LAST week’s edition of The Nationalist was greatly enhanced by that charming photograph of the lovely Tara Lynham – three years married to the lucky Jason – whose picture framing skills have long been appreciated in this quarter, where she has always been known by her maiden name – Tara Gale.
That very name brings back fond memories of a most accomplished jockey, an informative and entertaining journalist, and one of nature’s gentlemen, Johnnie Gale, Tara’s grandfather. While Johnnie Gale was carried off by cancer at an early age, his articles in such as The Irish Horseman and then Pacemaker have kept his memory fresh every time they serve as vital research sources. Unlike many of the ‘Fourth Estate’ Johnnie Gale was a meticulously accurate writer, whose facts and figures could be relied upon, however his conversational style of writing might seek to disguise the ‘art that conceals art’.
Born in 1923 and reared in Gloucestershire, Johnnie Gale grew up surrounded by horses, cutting his teeth in the hunting field, as his father, Captain David Gale, hunted the Simmington Hounds in Yorkshire for several seasons. Joining the armed forces as soon as he was old enough to do so, Johnnie Gale served throughout WWII. He had experienced active service in North Africa, Italy, France and Germany, when ultimately demobbed as Captain, 11th Hussars. It was now that his racing career began in earnest, as amateur rider for ‘Bay’ Powell’s then all-conquering National Hunt stable.
The amateur’s steady stream of winners a Cheltenham Festival success included tempted him to follow fellow Corinthians Dicky Black and Dick Francis into turning professional. He did so, only to break a leg so badly on his very first paid ride – Sabre Wing came down on the flat at Worcester – that he was sidelined for the whole of that season.
Finding rides hard to obtain when he did recover – memories in racing can be brutally short – Johnnie became assistant trainer to the gifted but irascible veteran, ‘Atty’ Persse. It was a tribute to Johnnie’s tact and restraint that he left Persse only when the old-timer finally retired in 1953, having trained successfully for half a century.
Having married Joan Sherry, whose father had hunted the Duhallows for 20 seasons, Johnnie moved over to Ireland with Joan and their two sons Martin and Dermot. Despite his lengthy Sabbatical Johnnie found his services as a jump jockey in much greater demand in his adoptive country. Dan Moore was quick to appreciate Johnnie’s horsemanship, putting him up on Quita Que, multiple Cheltenham Festival hero and Johnnie’s favourite mount.
Georgie Wells was another ready to employ his services, providing him with a hat trick on Copper Cottage. That sequence opened in the Governor’s Cup at Down Royal in May 1958, for which Johnnie received a prized whip, presented to him by the Queen Mother.
The following year Johnnie Gale retired on a winning note, having ridden future star ‘chaser Owen’s Sedge to win at Naas for locally-based owner-trainer-breeder FD Farmer of Piper’s Hill. The Turf Club was equally quick to recognise Johnnie’s natural aptitude, employing him in a variety of roles, which led to him being appointing senior flat handicapper. However, it was only on his retirement from the Turf Club in 1969 that Johnnie Gale was to realise his true talent, becoming editor of The Irish Horseman, founded a couple of years earlier by Jonathan Irwin.
In due course The Irish Horseman became amalgamated with Pacemaker, allowing Johnnie Gale to devote his talents exclusively to writing in his capacity as Pacemaker’s Irish correspondent, a role subsequently taken up by Michael Clower.
He also became a regular contributor to The British Racehorse. One of his most memorable and informative articles resulted from a lengthy interview with Roderic More O’Ferrall, former trainer and founder of the famously successful Kildangan Stud.
Johnnie’s attempts to cut through Roderic’s self-deprecating smoke screen to discover the key to his success as a breeder became a joy to read over and over again, revealing another gem of unwilling disclosure with each re-reading.
Sadly, Johnnie Gale was not spared to see his beauteous baby granddaughter, born the year after his widely mourned passing. Martin, his elder son, has become a well established and eminently collectible artist. Incidentally, anyone suggesting that horsey people could only have coupled the names ‘Martin’ and ‘Gale’ when in their cups is firmly refuted. By Tara’s account her family is long renowned for its streak of eccentricity.