Charles Fortune after winning the 1984 Met under Grant Kotzen
The winner of the Cape Derby 40 years ago was a horse called Charles Fortune and what an amazing story this horse had behind him.
The publicity shy owners from Nottingham Road told the story a number of years ago.
A stud farm in the KZN Midlands was situated next door to a family who rode horses and one day they asked this family whether they would like the runt of their latest crop, a filly by the Irish-bred sire Masham, as a riding pony for their young daughter.
The family snapped up the offer.
A few years later the daughter, now married, no longer had the time to ride anymore.
They wondered what would be the best for her beloved pony, who was called Treasure Path and was by now about nine years old.
Her husband knew a bit about racing and took a look at the pony’s pedigree and was quite impressed.
Treaure Path was from the family of Deep Magic, who that year had run an unlucky fourth in the July, having won the Gr 2 Germiston November Handicap the previous season.
So they decided to send her to a sire called Commentary.
Bruce le Roux of today’s Bluesky Thoroughbreds was working for Rondebosch Stud in the KZN Midlands and remembers Treasure Path giving birth to the Commentary foal on that farm.
The owners gave the resulting foal an apt name, Charles Fortune, named after South Africa’s legendary cricket commentator of the time.
The rest is history as this colt trained by Summerveld’s Michael Airey not only won the Cape Derby 40 years ago in 1984, but he went on to win the Met the following year ridden by Grant Kotzen, the late brother of current trainers Glen and Nathan.
In winning the Met he beat top horses like Spanish Pool, Bodrum, subsequent July winner Gondolier, the good filly Novenna as well as previous J&B Met winner Arctic Cove and subsequent Administrators (Summer Cup) winner The Rutland Arms.
His owners and breeders had a film of the 1985 Met and it became a family tradition to watch this film on the anniversary of the big win, with the victory apparently being greeted with just as much surprise and cheeering as the day he defied 20/1 odds.
Treasure Path had a few more foals and the breeders must have believed history was going to repeat itself when the Northern Guest half-sister to Charles Fortune called Golden Seal won on debut by 3,40 lengths over 1600m at the Vaal. However, she was destined to only have a few more unplaced runs before being retired to stud, where she produced seven runners and five winners.
An unraced half-sister to Charles Fortune by Home Guard called Golden Triangle produced the Listed and Gr 3-placed four-time winning son of Nothern Guest called Master Gold.
Treasure Path also produced the six-time winner Yellow Brick Road, a gelding by Secret Prospector.
