The racing community are in shock at the passing of one of its most popular and respected members, the farrier, and all round horseman extraordinaire, Robbie Dawson.
Robbie was from a famous KZN equine family and was one of South Africa’s, if not the world’s, most respected thoroughbred farriers.
Robbie Dawn – true professional and a great human being (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
He was known by one Summerveld yard as ‘Mr Fixit’ because if there was a shoeing problem that could not be solved, or an issue created by a shoeing error, he would be called in.Like magic he had soon sorted the problem out. The above yard spoke of his world class expertise.
Gold Circle report that Robbie was from the old school from the point of view of being tough and immensely strong.
However, at the same time he had a great passion for his profession and through a worldwide network kept up to date with all of the latest techniques and innovations.
He was highly innovative himself and had the ability to think out of the box.
This was illustrated in his work with a Peter Muscutt-trained horse called Gentleman’s Way.
This horse arrived at the Muscutt yard in August 2020 on a 73 merit rating and went on to become a 105 merit rated-Listed winner.
Muscutt’s training and horse care skills combined with Dawson’s farriery skills played a part in the turnaround.
Robbie said about the seven-year-old Oratorio gelding one morning shortly before a race on Hollywoodbets Durban July day, “He had a foot issue which hampered the early part of his career quite a lot. We basically threw the book at him and then threw the book away and had to think a little bit out of the box. We did a little bit of unconventional shoeing on him and he became sound, but then he went off again. He tells you very quickly when he’s not a hundred percent right. We trotted him up this morning (Tuesday) and he is a hundred percent right. A lot of it has to do with pressure on certain areas and it is so hard to isolate exactly where it is and what has caused it etc. So you have to think out of the box and take away the pressure and keep your fingers crossed that it all goes to plan. At the moment he’s got a three-quarter shoe on. I have also had heart bars on him, I’ve had reverse bars on him, I had sole packs on him, I had casting tape on him, I threw the book at him. Pete and the owners have been very generous with their time.”
However, to sum it up, when ‘Mr Fixit’ was called in, the problem was always solved an usually quickly.
In the build up to that 2022 Hollywoodbets Durban July, Robbie revealed he had plated seven July winners in all including the previous five winners.
He said, “We have nearly 60 to plate for the meeting, which is fantastic, very fortunate to be in that position.”
He quickly learned the personalities of each individual horse, so could adapt his approach accordingly and each year his vast experience with horses and farriery had a new layer added to it.
Dawson was also the on-course farrier at both Bath and Ascot racecourses in the UK during his career. He studied at the Hereford School Of Farriery.
Most importantly he loved to share his vast knowledge.
He was the senior KZN farrier at the time of his passing and taught the ropes to many of the accomplished farriers SA has today.
He also had renowned kindness and good cheer.
One industryman said about him, “I’ll miss most the light you brought around with you.”
Robbie said himself in a recent documentary, “I wake up in the morning and I know I’m going to have a great day. It’s not a job to me, it’s a passion.”
Robbie grew up with horses and loved them and was opposed to any remedy that would mask pain in an intended runner.
Robbie’s family are well known in KZN beyond horseracing having run a riding school called Stoneyhurst, which started in Zambia before moving to KZN and having various locations, including Hillcrest, before settling in Hammarsdale.
Robbie used the same property in Hammarsdale for his Leckhampton Valley Spelling and Pre Training facility, conveniently situated just 21km from Summerveld.
Condolences to his wife Kerri, son Travers, daughter Keelyn, mother Marie, former trainer and now farrier brother Johnny, and to all of his extended family and friends.
MHDSRIP.
