Young Quinn, a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

standardbred The Standardbred is an American horse breed best known for its ability in harness racing, where members of the breed compete at either a trot or pace. Developed in North America, the Standardbred is recognized worldwide, and the breed can trace i ...

racehorse, was successful in period where his competition in the sport of trotting was particularly strong. Foaled in 1969, he was by Young Charles out of Loyal Trick by Hal Tryax (USA). Named after Brian "Snow" Quinn, a champion New Zealand

sheep shearer A sheep shearer is a worker who uses (hand-powered)-blade or machine shears to remove wool from domestic sheep during crutching or shearing. History During the early years of sheep breeding in Australia, shearing was carried out by sheph ...

, he was trained and driven by the great Charles Stewart Hunter (Charlie). He was nicknamed 'Garbage' as a result of his habit of eating anything in sight, as a young horse. It was later revealed by cardiograph tests that Young Quinn's heart weighed 13 lb, only 1 lb less than that of the great racehorse Phar Lap.

Racing career

Young Quinn made 133 starts for 59 wins and 36 placings for NZ$752,587 in stakemoney. His record of beating off strong rivals and big names was noticed by the public, and thus he was sometimes sent out odds on. He raced against many good horses of the time like Arapaho and

Robalan Robalan was a champion New Zealand pacer Standardbred horse, known as "Robby". He is notable in that he won the 1974 NZ Trotting Cup, the richest harness race in New Zealand, and for his epic contests with champion pacer Young Quinn who he more t ...

. Notable races in New Zealand included: * 3rd in the 1973

New Zealand Trotting Cup The New Zealand Cup for standardbred horses, also known as either the New Zealand Trotting Cup or the New Zealand Pacing Cup is a Group One (G1) harness race held annually by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington Raceway in Chri ...

behind Arapaho and Globe Bay. * 2nd in the 1973

Auckland Pacing Cup The Auckland Pacing Cup which is sometimes referred to as the Auckland Trotting Cup or merely the Auckland Cup is a race held at Alexandra Park in Auckland, New Zealand for Standardbred horses. It is one of the two major harness races, along with ...

behind Arapaho, with Black Watch 3rd. * 3rd in the 1974

behind

and Kotare Legend. * 1st in the 1974

beating

and Hi Foyle.

Mirace Mile

In the 1975 Miracle Mile Pace,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

's premier mile, at

Harold Park Harold Park is a place in the London Borough of Havering. History Harold Park is north-eastern part of Harold Wood, occupying an isthmus of land between the A12 and the Ingrebourne River (The River Ingrebourne at Harold Park and Hornchurch). ...

, Young Quinn won from barrier six, the outside draw on a very tight track, beating the two acknowledged Australian champions of the time,

Paleface Adios Paleface Adios (1969–1989) was an Australian harness racing horse which competed as a pacer throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. He raced from 1972 to 1981, (from the age of two years until he was retired at the age of 11 years) when there w ...

and

Hondo Grattan Hondo Grattan was a Standardbred pacer from Bathurst, New South Wales known as the "Bathurst Bulldog". He won the Inter Dominion Pacing Championship in both 1973 and 1974, becoming the first horse to successfully defend an Inter Dominion title ...

1975 Inter Dominion

The 1975

Inter Dominion :''for winners of the Inter Dominion see: Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and Inter Dominion Trotting Championship'' The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. It is ...

was held in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

. A strong team of Australian pacers including

, Just Too Good and Royal Gaze, made the trip across the Tasman. He won the three heats and the Pacer's final, beating locals Hi Foyle and Speedy Guest. Starting as a short-priced favourite in the final, he was driven by

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, following the injury to his regular driver and trainer

Charlie Hunter Charlie Hunter (born May 23, 1967) is an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. First coming to prominence in the early 1990s, Hunter plays custom-made seven- and eight-string guitars on which he simultaneously plays bass lines, chords, a ...

. Ironically, Langdon also won the Trotter's section of the Inter Dominion driving the Hunter-trained Castleton's Pride. These two wins gained Langdon a spot on the

Inter Dominion Hall of Fame The Inter Dominion Hall of Fame is an organization created to recognise and honour those whose achievements have enriched the world of the Harness racing industry, particularly in the Inter Dominion series. The hall of fame was created to hono ...

North America

Young Quinn later raced in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

with considerable success which included at least one victory over the USA champion of the day,

Rambling Willie Rambling Willie (April 18, 1970 - August 24, 1995) was a harness racing horse, more specifically a bay pacing gelding sired by Rambling Fury and out of Meadow Belle by Meadow Gold. Rambling Willie was born on a farm in Monroeville, Indiana. ...

, until returning to New Zealand in 1980 for a few starts prior to being retired.

Reference list

{{reflist, 2 Auckland Pacing Cup winners Harness racing in the United States Harness racing in Australia Inter Dominion winners Miracle Mile winners New Zealand standardbred racehorses New Zealand Trotting Hall of Fame horses 1969 racehorse births

Racing career

Mirace Mile

1975 Inter Dominion

North America

See also

Reference list