| In memory of a dear friend For more than 40 years I knew Tom and found him to be a true friend. He was present at my 23rd wedding anniversary, bringing three bottles of champagne, and for our 40th anniversary he brought six bottles, alas he could not make it to my 50th due to ill health. The last time I saw Tom was about three weeks before he passed away. So many memories of the great times we had going racing together. We always had these get-rich schemes, but unfortunately they never materialised. We were going to be millionaires. We were both sons of well-known bookmakers in Reading, so I guess it was in our blood to carry on in our fathers’ footsteps. We used to go to so many of the racetracks, sometimes to make a book, other times we had dogs entered. Tom used to train some of my dogs, as he did for several other people. There is no such thing as a certainty. So many times we would bet on a dog knowing in our hearts that it would win, only to be beaten. Tom was an honest trainer and would never knock a dog over. By that I mean he never gave the dogs drugs, as some of the other trainers did. The dog ran on his own merits. Tom always thought it would be great to breed a litter of greyhounds and have two identical dogs, which could race equally well. As it happened, he did breed such a litter. Both dogs were good runners, one was scheduled to run in the last race at Aldershot Stadium, but Tom did not say anything tome. However another friend got wind of what was going on and bet on it. He won over £33. I bet against it and lost over £600 instead of winning £1,300. Speaking to this other man later, I found that apparently he was aware there were two dogs. One coughed, the other did not! I remember the time Tom received some dogs from Ireland. The owner was a big betting man. There was one dog in particular, not many people knew anything about it. We had taken one of our other dogs named Fishers Way to Wimbledon Stadium. We thought we had a winner. However, this new dog came out of the starting gate at such a pace it shot past Fishers Way and won by about 10 lengths. Being a new dog, it took several weeks to get accepted in the racing circle. The dog proved to be a very good runner. I remember the time I was asked what trap it should be put in; not knowing it liked to race in trap 6. I request trap1. It came out of the gate ran right over the hare rail and finished dead last. There went our dead certainty and our money. However, about two weeks later we took it to Aldershot Stadium. The traps went up, the dog fell right on its face, got up and went on to win by about 10 lengths at 3 to 2. We won about £300. We could have won thousands! One evening we had taken three dogs to Warwick Stadium. It was going very well, we had had three winners. However, the third dog got run over and ripped its side open. We came back to Pangbourne, where Tom took it to the vet to get it stitched up. I waited outside with the other two dogs. It was about 2am and here I am out in this cabbage patch walking around with two greyhounds. Had the police come along they would never believe what I was doing. Going to Ascot was always interesting, as was Derby week and the other big horse racing weeks. Tom also made a book for several years in my name. There were times that the punters had great days. On those occasions we had to pay out lots of money, in fact sometimes having to wait to take in money on the upcoming race to pay the winners of the last race. That’s the racing game! One evening at Reading Stadium I went to the clubhouse to meet my family and friends and saw a man named John wearing a tracksuit. I asked him if he wanted a race. He was a rather large man and did not know that I was quite nimble on my feet. He proceeded to ask me if I wanted to have a bet. I asked him if he wanted £2, £20 or £200. Knowing his reputation I said ‘put your money on the table’. He had to borrow it! Tom, knowing I could run, rounded up several people to have a bet also. That was one race we won. A few weeks later there was an open night at the Stadium. After the regular races there was a special race between the bookies and the trainers. Tom tried to get Gerry going by saying the trainers could not win unless he knocked me over. Unfortunately, Gerry caught my leg as I was running past him. I tripped, thus sending me headlong. As I landed, I fell on my shoulder and broke my collarbone. Some people thought it was done for spite, but it was an accident. I guess we were not meant to win that night either! Knowing what a wonderful artist Tom was, I suggested that he paint a portrait of a famous racehorse called Sadler’s Wells and send it to the owner, who happened to be a Sheikh from Saudi Arabia. Tom would have been made for life, yes, and maybe even a millionaire. However, he was a very private person and would not capitalise on it. Before emigrating to Florida 22 years ago, I had been a greengrocer and florist in Reading with my brothers and sister. They still carry on the family business. Whenever I come back to England I would always see Tom and relive the good old days, still thinking up ways to become millionaires. It is difficult to realise that he is no longer with us. He was a wonderful friend, and will be sadly missed. Goodbye my friend. John Dudman |