sa horseracing convention road to the future glory - PARADE ...

54
HENRIETTE AND DANIE DURANT.
Danie Durant, a computer networking expert, purchased a horse called
Port of London at the 2002 National Two-Year-Old Sale in only his
second dip into the ownership pot and a year later can’t believe his good
fortune.
He and his wife, Henriette, had bought fi ve-year-old Garrison Guard
two months earlier.
Said Durant. “Garrison Guard never amounted to much with us and
he’s been retired now. But that experience sparked my interest in
horseracing.
“I went with our trainer, Barend
Botes, to the National Two-Year-Old
Sale. Being the good horseman he
is, we checked every horse there. We
shortlisted two – Golden Care and
Port of London. They both turned out to be exceptional. Golden Care
went for much more than I could afford, but we secured Port of London
for R100 000.
“We didn’t hurry with him because although he showed speed and
ability in his work he had bad shins. In his fi rst race in May Barend said
he would be happy if we ran a place. Port of London went to the front
and won by fi ve lengths with jockey Francois Naude up. That race didn’t
prove anything though – it wasn’t the greatest of fi elds.
Port of London (Francois Naude) wins the Golden Horseshoe at
Greyville on July day.
“We then ran Port of London in a Novice Plate at Turffontein. In that
race he was ridden by Barend Vorster. He ran on to fi nish second.
“We were still uncertain as to his ability, but he was accepted to run in
the Golden Horseshoe, the race for two year olds on July day. We didn’t
expect much – Port of London was drawn wide and he started at 20–1. I
still had high hopes though and had a good nibble at him.
“We weren’t nervous until just before the race. Anyway, Francois rode
him exactly the same as in his fi rst race. He caught the others unaware
and kept fi nding as they challenged.
“That’s when we discovered the nice
side of racing. Everybody was thrilled
for us.”
Durant continued: “A lot changed
after that. We got our fi rst offer almost
immediately afterwards. I refused to even consider selling ‘Port’, but the
following week we were offered a seven-fi gure amount by one of Tony
Millard’s patrons in Hong Kong. Robin Bruss and Clyde Basel put the
deal together.
“I wasn’t happy about selling, but felt it was the right thing to do. Port
of London went into quarantine almost immediately. He wasn’t insured
and Barend looked after him like a baby before he left. He almost slept
in Port of London’s stable!”
The Durants have felt his loss terribly in the last few months and were
even more disappointed when the colt’s name was changed in Hong
Kong to “Sambuka”.
But they have ploughed much of the profi t back into the game: Durant
has bought fi ve two-year-olds with the help of Botes and Jehan Malherbe
and is hoping that at least one of them will prove as good, if not better,
than Port of London.
“We were nominated for the Equus Award last season. We fi nished
second to Ice Cube and will be trying next year again,” said his wife.
The industry has benefi ted even more through Durant’s success – he has
introduced “quite a few” new owners to the sport.
“When we bought Port of London we invited a few of our friends to
come into him with us. They refused at the time, but have subsequently
bought horses. Horseracing is a more exciting investment than any
other. You get really involved while you watch your money work and
have fun at the same time,” concluded Durant.