Racing's retired rock star, Chautauqua shines in Cohuna in first Off the Track showing
YES, you can teach old horses new tricks.
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But we’re not just talking any horse here; we’re talking about Chautauqua, possibly the most infamous famous (or famous infamous) horse in the history of thoroughbreds and horse racing.
Known as the Grey Flash at his peak, the now 11-year-old gelding was better known as Heartbreaker by the time his career spluttered out in ignominy.
The winner of almost $9 million is prizemoney, the superstar with six Group 1 victories, and an impressive 13 wins from 32 starts (with 11 placings), Chautauqua was the hero of the racing world.
Right up until the day he said ‘enough’.
The day the starter pushed the buzzer, the gates flew open and the jockeys urged their horses out of their starting stalls and began fighting for position.
Until the race caller noticed Chautauqua had not moved.
Talk about a grinding halt.
Chautauqua overnight became known as the horse that just stopped running.
And was then retired after seven straight refusals at the barrier in 2018.
Unprecedented, unheard of and still talked about; by anyone and everyone connected with horse racing.
All those starts, all those wins, all that money, all those Group 1s – and it was all over.
Now, 30 months after ‘retiring’ from racing, Chautauqua (which is possibly Spanish for ‘I Did It My Way’) has shown you can teach an old horse a new trick.
Once one of the world’s best sprinters, a winner in Australia and Hong Kong, the ‘Grey Flash’ was loved for his thrilling, last gasp wins after a large come-from-behind charge.
But life is much simpler, and quieter, now at Eden Stud Farm.
Where with the guidance of former jockey Casey Bruce, Chautauqua has spent the past 16 months being reborn as a show horse.
The rock star of sprint racing has had to learn to slow down, something Bruce admitted was just as much of a challenge for her.
“He’s an interesting character, a much-loved animal in the horsing world,” Bruce said.
“For those people who love racing, he’s a freak champion. Then all your non-racing people love him as well, because he is the horse that said no.
“But I’m not one to sugar-coat it, he’s still very difficult to work with – which is what most people would expect.
“He’s highly intelligent but also has a lot of anxiety, so it’s been hard to get him ready.”
But patience (and hard work) has paid off, with the team behind Chautauqua’s new venture celebrating his perfect start to the show life by winning both the Off The Track Led and Ridden Classes at the Cohuna Show earlier this month.
“It was a brilliant beginning,” Bruce said. “It’s a hard sport to win at the best of times and it’s just the judge’s opinion on the day.
“But he exceeded all expectations and got the double; which was wonderful.”
While that early success in Chautauqua 2.0 shows just how extraordinary this highly-strung thoroughbred really is, most people seem to be delighted just knowing the grand old champion has found a loving home with Bruce.
“The most rewarding thing for us, and the thing I find the most precious, is he has learnt how to love,” Bruce said.
“He didn’t know how; he was always wondering ‘what next?'. Everyone wanted him to be racing, and physically he probably wasn’t done, but he just didn’t want to run anymore.
“So, when he came to me, he wouldn’t allow me to love him. He would think ‘what is she doing, how is she trying to trick me?’.
“It hasn’t been until the past 12 months he’s begun to understand I’m his companion, his friend, I’m here to look after him and there is that bond now.”
With his breakthrough victory in the small town of Cohuna, Bruce said she had spent a lot of time considering where Chautauqua would first compete.
“Being under the microscope of every equestrian, there is that pressure,” she said.
“I needed to get him to relax and absorb a new environment.
“With this boy, I can’t do it in a hurry,” she said.
“It’s been a 16-month journey to Cohuna, and I’ve had a team of people behind me to help me, encourage me, who are shoulders to cry on and I’d like to thank them all, and the committee at Cohuna for their support.
“Behind every competitor and their horse, there is a team behind the scenes, and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without them.”
With Chautauqua aiming to eventually qualify for the Off the Track National Show Horse Championship in Bendigo, Bruce said the upcoming winter climate would mean little competition for the pair, before things ramped up again in August and September.
But although the championships are the ultimate dream, Bruce believes Chautauqua’s biggest achievements will continue to happen day-in and day-out.
“I think at the end of the day, it’s not about him being successful or not,” Bruce said.
“He’s found a loving home with me; he’s retired from racing and is being loved.
“He doesn’t have to be a winner – it’s about him learning and bonding and being cared for.”
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