Harness history: The famed pacer Gyro who was a '60s sensation

A spectacular juvenile pacer despite a career plagued by injury, Gyro continues to leave an impact on Victorian harness racing some 60 years on.

Noel Ridge, of Victoria's Harness Racing Heritage Collection at Bendigo, dives into the racing life of Gyro and the legacy he left behind as a sire, feats that saw him inducted into the 2019 Victorian Harness Racing Hall of Fame.

CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT MORE HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

Gyro (2:04.0, $25,212) raced spasmodically from age two until eight, and then had a successful career at stud during and after his racing career of only 46 starts.

The career of Gyro remarkably involved six members of the Victorian Harness Racing Hall of Fame:

• Breeders and owners Harry and Frank Abrahams,
• Trainer Jack McKay,
• Hall of Fame Legend George Gath, one of Gyro’s three drivers,
• Gyro’s dam Argent and sire Meadow Vance.

Gyro was a 1960 colt by the imported Adios stallion Meadow Vance (Imp), standing his first season at stud at Derby Lodge Epping for Edgar Tatlow.

He was bred and owned by brothers Frank and Harry Abrahams at their Meadowbrook Stud at North Woodend.

Gyro’s dam Argent, was a daughter of the very first A.G. Hunter Cup winner (1949) Silver Peak from the unraced U Scott mare Scottish Maiden.

Click here for Gyro’s Classic Families details

Scottish Maiden was one of the mares selected in New Zealand to establish Meadowbrook Stud by the initial stud master Ron Males.

Argent 2:08.4, her foal of 1952, trained by Jack McKay and driven in races by his brother Bill, was a remarkable filly, unique in winning both the Victorian and New South Wales Derbies and Oaks.

Pictured: Argent and Bill McKay

Her record of classic race wins was:

As a 2yo in 1955:

• Heat and final Victoria  Breeders Plate
• Heat and final Victoria Sapling Stakes

As a 3yo in 1956:

• Heat and final of the Victoria Derby
• Heat and final of the NSW Derby
• NSW Oaks
• Victoria Oaks

On retirement from racing, Argent produced only four foals prior to her untimely death. The four: Argoist 2:14.2, Gyro 2:04.0, Gyration 2:03.2 (Ararat Cup) and Sperry 2:08.4 were all good winners.

Gyro, the third of Argents four foals, commenced racing as a 2yo in 1963 and was a champion juvenile pacer.

Press articles of the time include the following two quotes:

“Without doubt, the champion pacer of Australia”, Hall of Fame member and Legend George Gath, August 1967.

“One of the greatest classic winners ever in Australia”, Hall of Fame member Bruce Skeggs, Trotting Register, April 1968.

Trained by Jack McKay, and driven by Dal Fitzpatrick, George Gath and Kevin Murray, Gyro raced from age two to eight, but started only 46 times as he was plagued by injury. Gyro won 20 of those starts. He started odds-on in 15 of his first 16 starts.

At age two, in his first race-start at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds, Gyro was driven by a youthful Dal Fitzpatrick, at that time employed as a stable hand by Jack McKay. He started odds-on, but was unplaced after striking trouble during the run.

Starting odds-on again at his next start at the Showgrounds, on New Year’s Day 1963, Gyro was driven for the first time by master driver George Gath. Again Gyro struck trouble, colliding with another runner, with Gath tipped out of the sulky.

Later in the season Gyro, won a heat and the final of the Victorian Sapling Stakes at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds.

As a three-year-old in 1964 he was placed at 12 of 13 starts, winning the Victorian Sires Produce Stakes, the SA Sires Produce Stakes by a margin of 75 yards, and the NSW Derby at Harold Park. Gyro finished second in the SA Derby and second in the NSW Sires Produce Stakes after losing 50 yards at the start. He was unable to contest the Victorian Derby due to injury.

Click here for Gyro’s 1964 NSW Pacer’s Derby win

Pictured: Gyro returning after a win at Kilmore

INJURY AND THEN COMEBACKS

Gyro severely injured a tendon and was then spelled for 17 months. He made a successful comeback as a five-year-old.

On December 11, 1965, Gyro started first up from injury at long odds-on off 24 yards in the Moodie Handicap at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds, driven by George Gath. There were concerns reported in the press over the horse’s old injury leading into the race.

Racing at the tail of the field for most of the race, Gyro made a late run, but was beaten by five yards by Donald Doon (20 to 1), driven by Gath’s stablehand David Gleeson. Following an ugly demonstration by the public, stewards headed by Chief Steward Wally Weight launched an inquiry.

Following a long enquiry that made front-page news, Gath was found guilty of incompetent driving and suspended for eight months. This penalty was later reduced to three months.

In winning a mobile free-for-all at the unbanked half-mile track at Stawell, Gyro recorded a mile rate of 2:04.0, his career best and the Stawell track record at the time.

Pictured: Gyro and George Gath

Kevin Murray, a former New Zealander who had experience driving champions including Robin Dundee, took over the driving duties.

Of his experience driving Gyro, Murray, when interviewed in 2017 said: ‘‘He was a real speedster and they said he couldn’t stick, but I won the Italian Cup on him over 2800 metres.’’

From seven starts that season Gyro won four, including the A. A. Laidlaw Cup at Stawell, with three second placings.

He again broke down but made another comeback in the 1968-69 season, starting 15 times for five wins and four thirds, including winning his last four. In his second last career start Gyro won the 14-furlong (2800 m) Italian Cup at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds off 24 yards behind.

Pictured: driver Kevin Murray (right, with David Aiken) in 2018

Gyro’s Race Record, from records kept by Bendigo trotting historian Stephen Spark:

GYRO AS A SIRE

Standing at stud at Meadowbrook Stud in Riddell’s Creek, Gyro sired 164 winners from 457 notified foals, including the good race winners Arbed, Go Guy, Chief Guy and Flying Future.

Gyro sired foals in each of 18 seasons from 1967 with his last foal in 1985, when he was aged 25 (one foal only in 1970)  with the largest foal crop being 50 in 1977. His progeny won a total of $1,644,731.

Gyro’s first 10 seasons resulted in a good performer each season

For complete details of Gyro’s winners at Harness Racing Australia, click here

Gyro left six two-minute performers foaled before 1980, when a win in a mile-rate under two minutes was a rare achievement.

AS A BROODMARE SIRE

Gyro mares left 841 foals according to HRA statistics. A total of 344 of them raced for 220 individual winners. Their total prize money was $3,510,681. Among them were the dams of dual derby winner Vanderport and seven time cup winner Its Motor Power.

Click here for film of Vanderport, driven by Anne Frawley, winning the 1985 NSW Pacer’s Derby

Gyro’s Influence lives on today through descendants.

Melpark Major (2003), by Iraklis (1:53.4, $978,506), has the Gyro mare Foolish as its fourth dam.

Ideal Lifestyle (2012), by Western Ideal (1:50.3, $230,878), has the Gyro mare Gyressa, winner of the 1978 Wedderburn Cup as its fourth dam.

Allmightyjoelouis (2013), by Roll With Joe (1:56.5, $110,040), winner of the 2018 WA Sales Classic, has the Gyro mare Speech as its third dam.

REFERENCES

Abraham’s family records from Robert Abrahams, Melbourne.

Detailed race records prior to the first Australian Trotting Year Book in 1967, from Stephen Spark, Bendigo

www.classicfamilies.net

www.harness.org.au

The Trotting Annals of Bendigo and Environs by John Peck, a digital resource at the Bendigo Library

The George Gath Story, by Max Agnew. Hunter’s Publications, Yarraville, 1987