Page 24 - The Game September 2006

24 The Game, September 2006 Your Thoroughbred Racing Community Newspaper
George Newland: How It Took 34 Years to Become an Overnight Success
By Peter Gross
The famous motivational speaker Harvey Mackay could easily have been thinking of trainer George Newland when he wrote,
“Find something you love to do and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
I first met Newland in the Woodbine backstretch on a comfortably cool Sunday morning. He was walking one of his horses and as he neared me, he shouted,
“George is the name – racing is the game!”
Newland is a gregarious 54 years old, born in Jamaica, but a resident of Canada since the early 70s.
“In Jamaica I went to the track with my buddies a few times and I liked it,” he says, “I liked the animal and I liked the sport. So I came here in 1972 and the first day I came here, I met Gil Rowntree at the track and he said, ‘Have you ever groomed horses before?’ and I said, ‘Not really’ and he said, ‘From now on you’re a groom’”
For more than fourteen years, that’s what George did and it never crossed his mind to work elsewhere or to do anything else. Being around horses, helping them and making them better is something he looks forward to every day.
“Man, just looking at them. It’s God’s work,” he says, “ They’re so smart. They’re so powerful. If a horse really knew its strength, I don’t think any man could really handle them. It’s a wonder.”
When in Rowntree’s employ, Newland worked with some fine horses and his perpetual smile broadens as he recalls the best.
“With Gil I used to rub Gurkha’s Band and I had Port News. I had Amber Herod for a little bit. He won the Queen’s Plate in 1974.”
Newland groomed for Rowntree for five years and was with Laurie Silvera for about five years as well. There were stints of one or two years with other trainers. But finally, his dedication to the horse entitled him to an elevated calling at the track.
“In 1986 I applied for my trainer’s license and I passed my test. My first horse was a little horse I bought in the sale. She was so tiny they named her Tiny Princess. She won for me at Fort Erie with Jimmy Fazio riding.”
For the better part of two decades, Newland’s training career was a minimal blip on the radar screen. A couple cheap horses here, a few claimers, the odd horse for a friend. That all changed this spring when Monty Muthulingam decided to entrust Newland with his stable
of eight horses.
Muthulingam who runs a company that services digital
boxes and makes remote controls, decided to change channels because he wasn’t happy with the way his horses were being handled and he’d heard positive things about Newland.
“George is a good guy, a hard working guy, “says Muthulingam, “And he works honestly. For twenty years at the racetrack nobody said anything bad about George. You can sit down and talk to him.”
The best of Muthulingam’s horses is the veteran gelding Barbeau Ruckus, who has now won at least one stakes race in each of his six racing years. Under Newland’s care, Barbeau Ruckus was an upset winner of the Steady Growth Stakes on June 10th at Woodbine. Actually, the $10.40 that Barbeau Ruckus returned is pretty generous considering it was his third win in the Steady Growth in four years.
The Steady Growth Stakes was run on Barbados Day at Woodbine and that made the victory all the sweeter for Newland who has borne witness to a recent influx of dedicated horse people from the Caribbean.
“We get guys from the islands who come up and work and they like it,” says Newland, “The people in the West Indies like to see when we do good. They keep in touch with you. They phone in, ‘Oh I heard you won a race.’ It’s marvellous.”
The first place cheque for $75,000 from the Steady Growth not only made Barbeau Ruckus a millionaire, but the 10% cut going to Newland was the largest payoff he’d ever earned in one race.
There is, however, a pretty good chance Newland will top that. On September 4th, Ruckus is entered in the Elgin Stakes and the winning trainer gets a $10,000 voucher redeemable at the annual yearling sales. The Elgin, at a mile and a sixteenth, is another contest Barbeau Ruckus is familiar with, having captured it in both 2003 and 2005.
“My other trainer got that bonus twice,” says Muthulingam, “This year, George should get it.”
In just a few short months, Newland has given his new owner some profitable advice. On Newland’s suggestion, Muthulingam claimed Paula McCartney, Fly Mission and Spark The Gold. All three have subsequently won races.
“He’s a very nice guy to work with,” says Muthulingam about his trainer, “I’m very happy with where I am right now. I have good people.”
George Newland gives off the kind of energy you get from people who are completely happy with their lives. Along with several productive older horses, he also has a couple of up-and-comers he’s excited about.
“I’ve got a nice two-year-old for an old friend of mine. Her name is Try Angel,” says Newland, daring you to wipe the smile off his face, “And I’ve got this Dragon Master another two-year-old for the future.”
A prime enrichment in his life is his wife Marian and three children, Charlene 32, Richard 28 and Carol 22. In October, the Newlands will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary.
A loving family and employment at the racetrack constitutes the Garden of Eden for Newland.
“This is the greatest thing for me,” he exclaims, “This is like life itself. It’s wonderful. I liked it when I was a kid and I still love it. It’s good to get up early in the morning and come to the track. It keeps me going. It’s my boost- er.”
We’ll end our visit with another quote from Harvey MacKay, who seems to create his witticisms with George Newland in mind:
"Be like a postage stamp. Stick to it until you get there."
Photo Top: George & his crew (From L-R) Leslie “Rerun” Petter, David Thompson, George Newland, Earl Johnson,
Photo Right: George Newland and Barbeau Ruckus
Tommy Wolski
Backstretch Briefs
BATTLE OF THE SEXES:
It appears battle for ‘Horse of the Year’ in this Province has come down to Canmor Farms reigning queen of Hastings, Monashee and Nick & Pauline Felicella’s outstanding Spaghetti Mouse.
Spaghetti Mouse, named after a pasta restaurant owned by Nick, it was only after a visit to Disneyland that Pauline was able to come up with a name everyone at Hastings would fall in love with.
“After watching Minnie and Mickey Mouse and knowing Desert Mouse was our horse’s dam, I felt mouse should be apart of his name.
Spaghetti Mouse, a $16,000 purchase from the local CTHS Yearling Sale has now earned over $400,000 for his owners, including a 41-1 upset in last years $250,000 B C Derby, appears to relish any distance run over one mile and a sixteenth.
As for Monashee, her win by 13 3/4 lengths in the $48,500 Senate Appointee, followed by an easy romp in the $50,000 B C Cup Distaff, has nearly made it impossible for Hastings management to find rivals willing to tackle the big grey mare.
Which horse will be crowned ‘Horse of the Year‘for 2006? It could possibly come down to a flip of the coin by the judges.
With less then three months remaining in the 2006 thorough- bred meet at Hastings, one sure bet is that the best has yet to come for local racing fans.
THE WAIT IS FINALLY OVER AT HASTINGS
If anything, the first three quarters of the 2006 Hastings racing meeting has proved interesting.
After almost two years of receiving approval for slot machines by then Mayor Larry Campbell and Vancouver City Council, Great Canadian Gaming Corporation, owners of Hastings racecourse recently received the go-ahead by a B.C. Supreme Court Judge to get this project underway.
“We have been moving along with that process over the last few months and right now we (GCGC) are just dotting the i’s on our development permit with the city.” said Howard Blank, Executive Director, Media & Public Relations for GCGC.
“However because of the lawsuit it has moved along slowly. Now that it has been settled we can capitalize upon more resources and executives. Hopefully we will be able to make an announcement as a public company shortly once we have a finalized agreement.”
As for owners and horseman this
decision means there is finally a bright light at the end of a once dark tunnel.
SAD NOTE: After a long battle with cancer, former jockey Jack Phillips passed away at a local hospice. For many younger jockeys, Jackie Phillips’ name was one they would be unfamiliar with. For veteran riders and fans, Phillips would always be known as a successful journeyman during his long career as a rider.
During his executive position with the Jockeys Benefit Association, Jack was instrumental in acquiring the ten percent mandatory bonus for the jockeys which they still receive today
A giant of a man both on and away from racing, all of us in horse racing send our condolences to the Phillips family.
Spaghetti Mouse and trainer Gary Demorest. Tom Wolski photo