Gorse Bush was part of the family

26 November 2020 | Jamie Cockshutt for Tasracing
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Recently one of the greats of Tasmanian harness racing was lost when Gorse Bush passed away during the birth of her 12th foal and to say it was a sad day for all of the Rattray family is an understatement.

The story goes back to September 1996 when a Ticket to Heaven – Barrington Lass foal was born, that being Gorse Bush.

Barrington Lass was a broodmare gem in her own right with an unbelievable record of 17 foals to the races for 15 winners which was an Australasian record tied with a mare from New Zealand in the late 1940’s.

The standout was Barrington Belle who won 33 races and over $247,000 in prizemoney but more importantly held the fastest time ever run by a mare of 1:51.6 after she was sold to American interests. The reason Barrie Rattray sold her was that Gorse Bush was a full sister and much better gaited.

Gorse Bush started her racing career back in 1999 after a stop/start campaign due to catching numerous colds.

As a late three-year-old she made it to the track and ran fourth in the Bandbox Sires final at her fourth career run, but it did take her another three starts to get her first career win which was a stand start affair in Hobart, and it was obvious then she had great manners from the tapes, later becoming a great staying mare in her own right.

She ended up having 41 starts for 10 wins and 13 placings with her best wins coming in the Sheffield Cup beating a couple of handy types in Gabes Power and Tripta Heaven.

The Rattray family have always loved winning the St Marys Cup and that’s where they headed on New Year’s Day 2002. They came up against some handy performers, but it was BJ at his best as he got everything out of the mare to narrowly beat the talented Saint Peters Pass who came off the back mark of 30m for a gutsy win.

Gorse Bush was in foal so Barrie decided to give her a run in the Devonport Cup as the stand start and tight track suited her and they would end up drawing the front. As expected, she pinged on top and BJ wanted to make it a staying test as that was her best chance and it all went to plan until the shadows of the post where Flashing Red grabbed the win.

There ended up being little disgrace in that defeat as Flashing Red went on to lofty heights after that winning two New Zealand Cups and over $2 million in prizemoney. Her crowning glory came when she was crowned Australian Broodmare of The Year in 2015.

After the Devonport Cup Gorse Bush had three more runs before retiring to be a Mum.

Her first foal was a Live or Die filly who was named Death and Taxes who was a very handy race mare winning 15 races and over $125,000 in prizemoney with her feature win coming in 2007 when she won the four-year-old Sires beating the stablemate Faithful Sally.

Acutabovetherest, Ashura and I Pity the Fool where the next three foals who were all very smart, winning multiple races.

In 2005 Barrie decided to send her to Art Major with the resultant foal being Ashkalini who won the 2YO Evicus Sire Stakes Final with Todd Rattray in the gig.

She missed the three-year-old Sires but was back for the four-year-old Granny Smith Sires where she would come up against her archrival Maggie Kennedy who won the Bandbox in her absence.

The draw fell their way and Ashkalini was able to lead throughout for a strong win and stamp herself as the best filly of her age group.

She was retired to the broodmare barn and finished her career with 14 wins and $124,000 in prizemoney.

Her claim to fame as a broodmare is as the mother of Ignatius who was an outstanding youngster winning 16 out of his first 17 starts and held the Australasian mile record for a 2YO of 1:51.3 until recently.

He is a dual Tasmanian Horse of the Year when he was a two and three-year-old.

Ignatius is back racing in Tasmania now with over $450,000 for his owners Todd and Lyrae Rattray and has 21 wins beside his name.

The sixth foal was a Bettors Delight colt that was Beautide, better known as Beau, who faced the starter for the first time in January 2010 in Burnie where he was able to get the job done narrowly. He went onto to be a very good horse in Tasmania getting through to free-for-all grade and being one of the state’s best, but it was when James and Sofie Svennson decided along with Barrie and Denise to take him up to Menangle and get his chance where he went to the next level. He was a dominant winner on debut when backed from $14 into $2.50 and won with authority, though he then had to wait another five starts for his next win.

After that Beautide then went on to win six of his next seven starts which culminated in the 2013 Miracle Mile and that’s when everybody sat up and took notice of the Tassie Terminator.

As history shows he went on to win the 2014 and 2015 Interdominion Finals beating the best pacers in Australasia and treating them with contempt as he was just a superior stayer. He relished the longer trip of 3000 metres, and he was crowned Australasia’s best pacer which will mean his name is etched in history forever.

He ended his career with 49 wins from 81 starts and just under $2.2 million in prizemoney so to say he stands up there with the best of all-time is an understatement.

Gorse Bush went on to have another five foals but none of them reached great heights.

The Gorse Bush story would never have eventuated if it wasn’t for Barrie Rattray’s wife Denise way back in 1996.

Barrington Lass had wandered off by herself up to the top of the Rattray’s property where there was over an acre of gorse bushes, but it was a long way away and nearly out of sight. Denise was concerned so she made the journey to make sure everything was ok, and she was shocked to see what she was looking at as the foal was stuck in the thick of a heap of bushes and was nearly impossible to get too, so she came running down for help.

It was all hands on deck to cut the foal out of the thick scrub so Barrie had to put on his wet weather gear for protection from the gorse bushes. Thankfully Barrie and Denise were able to cut enough away to release the young filly and the rest is history.

Last week Gorse Bush was due to foal and was brought into her usual foaling paddock which is within 20 metres of the Rattray house. She was a bit early to foal Barrie thought but she gave birth to a lovely Roll With Joe colt however in the process they noticed something was wrong with Gorse as she couldn’t get up.

It was an emotional time for Barry and Denise who did everything possible for Gorse Bush thinking about how much she changed their lives, but through their tears attention quickly turned to the foal who had just lost his mother and had yet to get his first drink of milk.

After staying up all night with him, a week later the young colt is still doing well so fingers are crossed that continues and hopefully he gets to the races in coming years to do his mother proud along with his older brother, a Betting Line rising 2YO.

Barrie and Denise remember Gorse Bush as part of the family.

“She was just a beautiful mare who had 24 amazing years by our side and from the day she was born she always held a special place in my heart.

“She was part of the family and we are all indebted to her as she opened up so many opportunities for us and our four boys Gareth, James, Adam and Todd,” said Denise Rattray.

The passing of Gorse Bush was very hard to take for the Rattray’s, but her legacy and memories will certainly live on.

“As she is lying there in my arms, I had plenty of emotions running through my mind as I knew I was helpless for one of the first times in my life as I couldn’t doing anything to help her.

“She was just an amazing horse to us, but she was far more than a horse she was a part of our family, but like I said when another one of my other quality broodmares passed suddenly, Queen Carey, life has to go on and let their progeny take over from the opportunities they have given them and do them proud,” Barrie Rattray said.

Gorse Bush was buried alongside some of Barrie and Denise’s great horses over the years down the back straight of their property so she will be looking over them forever.

 

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