He reappeared at Worcester in June, ridden and trained by Earle this time, and won under 12 stone, giving a typical Dextra Dove performance, headed before the last but battling back to win by a length. That was the last time Earle rode him and the job was mainly shared between Brendan Powell and Chris Maude thereafter. Resuming in October, he took advantage of small fields in a dry autumn to rack up three more wins, two at Cheltenham either side one at Sandown. The last of those was his first attempt at 3M and he showed that stamina wasn’t an issue with the form book comment ‘stayed on strongly run-in’. All three of those wins were achieved from a mark of 131, the handicapper declining to raise it for the first two races in which only three ran.
The second win at Cheltenham in November, meant that Dextra Dove had scored seven consecutive wins over fences, three in late 1994 for Alner, and all four runs in 1995 for Earle. With his mark now raised to 137, he was forced to take on bigger, better races, starting with the Mandarin Handicap Chase at Newbury in February 1996. He started 9/2 favourite in a field that included four Cheltenham festival winners, most of them now veterans, and for the only time in his 45 race career, he was involved in a photo finish. You can watch that race here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U1AjS-JN1s
Next stop was the Great Yorkshire Chase at Doncaster, where he came down early, his only fall in 32 runs over fences. That was it for the 1995/96 season, and when he returned in November, it was in no less a race than the Hennessy Gold Cup. He finished fifth, which sounds good, but there were only eleven runners on good ground, not the sort of race we see for that contest nowadays. He was then pulled up in a valuable handicap at Ascot just before Xmas - perhaps he didn’t like Ascot, perhaps he didn’t like Graham Bradley, who hadn’t ridden him before and didn’t ride him again.
He started 1997 with a drop into calmer waters, winning a standard 0-140 chase at Kempton, left with only the faint hearted Philips Woody to beat after the favourite fell three out. Quite how he qualified for a 0-140 when his mark is shown as 144, I don’t know, but perhaps it says we shouldn’t put too much trust in the ratings provided by the Post database from that era. He followed up by winning the Agfa Diamond Chase at Sandown a fortnight later, a success that owed much to the four horses offered at shorter odds than him in a six runner field, all failing to complete. You can see the final circuit of that race here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T814X18hyhc
That was his last success, and in prize money terms, by far his most significant. He ran six more times, including a tilt at the 1997 Grand National, and his last appearance was in the Jim Ford Challenge Cup at his local track, Wincanton, in February 1998. At eleven years of age, he was no match for the younger horses like Go Ballistic and Strong Promise at the weights.
Over a six year career, Dextra Dove won nineteen races, seventeen of them handicaps, a feat that would be impossible in the new era introduced by Phil Smith. I can envisage him self combusting if one of his team had allowed a horse to win three times off the same handicap mark. He was never a star, never a flashy individual - he wasn’t a flamboyant jumper, he didn’t travel through his races on the bridle and many of his wins came about because he kept going when his rivals cried enough. A grinder rather than a quickener, but you knew for sure if you backed him, that you’d almost always get a run for your money.
The way the system operates now, it’s only the superstar Grade 1 horses (e.g Kauto Star, Big Bucks) that can retire with that many wins to their name. If there’s been another NH horse that won seventeen handicaps since Dextra Dove, I’ve either failed to notice, or forgotten them.
The most famous of them was her grand-daughter, Flakey Dove, winner of the 1994 Champion Hurdle, but this tale is about a cousin of hers. Grey Dove was a daughter of Red Dove, who raced in the 70’s - she was a tough mare that raced twenty times over hurdles in the 1975/76 season, and the same again the following season. She continued racing up to the age of ten before being retired to the paddocks in 1980. Six years later, she was sent to the St Leger winner, Julio Mariner, and in 1987, that mating produced a grey colt foal.
The training operation on the farm had grown, and was now under the control of Tom’s grandson, Richard Price. Their policy, as I remember it, was to keep and race the filly foals, but to sell the colt foals. So at some point, the grey, now a gelding, arrived in the yard of Philip Hobbs, where his name was registered as Dextra Dove - the prefix explained by the fact that he was owned by Dextra Lighting Systems. He made his debut in a 2M novice hurdle at Newbury in November 1991, finishing strongly to take sixth place after being well behind for most of the race. He was ridden that afternoon by Simon Earle, who would be a constant throughout the career of Dextra Dove, first as jockey, then as trainer. A circumstance explained by the fact that the owner of Dextra Lighting Systems was his brother-in-law!
Dextra Dove showed the benefit of that experience with a win in a novice hurdle at Warwick in December, followed by a good third under a penalty at Windsor, a race won by the very useful Baydon Star. Those three runs earned him a hurdle handicap mark of 100, an indication of how different the system was thirty years ago - the same form now would certainly result in a rating of at least 115 and probably closer to 120. For his handicap debut, he was tried over 2M 5F at Sandown, but faded after looking a threat at the second last.
This was the year that I started out as a full time punter, but I missed those three runs as I had opted for Newbury rather than Warwick, Ludlow over Windsor and Taunton over Sandown. And I’d still been a working man when he made his debut midweek at Newbury. So the first time I saw him in the flesh was at Wincanton on a Friday afternoon, two weeks after the Cheltenham festival. He was back at 2M and he must have made an impression on me, as my diary records a bet at 9/1 and he justified that support by half a length in a driving finish. My appreciation for the family increased the following day at Ascot, when Flakey Dove also helped recoup my heavy festival losses!
Dextra Dove didn’t run again in the 1991/92 season, but after two runs in the autumn of 1992, he had a five month break before returning to Wincanton in late March to repeat his win of the previous year. That was followed by a win at Chepstow on Easter Monday, showing his indifference to ground conditions, as it was firm at Wincanton and soft at Chepstow. Four more runs over hurdles from his new mark of 116, produced three seconds and a fourth before the end of the season. During the summer of 1993, he was moved to the stable of Robert Alner, a move I think was down to Simon Earle taking a job with Alner as part of his preparation for setting up as a trainer himself.
Alner switched Dextra Dove to fences and he ran in four novice chases that autumn, winning the last of them at Wincanton after being placed in the other three. The handicapper gave him an initial chase mark of 96! Six more runs in handicap chases that season produced four wins at distances from 2M to 2M 3F, as his mark rose to 115. He could be forgiven the defeats as he was trying to beat a future Champion Chase winner in Martha's Son (then rated 107) over 2M at Huntingdon and another progressive youngster running up a sequence in Around The Horn at Folkestone.
In the first half of the 1994/95 season, he won four more handicaps over 2M 3F, but was beaten twice over 2M, giving his worst ever performance at Chepstow in November, when he was pulled up after being totally outpaced. That was the last time he was asked to run over the minimum trip and after a 30L success at Fontwell in late December (he was put 3lbs for that!) in a race that only two finished, he had a break. Whether that was down to an injury, or the fact that he now changed trainer again, being taken over by Simon Earle, I don’t know.
He reappeared at Worcester in June, ridden and trained by Earle this time, and won under 12 stone, giving a typical Dextra Dove performance, headed before the last but battling back to win by a length. That was the last time Earle rode him and the job was mainly shared between Brendan Powell and Chris Maude thereafter. Resuming in October, he took advantage of small fields in a dry autumn to rack up three more wins, two at Cheltenham either side one at Sandown. The last of those was his first attempt at 3M and he showed that stamina wasn’t an issue with the form book comment ‘stayed on strongly run-in’. All three of those wins were achieved from a mark of 131, the handicapper declining to raise it for the first two races in which only three ran.
The second win at Cheltenham in November, meant that Dextra Dove had scored seven consecutive wins over fences, three in late 1994 for Alner, and all four runs in 1995 for Earle. With his mark now raised to 137, he was forced to take on bigger, better races, starting with the Mandarin Handicap Chase at Newbury in February 1996. He started 9/2 favourite in a field that included four Cheltenham festival winners, most of them now veterans, and for the only time in his 45 race career, he was involved in a photo finish. You can watch that race here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U1AjS-JN1s
Next stop was the Great Yorkshire Chase at Doncaster, where he came down early, his only fall in 32 runs over fences. That was it for the 1995/96 season, and when he returned in November, it was in no less a race than the Hennessy Gold Cup. He finished fifth, which sounds good, but there were only eleven runners on good ground, not the sort of race we see for that contest nowadays. He was then pulled up in a valuable handicap at Ascot just before Xmas - perhaps he didn’t like Ascot, perhaps he didn’t like Graham Bradley, who hadn’t ridden him before and didn’t ride him again.
He started 1997 with a drop into calmer waters, winning a standard 0-140 chase at Kempton, left with only the faint hearted Philips Woody to beat after the favourite fell three out. Quite how he qualified for a 0-140 when his mark is shown as 144, I don’t know, but perhaps it says we shouldn’t put too much trust in the ratings provided by the Post database from that era. He followed up by winning the Agfa Diamond Chase at Sandown a fortnight later, a success that owed much to the four horses offered at shorter odds than him in a six runner field, all failing to complete. You can see the final circuit of that race here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T814X18hyhc
That was his last success, and in prize money terms, by far his most significant. He ran six more times, including a tilt at the 1997 Grand National, and his last appearance was in the Jim Ford Challenge Cup at his local track, Wincanton, in February 1998. At eleven years of age, he was no match for the younger horses like Go Ballistic and Strong Promise at the weights.
Over a six year career, Dextra Dove won nineteen races, seventeen of them handicaps, a feat that would be impossible in the new era introduced by Phil Smith. I can envisage him self combusting if one of his team had allowed a horse to win three times off the same handicap mark. He was never a star, never a flashy individual - he wasn’t a flamboyant jumper, he didn’t travel through his races on the bridle and many of his wins came about because he kept going when his rivals cried enough. A grinder rather than a quickener, but you knew for sure if you backed him, that you’d almost always get a run for your money.
The way the system operates now, it’s only the superstar Grade 1 horses (e.g Kauto Star, Big Bucks) that can retire with that many wins to their name. If there’s been another NH horse that won seventeen handicaps since Dextra Dove, I’ve either failed to notice, or forgotten them.
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Hi anorak,can't say he jumped off the page to me so had a look at his record,see he went back to Alner for his last few runs,a reminder too of small fields at Cheltenham off meetings,the books always used to say you do your money at the off then get it back at the festival,changed now obviously.
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Alner,he had Flyers Nap about that time aswell?
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Really enjoy reading these pieces Anorak. Thanks for putting them up.
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Yes,agreed always a good read Anorak,I did post something up about Red Dove and her horses years ago, mostly copied from a time form article. Red Dove was a non thoroughbred mare and was mentioned in a TV documentary about the Prices, Red Dove herself won 16 races over hurdles from 93 starts, retiring as a 12 yo. According to time form the policy adopted by the Prices when sending her to stud was to send her to the nearest available Stallion. She produced 6 foals, of which 5 were winning fillies. Her 1st 4 foals Grey Dove,Another Dove, Saucy Dove and Shady Dove were all useful with Shady Dove probably the best of those, she was something of a Bangor specialist winning the Sporting Chronicle h'cap hurdle ran in Oct 3 years running.
The 1st 2 foals were by Grey Love, 3rd by Saucy Kit and Shady Dove by Deadly Nightshade who was exported to Denmark shortly afterwards. The next 2 foals were by Starch Reduced, Nimble Dove won on the flat and over hurdles and finally Jubilee Dove. Red Dove left stud at the age of 26 yo Flakey Dove was a daughter of Shady Dove from a liason with Oats. I couldn't recall Dextra Dove either, as I had got out of racing from 91 to about 2003 so thanks for the update on this family, incidentally nothing was ever found about the dam of Red Dove named Cottage Lass 11, except she was by NH sire Cottage, she was therefore along with her progeny ineligible for entry in the General Stud Book. |
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Anyone interested, there is a video on YouTube, type Flakey Dove, in training in 1992, if you watch that then click on Phil Hoaths picture then videos, scroll down and you can also see them training other Doves, Flighty Dove and Coney Dove amongst others, looks like the jockey has put a bit of meat on since those days
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Thanks Anorak. Good read.
Stewarts - I remember watching that documentary probably in the late 70's? I distinctly remember two things about it for some reason. One that it was narrated by Derek Guyler and second the trainer Price screaming at his jockey (his brother, I think) - "Goo on Cicil, Gooo on Cicil". Odd the things you remember, often nicely triggered on here. |
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Here's a quote about the documentary from Screaming from 2015. I think this was the cicil bit
screaming from beneaththewaves 13 May 15 22:41 The funniest part of that documentary was when one of the Prices took an outsider to Ludlow for a big-field handicap hurdle. It was portrayed as a run-of-the-mill day at the races, but as the race progressed and the trainer began to forget he was being filmed, it became obvious they'd gone for a right each-way touch. The desperation as he willed the nag to make the frame was, er, priceless. |
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The video I've mentioned is from 1992 Blackburn, 2 years before he won the CH.
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Sounds a bit like Cornelious Lycett talking to them.
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Fantastic read, thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening, thanks for taking the time to write it
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Really good read as ever, anorak. Thanks for posting.
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Thanks Stewarts - The 92 video is later. The documentary about the Prices is much earlier. Can't find it on Youtube.
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Lucky enough to go on a stable visit to see Flakey Dove. Idyllic stuff and a lovely spread they laid on as well.
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Blackbarn..the documentary was called Living off the land....can't recall if that was the name of a one off documentary or it was a series called it and the Price programme was one of the episodes....it was definitely mid to late 70s or early eighties
Would love to view it again... |
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did Simon Earle used to run his horses in races with no shoes just one of those odd things that sticks in your mind
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wonderful thread. Thank you The A. allow me to remember just for a second. Flakey Dove ran in the first race, a handicap hurdle , on Grand National day 1992. For a reason that escapes me, I had a £1 straight Jackpot. Cheerful Times gave 4lb to FD and was beaten less than a length. The remaining 5 legs then won, including Party Politics. Fortunately I backed all of them. The jackpot would have paid a good few £ as the last 3 winners were 14/1, 11/2 and 9/1. Coulton. Remember him! Won by a furlong in last race.2 years later FD won the Champion Hurdle. Trust me to "run into one". On the way back home I bought a bottle of fizz for Mum, Dad and I. Dad had never drunk it before ( he wasn't a big drinker anyway). He hated it. I had to finish most of it. Then Match of the Day. All cash in those days as well. Never seen such an amount. I can still remember the thrill of that beast Party Politics kicking the last few out of the way and winning. General Election that year as well. These days, with that name, it would go off 4/1!
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yard. You are spot on.
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A very enjoyable read. Thanks for posting, Alan.
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i have that living off the land video which i ' taped ' off the tv ..erm , its in my loft . its on betamax !
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From the BBC Genome - their archive of program listings:
Living on the Land The first of ten programmes Gordon Price and his Inherited Horse Until middle age Gordon Price had lived the quiet and blameless life of a Hereford farmer. Then his father died and left him a wild young horse which Gordon, at risk to life and limb and with unspoken hopes of sudden fortune, broke in, trained and entered for a race. A top jockey was engaged but unfortunately finished so late that he had time to speak only a brief sentence. 'She's useless,' he said. But, as things turned out, that was not quite the end of the story, Narrator DERYCK GUYLER Research JEAN THOMPSON Photography ARTHUR SMITH Sound JACK WILSON Film editor PETER GIBBS Written and produced, by DON HAWORTH BBC Manchester It was broadcast on BBC2 on Tuesday April 18th, 1978. Sadly, no evidence that a copy of the program exists in their library. |
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Thanks for all the positive comments. To answer a couple of points raised - yes, Alner did train Flyers Nap and he won both Cheltenham festival 3M chases with him. The Kim Muir in 1995 and the N H Hcp Chase in 1997. He won those races in the colours of Jim Tory, better known as an owner with his wife when they had the likes of Mighty Fly, Combs Ditch and Buckbe with David Elsworth in the 80's.
Alner was a neighbour of theirs in Dorset, where he trained in the delightfully named village of Droop. And I missed the fact that Dextra Dove went back to Alner for his last three runs. I've no idea why that was, as Simon Earle was still training then - perhaps he'd fallen out with his brother in law! Dextra Lighting Systems had at least one other horse with Alner later, and they also owned another memeber of the Dove clan, called Solar Dove, who was trained by Cecil Price, the 'Cicil' mentioned above presumably riding Grey Dove at Ludlow. |
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Thanks Anorak. The "Gordon Price and his inherited horse" as you say, was written and produced by Don Haworth - a documentarian of genius, although/and he is probably most famous for discovering Fred Dibnah.
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Great stuff. There's an article by Chris Pitt on the Jockeypedia site about Cecil Price, detailing the Dove and Price dynasties. Before producing Dextra Dove, Grey Dove produced twins - one never ran, but the other managed a win, and was claimed by MCP....
https://sites.google.com/site/jockeypedia5/price-cecil |