MAN VERSUS HORSE

Greymouth Evening Star, 28 April 1937, Page 14

MAN VERSUS HORSE

AUSTRALIA’S GREATEST RIDER This is the story of the greatest bucking horse that ever lived in Australia, wrote Robert La Velle recently in “The Australasian.” His name was Bobs. He had never been ridden, although nearly .every rider of the day had tried to, and in the process several had lost their lives and many others had been smashed up, some permanently crippled.

A real outlaw horse is like a maneating tiger. Once he kills he develops a liking for it. Bobs’s reputation as a killer was widespread throughout Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland. Martini, then at the height of his fame as a showman, bought Bobs as an added attraction for his show in the Hippodrome, Sydney (N.S.W.). With the show were many good riders from all parts of Australia, but the rule about Bobs was that no man was asked to ride him more than once a month; except one man, a wonder at landing on his feet and getting away from him safely. And no rider with the show had stayed with him more than two seconds.

Strangely, there was one rider in Queensland who had never tried to ride Bobs. His mame -was Joe Atkinson. None of the other riders could match Joe Atkinson for daring or skill. He was undoubtedly the greatest balance rider in Australia. For reasons of his own, Martini had never brought him and the horse together. But it had to happen. You can’t keep the best rider in the world away from the worst horse in the world for ever.

The meeting took place in Toowoomba, Queensland. Here is the story of the ride witnessed by me as one of the riders travelling with the show. When Martini said to Joe Atkinson, “Joe, I like a game man and I like a game horse, and Bobs is the gamest horse now living in Australia.” Joe answered, “You don’t think he’s going to hurt me, do you, Mart?” Martini said, “Joe, Bobs has never been ridden for more than two jumps by any man but one, and that man rode him for only eight seconds.” Joe roped, saddled, and mounted Bobs. Did he buck? There was no whistle blowing at the end of ten seconds. The ringside men who were always in readiness with ropes to catch Bobs and keep him off his man, stood openmouthed and pale, dumbfounded with the display. It was horse or man, we could see that. The outlaw bucked around the ring for 22 minutes; bucked as only Bobs, of all the horses I have known, could buck. He swapped ends, looped the loop, flew the kite, whirlwinded, in fact did everything but turn himself inside out.

It seemed he never would stop. But he did. He came to a dead standstill. We all called out, “Get off, Joe.” But Joe could not hear. He was deaf and blind. He could not understand anything. He told us afterwards that he dimly heard Martini saying, “Get off, Joe,” but he thought Bobs was 1 only sulking, and ready to go off at any time. We dragged him out of the saddle and to the hospital. He was laid up for three weeks. Bobs was never seen again after that night. He did not leave the ring alive. In his effort to get rid of Atkinson he killed himself.