The Claremont-born Ralph Rixon, a legend of the South African training ranks and the man who enjoyed such great success with the grey bomber Jamaican Music, amongst many top horses, celebrates his 90th birthday today.
After a recent fall, he is sadly not celebrating his milestone in the manner he would have chosen and is currently in rehabilitation at a Somerset West stepdown facility.
“My Dad broke his leg in a fall in the bathroom some five weeks ago, unfortunately. We do visit him between 15h00 to 16h00 every day and he is in good spirits in the circumstances,” his son Gordon told the Sporting Post.
Legend of the turf – Ralph Rixon
In an interview some years ago with the Sporting Post, Ralph said that he still rated Jamaican Music as the best horse he ever trained.
“He was an absolute champ – he won the Nursery, the Guineas, the Derby and the July – you can’t ask for more.”
A client by the name of Dr Crohin wanted a grey horse, so Ralph duly visited Granville Gorton and was taken with the son of Jamaico in the paddock.
Ralph Rixon observes Jamaican Music in the background – rge grey won the July in 1976 under the late Bert Abercrombie
“We bought him off the farm. Dr Crohin came down from South West Africa with a big suitcase, opened it up in front of Granville and he couldn’t refuse! Crohin was one of the best owners I ever had. When I won the July, he said go and pick a car. I said I’d seen a nice, medium sized car, I’m not sure of the make and he said, ‘you’re not buying that rubbish, go and get a Mercedes!’ So I went and bought a beautiful Mercedes that I had for years and years. Every race the horse ran, he gave me something big. I’ve got a watch on still that he gave me when Jamaican Music won the Hawaii Stakes. I wore it for many years and one day something happened and I had to send it to Johannesburg to be looked at. They phoned and said it had to be insured, so I said insure it then. The man asked whether I knew what it was worth and it turned out to be R24k! It was a gold watch with a gold strap and one of the best makes in the world. He was very good to us.”
Ralph was born in Claremont.
“That was right near where all the professional trainers had all their stables. Doncaster Road in Kenilworth was like Milnerton is now – all the trainers, like Gorton and Syd Garett, were along there. My mother was from Holland and came to South Africa as an 18 year old. My father was an RAF aircraft mechanic. After the war they sent a lot of planes out here and were here for 5 or 6 years. Dad was in charge of the mechanical side of them. When they packed up, he said he liked it such a lot, he was staying. He met my mother, got married and that was that.”
Ralph was the second of the couple’s four children. His sister Joyce, his senior by two years, went on to marry Terrance Millard.
“After school we used to toddle down to the stables and look at the horses. Eventually the grooms put us on and lead us around. The horses quietened down once we were on their backs and that’s how it started.”
Ralph started riding work and eventually had a string of amateur racehorses. He was also an accomplished polo player.
We wish him a wonderful birthday and a speedy recovery.
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