"WINOOKA TALKS"

Waipa Post, Volume 47, Issue 3359, 26 August 1933, Page 5

"WINOOKA TALKS"

A STORY FROM SAN FRANCISCO A WELL.LIKED CHAMPION Australia's champion miler now domiciled in America is highly favoured by American sporting writers aruUhere is Avhat one says in a San FranVisco pbper: Receiving reporters with' his shoes off, Winooka the big Australian Rembrandt, talked for publication yesterday. This is probably the first interview ever given out by a horse without shoes on. Standing on a pile of Algerian meadow hay which members of the Winooka menage of eight men to one horse will tell you costs eight dollars a bale, Winooka admitted he got off to a humble start in life. "Why, I was born in a stable," confided the horse. "Little did I dream at the time that five years later I would shove off for America from Sydney with 10,000 people on the docks to se e me off. And to think I got to the top without selling newspapers on a street corner. "Why, I'm not just a horse in Australia. I'm a national institution. They kicked up such a fuss over me at the docks that the departure of the boat was held up an hour. Imagine 10,000 people milling around after a piece of hair out of my tail for a souvenir. Bit of a Rogue "Can I take Equipoise and Gallant Sir for, a ride, Blime, sir, I don't know, I Understand Gallant Sir is a bit of a rogue. A sulker. I fancy I might beat him. But Equipoisehe's all horse. "You see, I can't say what I'll do on the American turf. I've never run on a dirt track in my life. In Australia all the tracks are of grass footing. "Am I a greater horse than Phar Lap? I've beaten his best time for, the seven furlongs. I think I might have beaten him at any distance less than a mile. Beyond that I don't know. My owners have never let me run more than a mile. They promise they will let me go a route in another year.

Big as Phar Lap "I'm about as big as Phar; Lap. H e was 16 hands 3 inches. I'm about 16 hands 1 inch. As yearlings we were both put on the auction block. You know all they can go on with a baby horse like that is breeding and conformation. I was sold for 30') guineas. Phar Lap bought only 160. "I haven't a fancy name like Phar Lap to start with. In high Woolbomoolookan Phar Lap means /Wing of Western Skies.' In low Wojdloomoolookan it means ''Greased Lightning.' Throw it into neutral and I don't know what it would mean. . "Pa's name was Windbag and Ma's Kanooka. There must have been a beef about what to name me so they both compromised and I became half and half—Winooka.

"I was a mass production baby. Born on the farm of Percy Miller,; Australia's biggest breeder, I was just one of 300 yearlings sold at auction one season.

Ran Only Eleven Races

"I've only run eleven races in my whole career, winning eight of them. The first heat I ran all over the track, taking the overland route and naturally I lost. I won my second race. "Messrs Matthews and MacDonald then bought me for 5000 dollars. MiMatthews is perhaps the largest bookmaker in Australia and he won enough on me in the race I won to buy me. "I will never forget the first race I ran for Mr Matthews. I was anxious to make good and he was anxious to have me make good. He would only have won 20,000 dollars on me in my first race for him had I won it—and no stage money.

"A peculiar thing happened in that race. They use rubber barrier rope in Australia. One of the horses in the race was playing with it and had it in his mouth when it was sprung. He bolted away and carried it with him until it stretched fully fifty yards. It recoiled and hit me in the nose and I almost stumbled at the same time causing my rider to lose his stirrups. I was almost an eighth of a mile behind after that but I came on and finished fourth

Imported Diet

<v ßut since that time 1 have won six .straight races and my owners should be more than even on me now. They feet me in the winter at 10 to 1 in the Doncaster Handicap, Australia's 'Kentucky Derby,' in February. I closed at 5 to 2 and ■won by almost three lengths. After that I used to go to the post at 1 to 12.

"What's the secret of my success ? I just keep my attitude at the post. Never act up. I break fast and keep winging. I've never had to have the whip put on me, nor the spurs. And I have never worn blinkers. And I have the world's best trainer in Mike Poison.

"What do I eat? All my food was brought over from Australia. It consists of oaten hay, a special Australian product, used for, racehorses only; Nem Zealand meadow.

hay, a mixture of hay, clover and New Zealand native grasses; Algerian oats, and Vitalick, a powder made in Australia consisting of every mineral vital to equine health. "Hey, hey, what ho and cheerio!"