GEORGE CURTIS TRAINING GREYHOUNDS – CHAPTER TWO (1/3)

GEORGE Curtis felt at home from the first moment he arrived at Brighton and typically, 20 years on, he still can’t get over his good luck at landing a job there.

“I just couldn’t believe the difference when I came from Portsmouth,” he said. “At Target Road you had to work so hard just to survive. But at Brighton it is all made so easy for you. I loved Portsmouth. They gave me my start in greyhound racing and I will never forget what they did for me. But going to Brighton was like moving up to the First Division. The amenities are superb at the kennels. At Portsmouth they were very basic. There was a roof over the top but there was no front and if it snowed or rained it just blew in. Sometimes you had to literally break the ice when you arrived in the morning. But at Brighton there is central heating in the kennels, there are big paddocks and a proper gallop. You are given the best of everything — food, bedding, veterinary advice — you can’t help but train top-class greyhounds.”

Curtis arrived with a string of his best dogs from Portsmouth. They included Peculiar Way, runner-up in the 1966 St Leger, Breshen Crackers, winner of the 1966 Cobb Marathon and Ever Work, finalist in the 1967 Orient Cup at Clapton. And they got the new trainer off to a flying start. He began at Brighton in April 1967 and the first major competition at his new base was the Regency in May. Curtis showed he was more then worthy of his promotion when he ended up with three runners in the final.

Ever Work, a black bitch by Jungle Worker out of New Forever, stormed home to win her heat by 64/4 lengths clocking 40.70 for the 725 yards and then went on to win the final in 40.95, beating Small Ration, also trained by Curtis, by 372 lengths. His third runner Breshen Crackers finished fifth.

That night, minutes after he arrived back at the kennels the telephone went. It was his brother Charlie desperate to know how he had got on. “He was over the moon when he heard I had got the first and second,” said Curtis. “Even though we weren’t working together we still shared each other’s successes and disappointments. He was always the first person I wanted to talk to after a big race.”

Owners Les Smith and Gordon Poole followed Curtis to Brighton and he remains deeply grateful for their loyalty. “I will always be grateful to the owners who moved over to Brighton with me,” said Curtis. “It meant that I started with a dozen top-class dogs and they made all the difference. Gunner Smith was training alongside me and he would always help me out if I was stuck. I’ve learnt so much from him over the years. To me, he is the best living trainer in the game and he has the best knowledge of greyhounds of anyone I’ve met.”

Curtis has always maintained that a trainer is only as good as the dogs in his kennel and at Brighton it was easy to attract new owners who had enough money to buy the best dogs. “When you have a track like Brighton with a beautiful running surface and first-class amenities for the public the owners come to you,” he said. “If you have good dogs you get some success and so more owners with good dogs come to you.”

He was also helped by breeder Marie Barwick who sent a number of top-class puppies to him.

 

Peter Shotton, general manager at Brighton, was racing manager at the Nevil Road track when Curtis first arrived. He left for a spell as general manager at Wembley and then came back as general manager.

He soon came to respect the young trainer and has followed his career with interest ever since.

“George has an open and enquiring mind,” he said. “Even after all his success he still says he is learning his craft. His enthusiasm is undiminished and he pays great attention to detail in everything he does.”

All racing managers know that it is no easy matter to get on with owners all the time. But Curtis, he says, had a gift for doing just that.

“He has an easy manner whether he is talking to artisans or the aristocracy,” he said. “It is a blend of patience, natural diplomacy, and downright charming good manners. In all the time I have known him, I have only once heard someone say anything ill of him. The man who did so was a not only an acknowledged pain in the neck — he was, in fact, very lucky that it was George Curtis he maligned. For George has a capacity very rarely seen in successful people — he tolerates fools.”

 

Curtis has never been afraid of hard work and as the kennel strength grew, there never seemed as if there were enough hours in the day. “Sometimes you can feel like you are dropping on your feet but there are still dogs that need letting out,” said Curtis.

“You can’t pack up until all the work is finished. And even then Curtis would often come back to the kennels in the evenings to check on a dog that was ill — or if it was a nice night just to let the dogs out for a run.

“I would bring the family down and kids always enjoyed it,” said Curtis. “Lily took out a licence so she could help me in the kennels and she always comes open racing with me. It is a great help when we come back late at night and she can let the dogs out and give them their feeds. My step-children Roger and Yvonne always used to help out as well. The only thing I draw the line at is letting Lily parade the dogs for me. She’s far too valuable. If anyone’s going to get knocked up in the air — it might as well be me.” But despite the pressure of time, Curtis has always been prepared to travel with his dogs to find the right tracks and the right competitions.

“I have always had my quota of graders at Brighton,” he said. “They are the bread and butter living for any trainer and I have always cared about them just as much as the stars in the kennel. But over the years owners have come to me because they know I am prepared to put myself out.

“Travelling to open races can be an exhausting business when you have a big kennel to run, but its always been something I’ve enjoyed.” Success was quick to come and in 1969 Curtis had his first Derby finalist with Hard Held. The fawn dog finished third and second in the opening rounds and won his semi-final by a short head clocking 29.26 over the White City course.

“I didn’t think I had much chance in the final and I wasn’t disappointed when the dog finished fifth. It was a big enough thrill to reach the final,” he said. That year honours went to the Irish trained Sand Star who won in 28.76.

 

It looked like being a golden summer for Curtis when Hard Held went on to create a new world record when he clocked 29.77 for Brighton’s 550 yard course. But just as everything was going so well, personal tragedy struck Curtis a second time.

Charlie Curtis took one of his dogs, Short Teddy, to compete in an open race at Crayford. He travelled with his lifelong friend Eric Naughton, and when they were within 20 miles of home the van skidded and Charlie was killed. “Charlie used to work so hard,” said Curtis. “He was up at the crack of dawn and he said his eyes were playing him up. He asked Eric to drive and he went in the back with the dog.

“It was August and it had been very dry. Suddenly there was a downpour and it made the road greasy. The van skidded and hit a lamp standard and Charlie and the dog were both killed. He was only 44 years old and I had always thought he was so much stronger than me. It was a terrible blow and I have never got over it. We were so close, I thought the world of him. I think in the long run it made me more determined to succeed. We were both so keen and ambitious and we were in it together. I suppose, in a way, I wanted to make up for Charlie never having the chance to show how good he was. If he had lived, I have no doubt he would have been one of the top trainers.”

 

The following year Curtis had his second tilt at the English Derby with Sirius, which was owned by Cliff Kevern.

“Cliff paid £2,000 for the dog which was big money in those days,” said Curtis. “He was a good dog and we got as far as the final and again finished in fifth place.” That year the classic was won by British bred John Silver who clocked 29.01. “I thought I had a reasonably good chance with Sirius,” said Curtis. “But there was no seeding and he was put in trap five. When I heard the draw I knew he couldn’t win from there. He came out and collided with the dog in trap one. But there was compensation when Sirius, a June 1967 whelp by Shanes Legacy out of Jersey Queen, went on to win the Gold Collar Consolation at Catford and the Anglo-Irish International at Dundalk.

By now Curtis was establishing himself as a trainer of stayers and that side of the sport has remained his great passion. “I love to see them coming from behind,” he said. “I have always tried to find puppies who will mature into stayers. I find there is more of a challenge in training for a long distance race than with the sprinters when it’s a matter of out of the boxes and gone.”

In February 1972 Curtis pulled off a one-two in the Ladbroke Marathon Championship which was televised live from Harringay. The race was over 900 yards and Real Darkie, a finalist in the Cobb Marathon Bowl two months previously, came to his best to win in 52.80. He beat the 16-1 shot Iver Flash by 27/2 lengths. Iver Flash, a white and black dog by Winning Hope – Lions Rose was another of the Cliff Kevern string. He went on the show his run was no fluke when he went unbeaten through the Key at Wimbledon in June of that year. He won his heat by 612 lengths clocking 54.59 for the 940 yards and then stormed to victory by 7 lengths in the final in 54.67.

 

Curtis has special affection for Leading Pride, the great staying bitch by Spectre out of Conigar Goddess who was owned by Ramsgate trainer George Ripley and his brother Absalom.

She was undoubtedly the best bitch he trained during those early years at Brighton and established the trainer as a force to be reckoned with on the open race circuit. Her first major victory was in the 1973 BBC TV Trophy which was staged over Wimbledon’s 880 yard course.

She was strongly fancied as she came to the competition straight after setting a new track record at Brighton. She had been competing in an 880 yard open race and in an exciting finish she got the verdict by a neck, clocking 49.83. The first heat of the TV Trophy was run at Brighton and Leading Pride showed the same red hot form to win by 21/2 lengths taking a further 21 spots off her own record. In the final at Wimbledon she justified her favouritism beating Yellow Escort by one length in a winning time of 51.16.

It looked as though Curtis’s first classic victory was on the cards when the black bitch enjoyed two impressive wins in the opening rounds of the St Leger. But she finished fourth in the semi-final. Again, she came frustratingly close in the Grand Prix the following year. She ran unbeaten to the final and then finished fourth in the decider. Although she went on to win the 1974 Key at Wimbledon with a fine 54.49 run, Curtis felt that he was still failing to get the best from his dogs in the big competitions.

“The graders were doing well and we had our successes in open races — but we couldn’t seem to pull off a major win,” he said. “I took advice from everyone and tried all sorts of different diets and exercise routines to get the dogs keyed up, but we still missed out.”

 

The turning point came a year later when Abbey Glade won the Gold Collar at Catford. The brindled dog by Kilbeg Kuda-Abbey Groves had won the Sussex Cup at Brighton before she started her tilt at the classic.

She won her opening two rounds and then just qualified in third place for the final. But then she made no mistake and stormed to victory in the decider beating Dancing Dolores by 71/4 lengths in 34.97 for the 555m.

Curtis was not even there to celebrate — he was away on holiday. And that proved to be the secret of his new-found success. “My trouble was that I had been worrying too much about the dogs,” he said. “When I left everyone to it, with no major changes in kennel routine, it all went as smooth as silk.”

Curtis had now arrived. He had a flourishing strength of graders, open race contenders and a growing band of owners. “When you have a big kennel you have to have good staff,” said Curtis. “You soon learn that you can’t do everything yourself. You must be able to delegate — although ultimately you have the responsibility.” He also learnt that owners must know who is in charge.

“I have been very lucky with my owners,” said Curtis. “Many of them have become friends over the years. But you always get the odd one who thinks he knows better than you. He will come up to you on a race night and argue if the dog’s weight is up or down by a few spots. I always say: ‘See how the dog runs and then criticise.’ There are others who think they can train the dog better than you. They come up with all sorts of suggestions and tell you what you should be doing. I just nod my head and carry on the same as before.”

 

But behind his easy-going manner, Curtis has rigid principles and he makes no compromises when an owner wants to mess around with his dog.

“You must get wins for your owners,” he said. “That is part of the game. If they get wins it encourages them to buy more dogs, which is good news for you. But I have never messed around with a dog, it is not my way. I have always been honest and straight with owners. I tell them: ‘No-one will work harder or try harder than me. But if that’s not good enough, go somewhere else.’

“When I first started out, a trainer said to me: ‘Feed the dogs the best you can and try your best — if the owner still isn’t satisfied you’re better off without him.’ That is good advice. You can’t please everyone and, as long as you know you have done all you can, that has to be enough. I always try to make an owner see sense — but equally you have to know when it’s time to give up. The worst ones are those who have no feelings about the dog as an animal. All they want is a gamble. They’ll say: ‘Can’t you give it this or that, or a couple of pounds of sausage meat.’ But I say: ‘I’ll do it my way or not at all.’ The other type of owner to be wary of is the one who comes in and thinks he can make a fortune overnight. You know he is certain to be disappointed.”

Curtis has never trained a dog to race on the independent circuit and his record for straight dealing is legendary in the sport. “Don’t think I’m little Lord Fauntleroy. I understand the problems of having a small kennel and needing to make it pay,” he said. “You are under terrible pressure. I have been a track trainer all my life so I haven’t had those sort of worries. I’ve been able to do things my way and come out on top. Of course, I have owners who like a decent gamble.

Peter Carpenter had thousands on Sandy Lane, but I made sure I didn’t know about it. She always ran to win and fortunately she was such a good bitch, Peter was rarely wasting his money.”

Although Curtis is totally uncompromising in the way he runs his dogs, he tries not to fall out with his owners. “If the Duke of Edinburgh asked me to fiddle, I wouldn’t,” he said. “I would tell him to his face to take his dogs away. But equally I would say: ‘My doors are always open. No hard feelings. If you go away and get fed up you can always come back.’

”Curtis is also very firm in his views on when to retire a greyhound. In a career that spans close to half a century he cannot remember having a healthy dog destroyed.

“At Brighton we all do a lot of fund-raising for retired greyhounds and they have a very good home-finding scheme,” he said. “A lot of the kennel staff keep a retired dog at home and so do a lot of the trainers.”

Ben, who raced as Ballymena Moon, enjoys a life of luxury in the Curtis household. In his track days he was a successful hurdler, reaching the final of the 1980 Springbok and Grand National. “I usually give owners the nod when it’s time to retire their dogs,” said Curtis. “I think when a greyhound reaches three-and-a-half-years-old, he has come to the end. A bitch may carry on a bit longer.

“Most owners know when it is time to give up. Sometimes people with graded dogs want them to keep running, but most don’t like to see them fall in standard. I hate to see a good dog end up being beaten in the first race. I always advise owners to let a dog finish on top. When I saw Glin Bridge beaten by Westmead Champ in the 1976 Regency, I thought it was time for him to go. When you start getting the young dogs coming through and your dog is going to struggle to beat them, you should call it a day.”