Legendary commentator Trevor Denman has announced his retirement from his 33-year long position as chief caller at the flagship Santa Anita racetrack in California and officials will be scouring the planet looking for a replacement knowing they have huge boots to fill.

Denman’s skill could be defined by his call of one of the most exciting races in world racing history, when the hitherto unbeaten Zenyatta won the Breeders Cup Classic at Santa Anita in 2009 in astonishing fashion under Mike Smith after being “dead last” early on and having “a lot, a lot of ground to make up”, halfway around the final turn.

Denman’s words “If she wins this she will be a super horse,” summed up the situation. The gentle giant mare had already become an American icon and a massive crowd had turned up to watch her make history that day in her 14th career start and her first against the boys, which included a selection of the best horses from around the planet. However, her myriad fans seemed muted for most of the way around and officials probably began fearing it would be a repeat of Big Brown’s Triple Crown flop.

Zenyatta’s trainer John Shirreffs could see only glimpses of the famous mare from where he stood near the rail in front of the main grandstand. However, from her hopeless position she had surged through a couple of gaps when coming off the rail and into the straight and suddenly there was hope. Shirreffs knew she had a chance when Denman said “she is starting to pick them off though, Zenyatta’s going to hook to the outside.”

Trevor Denman (insidesocal.com)

Shirreffs could hear the urgency in the commentators voice and said, “Trevor really gets the dynamics of a race. When he starts mentioning a horse, you knew something can happen.” However the crowd were still on tenterhooks until Denman raised his voice at the critical moment, “AND ZENYATTA’S COME TO THE OUTSIDE!” and with that the roof lifted off the grandstand.

To watch this moment at full volume never fails to cause goosebumps due to Denman’s timing and the crowds immediate, spine-tingling response. It was one of those roars so loud it reaches what could be best described as a silent spot at the crescendo. Zenyatta’s enormous stride took her past her rivals and Denman’s Durban roots were evident when he said spontaneously, “THIS IS UN-BE-LEEEEEVABLE!” The crowd continued to roar for minutes afterwards and her lady fans swaggered. The humble Shirreffs could be seen grinning broadly and voicing superlatives. However, there was little doubt the moment could easily have been lost without Denman’s brilliance.

Denman had been using effective changes in voice pitch for decades, a good example being when he called home the great Prince Florimund to win the Gr 1 South African 2000 at Greyville in 1982, abandoning calling the order of horses as they entered the straight and simply emphasising, “PRINCE FLORIMUND!!”. Off-course punters, who enjoyed no visuals in those days, were spared the agony of the final stretch because Denman was a renowned judge and they knew when he emphasised a name it was virtually race over.

On top of this ability to connect with the audience, he is also unerringly fluent and accurate and this is partly due to his consummate professionalism, which includes meticulous preparation and an acute sense of pace.

California trainer Ron Ellis said. “I could sit in the paddock and visually see the race with his call.”
Denman’s signature verse at Santa Anita came to be known as “And away they go,” a well know commentary term in South Africa and “scraping paint” and  “will need to sprout wings” were other examples of his many catch phrases.

Denman was only the fourth incumbent caller in Santa Anita’s history and one punter said last week, “Denman’s calls became etched in our minds. To us, Trevor is Santa Anita.”

Hall of fame jockey Gary Stevens said, “One of a kind, there will never be another like him. He was calling the race as if he was riding the horse I was on, he was calling what I was feeling.”
Santa Anita track Chairman Keith Blackpool said of Denman’s retirement announcement, “We knew this situation would come one day, but we were selfishly hoping it would be many years down the line.”

South African commentator Craig Peters was assistant to Denman for one year in the early 1980s and became a great caller in his own right. He named that year as one of his biggest learning curbs and is ever grateful to Denman for his enthusiastic willingness to share his knowledge. Peters has always kept his commentary box immaculate, having taken on board Denman’s highly professional approach, and gave a clue to the possible reason for the latter’s  immediate impact in the USA, “He once told me that if you can call successfully on South African courses you can call anywhere in the world. In the days when we relied on binoculars we had to deal with the pear-shaped Greyville, the long straight of the Vaal and other difficult courses.”

Denman also helped mentor Craig’s son Sheldon, who sent him tape recordings requesting advice.

Trevor influenced many, including, no doubt, his brother Eric, who also became a fine caller in his own right.

Trevor had wanted to become a jockey but grew too big and felt the next best thing would be commentating.
In the early 1970s he rented a flat overlooking Greyville and began calling races into a tape recorder and the Durban Turf Club eventually gave him a start as assistant commentator to another legend, Ernie Duffield. The latter called his last Durban July in 1976 and Denman then took over.

Trevor will continue to call at Del Mar but his working days at the Great Race Place (Santa Anita) will end on December 26. The 63-year-old will instead spend more time on his Minnesota Farm and travelling around the USA.

By David Thiselton

Justin Snaith has snapped up Piere Strydom for Legislate in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate on January 9. The six-time champion won the 2012 race for him on Gimmethegreenlight.

Legislate, winner of last year’s Vodacom Durban July, started odds-on for last season’s Queen’s Plate but finished last. He was found to be suffering from a virus and has not raced since finishing third to stable companion Futura in the Champions Cup at the beginning of August.

Snaith said: “Legislate is doing very well. I gave him a racecourse gallop last Wednesday, he went with a nice horse and won the gallop. He will have another next Tuesday.

“My only regret is that I couldn’t run him in the Diadem but that race is now too close to the Queen’s Plate.”

The Mike de Kock-trained Noah From Goa, winner of last Saturday’s Grand Parade Cape Guineas, is the only three-year-old among the 23 entries for the Queen’s Plate. The handicappers raised him 1.5kg to 111 for his classic win.

They left second-placed Brazuca unchanged on 109 but raised the Hong Kong-bound Nassa 6.5kg to 109 for finishing third. Silver Mountain (fourth) was left on 111 while Victorius Jay (fifth) was put up 3.5kg to 104.

Ken Nicol, commenting on Silver Mountain, said: “She might not have run up to her very best but the race was only two weeks after the Fillies Guineas and she did find a little bit of trouble in running.”

Silver Mountain was reported by the course vet to have suffered a cut on her right hind in the race but Candice Robinson said yesterday that she is fine.

By Michael Clower

Geoff Woodruff has reluctantly sent his SANSUI Summer Cup winner and runner up, Master Sabina and Deo Juvente, down to Cape Town earlier than intended and they arrived at the Milnerton training centre over the weekend.

Master Sabina (JC Photos)

The chief target for both is the J&B Met and Woodruff had wanted to train them out of Randjesfontein, but became “panicky” due to a recent positive African Horse Sickness case in North Pretoria, which fell only just outside a 40km radius from Randjes. If the case had been within the 40km radius they would not have been allowed to travel.

Both horses have also been nominated for the Gr 1 L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate but Woodruff is not sure yet whether they will take their places.

He admitted both Master Sabina, as a Gr 1 winner with a 108 merit rating, and Deo Juvente, off a 104 merit rating, had tough tasks under the conditions of the Met, which is basically a weight for age race with a Gr 1 penalty. Both horses would be 6kg under sufferance with the 120 merit rated Legal Eagle if the weights were set today.

However, he added the six-year-old Jet Master gelding Master Sabina should have come on from the Summer Cup, for which he was “only just ready enough and I think he got away with it”, while the four-year-old Trippi gelding Deo Juvente was a “big strong” young horse who was improving.

Woodruff faced a dilemma when Deo Juvente’s jockey Sean Cormack objected against Master Sabina in the Summer Cup, but fortunately the stipendiary stewards allowed him to remain neutral.

It was the third time in succession Woodruff yard had achieved the Summer Cup exacta and this included doing the trifecta two years ago.

This year’s result saw the five-time championship winning yard soaring from 18^th place on the National Trainer’s log to 7^th.

The two horses will be staying at the Woodruff satellite yard in Cape Town which is run by his daughter Lucinda.

By David Thiselton

Noah From Goa has been raised just three points (1.5kg) to 111 for his win in Saturday’s Grand Parade Cape Guineas and Mike de Kock’s latest star is the only three-year-old to be entered in the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate on January 9.

Same Jurisdiction, who easily won Saturday’s Grand Play Conditions Plate, is the only filly or mare among the 23 Queen’s Plate entries but she has been drawn quite wide at 17. Duncan Howells yesterday also put her in the Maine Chance Farms Paddock Stakes on the same card but there she has been drawn wider still at 19 out of 21.

Mike Bass has resisted the temptation to put Fillies Guineas winner Silver Mountain in the Paddock – she waits for the CTS Million Dollar a fortnight later – but his four entries include Taffety Tart who was third to her in both the Fillies Guineas and the Choice Carriers.

By Michael Clower

Picture: Same Jurisdiction (Nkosi Hlophe)

The dogs are barking about Lohnromance who reappears after a 15-month absence in the Khaya Stables Handicap at Kenilworth today.

Aldo Domeyer’s mount made a huge impression when romping home over 1 400m on debut at Durbanville with Yogas Govender saying: “She is blessed with talent but she has a deformity on her off-fore pastern and runs on three legs.”

He put the bad leg continuously in ice buckets but wasn’t able to get her to the course again. Now it’s the turn of Andre Nel who says: “She has had serious problems and it’s a long time to be off but she has come back nicely.”

Rival trainers seemed to know all about her when discussing prospects on Saturday and Nel has already shown more than once that long lay-offs hold few fears for him. His Rondeberg facilities for getting a horse racing fit are much better than those of most of the Cape Town trainers who have to rely on prep runs.

Aldo Domeyer

The mare gets in with a rating of only 65 and is clearly far better than that in terms of sheer talent. She opened at 2-1 with World Sports Betting yesterday but that price soon went.  Top weight Money Surger is an obvious danger at 9-2 and is bidding for her third win off the reel after recovering her best form.

“I don’t really work her at home – she spends most of her time in a paddock,” says Piet Steyn. “Kenilworth down the straight is her track, particularly when the south-easter is blowing.”

Strictly speaking 3-1 second favourite Star Academy should reverse the placings as she is 2.5kg better with Money Surger for last time’s half a length while it is significant that Boomtown Belter (15-4) steps up in trip after six successive races over 1 000m.

“She has always been running on just too late,” explains Adam Marcus. “I’m hoping that we get a true run race.”

Five Star Rock opened evens favourite for the opening maiden but he may have been flattered by last time’s second – it was in a work riders’ race and they are notoriously unreliable – and so the vote goes to Mount Fuji (backed from 6-1 to 4-1 yesterday) even though Vaughan Marshall has decided to run him without blinkers.

Marshall and MJ Byleveld may also win race two with 12-10 favourite Tonya whose good second at the beginning of the month was her first run out of the maidens.

Marshall is using Shadlee Fortune’s valuable 4kg claim on 9-2 stable companion Dance In The Woods whereas Mike Stewart employed it to good effect on Caprice Des Dieux ( 9-2 here) when she beat Tonya half a length. “I reckon I have again got Tonya to beat,” says Stewart.

Wafiqah looks the part in race three even though she has only three-quarters of a length in hand over Malachite Sunbird. “She has always shown that she is above average and after her debut on Met day – I reckon I ran her too early – I gave her a long break,” says Darryl Hodgson.” When she reappeared she ran too free. She wanted more ground and last time she ran on very well.”

By Michael Clower