Goldie hails Jack Dexter – a showoff who loved causing havoc

Jim Goldie has paid tribute to Jack Dexter, a showoff who enjoyed causing havoc when he was away but was a much-loved member of the family.

The eight-year-old fractured a cannonbone at Ripon on Saturday in the consolation race for the Great St Wilfrid and his loss has left another big hole at a stable which only last month retired its other great stalwart Hawkeyethenoo.

Jack Dexter won ten of his 55 races and earned £430,052 in prize-money. Five of those wins came in an extraordinary first season, when he gained a famous local victory in the Ayr Bronze Cup as a three-year-old and went on to win the Champions Day apprentice handicap at Ascot.

His biggest success came in the Group 3 Chipchase Stakes at Newcastle in 2013 and his last was in a 5f handicap at Ascot only last month. He also won three Listed races at Doncaster.

Jim Goldie: 'Jack Dexter was a great horse – nearly as good as you get'Credit: John Grossick

Remembering a friend who was known as 'Biscuit' at home, Goldie said: "We're all gutted. He was part of the family and had been here since we bred him. He was a great horse – nearly as good as you get.

"He was the horse of a lifetime and we had a lot of fun with him. He loved himself and was always showing off – always kicking and bucking when he was led out. He was notorious for causing havoc wherever he went and he caught me a few times with his cow-kicks, but there was no malice in him. He just loved to show off.

"His dad, Orientor, was the same. We trained him too, and Jack Dexter was very much like him."

He added: "Jenny Burns usually took him racing and was with him at Ripon, but lots of different people have been involved with him over the years, looking after him, riding him out and getting on great with him.

Jack the lad

"He wasn't a hard horse to train, as he was so talented, and it was mostly when you took him away that he was 'Jack The Lad'. It was just a game he played, though.

"He had a fracture in a front leg as a yearling, which we always had to manage, and he was a great favourite at the veterinary colleges at both Glasgow and Edinburgh as we used to take him for regular check-ups.

"A lot of work went into him, but it was a completely different injury at Ripon. We've bred from his two sisters and so hopefully something will come along one day who'll be nearly as good."

As for the nickname, Goldie explained: "He's been Biscuit, after Seabiscuit, since he was a yearling recuperating from his injury."

Jack Dexter in numbers

8 age
55 races
10 wins
1 Group-race win
118 best Racing Post Rating
£430,052 prize-money
1 trainer

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