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INDUSTRY NEWS
Basil Marcus’ philosophy is to work as hard as he
can, to do the best he can and to never let himself
or anyone else down – and that hasn’t changed
with the new career path he has taken. He plans
to devote the same focus and energy to training
racehorses as he did to riding them.
“I’ve always been very, very hard on myself. If
I could have ridden better or made a mistake in
judgment, I’ve got upset. I’ve always been intent
on keeping my standards up,” he said. That characteristic
is also unlikely to change.
He has set himself realistic goals: “I am going to
do this professionally, but in a nice way. I’d like
to keep the string small and deliver quality,” he
said. “My attitude to training is that it’s a priority
to train for nice people (most of my patrons are
friends). It will be a bonus if I get a nice horse. The
bottom line is that racing’s a game of chance and
you’ve got to be lucky.”
He moved his band of 14 horses into Kenilworth
last month and says they’ve all settled in “very
well”, but that it will be a few months before he
saddles his fi rst runner. There are two reasons why
Marcus (46) is not rushing things: his string comprises
mostly juveniles and he is on a steep learning
curve in what he considers “a tough profession”.
He also believes he has much to teach young jockeys
and, once the yard is running smoothly, would
like to take in a young apprentice: “I believe I can
pass on a tremendous amount to other sportsmen,”
commented Marcus, who has always had an interest
in the psychology of sportsmen and is studying
for a diploma in sports psychology through a correspondence
college in England.
Marcus’ career in horseracing started on his 14th
birthday – 5 January 1971 – and for a while he was
not sure he had made the right choice. “I was a late
bloomer and very uncertain. It took me a while to
catch on to what it was all about, so in the beginning
I was in the lower echelon of my group. As I
learnt more I started to enjoy it more.”
Trainer Hennie Coetzee gave the young apprentice
his fi rst raceride – Chakita who fi nished second
– and shortly afterwards trainer Tony Furness took
him under his wing as his apprentice. It did not
take long for Marcus to ride his fi rst winner.
“Tony Furness was very good to me. I rode a lot of
winners for him – three in my fi rst 12 rides,” said
Marcus. “Vincent Curtis was his stable jockey
at that time and he taught me as much as I ever
learnt. I was lucky to be guided so fantastically at
the beginning.”
In the third year of his apprenticeship, Marcus
joined top Cape trainer Theo de Klerk.
“We had a marvellous time,” said Marcus, who
was champion Cape apprentice that year and
champion Cape jockey the following two seasons.
De Klerk trained many good horses, including
Palmistry, Warrior Gay, Mithra and Persian War,
and he and Marcus teamed up for many memorable
wins, including a six-timer at Kenilworth and
victories in the Cape Derby and Natal Derby with
King Charles. While still an apprentice, Marcus
also booted Brian Cherry’s Oliver Twist to victory
in the 1973 Durban Merchants Handicap.
He said two riders had made an impression on
him in those early years – Bert Abercrombie and
Johnnie Cawcutt: “They were icons and helped
me so much, even though they were leading riders.
They were the greatest jockeys I’ve ever seen, no
matter where I’ve gone. They had pure brilliance,
were professionals, looked great in the saddle and
seemed to get more out of horses than anyone else.
I wanted to be like them.”
Marcus left De Klerk in July 1976 and a few
months later moved back to Durban where he
freelanced for a while, partnering Hedge (won the
Gold Cup) and Gigantic. He then joined the Fred
Rickaby yard for about a year.
Herman Brown sen then offered him a job and one
of the longest-lasting jockey-trainer partnerships
in the history of South African horseracing was
forged – they stayed together for 13 years. “We
could talk about anything and discussed races
openly. I still have a close relationship with him
and he has helped enormously in setting up my
training operation in Cape Town,” said Marcus.
During the next 13 years Marcus partnered
such top horses as multiple feature race winners
Foveros, Yamani, Model Man and Rock Star, Bold
Monarch (won the Queen’s Plate), Chinatown (SA
Invitation Stakes); Count du Barry and Expertise
(Frank Lambert Stakes), Cracker Lily (Clairwood
Winter Handicap), Enchanting (Lancome Fillies
Handicap), Equilateral (Gold Cup), Extra Cover
(Chairman’s Stakes), Jungle Class (Golden Slipper)
Lagin (Dingaans), The Barbican (Concord
Stakes three times running), Versailles (Allen
Snijman Stakes), Wolf Power, Bold West, Enforce,
Singing Boy and Tammany Hall.
His favourites? “They were all phenomenal horses.
The ones that stand out were probably Rock
Star, Foveros and Model Man.”
Amongst his most memorable moments with
Brown was a seven-timer at Greyville.
In 1989, with Brown’s blessing, Marcus decided to
spread his wings. He and his family, wife Debbie
and sons Glenn (now 20) and Adam (now 14), fl ew