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Molly and Lewis take on the 2024 Equimillion!
Lindsay Park Racing and the Hayes family are proud to be sponsoring Molly Tillett and Lewis in this year’s Equimillion. Beginning on Friday 4th of October and finishing on Monday 7th of October, Equimillion is a fantastic initiative from Racing NSW and Equestrian Australia to highlight the versatility and talent of thoroughbreds in Dressage, Jumping, Eventing and Showing. This event, which began in 2023, showcases the thoroughbred as the perfect all-rounder, as well as creating public awareness around the wonderful life many thoroughbreds live after racing. Molly and Lewis have a strong partnership which saw them succeed in last year’s Equimillion, being placed Champion in the 100cm Showjumping and Reserve Champion in the CCN 1* Eventing. Ahead of this year’s competition, we sat down with Molly to learn more about Lewis and his transition from racehorse to talented eventer.
Molly and Lewis’ first meeting was certainly a memorable one. “We bought Lewis in 2018 as a cheeky 5YO that bucked me off when we first went to trial him.” Molly says. “With some schooling from my coach Andrew Barnett, Lewis went from a horse that had never seen a cross-country fence to a 2* Eventer over the course of a year.” While showing a natural affinity to eventing, Lewis didn’t have quite as much talent on the track. During his short racing career he had just 10 starts for one win before being retired as a 4YO. Despite being a little slow on the track, Lewis - like many retired racehorses - had plenty of athleticism of a different kind, setting him up for a second career in eventing. The best data on hand suggests that in Australia, 45% of thoroughbreds retired from racing move into equestrian or pleasure riding careers*. That’s 15% more than the 30% that enter the breeding population after racing. Because of their athleticism and versatility, thoroughbreds are a highly sought after breed, even after a career in racing. “Cross-country would definitely be Lewis’ strongest phase as he is so bold and fit, making him a perfect match for eventing” Molly confirms. His physicality and endurance now as an older horse are key factors in his success as an eventer. But just as important to Molly is Lewis’ attitude and personality. “He tries his hardest at everything he does and is the boldest horse I have ever ridden, which is what makes him so amazing. Under all the cheekiness, he is a big sook and loves his carrots and a cuddle.”
Having competed thoroughbreds since the age of 12, Molly continues to choose to work with thoroughbreds over more conventional equestrian breeds. “They continue to be my preference of breeding to this day. I like more ‘go than woah’ when it comes to horses and I find this a common trait in thoroughbreds in comparison to heavier breeds. My favourite thing about thoroughbreds is their versatility and their willingness to try their best for you.” With all of this first-hand experience, Molly knows exactly what it is about the thoroughbred that makes them so suited to equestrian pursuits. “Thoroughbreds have the stamina and versatility to perform in all three phases of eventing, which is imperative for being competitive, especially at a high level. They might not always score the highest in dressage compared to warmbloods, but thoroughbreds make up for it in the jumping phases, especially the speed aspect of the cross-country, which makes them the perfect all-rounder horse.”
Lewis is clearly a special horse to Molly, but he is just one half of their successful partnership. Molly herself is an incredibly determined and hard-working young woman. Along with Lewis, Molly has a second eventer in full-time work with both horses being ridden 5-6 times a week as part of their training. Outside of equestrian pursuits, Molly studies full-time at the University of Sydney. She is currently studying towards a Bachelor of Science majoring in Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry. Any free time outside of study and horses is spent working in order to fund her riding. “My plate is always full, but I have a passion for all of my pursuits and nothing ever feels like a chore”.
We were keen to sponsor Lewis and Molly for the Equimillion as Lewis began his athletic career at Lindsay Park under David Hayes. Arriving to Euroa in April 2014, Lewis - known back then as Baheej, was an impeccably bred yearling owned by Shadwell Stud. By super-sire STREET CRY, Lewis’ family was very familiar to David having been part of the Lindsay Park story for many years. His dam Nasmah was trained by David’s brother Peter. And her sire was none other than Colin Hayes’ Melbourne Cup winner AT TALAQ. As a broodmare Nasmah had plenty of foals, the best of them being talented galloper and Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes winner REWAAYA, trained by David. Despite his incredible bloodlines, Lewis had just seven starts for one win during his time at Lindsay Park. Moving on from the stable in 2016 to have a crack in a weaker jurisdiction, Lewis had a further three runs with trainer Stephen Gleeson in Muswellbrook before stepping away from racing completely at the age of four.
We always have a keen interest in catching up with Lindsay Park horses in their years after racing. While only a few will be superstars of the track, they all leave their mark on Lindsay Park and the people who work with them. Seeing Lewis in a loving home and enjoying life as an athlete outside of racing is fantastic. We wish him and Molly all the luck in this year’s Equimillion and can’t wait to watch them compete.
*https://kickup.com.au/what-happens-to-the-slow-horses/
The Lindsay Park renaissance -
David Hayes on the resurgence of a dynasty
written by Jessica Owers for The Straight
July 3rd 2024
David and Prue Hayes with their sons Ben, Will and JD pictured during last year's Cox Plate meeting. (Photo by Vince Caligiuri/Getty Images)
So Si Bon’s status
as a Legend is confirmed
On behalf of his ownership group, Lindsay Park Racing is very pleased to announce that So Si Bon will be moving to Living Legends to enjoy his well-earned retirement.
The stunning black gelding by So You Think started his racing career with Robbie Laing on June 11, 2016 over an 1100m, $80,000 race at Sandown. He came 2nd Who could have imagined that his career would go on from that day to span nine years, 9 wins, 10 seconds and 13 thirds with winnings of $2,360,160? So Si Bon was a huge crowd favourite and beloved to his ownership group and their families. He just loved to race and enjoyed the attention from his adoring fans.
He joined the Lindsay Park stable in 2018 and his career blossomed with Group and Listed wins as well as a second in the 2019 Gr.1 Memsie. So Si Bon is loved for many reasons, one of those being his reputation as Racing’s “bad boy turned good”. Just before entering the Lindsay Park stable So Si picked up a bit of a bad habit of trying to bite other horses as he jumped out of the gate - you couldn’t question his commitment to winning! Nevertheless, this is a behaviour rather frowned upon in Racing and so So Si Bon was suspended for trying to “savage another runner”. Due to his unique pedigree that would have made him quite commercial as a stallion, his owners were hoping to solve the bad behaviour without resorting to gelding him. Every effort was made including gear changes, which saw him successfully jump out and trial twice in a row, leading him to be reinstated to race, only for him to exhibit the biting behaviour once again on race day. He received three suspensions in his racing career for biting before the decision was made to give him the ultimate gear change and geld him. Once gelded, So Si Bon’s temperament improved greatly. He was certainly still strong minded and stubborn, but the “colty” characteristics disappeared. As a gelding he went on to have an incredible racing career, being ultra-consistent and racing up to nearly 10 years of age.
He made it to 95 starts over a stellar career and although everyone was hoping he’d make a century, changes in his joints due to his age and the length of his career meant retirement was the best and safest choice.
His last win was on January 7, 2023 and his last ever start was on July 29 of the same year. After a long and well-earned spell at the Lindsay Park farm in Euroa, he went to Lisa Mc Master for a bit of re-education to find out if he might enjoy a new career as a star in the show ring. Lisa and Sammi worked their usual magic with him and fell in love with him as everyone does but after a few show ring outings, everyone could see that his prospects were a bit limited due to his age and the physical demands of his long career as a racehorse. It was therefore decided that the best thing for So Si was full retirement. But that is not to be the end of his time in the spotlight because in a quite wonderful turn of events, Living Legends has offered him a home for life. “So Si is just the sweetest and most intelligent boy. He will just love going places and being adored by his many fans. It has been an honour to work with him and we look forward to visiting him at Living Legends”, said Lisa.
So Si is due to join Living Legends later this year to give his many fans the chance to meet and adore him in person. He will be retired to the paddock but will enjoy outings as an ambassador under the Living Legends banner.
David Hayes gives an interview on So Si Bon after he bit a horse in the 2018 Newmarket Handicap: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2135715189995318
