Cardigan Bay Returns

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32199, 19 January 1970, Page 1

Cardigan Bay Returns

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, January 18. Cardigan Bay, the only standardbred horse in the world to win Sim, has returned to New Zealand. Just after 9 am. yesterday the horse set one hoof firmly on Pipitea wharf and his owner, Mrs A. Dean, of Auckland, was reunited with the gelding after an absence of nearly six years. About 100 people were there to see the champion land.

Cardigan Bay began racing as a three-year-old for his breeder, Mr A. Todd, of Mataura, and a year later was sold to Mrs Dean for $6OOO. In the next four y£ars the Hal Tryax gelding won $175,366 for Mrs Dean. In 1963, the American trainer-driver, S. Dancer, came to New Zealand and bought the gelding for $lOO,OOO on the condition that he would be returned to Mrs Dean after he had finished racing. Cardigan Bay was then eight years old. Part of his hip bone was missing as the result of a crash.

In 1965 the gelding broke a splint bone in a foreleg, later he cracked another, and

then strained a ligament so badly that he could barely hobble, but each time he was able to return to racing. Only six weeks after a twoinch section of a splint bone was taken out of his leg, Cardigan Bay was back in the winner’s circle at Yonkers.

In 1967, he was once again in retirement for a while be cause of injury but came back to-become the first harness horse to win slm. Cardigan Bay will parade at Hutt Park on February 21 to lead out the field for the Cardigan Bay Stakes. Then he may tour the country before being retired for good at his breeder’s property at Mataura.