Above picture: Both Piere Strydom, pictured in Hollywood Racing colours, and Anthony Delpech have ridden four Durban July winners. (Credit: Candiese Lenferna Photography)
Newsletter cover picture: Strydom’s third July victoriy was from draw 20 of 20 aboard the Sean Tarry-trained Pomodoro in 2012. (Credit: sahorseracing.com)
Piere “Striker” Strydom’s insurance costs have gone up so much that it is “pushing me out of the game” and he said there was a possibility he would not be able to have a final tilt at equalling Anton Marcus’s record of five July wins, with his weight being the other negative factor.
It is a prerequisite to have a certain amount of insurance cover for a jockey to keep his or her license, but Strydom’s insurance costs are rising due to his age.
He said he had the option of changing insurance companies as long as he did it before his next birthday (June 7) and said he would be speaking to another such company soon.
However, he said the dilemma he would then face if the new one turned out to be affordable would be whether it would be worth the risk, because the cover he would get in case of an accident would likely be way less than the cover he had with his current insurance company.
Apparently insurance companies these days are reluctant to insure jockeys as it is viewed as a dangerous occupation and therefore high risk, so that and the fact he has been with his current company for a long time and made many contributions means a new policy is likely to have substantuially less cover in case of an accident.
Strydom’s costs also include medical aid and gap cover and ultimately the rising costs, which are due to his age, have meant an astronomical amount is taken out of his potential earnings per month.
He would really like to hang on for one more Hollywoodbets Durban July ride, but having lost the ride on See It Again, who would be topweight as it stands, the choices of other horses he can make the weight on are thin.
He said, “I am not so sure I will still be riding at the time of the July as I am not going for the championship or anything and you can get injured at any minute, so it makes no sense to ride for nothing (earnings minus insurance and medical costs leaves him with little at the end of the month).”
He added, “There is the possibility I might be retiring quite soon, but we will just see what the opportunities are for the July.”
Nevertheless, he has already booked accomodation for the July for himself and his family and he said, “Everybody wants to be at the July and I will be there whether I’m riding in it or not!”
He then took some time to reminisce about his memories of the great race from beginning to end.
“I first heard about the July as a little kid, because my dad was a jockey and I used to look at the race card and was getting involved without really knowing it. I remember the first horse that caught my attention was Jamaican Music, this lovely grey horse, and when he won it in 1976 that was my first fond memory of the July.”
“When I became a jockey the July was almost like you’ve now come to the big league. It’s THE race that the country will hear about. Even if you’re not a racing person, you might know about the Durban July winner. So, it’s almost like becoming champion jockey, but winning the July probably means more to the public, because that’s what the country, if you’re not a racing person, might know about. It’s a race we all want to win and it comes only once a year. To just be part of it is great, but to actually win it, it’s like you can’t believe it. At my first win I was almost in tears, tears of relief and tears of finally knowing you have won the July. It is not just the build up and winning the race, it is the acknowledgement of having won the July and people will still be talking about it years later.”
“My first ride was on Gitano for Piet Steyn in 1988. I remember coming from the tail end of the field and I think Jeff Lloyd finished third again, because I think he stopped riding just before the line and we came flying for second (beaten 3,6 lengths) by Royal Chalice.”
“My first July win on London News in 1996 was especially memorable because it was the 100th running. I remember at the traditional Friday night cocktail Henk Vos was there with his big painting and there was one spot left for the 100th winner and I can still remember saying to someone that I think my picture’s going to be up there. And it happened!”
“London News was a lekker horse to ride because he had gate speed, a lot of natural speed and he would travel right up there in front and he had a good kick. But at the top of the straight I thought with a light weight let me just let the reins go a bit and get a length or two for the short straight. But he accelerated way quicker than I had expected and that’s when he made up three or four lengths on the field. Obviously it was going to tell at the end and he was stopping quite badly at the end. I heard the horses coming and I was just hoping for the line and he held on. But I was a little bit doubtful whether he did hold on, because the angle obviously favours the outside horse (Sleek Machine, ironically ridden by Doug Whyte, who badly wanted to win as owner Laurie Jaffee took him off after London News’ defeat in the Cape Guineas). So I was a bit worried but his ability got him through and he was made for Greyville. When the numbers came up there were almost the tears (as mentioned earlier) and I was shouting and screaming, I think the whole grandstand heard me!”
His other wins on Trademark 2001, Pomodoro 2012 and The Conglomerate 2016 were just as memorable and he said, “Obviously every July win is great. But what was nice was winning on Pomodoro from the worst draw (20 out of 20) and winning on The Conglomerate from the worst draw (18 out of 18), those rides were particularly memorable. In the first bit of the July they always go too fast and the fact I was drawn on the outside allowed me to keep up with the pace and when they started easing I came around them and found a handy position and dictated the race from there. It is quite pleasing to remember my tactical riding and the way the race worked out, that I could come from the worst draw and still win the race.”
Piere is not oblivious to needing just one more July win to equal Anton Marcus’ record of five.
He recalled, “Anton chirped me one year. He had just won the July and said to me, ‘How many times have you won the July?’ and I only realised a couple of seconds later he was being facetious, because he’s got one more than me! It would mean a lot to jointly hold the record and that’s why I’ve also been going a bit longer than I should be, because I’m just looking for that one more.”
