Howard Hamilton
I HAD a discussion with A KING IS BORN a few weeks ago and I thought I should share with you some of the things he had to say:
"You know, I have been a super star all my life. From the day I was foaled, people looked at me and said: "This is a race horse if ever there is one."
I will never forget when I was first introduced to you (after you had paid a small fortune for me), you were very sceptical saying that I was much too small. I decided then and there to prove to you that I was the greatest investment that you had ever made. I beat them all from five furlongs to one and a half miles, I became your first Derby winner - remember how you cried tears of joy that day?
"I was pampered spoiled and cuddled. I had the best of creature benefits: special bedding imported from Canada; special imported feed; air conditioned comfort; and, music to keep me at peace with the world. Nothing was too good for me and I made sure I performed with the gratitude that I owed to you for the special love and care that you showered on me. How could I ever forget the warm soap and water sponge baths, the massages, the many buckets of crimped oats, alfalfa and supplements that you would cry for?
"I made the mistake of losing a race which you had dominated, winning three of the four times that the race was run. But I was hurting and you knew that. You had so much confidence in me that you kept repeating that even with no legs I would beat them all. Well, that was not to be and you convinced me that I should retire from racing. You convinced me that, in my new career I would become the best locally-bred stallion ever to be produced.
STRONG PREJUDICE
I felt that there has always been a strong prejudice against the stud services of horses that have been bred locally and have raced locally but I had been so versatile, and had been so outstanding, that there would be quite a crowd of ladies clamouring for my 'service.' You convinced me that I would be retiring to a life of having sex with the fittest females, sometimes three times a day. From February to June that is all I would do. No messing around with foreplay since there would be a 'teasing stallion' to take care of that. He would get things heated up, and when the mood was right, I would do my thing. This sounded like even more fun than racing, so I accepted the challenge and off I went to the farm.
A WHOLE NEW LIFE
Well, this was a whole new life. I had a lot of space to prance and dance and run around but there was no special bedding, no pampering and cuddling. In fact, nobody even bothered to look at me. I had a rude awakening when my father made it plain that he was the 'Cock of the walk' and I should have no delusions of grandeur with respect to serving any of his 'ladies.'
"You will get what I don't want," he neighed and showed a great level of disdain for the best son he had ever produced. I thought to myself: "What a pompous ass, I will show him!" I thought he would have been proud to have me carry on his noble line.
"Well, the day came for my first 'encounter.' What a fiasco! The mare was an old tired hag who barely produced plus she had some problems and had to be stitched up - a process called CASLICK. The stupid people of this farm had me trying to serve a mare who could not be entered. Can you imagine the psychological frustration? Try as I may it was no use. It was then they realised that the stitches had to be removed. I eventually served that mare probably five times. Not even my dad could get her pregnant. Well I ended up getting mares that nobody else wanted and only served seven mares. I don't know how many of them got pregnant and to be honest with you, I don't really care.
STUD FARM
"I quickly learnt that prejudices that exist in your animal group are nowhere near what exist here at the stud farm. I have often heard you say: "If you are white, you are all right, if you are brown stick around but if you are black, go to the back." Well, here in my world it is even worse - no matter what trash comes from foreign they will get all the mares.
"Not one of the foreigners here on this farm has performance, my confirmation, and my breeding, but they get all the girls. To say that I am frustrated and disappointed is putting it mildly. Now I know how you feel with all the effort that you have made to make life more enjoyable for us all. I have decided that I am a runner not a lover so it is back to the race track for me. I understand that you are so fed up that you have placed all your racing and breeding stock up for sale.
"Please, I know how you feel, but don't sell me. I'd rather die than go to another owner. I am going to try my best to bring you some more pleasure - as old and as arthritic as I am. Both my brother and I have had a long rest. We are both going to make you happy again. Don't, please don't give us away."
Howard L. Hamilton, C.D., J.P. is a former chairman of Caymanas Track Limited. He is the current president of Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders' Association. He can be contacted at howham@cwjamaica.com.
