THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — created by Valerie Martin, contains scenes from her home village of Findon, West Sussex, U.K.

ROSYTH ROCKS FINDON — 1964

Copyright Valerie Martin 2003

Rosyth in Fife and Findon have much in common — except in the name.  

The story of Captain Ryan Price and Rosyth is a story of triumph and success and put the name of Findon on the map in 1964.  The greatest goals were streaked with tragedy as is so often the case. 

This is a true account which crackles with authentic action awakening sleepy Findon to the real world. Rosyth involved the village in fast paced headlines fit to keep all in suspense and on-the-edge-of-the saddle where horseracing is such an ancient tradition. 

I would describe Rosyth as a smallish but strong, sleek, short-back colt, just over 15 hands high.  He had a career racing on the flat before arriving in the village to be schooled over the jumps under the eagle eye of his new trainer, Captain Ryan Price.

Perhaps lesser men would have had the chestnut gelded, but the Captain enjoyed success with colts and he left him as nature intended.

Injuries, major and minor to National Hunt horses, have been a fact of Findon life since I moved here some ten and a half years ago.  As a cure for an ongoing problem to his shoulder, Rosyth was sent for a course of swimming off Selsey Bill.  The treatment at the time for such ailments was, of course, normally carried out in special indoor swimming pools — but the Captain had different ideas and he preferred the salt water cure for strains and muscular disorders.    So Rosyth had the indignity of being towed along behind a rowing boat in the sea.  The colt recovered with TLC and as planned he began his training programme over the hurdles on the Findon Gallops with Josh Gifford up.

In 1963, Rosyth proved himself by winning the Schweppes Gold Trophy.  The following year the Schweppes Gold Trophy was transferred from Liverpool to be run at Newbury in Berkshire.  On 15th February, 1964 a contingent from Findon headed  to Newbury for a race worth  £7,639 with twenty-four horses running.  The Captain saddled two horses in the Schweppes Gold Trophy.  The one fancied to win was Catapult II.   The second was Rosyth.  It is suffice to say the latter won with Josh Gifford up — by a presentable two lengths. 

The Findon trainer was obviously delighted and naturally entered into the usual post-race discussion with acquaintances on the course.   He appeared very pleased with himself when the press gathered around him in the unsaddling enclosure.  Then a chain of terrible events began.  Suddenly there was general confusion as the Stewards' Secretary tapped the Captain on the shoulder.  He had been called before the Stewards because in their estimation, Rosyth had made abnormal progress between his last race (where he had ended up ten lengths behind the winner), and the 1964 Schweppes Gold Trophy. 

The Stewards did not accept the Captain's reasoning that Rosyth had been brought on.  They even queried why the trainer had actually led Rosyth out of the paddock before the race and had not led the more fancied, Catapult II, ridden by his first jockey, champion Fred Winter.

When this was heard back in Findon, doubts began to nibble.

The Captain conceded that Rosyth had come on leaps and bounds — but chiefly because the horse had improved.  In public the Findon trainer maintained he had not transgressed any rules and did not think he had anything to answer for.  In private, I guess he realised his livelihood in Findon was in a real cliff-hanger situation.

The Captain and Josh thought they had nothing really to answer for when they were summoned before the National Hunt Stewards in London on 20th February 1964.   Unfortunately, the Captain decided to conduct his own defence.     As he faced the interview and saw how it was progressing, he realised that he and Josh were heading for real trouble.   They waited outside the Inquiry Room to be informed of the verdict from the giants of jumping.

As the judgement was read out, the Captain was heard to mutter something like  "Kangaroo court" under his breath — he was declared a disqualified person and his licence to train had been withdrawn until the end of the season.   Josh Gifford's licence was withdrawn until 31st March 1964.

Rumour was rife in the village that Fred Winter would take over The Downs Stables temporarily.  Fred Winter rather reluctantly agreed to help out and to run the yard —  even though it meant he had to retire early to do so.   At the Downs Stables, the thoroughbreds peered inquiringly over their box doors and there were few whinnies as they awaited the outcome.   It was then decided by the Captain and all concerned that if the Stewards’ intention of dismantling the yard was flouted in any way, he might not get his licence back — ever.

Findon was a forlorn village when the long queue of horseboxes wended its way up Stable Lane to load the horses to take them elsewhere to be trained for the season.   There were ninety thoroughbred in total to be split between other trainers.   There was much clattering of hooves and the Findon air was permeated with the unmistakable smell of moving equine.    The rhythmic clip-clop drummed hard in the Captain's ears as the last horsebox door slammed shut.   The injustice of the case rankled with his  sense of justice.

As the last truck rumbled back down the steep lane, there was an air of unnatural stillness hanging over the silent stables.   It was a ghost yard.  The Downs Stables had came to a standstill until the ban was lifted.  An empty racing yard is indeed a melancholy place without its horses.

The Captain strode away to a high point of the downland to collect his thoughts.   It was going to be a bitter pill to swallow and watch his rivals turn out winners which had formerly been brought on in the Findon yard. The master-of-Findon was forced into early retirement for a while — but not for long.

Trade in the shops and public houses in Findon suffered when the racing fraternity departed — not to mention a slackening in trade at the forge in Nepcote Lane.

Time past and after his enforced break from racing, Josh Gifford was soon up and riding again with all his old skill and vigour.  

By the autumn it looked as though he was heading for his third jockeys' championship.   Things never turn out as expected though.  On 30th November, 1964 he took a terrible fall at the Nottingham race course and broke his right thigh and missed the rest of the season's racing.  

Just as his leg was mended, fate struck again when he was on his way back to Findon from playing in a cricket match in Oxfordshire.   There was a nasty car accident and the steel plate which had been inserted into his broken leg was smashed in the crash.   He had to go through the whole operation in hospital again.

This meant he was out of the saddle for a total of fourteen months — thereby missing the first half of the next season as well.  For the only time in his life he missed the National meeting at Liverpool . 

As time past the Captain was granted permission to train again.  The lean time was over.  Findon was back in the business again.  The Captain had few equals in the art of training horses to the peak of fitness and, even more importantly —  keeping them at their best day after day.   Back in harness, he was now without Josh and so proceeded to divide his rides up between three young jockeys — Buck Jones, Doug Barrott and Paul Kellaway.  By Christmas 1966, the Captain had saddled an amazing forty winners — a good number even for him.

The horse that had caused the Captain all the trouble, Rosyth, retired from racing two years later and lived at his owner's stud in Kent.   His total winnings amounted to £20,528.  He is now only remembered in Findon as being the horse instrumental in having Captain Ryan Price disqualified.   Rosyth died in 1975.

Here is another little photograph from the 1960s....

Captain Ryan Price adjusts the girth of his son, Joe.   They are at a meet of the Crawley & Horsham Hunt at The Fox, Angmering.    The date is April 1966.    Dorothy Price can be seen on the left.

Continue if you would like to read about another of the horses trained by the Captain — Hill House and All That.

THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — www.findonvillage.com is a continually growing record created exclusively for documenting life in Findon.