THERE is no golden rule to the acquisition of champion racehorses. The aristocrats of the yearling sales often belie their looks—and their prices. Phar Lap was an unwanted ugly duckling. Pamelus was sold for about £25. Bobrikoff, a New Zealand champion, could not elicit a bid when offered for sale. Vincent O'Neill, one of Australia’s best known horse masters, missed getting Bobrikoff through a game of poker.
I should imagine that the most interesting turf book that could be written would be I one telling the stories of how our champion race horses have been acquired. Men with lifelong experience in racing have gone to the yearling sales with unlimited commissions and bought horses that were not worth as many shillings as the guineas paid for them. Accredited judges of blood lines and horseflesh have allowed champions to pass out of their stables while holding on to duffers. And if men of experience and maturity can make mistakes, some allowance can be made for my
