Following the Star

By Andrew Walker

Following the Star is a compelling journey of the highs and lows in the life of a racing fan entwined with the exploits of Kauto Star, one of National Hunt Racing's stars who was compared to the great Arkle.

Andrew Walker's book is a rolercoaster of emotion with Kauto Star as the central figure, it paints a delightfulpicture of

• Language: English
• Publisher: BlueJ Publishing
• Release date: Nov 14, 2020
• ISBN: 9781838082130

Andrew Walker

 Andrew T. Walker (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is associate professor of Christian ethics and public theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and an associate dean in the School of Theology. He is a fellow with the Ethics and Public Policy Center and managing editor of WORLD Opinions. He resides with his wife and three daughters in Louisville, Kentucky. 

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FOLLOWING THE STAR

A Personal Journey

Andrew Walker

First edition 2013, Shakspeare Editorial

ISBN 978-1-291-57595-8

Second edition 2020, BlueJ Publishing

ISBN paperback 978-1-838-0821-2-3

ebook 978-1-838-0821-3-0

Copyright © Andrew Walker 2013

Front cover photo of Kauto Star © Fiona Walker

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

www.BlueJPublishing.com

Produced in Palatino by shakspeareeditorial.orgThis Book is dedicated to my Mum

Joan Elizabeth Walker

Her cheerful smile and zest for life was an inspiration to everyone

March will never be the same

Acknowledgements

Since I began this book a great deal has happened and I could not have completed it without the help and support from Alison Shakspeare for her editing skills and helpful advice, without which this book would not have been possible.

To Rosemarie Rogers for her proofreading.

To Stephen for being there (to hug) with a sensible word or two.

Finally, to my wife Fiona and my two sons, Sean and Nicholas, for keeping me focused and supporting me throughout this journey. More importantly for going along with my often spur of the moment decisions.

Thank you to everyone and to those no longer with us.

Introduction

I suppose that it is inevitable that when you follow sport you soon become attached to a particular team or sports personality, male or female. This attachment could be classed by many as obsessive. However, I would say it is more a passion, a dedication, one where you are prepared to spend hundreds of pounds and wait for hours just to get a glimpse of your sporting hero.

In my case this passion is for a horse, not just any horse, but one that has been connected over the past nine years with a great number of life-changing experiences, as you will soon discover.

I refer to a bay gelding – trained by Paul Nicholls, owned by Clive Smith, and ridden for the best part of his career by Ruby Walsh – called

KAUTO STAR

Chapter 1—A Star is Born

Let me take you back to the beginning. 2005 was barely a month old as I headed off to Exeter for a hoped-for good day’s racing. It was a typical National Hunt day in terms of the weather. Cold, slightly damp, with a light easterly breeze; wrapping up warm was the order of the day. Exeter is one of my local tracks, along with Taunton, Wincanton and Newton Abbot and, as with all West Country tracks, the staff are very friendly and the food is good. Exeter also has the distinction of being the highest racecourse in the country. However, because of its height and close proximity to Dartmoor it is prone to quick changes in the weather; a particular feature is mist and fog.

Exeter’s biggest race day is the Haldon Gold Cup. They usually get a big crowd, but this was January. So it was mostly made up of hardened jump racing supporters. Wrapped up against the cold I was looking forward to a good day with maybe a winner or two. Top trainer Paul Nicholls and jockey Ruby Walsh were the main draw, so everything was set for a good day.

Now, I will be the first to admit that I am not a paddock watcher. I prefer to observe the horses going to the start before I make my selection, but on this occasion I ventured to the paddock. It was a disappointing turn out of just three runners for the two-mile one-furlong steeplechase, although they all looked in tip top condition. However, there was one who, at first glance, had that extra something. He was a French bred called Kauto Star. As he walked around the ring you could sense that he was special, his eyes were fixed, seemingly unaware of the crowd, this was a horse in the zone, ready to do battle. He had already made a winning debut at Newbury in a novice chase, beating a horse called Foreman by some nine lengths, so his ranking as favourite was more than justified.

It was time for the jockeys to be given their final instructions, and then once more around the parade ring before heading out onto the course. The track at Exeter is two miles round, making it the second longest in the country with the two-mile one-furlong start almost directly in front of the stands. The three runners had twelve fences to jump including two open ditches and a water jump. On this cold damp January afternoon the going was officially described as soft.

With the runners at the start and bets struck, it was time to get in a good position to watch the race. The tapes went up and with three runners you knew it was going to be more of a stroll than a cavalry charge to the first fence. Kauto Star was jumping well and soon had a lead of over twelve lengths. The money was almost in the bag as they approached the final four fences in the straight before the 250-yard uphill finish. As always when backing horses you should remember that age old saying ‘never count your chickens before they are hatched’.

Kauto Star jumped the next two fences in great style, two more to go. I found myself muttering, ’take your time, nice and steady’. Now, I am not really sure how it happened, but Kauto Star fell at the second to last fence. This is a moment in any National Hunt race that leaves one feeling numb, deflated and worried, all at the same time. You pray that both horse and jockey will get up and be fine, monetary gain is not a major concern at this time.

When he fell Kauto Star was in a commanding lead and luckily his jockey, Ruby Walsh, kept hold of the reins, composed himself and remounted. At the same time Mistral De La Cour, who had been held in second place, took the lead. Somehow, Ruby Walsh galvanised a good jump out of Kauto Star over the last and gave chase.

The initial pain of seeing Kauto Star fall was soon dispelled by the realisation that I might be going to collect after all. However, it was not to be, as despite all the efforts of Ruby Walsh, Kauto Star just failed to get there and had to settle for second place. It was at this moment that I realised that I had witnessed something special. Horses do fall and get up ready to fight another day, but this was different. Kauto Star had that grit and determination I have come to admire in the sporting arena; he was a fighter and I was already looking forward to seeing him run again.

However, the euphoria of the race at Exeter was short lived as it turned out that Kauto Star had sustained an injury in the fall, which meant that he would be out for the rest of the season and would now miss the Cheltenham Festival. This was a huge blow, but I had to be patient. There were now more pressing things on my mind in the shape of a baby, who was due in April 2005, as well as the best four days in the National Hunt calendar, the 2005 Cheltenham Festival. So, as you can imagine, things were a little tense in our household.

The build-up to the Festival began in earnest with the annual visit to Wincanton for the Preview Evening, which is a great way to find out what is hot and, of course, what is not. Local trainer Paul Nicholls was on the panel to discuss his runners’ prospects. During a lull in proceedings I took the opportunity to ask about Kauto Star. To my delight Mr Nicholls said he was coming on very well and that they were taking things one day at a time. As a self-confessed Cheltenham anorak I buy all the betting guides and papers and the prospect of four days of what is, arguably, the best racing in the world sets the pulse racing. After all, it is the equine Olympics, a magical time. When the first race gets under way and that famous Cheltenham roar echoes across the Cotswolds, win or lose, you cannot beat it.

Gold Cup 2005 arrived with the usual fanfare and, with the expectation of another exciting day ahead of me, I set off for my sixteenth Gold Cup. For the previous three years Best Mate had been the headline act, but this year, sadly, he was unable to race due to an injury. His non-appearance had a strange effect on me, it was as if I had lost someone very special.

For many, picking winners is a skill, with many hours spent studying form and so on. My approach is simple, follow one or two trainers and the same for jockeys, it does work. I should have sensed back on Boxing Day that my unborn son was trying to tell me something. His kicks coincided with Kicking King winning the King George VI Chase at Kempton, and now he, with jockey Barry Geraghty, won the 2005 Gold Cup. I had no financial involvement and kicked myself after the event, but it was still a reasonably successful Cheltenham Festival. Roll on 2006.

I must confess that I am a bit of a traditionalist and, for me, National Hunt racing is a winter sport, so my season ends with the two final evening meetings at Cheltenham and Wincanton during the first two weeks of May.

As the season drew to a close my son, Sean Marc, very kindly made his appearance on 14 April 2005. It was an emotional day, especially since it was a difficult birth. When I phoned up work to say that I would not be in as I was now a father, it came as a surprise to everyone since only my boss knew. I am pleased to say that both Fiona and Sean were fine. Incidentally, Sean was named after two racing cyclists, Sean Kelly and Marco Pantani. Most first time parents will tell you their child is the best and, of course, I’m no different, Sean was absolutely fantastic. Of all the things that happened at this time the strangest was that at time of Sean’s birth there was some racing on the television from, of all places, Cheltenham. An omen for the future, perhaps.

The year marched on, the weather started to get a little colder, stable tours appeared in the paper (a must for any National Hunt supporter). There was a buzz of anticipation as the people and the horses that had shaped the previous season were mentioned. Ante post betting lists appeared for the big races such as the King George, Grand National and the Gold Cup. All the thrills and spills of yet another jump season were just around the corner which, for me, would culminate in my annual pilgrimage to the Cheltenham National Hunt Festival.

The one thing I was most looking forward to, which had never been far from my thoughts during the previous six months, was the reappearance of Kauto Star. This added to the excitement and I hoped that, with a bit of luck, he would turn up at Cheltenham.

The new season began for me at Wincanton in October. This is my favourite course as everyone is very friendly and from the stands you can see almost all the circuit. It is Paul Nicholls’ local track and he tends to do very well there. Just for the record, my first winner of the 2005/06 season was Habitual, ridden by Tony McCoy in a two-mile six-furlong hurdle race. I was back at Wincanton on 23 October and the winner that stood out that day was Denman, ridden by Christian Williams.

The long-awaited reappearance of Kauto Star was announced with his entry in the Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter on 1 November. As the anticipation and excitement built up the only downside was that I would not be able to see the race in person as I would be in Dublin. But no need to worry, there are plenty of betting shops in the Fair City so, at the very least, I would be able to watch the race. While Fiona and son Sean hit the shops in the city centre, I managed to find a betting shop on Abbey Street. It was only right that I had a small wager and then settled down to watch the race along with some very well-informed regulars.

The triple Gold Cup winner Best Mate was also in the field with Kauto Star. I could feel my heart rate increasing as the race got under way. Ashley Brook took an early lead; Ruby Walsh was very patient on Kauto Star and, along with Monkerhostin, looked very comfortable; the early pace took its toll and Ashley Brook began to get tired; Kauto Star and Monkerhostin took over four furlongs from home; there was nothing between them and, despite my enthusiasm, Monkerhostin took the win with Kauto Star three lengths behind in second place.

Racing has always been about ups and downs and this Haldon Cup was no different. As all the excitement of the race faded away news came in that Best Mate had been pulled up and collapsed. I discovered much later that he had in fact died. He had missed the 2005 Gold Cup because of an injury and this was to be his build-up to another attempt in 2006. It is always hard to describe how you feel; devastated is one word since, for over three years, I had followed the exploits of both Best Mate and his connections Henrietta Knight,