 
### The Horseman

### By Michael Taylor
Copyright 2018 Michael Taylor

All Rights Reserved

Smashwords Edition

Formatting by Caligraphics

Let's start this story by putting events into perspective, because Ray's story has a timeline going back to Australia in 1860. In August of that year, a couple of chaps by the name of Burke and Wills, set out from Melbourne to head north on a 2000 mile walk north, to the Gulf of Carpentaria. It didn't turn out well for any of them, but their story would form part of Australia's early history. Six months before they left, a young fellow was born in South Australia called George Nelson, thanks to his parents, Thomas and Eliza, feeling a bit of passion at the time.

Twenty one years later, George married a sweet young girl called Elizabeth Haynes, who was one month short of her 21st birthday. Elizabeth's mother had arrived in Adelaide as a ten year old in 1836 on board the good ship Buffalo – packed with the very first colonists to settle in South Australia. George and Elizabeth then set about making a family. And it was quite some family – Elizabeth had ten children in 14 ½ years, until she was 38 years old. She died six years later - probably from exhaustion. One year after her death, the dashing and energetic George, with his full head of dark hair, piercing eyes and handsome moustache, met a young woman called Mary Sporn, of German descent, who was an innocent, and pretty, 20 year old. George was a 45 year old baker, and luckily Mary was keen for a family. George proposed to Mary three days after meeting her. Ten months after their marriage, Mary gave birth to their first child, Grace, in 1906.

Luckily for Raymond, their next child was Myrtle Adele Melba Nelson – born in April of 1908. She would be followed by another seven siblings. In between making pies, George found time to make nineteen children all up - 10 were born in the 19th century with Elizabeth, and 9 more entered the world in the 20th century, thanks to Mary. By the time George died, worn out at 90 years old in 1950, he also had 43 grandchildren. His oldest child was 68, and his youngest, Reginald, was only 28 – which, if he were still alive at 96, would be a direct, unbroken link between Burke and Wills – and today. Unfortunately, he is not, but his mother, Mary, lived a full life until her death at the glorious age of 101, in 1986.

In another stroke of good luck for Raymond, at the same time Myrtle Adele Melba was born– a three year old kid called Donovan was playing in a sandpit with his tin soldiers – and he would eventually cross paths with George's 12th child.

Donovan Edward Taylor also had an interesting family. His Mum, Ethel, whose maiden name was Leane, had five brothers – two younger and three older. The Leane brothers would all serve in World War One and become known as the ' Fighting Leanes of Prospect ' ( an Adelaide suburb ). They would do battle in the killing fields of Gallipoli and France, and become one of the most highly decorated families of that war – amassing Distinguished Service Orders, Croix de Guerres, numerous Mentions in Dispatches, two Knighthoods and a Military Cross. Raymond would be named after his great uncle, Brigadier General Sir Raymond Leane, one of the first to wade ashore at Gallipoli, and eventual Police Commissioner of South Australia.

After the war, Donovan, or Don as he became known, began employment as a commercial traveller and, one day in 1928, he met Myrtle in a South Australian country town called Gawler, and love blossomed. In March, 1931, their first child was born – Brian. It would be another four years before Raymond entered the world – kicking and screaming and demanding to know where his horse was. Okay, that may be a slight exaggeration, but horses would play a part in Ray's life for more than sixty years, although he didn't know it yet.

Don ( seated ) and Myrtle's wedding – September, 1929

Raymond Taylor was born in a small town called Clare, 80 miles north of Adelaide, named after County Clare in Ireland. His father, Don, was away working as a commercial traveller, and Ray was welcomed into the world by his Mum, Myrtle, and his four year old brother, Brian. Don's vast area of sales stretched from Port Wakefield, just out of Adelaide, north to Port Augusta and east to Renmark. He worked for a firm called G & R Wills, a wholesaler, who were established in the late 1800's in Adelaide, beginning with a drapery shop in Rundle Street. By 1922, they had establishments in Melbourne, Perth, Fremantle, Kalgoorlie, Broken Hill, Sydney and Brisbane. In 1946 they became a public company with a range that covered everything from babywear to coffins.

While Don had a vast range of products to draw from, covering everyone from birth to death, his passion wasn't with sales – it was with the Army. Maybe it was in the genes, but as a 30 year old when Ray was born, Don was already a Lieutenant in the local Light Horse Regiment. Once war broke out four years later, he was one of the first to sign up – in fact, according to Ray, " he couldn't get there quick enough".

For the next six years, like so many kids of that time, Ray saw very little of his Dad. Don saw active service in the Middle East for four years, and then the steamy hell of the New Guinea jungles. Once the war was over, he still didn't come home – spending nearly a year in Jakarta ( then known as Batavia ), the capital of Indonesia, repatriating POW's. He returned home to his wife and two sons after six years, as a Major.

While Don was away at war, Ray began his schooling at Glenelg Primary, a 60 year old school in a beachside suburb of Adelaide. He would complete nearly all of his primary school education there with an absent father, so he learned to fend for himself and make his own fun. One of his best mates was a kid called Bill Patching, whose Dad, Wally, had racehorse stables in the adjoining suburb of Somerton. With not much to go home to, Ray took to spending after school time with Bill at the stables. It was there that Ray learned how to ride a horse, and discovered in himself a natural affinity with animals. Wally had Bill lined up to be an apprentice jockey and, much to Don's dismay when he found out, Wally had Ray lined up for the same future. At the time, Ray hardly cast a shadow and, with his riding skills, was an ideal candidate. It wasn't long, though, before the young Raymond grew taller and started filling out and a future as a jockey was no longer an option.

During school holidays, Ray would take the train up to Gawler, 25 miles north of Adelaide. His Uncle Len, Myrtle's brother, was a station manager on a large property just out of town, and Auntie Verna would pick him up from the train station in their horse and cart. For the next few weeks, Ray was in his element -helping Len with the cows and chooks, and heading out by himself all day to shoot rabbits and go ferreting. Ray loved being on the land with the peace and quiet, the space, and of course, the animals.

Don returned home at the end of 1945 and left the Army. That was a surprise to his family because he loved the life, but Don had been made an offer he couldn't refuse. He sat at the table with Myrtle, 15 year old Brian and 11 year old Raymond and told them the good news – they were moving to Singapore.

The island of Singapore had been freed from three years of Japanese occupation in 1945, and a British Military Administration was formed to govern the island. With Don's military background and his experience with G & R Wills, that firm offered him a chance to open a branch there. It was a long way from a quiet beachside suburb of Adelaide to the hustle and bustle of post war Singapore – especially for an 11 year old kid. In late 1946, the Taylor family, now numbering five after the birth of baby sister Anne, jumped on a ship and headed overseas.

G & R Wills spared no expense for their man in Singapore, and the Taylors were housed in a grand mansion with beautiful grounds, a housekeeper and a driver. There was no international school available yet, so Ray continued his schooling by correspondence, under his mother's supervision. Brian was near the end of his schooling, and had found a job with Radio Malaya, as an announcer. Eventually, Brian Taylor would find a successful career in radio and television back in Australia, working with Graham Kennedy and Bert Newton. Ray had no such aspirations, and was never interested in, or envious of, his brother's career choice.

Singapore's main roads were a noisy, chaotic mess. Barefooted men pulling rickshaws, along with the upmarket bicycle pulled rickshaws, almost outnumbered the civilian vehicles, Army trucks, bicycles and pedestrians all looking to get where they were going, in a hurry. Crowded street stalls with leather skinned, stony faced Chinese women selling bowls of food and chopsticks jammed the roadsides. Old timber shanties crowded the watersides, with even older wooded boats moored at their steps. There were Malayans, Chinese, Americans, a whole bunch of English – and a few Aussies. The smells and sounds that hit a wide-eyed Ray when he first hit Singapore would stay with him for years to come.

There were two swimming pools in Singapore -one for the white people – and one for the others. White people were allowed to go the pool with the others – but not many did – except for a skinny 11 year old boy from Adelaide. Ray would spend weekends at the pool and soon made some friends from all cultures. Once, when he was at the whites only pool, a couple of English boys made fun of his new mates and suggested Ray might be half Malayan himself. Ray took offence to that and pushed them both into the deep end – which got him banned from that exclusive pool.

Don had a driver called Hitam Bin Mawi – a 24 year old local guy who got along well with young Ray. There would be occasions when Don would let Hitam borrow the car of an afternoon to go and visit his family, and he would usually take Ray with him. Once there, Ray would sit quietly, cross legged in the thatched hut, and learn about cultures other than his own. He also learnt how to drive – with Hitam teaching him how to operate the big 1941 Chevy Master De-Luxe on the trip home. Ray could ride a horse, shoot rabbits and drive a car by the time he was 12 years old.

In November, 1947, the Taylor family returned to Adelaide, a slow trip on board the M.V. Gorgon - but only for a short time. Don was soon promoted to Export Manager with G & R Wills, and sent to Melbourne. The family moved there and settled into a beautiful old two storey house in the tree lined suburb of East Ivanhoe, and the next chapter of Ray's life began – private school.

Attending the prestigious Ivanhoe Grammar wouldn't have been Ray's first choice – especially after his carefree and barefooted time in Singapore. But his parents felt they should give him the best education available, because they had put his brother, Brian, through Kings College, a private school in Adelaide.

Ivanhoe Grammar had opened its doors in 1915, to less than twenty students. Now, over one hundred years later, nearly 2000 students walk through its multi campus, co-educational doors every day.

In 1948, though, Ray was more interested in riding his horse, which Don bought for him in Adelaide and trucked over, and playing sport. While Ray was an average student, scholastic studies didn't really grab him. He loved his footy, and his athletics, and was above average in both, and occasionally, he would climb out the classroom window when the teacher wasn't about, and head off for a game of golf. By this time he had grown used to having his Dad home every night, after such a long absence, but his parents showed little interest in Ray's sport. Don was a good man but lacked fatherly skills, and didn't devote a lot of time to trying to learn them. Ray wouldn't realise this until many years later, when he became a father himself, and vowed to do things differently.

So, despite the best intentions of his parents, Ray's private school career fizzled out after three years. His childhood had been a happy one but the only career path that interested him now was as a wool classer – which was a prohibitively expensive course. At the age of fifteen, after giving it a good go for three years, Ray decided they couldn't teach him any more at school, and it was time to go to work. He gained his Intermediate Certificate with passes in English Expression, English Literature, Geography, Commercial Principles and Practice and, most usefully, the History of the British Empire. All he really wanted to do though, was find work on a country property, where he could spend his days working with sheep and horses. He had been doing night courses in book keeping and farm and station accounts, for just that reason.

His Dad had other ideas though – not being too happy about Ray's early departure from school – and got him a job with Elder Smiths in the city. They were a big firm with a long history in the wool selling business, so at least Ray was in the industry – kind of. But, as a fifteen year old, his job was as an office boy running messages, and there was no involvement with animals. He hated it with a passion, and lasted three months.

His Dad came to the rescue through a friend of his who had a sheep station on a property called Mundara, 60 miles north of Melbourne, near a town called Seymour. Don knew by now that his son was looking for a rural career. Don was a successful, 46 year old, Manager with a multi national firm and didn't really understand his son's ambitions, but he supported them nevertheless.

Sixteen year old Ray made the move to Seymour and lived with Eric and his wife for nine months. He spent his time mustering sheep on horseback, fixing fences, crutching sheep and going to the country shows to parade their prized rams. On a Saturday night, he would meet up with a mate from the adjoining property, and they would ride six miles into Seymour town. They had a yard for their horses just out of town, so they could stroll in, and catch the latest Chips Rafferty movie.

But, Eric knew that Ray had higher ambitions than just being a station hand, so he spoke to him about dairy farming. Ray had left school sooner than he probably should have and then spent a year away from home without going back, and without getting homesick. To have his own sheep property, though, which he was considering, would take a lot of land and a lot of money, to make it worthwhile.

Dairy farming was a much more viable option. A young bloke could get a start with a few cows and then lease land, or share farm with an existing setup. In the 1950's, dairy herds were mainly small, family run businesses with up to 60 cows. Ray knew nothing about dairy farming, so Eric suggested the best way to learn would be to become a herd tester. He furnished Ray with a glowing reference which read, in part.........' _I found him to be an honest, good living young man. He seems to have an aptitude for any work amongst stock, and with further experience should become a very useful man amongst animals_.' This would prove to be an interesting prediction for the future.

The first herd testing associations began in Australia in the 1920's, when farmers formed associations and employed a herd tester who would take his equipment from farm to farm in a local area. Each cow's milk would be tested for butter fat content – this is what the farmers were paid on – so the quality and productivity of the herd was important to monitor.

The cool, green pastures of rural Victoria were ideal for milk, butter and cheese production. By 1960, Victoria had 80 licensed butter factories operating - dairy farming was big business, and Ray was keen to get a piece of it.

He moved back home and completed a Certificate of Qualification as a Hard Tester and Recorder at the Burnley Agricultural School in January, 1952, and was then sent to the Glenelg district in western Victoria to start work. Ray hoped this experience would teach him about dairying, with a view to getting his own herd. He could observe first hand best, and worst, practices in the industry instead of winging it on his own.

To get an accurate measurement of each cow's milk, they had to be tested at the evening and the morning milking, once a month. This required Ray to sleep at each property he visited, which could be 20 – 25 different dairy farms each month. The herd tester would become a regular part of the dairy farmer's life, and there was a lot of trust involved and no gossiping about other herds or farms. Ray was only a 17 year old, so many of the property owners became like a surrogate family, and this part of Victoria would become home for Ray for the next ten years.

Initially, once the testing was complete, the farmer would transport Ray and his equipment to the next property. Ray soon graduated to his own horse and cart, which worked well for a while until one day the horse bolted, with all his equipment and milk samples being scattered over the cool, green pastures of rural Victoria. It was time for an upgrade, so he managed to scrape together some money and bought an old 1928 Essex ute, which was a lot more reliable and served him well for the twelve months he spent roaming around the Victorian countryside with milk samples.

Herd testing is still done today, but in a form that would have been unimaginable in 1952. These days, it is a little less labour intensive, and a lot more accurate. Cows wear electronic identification tags, which are read by a radio frequency antenna at the entry point of the milking shed. A hand held unit displays the cow's herd test number, and the farmer scans a pre printed bar code flask lid, linking the cow to the milk sample. At the laboratory, robot technology sorts, matches and measures the samples. Efficient, but nowhere near as much fun for a young bloke.

And Ray was having fun, but that was about to change. In 1951, the Prime Minister, Robert Menzies, had introduced the National Service Act. This was a compulsory call up of all males aged 18, for 98 days of military service training and, in March 1953, Ray had just celebrated his 18th birthday.

Puckapunyal Army base was only ten kilometres out of Seymour, so it was almost like going home for Ray. Not that he saw much of the town for the next three months as his days were filled with PT, drill and shooting. There were no sheep, no cows and no privacy as he shared a tin hut with 15 other smelly young blokes. And he loved it. As it turned out, Ray would be one of those lucky blokes, born at the right time to avoid having to go to war. He was only a kid during World War Two, and Australia's involvement in the Korean War ended while Ray was doing his National Service. By the time young Australian blokes were being sent to the jungles of Vietnam, Ray was in his thirties and luckily missed out on that one too. He had briefly considered staying in the Army, but decided his future lay elsewhere.

The desire to be a dairy farmer was still burning, and he reckoned all that herd testing had taught him well. Ray's parents, Don and Myrtle, were still living in East Ivanhoe bringing up Ray's 8 year old sister, Anne. Now, Ray needed some direction and some help, so he borrowed money from his parents, and bought some dairy cows.

He knew a farmer who was keen to share farm, so Ray supplied half the herd and the farmer supplied the rest – and it looked like the 19 year old's future was set. In the meantime, despite not feeling like a close family, on school holidays, his parents would come and visit with his little sister, and spend time mucking around with the cows. Ray's sister remembers those days with fondness, even though she was only eight years old. She would get up early with her brother, and help him milk the cows, and that time spent together would be the closest they would be for a long time.

Meanwhile, he was a young bloke roaring around the country towns of western Victoria on his big, loud Matchless motorbike. He still had the Essex ute, but he loved his bike. He had the hair and the sideburns of Elvis Presley and more than a passing resemblance – maybe because they were only two months apart in age. Ray was playing footy in the local Aussie Rules league, and he had his own dairy herd. Life was good, and about to get better. But, there comes a time in the life of most young men when they meet a woman who seems to be a good match. Sometimes, they can be wrong, and their life can end up taking a turn for the worse, but if they get it right, their life can take a huge, turn for the best. Ray's life was about to take a turn – for the very best.

Ray and his Matchless motorbike

Late one afternoon, on his way out for the night, he dropped in to see his mate, Rex, who worked in a dairy near Lyons, a sneeze and you'll miss it place, midway between Heywood and Dartmoor. While he was talking to Rex, a young girl rode in on her bicycle. She had long black hair, big brown eyes, and although nearly 16 years old and very pretty, Lenore was also very shy. Lenore was there to collect some milk for home, which was just up the road – and conveniently as it turned out, not far from Ray's dairy. They didn't say much to each other, Ray and Lenore, on that very first meeting – but after she pedalled away, Ray turned to Rex and said, " I'm going to marry her one day."

For the next two years, Ray focussed on his footy, his cows and Lenore - but not always in that order. Dairying could have been Ray's future, but by his own admission, '...it started to get a bit mundane after a while.' The property owner was thinking about selling up and the regular demands of being a dairy farmer were intruding on his social life, so he looked around for a change in employment.

Ray had herd tested for a bloke who owned a couple of trucks that collected the milk cans from the local dairies, and delivered them to the Heywood butter factory. He was looking for a driver, so Ray got his semi license, and became a milk truck driver. He liked it because he was driving a truck, and he wasn't tied down to the constant requirements of milking cows. Ray lived with the owner and his family, and in his spare time, set about making Lenore his wife.

By the time Ray came good on his promise to Rex, it was July, 1958. Lenore was now a 20 year old qualified school teacher, and teaching in the small town of Heywood. They were married in the local church, and had a short honeymoon in Melbourne and Canberra. It would be the start of a lifelong marriage and love affair that would span more than sixty years, and produce two children, three grandchildren and a union that remained strong through all the changes and challenges that life would throw at them.

Wedding bells – Heywood church, July, 1958

A week before the wedding, Ray's best mate was killed while loading his log truck out in the forest. The log truck was owned by his mate's Mum, who was a widow, and she now had no-one to keep her business going. Ray, being the sort of bloke he was, told her he would keep it running for her, as soon as he got back from his honeymoon. Lenore's parents had a shack up the back of their place in Lyons, so the newlyweds moved in there to live while they got themselves sorted out. Lenore's Dad was away a lot travelling for his work, and her three older sisters had all left home – so it was good company for her Mum.

Driving the old Bedford truck with a 28 foot long trailer stacked full of hardwood logs was quite a change from delivering milk cans – and far more dangerous. Ray would drive his truck out to the middle of the forest where the logs had been cut, and they would be loaded with a tractor swinging the logs on a few chains. It worked, but often a chain would break, or the log would swing wildly around while being loaded and knock down anyone in its path. Not long after Ray started work, another friend was killed while loading his truck, and Ray had a profound thought at the time – '...this occupation is a bit silly.'

Luckily, an opportunity came up with the Dartmoor timber mill where Ray was able to use the log truck to carry timber to Melbourne. It went so well, he soon bought his own truck and was doing regular runs between Dartmoor, in Victoria, to Melbourne – also in Victoria. This presented a bit of a small problem – it was illegal.

After World War One, road freight was increasing so much, it was competing with, and eventually taking work from, the Victorian Railways. So, in 1933, legislation was introduced to regulate trucks carrying freight on specific intra-state routes. This included any truck carrying timber from Dartmoor to Melbourne. The handful of drivers who were game to take it on had a touch of anti-authority in them, and they were making a good living as well, but it was a constant game of cat and mouse with the Road Transport authorities.

The Road Transport Authority had a pretty good idea of what was going on in Dartmoor. They just had to be able to prove it. They would drive up from Melbourne, watch the trucks, follow them, and sometimes sit up on top of a hill just out of town, in their nondescript cars armed with binoculars and a camera.

But Dartmoor is a small town and word soon got around they were in the area. If that was the case, Ray would leave the Dartmoor mill and head west towards South Australia, instead of east to Victoria. Four miles out of town, he would take a fast detour off the main highway and head up a dirt track towards the cemetery. He would sit there for three or four hours, then take some back roads and eventually head for Melbourne. Ray knew every dirt road, back road and pothole in a hundred mile radius of Dartmoor. He even enlisted the help of his new bride in the risky game. Lenore would follow Ray's truck, and whenever he turned off a dirt road onto bitumen, she would stop her car, get out an old hessian sack, and sweep the road clean of his tracks. If Ray was pulled over on the way to Melbourne, he would simply say he loaded in Mt. Gambier ( in South Australia ) and he had no paperwork to say otherwise.

Ray would often bring back a load of bagged fertiliser from Melbourne for delivery to local farms around Dartmoor. This was also illegal, and many times the conspiring farmers would hide Ray's truck on their properties, out of sight of the authorities. He wasn't always successful, though, and eventually logged up a raft of fines, and non- appearances in court. It was Ray's own truck, so he was responsible for the penalties. It soon started to get out of hand, so Ray rang up his Dad, who had a few contacts in Melbourne, and said, " Hi Dad, I'm in a little bit of trouble."

One of Don's contacts was a smart lawyer called Dick Hamer. Dick ( whose real name was Rupert ) had served in the same battalion as Don in World War Two. He looked at Ray's little bit of trouble and agreed – but saw it more as ' a fair bit of trouble.' Being a good lawyer, Dick was able to get Ray out of trouble, but at a cost. He was banned from being in Victoria behind the wheel of a truck with his name on it - ever again. Ten years after helping out Ray, Dick Hamer went on to become Premier of Victoria, but it wasn't until the late 1970's, those pesky intrastate road freight restrictions were lifted.

Ray and Lenore had been living in a house in Dartmoor for the last few years and now had a five year old daughter, Deborah Jane, and a three year old son, Michael John. But working out of Dartmoor, Victoria, was no longer an option, so the Taylor family packed up and took their trucks across the border, to Mount Gambier. This prosperous town of 16,000 people was 270 miles south of Adelaide and home to the largest pine forests in Australia, all 180,000 acres of them. There were also limestone quarries, where the limestone was cut into bricks on site, a wool spinning mill, nine cheese factories and the famous Blue Lake. It was home to pipe smoking men in felt hats, women who wore their hair in a bun, and a two mile long main street lined with Volkswagons and Holden cars. It was also home to a trucking business called Kain and Shelton.

Jack Kain and Aubrey Shelton had gone in to the trucking business together in the mid 1940's, after working independently for a few years. They were a couple of the earliest contractors in that part of the state to take on the freight monopoly dominated by the railways. By 1952, their firm had 20 trucks, but Jack Kain had sold his share to Aubrey by then. The Kain and Shelton name would stay on the truck doors for another 20 years, though. During the 1950's, the company became one of the first in Australia to run refrigerated trucks. They would carry sharks and crayfish from Kingston, north of Mount Gambier, to Melbourne, and also cheese – up to 14 tons a week of the stuff.

By the time Ray, Lenore and the kids moved to Mount Gambier, Kain and Shelton were one of the biggest businesses in town, and Ray started carrying general freight for them as a sub contractor.

Sometimes loads were hard to come by for the self employed driver, so when Aub Shelton offered to buy Ray's trucks, and offered him a job as well – Ray jumped at it. He started out carrying wool and timber and paper, but very soon graduated to become one of the few refrigerated truck drivers.

These guys had to be safe, reliable and a cut above the rest because their load was very valuable and had to be constantly monitored – arriving in Brisbane with a truckload of rotten lamb was not a good look for a transport company.

Once 1966 rolled around, Michael joined his sister Deb at school and Lenore was able to return to work, as a schoolteacher. They were difficult times for a young family – Lenore was only 28 years old, and virtually raising a family on her own while working fulltime. Ray would be driving to Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide, and be away for days, and sometimes weeks, on end. When he finally returned home, he would be exhausted and need to sleep. In the 1960's, there were no enforced restrictions or safety measures to protect long distance truck drivers from over working and driving excessively long hours. Ray was a conscientious driver, and a safe one, but once he got behind the wheel he didn't stop for much.

Lenore has forgotten how many times she would stand outside their modest stone house in Coolabah Street, their two young kids standing next to her as they waved goodbye to Ray once again. The kids would be crying, Lenore would be crying, and probably Ray was too as he headed off on yet another trip. It wasn't just the absences that saddened Lenore, it was also the worry. The worry that Ray would cross paths with another driver who wasn't so careful and had fallen asleep at the wheel, or just the increasing odds of an accident when he was doing so many miles.

It was not a good time to be travelling long distance. Road accident fatalities in Australia were to peak in the late 1960's – so much so that by 1970, an average of nine people were being killed every single day of the year on the roads. Even with today's safety standards, around 20% of road fatalities are still truck drivers.

Ray had to make a living, though, and despite missing his family, he enjoyed the companionship and camaraderie of life on the road with the other drivers. It became such a part of his life, that when he was offered an alternative – an alternative that meant he could be home every night, he had to think hard about it.

One day in early 1969, after ten years of interstate truck driving, Aub Shelton took Ray aside.

" Ray, we need to have a talk," he said. Ray was a bit worried because Aub always spoke his mind and never minced words. " You are one of the only drivers I've got that hasn't had an accident –yet. You're a good driver, but your time is sure to come, and you've got a wife and a young family."

Ray wasn't sure if this was good news or bad news, but he kept listening.

" I really don't want to see that happen to you, so I want to offer you a position as 2IC in our Adelaide depot," Aub said.

Ray didn't see that coming so he said, " Okay Aub, thanks, but that's a big move – I'll need to talk it over with Lenore." Ray knew exactly what Lenore would say, but he wasn't sure what he wanted to say.

Two months before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon in July, 1969, the Taylor family landed in Adelaide. Lenore knew exactly what Ray's decision should be, and eventually, he agreed. It was a big move for him though, not just geographically, but also personally. To go from being one of the drivers to being their boss, was a big step. Even though he was only second in charge, he was responsible for the loading of all the trucks out of Adelaide, the drivers conduct and for the general operations of a busy interstate truck depot.

Don's brother, 69 year old Bill, lived in Adelaide with his wife, Jess. He was a nuggety, hard as nails, ex Sergeant Major who was one of the famous Rats of Tobruk, from World War Two. Before the Taylors arrived in Adelaide, Uncle Bill had found them a rental home to move into, just south of the city in the beautifully named suburb of Panorama. It was a modern, three bedroom, brick and tile home, with a large backyard, a stone feature wall, a frangipani out the front, and a gas fire in the lounge for those cold wintry nights.

Ray and Lenore and 6 Kentucky Avenue, Panorama, 1970

For eight year old Michael, and ten year old Deb, their dead end street that finished at a drive-in theatre fence, was a great place to grow up. Their house sat next to a creek on one side and there was a huge open bush reserve behind the house. They could ride their bikes, climb trees, go hiking, or just muck about in the creek. There were plenty of other kids in the street to play with and their new Primary School was close enough to ride their bikes to. For the next ten years it would be their home until they both left and followed their own path. Ray and Lenore would spend 17 years there, selling in 1986.

To start with, they rented the house. It was owned by the Highways Department and wasn't available for sale as it was on the site of a possible future highway. This state of limbo continued until 1977, when they bought the house for $38,000.

Meanwhile, Ray's new job wasn't all beer and skittles. Despite now being in a managerial position, his income had actually dropped. Working as hard as he used to, doing so many long trips interstate, his wage as a truck driver had been far more than it was now. Just doing the hop from Mt. Gambier to Adelaide was worth 20 pounds, and he could do three a week.

Lenore was soon to start work teaching Year 7 at Blackwood Primary School, but in the meantime they struggled along on one wage. They only had one vehicle, so Lenore would take Ray to work in the mornings, and pick him up in the afternoons – dragging along the kids with her. The K & S depot, at Mile End, was about a 25 minute drive each way.

There were sleeping quarters at the depot, for drivers to rest in while their truck was being loaded, and these quarters had to be cleaned every week. Rather than pay cleaners, Ray and Lenore would go in on a weekend and do the job themselves, to make some extra money. Michael loved those times because it gave him a chance to drive around the deserted depot on the forklift.

Combined with the drop in income, Ray didn't get along with the Manager. So much so, that after a few months, he couldn't see it working, and, without much of a Plan B, handed in his resignation.

The next day, K & S management flew Ray to Mt. Gambier for a meeting.

" Why are you resigning, Ray, you have only just started," asked the General Manager.

" Because I have no respect for the current Manager. He is an ex cop, not a transport person – he knows bugger all," replied Ray.

The next day, Ray flew back to Adelaide – as the new Manager of the K & S Adelaide depot. He was given a company car, and Lenore started teaching at Blackwood Primary. He was home every night, settled into family life, and got to know his kids.

Adelaide in 1970, was, not surprisingly, a much different place to what it is now. The population was less than 800,000 – Melbourne at the same time was nearly 2 ½ million – so Adelaide was like a big country town. Despite its size, Adelaide was punching above its weight. The new Labor Government of Don Dunstan had promised social reform and a plan to make Adelaide the artistic centre of Adelaide.

They would introduce more than 100 Bills to Parliament over the next three years, including the Corporal Punishment Abolition Act, the Daylight Saving Act, the Environment Protection Act and would establish the South Australian Theatre Company and the South Australian Film Corporation.

Don Dunstan would become known not just for his progressive reforms, but also for dancing on stage during a production of ' Hair ', and for wearing pink shorts to Parliament. He would also open Australia's first pedestrian mall – Rundle Mall – in 1976, so there was plenty happening for the Taylors.

Meanwhile, there were still anti Vietnam War protests in the streets of Adelaide, men wore shorts with long socks and you could fly to a tropical Queensland island for eight days with Ansett for $270 – accommodation included.

The K & S depot at Mile End was becoming too small for their operations as business grew. Most of their freight was bound for Mount Gambier and other South East towns, but they could only fit two trucks inside the depot at one time for loading and unloading. They had also begun using refrigerated trucks to carry meat from the Noarlunga meatworks, just south of Adelaide, to Melbourne. As things got busier, Ray suggested to Head Office they needed larger premises, and he was given the go ahead to start looking. A site was found in the suburb of Albert Park, which was further away for Ray to commute, but it was a massive shed with a huge yard and much better suited for the growing business. There was also an old low set timber house next to the depot, which they set up as an office.

Once they moved there, Ray was able to employ a fulltime Sales Manager. Up until then, he had been trying to secure new clients himself, but it wasn't a part of the job he enjoyed. Once the clients were signed up, though, he was happy to play his role as Manager and meet with them and wine and dine them when required. He also employed a new 2IC – a bloke two years younger than Ray called Bill Graham, who would always be known as ' Preacher '. Ray and Preacher would become best mates for many years until Preacher's untimely and very sad death from cancer, at only 42 years old, in 1979.

Despite being in the transport industry for more than ten years, Ray's desire to be involved with animals, especially horses, was still very strong. It was what he would rather be doing, but he had a good job and the opportunity certainly wasn't there. How could a Transport Manager possibly work with horses, was his thought. Then, he found a way.

As a ten year old, attending Glenelg Primary school, Ray used to spend some after school time with one of his school mates, Bill Patching. Bill's Dad, Wally, was a racehorse trainer, and young Raymond used to love helping out at the stables. This was where his love of horses began – and now he was back in Adelaide, living only fifteen minutes away from the Patching stables. After nearly 30 years, Ray dropped in on Bill, who was now training horses himself. In his late 30's, Ray only weighed about 65 kilograms, and despite being a smoker, was still pretty fit. The stables were in Somerton, not far from the beach, and that is where Bill would exercise his horses every morning, as well as at the racetrack.

Before long, Ray was getting up at 4 am every weekday morning and driving down to Somerton beach. There, he would jump astride two or three different horses, and as the sun was coming up, he would gallop them along the beach. The horses loved galloping along the hard sand and cooling off in the sea water, and Ray loved the feeling of being in control of a strong thoroughbred. He would be home in time for a shower and breakfast, before heading off to his more sedentary job, that paid the bills.

He kept this routine up for a couple of years. Some mornings he was unable to get to the beach because he would have to organise the clean up of a truck rollover. Two or three times a year, Ray and Lenore would be woken late at night by the telephone. Invariably, it was the police calling, with the news of a K & S truck that had crashed or rolled over, en route to Adelaide, and Ray had to sort it out.

Luckily, in all the years Ray attended these incidents, there was never a truck driver fatality. Often, the accidents were caused by the actions of other road users, and sometimes they were a result of the truck driver falling asleep. On one occasion, the driver had stopped at a roadhouse at the top of the Adelaide hills, and then strolled out with pie in hand - to see his truck rolling away down the hill – and despite trying, he wasn't a fast enough runner.

Whatever the cause, the result of an overturned, fully loaded semi trailer was a big mess to clean up. Every load was different, from a full load of beer, to a full load of tyres. Usually, a massive crane had to be organised to get the truck back on its wheels, and then the recovery of the freight had to be done, which involved lots of manpower and other empty trucks.

All this would continue into the early hours of the morning until, with the help of the police, the road was completely cleared. It was a hazard of the industry, and after a while Ray was on a first name basis with all the local police and crane drivers.

The 1970's would turn out to be a perfect re- connecting time for Ray with his kids, Deb and Michael. Despite being away from home for the first eight years of their life, they still had a great relationship with their Dad, and enjoyed doing things together. One of the first father/daughter activities in Adelaide was when Deb was about twelve years old, and for some long forgotten reason they decided to race pigeons. Ray and Deb set about building a pigeon coop in the backyard and, apparently full of enthusiasm, they bought some racing pigeons. Every Saturday afternoon, Deb and Ray would sit in the backyard gazing hopefully towards the heavens, waiting for their pigeons to return. Once a month they would attend the pigeon club meetings and have a grand old time talking about breeding and racing.

This went on for a couple of years, but it wasn't until Deb was about 19 years old that the truth came out. Turns out Ray was convinced that his daughter was really interested in pigeon racing. Turns out Deb was convinced her Dad was really interested in pigeon racing. Turns out neither of them were, and they were both bored senseless every Saturday avo waiting for the damned pigeons to come home. They only kept at it to keep each other happy!

A much more successful pastime Ray enjoyed with his kids was sailing. One summer, when the kids were in their early teens, the family bought a 12' wooden sailing dinghy, called a Gwen 12. None of them had much idea about sailing, but every weekend they would set out from Brighton beach, and eventually work it out. They soon graduated to a more exciting Hobie Cat, and the whole family would spend every summer on the water with the current girlfiends, boyfriends and family friends. This was a much more successful activity than pigeon racing.

Ray and son, 1975

Meanwhile, his love of horses hadn't lessened any, but instead of continuing to ride them, he decided to start breeding them. The plan was to buy a mare, get her in foal to a reputable stallion, and sell the yearling at the sales, as a potential champion racehorse. It was a hobby that Lenore supported, and their first contact was a bloke called Allan Scott.

Allan owned Scotts Transport, in Mount Gambier, and had just bought out K & S, who were now K & S Freighters. He was also into racehorses, and when Ray mentioned his new hobby, Allan offered to sell him a mare. It turned to be a dud. By Ray's own admission, he didn't know enough about breeding at the time, and he got a low price for the yearling at the sales. He did get complimented, though, by a horse agent at the sales on how well he had prepared the yearling. The agent suggested he needed to upgrade his mare, in order to be more successful.

Life as K & S Manager went on, and in 1977, Ray and Lenore were finally able to buy their home in Kentucky Avenue, Panorama, for the princely sum of $38,000. Their kids were growing up, and Deb was the first to leave home at the age of 19, when she started work as a flight attendant for Ansett, flying out of Melbourne. Mike flew the coop the following year, when he left for Queensland, and Ray and Lenore were child free, and still enjoying each other's company after 21 years of marriage. K & S Adelaide were sponsors of the Port Adelaide Football Club, and the happy couple would spend many Saturdays going to the game.

Ray kept up with his horse breeding hobby, and by the 1980's had taken the agents advice. Through his friendship with Bill Patching, he had upgraded with two quality broodmares – Heart Rain and Del Ranee. He put Del Ranee to a stallion called Jon George and, out of that brief and emotionally barren coupling, he got himself a yearling, born in 1983, who looked to be a good type.

After fifteen years as K & S Adelaide Manager, Ray was 49 years old and starting to get some weird aches and pains. Things had changed in those years – there were now computers creeping into the workplace, there were sales targets to be met and budgets to stick to. Unbeknown to him, until a trip to the doctor told him – Ray's health was suffering severely from stress. It didn't help that he still smoked 25 cigarettes a day either. The symptoms were so bad, that the doctor referred him to a specialist, who recommended early retirement, or a change to a less stressful job.

At the end of August, 1984, a farewell was held at the Port Adelaide Football Club function room for Ray. He had resigned after more than 20 years with K & S, and was about to embark on, what was supposed to be, a less stressful job.

Ray and Lenore sold their family home in Panorama, and moved to a horse breeding property south of Adelaide. It was here that the stallion Jon George stood – the sire of his yearling that he would put up for sale in the 1985 yearling sales. Surprisingly, the colt brought a paltry $3500. As it turned out, Ray should have kept it for himself because his breeding skills had improved. The yearling would grow up to be 'Beau George' – a Group 1 winning horse, amassing 13 wins and half a million dollars in stake money. But that was yet to come.

Lenore kept teaching at Blackwood Primary School, despite the massive commute. She had always been a devoted teacher, and wanted to finish the school year with her class of Grade Seven students. In December, 1984, after fifteen years at the school, she too resigned, and Ray and Lenore threw themselves into working on a horse property, fulltime. Deborah and Michael had both returned to Adelaide – Michael after three years in the Army, and Deb, now working for Channel Ten – so there was plenty of family time.

Ray kept breeding and, unfortunately, kept selling. A yearling out of Heart Rain sold at the sales, and went on to be the horse, Solid Bond, winner of over $250,000. He finally saw the light and started hanging on to a few – the most notable being, Miss Deborah, named after his only daughter.

After nearly twelve months at the Inman Valley property, Ray and Lenore felt it was time for a change. Things hadn't panned out exactly as they had expected, and an opportunity had come up for Lenore to resume teaching, at the Goolwa Primary school.

Goolwa is a quiet little town, 100 kilometres south of Adelaide at the mouth of the Murray River, and home to 2000 people. Ray and Lenore rented a house in town, right on the waterfront for $110 a week - and Lenore returned to school. This was a low period of Ray's life, because he wasn't sure quite what to do next. Never being one for self promotion, he found it difficult to put himself out in the workplace and to sell himself. He now found himself, at 50 years old, looking for a job. A guy called Keith had Ray's job at Inman Valley before Ray, and now Keith was working on a horse stud at Mount Barker, about 40 minutes from Goolwa.

The stud was owned by Bruno Trimbole, the Godfather of marijuana distribution, who was based in Griffith, NSW. But that didn't bother Ray when Keith offered him a job there. It was similar work to what he had been doing – breeding racehorses and preparing yearlings for the sales. It wasn't ideal, but it was a job, and he was working with horses. He didn't see Bruno much, which was probably a good thing.

Through locals they met in town, and through Lenore's school, Ray was also doing some conditioning work on weekends with some locally owned racehorses – pre- training kind of work. He kept up his commuting to Mount Barker, and working with Keith, but Lenore, and daughter Deb, both realised he was not a happy man. They knew his talents with horses, but they also knew his modesty and pride would not allow him to sell himself. So, they did it for him.

They had heard of a trainer from Murray Bridge, who was looking for someone to pre-train his racehorses. One Wednesday afternoon, they dressed in their finest, and went to the Murray Bridge races – telling Ray they were going shopping – which they were – but for opportunities, not dresses.

Deb worked in sales for Channel Ten, and could sell sand to the Saharans, convincing them quite charmingly that they clearly didn't have enough of it, and they needed to buy some more. Lenore would, and could, talk to anybody and become their best friend without them even realising it – so nobody was safe that day. They spoke to a trainer called John Elder, telling him of Ray's abilities, and maybe fudging a bit about his training facilities. But they did have Goolwa beach – 16 kilometres of flat, straight sand that horses loved to gallop on. John was keen, and so were a few others. When they returned home and told Ray the good news – he hit the roof.

Once he calmed down, and realised there were trainers who were keen on the idea of being able to use Goolwa beach as a pre-training facility, he warmed to the idea. Even if he wouldn't admit it, he had a way with horses – an understanding and a patience that only a few possessed. As time went on, plenty of people would take notice.

Once Ray and Lenore convinced the local bank manager they had a viable business – they were able to buy 10 acres of land, with a small house on it, just down the road from Goolwa Primary School and, more importantly, close to the beach. In 1987, they moved onto their own property with no stables and no yards, shelters or fencing – and set up business as pre trainers.

They were lean days, to begin with. Luckily, Lenore was still teaching, and as Ray became known, more Adelaide trainers, like Peter Jolly, Pat Barnes and David Balfour, began to send him horses. It got to the stage where Ray's pre-training was so good – he would have the horses until only a week or so until they raced. Then, it got to the stage where he took the horses straight to the races – from his place – ready to race. They didn't race under his name of course, because he wasn't a licensed trainer.

David Balfour, an Adelaide trainer, was a big supplier of horses to Ray, and one of them was a horse Ray had bred – and kept – Miss Deborah. Two days after Lenores 50th birthday, the mare raced over 1000 metres at Victoria Park, and blitzed the field by 6 lengths. Six months later, she would equal the course record at that track and distance, running an incredible four seconds faster than her previous time.

To begin with Ray would ride many of the horses himself along Goolwa beach, just after sunrise every morning. He had cut right back on the ciggies, and would eventually ditch them completely. He was kept busy with building shelters and fencing and breaking in young horses, though, so he soon employed a few local young riders to work for him.

In November, 1988, the Adelaide 'News', reported in a story that Goolwa horseman, Ray Taylor, couldn't believe his ears when trainer David Balfour said he was sending him a smart sprinter to pre-train. The horse was Beau George.

" David rang to say he was sending down another horse, and I nearly fell off my chair when he told me who it was," Ray said. " It is as if he has come home after all these years."

Less than two years later, Ray would still be pre-training Beau George, and take him straight to Morphettville from Goolwa to race in the Group 1, Goodwood Handicap – which he won. In 1991, he would pre-train a horse called Not Related for Balfour right up until the day she raced in the Group 1, VRC Sires Produce – and won. The writing was on the wall – even for the modest Ray Taylor.

Thoroughbred horse racing in Australia began in Sydney around 1810, and Adelaide in 1843 – so it's been around for a long time. As time went on, the potential rewards for owning a racehorse became very attractive, and many hopeful and misguided people became attracted to those rewards. The plan is quite simple – buy a well bred horse, have it trained by somebody who appears to know what they are doing, put it in a race, win, and make lots of money. Quite simple really.

Trouble is, of course, it's never quite that simple.

In any one year in Australia, there are over 30,000 horses in training to race on the 360 racetracks around the country. It is the third most attended spectator sport in Australia, behind the AFL and NRL – so it's big. Prizemoney in 1991 ranged from $1500 for winning a provincial race , to more than one million dollars for winning the Melbourne Cup. The things is, out of those 30,000 horses – 20,000 of them won't win a race. Only 650 will earn more than $100,000 – thereby giving their owners a reasonable return on their investment. Thousands of owners are paying lots of money every month to a trainer in the expectation of a return – and the odds of that happening are about 50-1. There were over 100 registered trainers in South Australia in the 1990's – trying to make a living in a racing game that was a distant third cousin to that of Melbourne and Sydney.

This was the industry Ray was about to dive into, and hopefully, make a very big splash.

In July, 1991, Ray received his' Permit To Train' from the South Australian Jockey Club, and on the 14th August he saddled up his first runner. It was a provincial meeting at Strathalbyn and the horse's name was Welcome Hege, who raced over 1200 metres and came 2nd. Later that afternoon he legged jockey Paul Saunders up onto a horse called Pitcher, who raced on strongly to finish 6th.

Ray only had ten horses in work, so two weeks later he saddled up Welcome Hege and Pitcher again, this time at the Gawler racetrack. This was the town where his parents met 60 years ago, and where Ray caught the train to from Adelaide , as an 11 year old, to spend time with his Uncle Len. Now, he was back as a 56 year old racehorse trainer and was keen for a good result.

He needn't have worried – Welcome Hege led all the way to win by four lengths. Pitcher was stepping up in distance from 1200 metres to 1600 metres in just two weeks, so it would be a big test of his fitness- and he won by 2 ½ lengths. It was a triumphant return to Ray's old stamping ground, and an impressive start to his training career. More than a few bushy eyebrows were raised that day, and more than a few oldtimers asked the question...." who's this Ray Taylor bloke?"

Over the next three months, Ray saddled up 18 runners, from Balaklava, to Murray Bridge to Morphettville. He won again with Pitcher and Welcome Hege, and also picked up three 2'nds and two 3'rds. Ray's training career had come flying out of the gates - at very long odds. One of his runners was 'Sharp Mover', a gelding out of his mare, Heart Rain, owned by Michael and Deborah Taylor. It was another one he had kept, and 'Sharpie' would go on to win a hat trick of provincial races, the following year.

Not too long after Ray started training, Lenore gave up teaching – for good. There was a lot of bookwork involved in their business, and it wasn't one of Ray's strong points. To get a horse to the racetrack was not a simple process. One of the most important skills in training was selecting the right race for the right horse, to give it the best chance of winning. Races were graded according to how many the horse had won – from a maiden ( none ) to Class 1 ( won 1 ) up to Class 6, and then it was open company. Of course, the stake money was better the higher the grade. Then, there was the correct distance of the race for the horse to take into account – from 1000 metres up to 3200 metres. These choices had to be planned well ahead, because each horse had to be nominated for a race days beforehand, and then officially accepted for the race, the day before. This was done by fax – no internet – and if the trainer forgot or missed the deadline – there was no race but angry owners.

Owners were a completely separate issue to deal with. Owners had expectations – usually unrealistic ones – but they were paying a lot of money to the trainer for results. Lenore was a very social person – luckily – because Ray would rather spend time with a horse than a person. In time, though, they would make friends with lots of their owners, and lifelong ones at that. Owners brought their horses for Ray to train for three reasons – his proven skills, his honesty, and the horse friendly environment of Goolwa beach. Horses that were trained in the city galloped on the racetrack every day, except Sunday. Ray's horses usually never saw a racetrack until raceday, and this suited lots of horses. They were relaxed, fresh and raring to go. Later, through his friendship with Wally Tonkin, who owned a winery near Goolwa with lots of vacant countryside – Ray would mix things up and run his horses through the bush, dodging kangaroos and emus.

The only downside to this was that city trainers could sometimes walk their horses across the road to the racetrack, whereas Ray had a 90 minute drive. Horses had to arrive at the track a minimum of one hour before their racetime, otherwise they were disqualified. This meant allowing an extra half hour travel time – in case of a puncture. For racing at Balaklava racetrack, north of Adelaide, this could mean departing Goolwa four hours before racetime. It was a long day if he had runners in the last race.

The expenses associated with owning a racehorse are also underestimated. It is not just a set daily fee to be paid to the trainer. Extra costs to be carried by the owner include vet fees, farrier fees, chiropractic fees, dental fees, clipping fees and fees to be paid to enter each race. It is worse than bringing up children, and way more expensive. Periodically, horses would stop racing and go for a spell for a month or so. More fees. Unfortunately, a lot of these fees are carried by the trainer until the account is paid a month later. This would turn out to be quite a cost for the Taylor stable, when they would have 20 or more horses in training. Horse feed, wages, fuel and vehicle running costs were all a weekly drain on finances. But, Ray was doing something he loved – and, it would seem, he was good at it.

The racing year for trainers starts on 1st August. This is the same date as a horse's birthday –for all horses born in the southern hemisphere. The date, based on the equine breeding season, is used to standardise the industry, particularly horse racing, which uses the date to put horses in their age grade for certain races.

Ray had already trained a few winners in his first year, but so far they had all been provincial winners. The big money, and the glory, was in training city winners on Adelaide tracks. He had until the end of July to get one home. Meanwhile, his successful first year continued with a win in January with 'Lady of Wraysbury', a horse called 'Mustiano' won at a race meeting at Naracoorte, not too far from Mount Gambier, and a local Goolwa horse called 'Just a Dame' picked up first prize in April at Murray Bridge.

His most successful horse so far, 'Welcome Hege', won again at Strathalbyn in June, but the racing year was coming close to an end. He saddled up a horse called 'Lone Justice' for a city run at Morphettville at the end of the month, and came close with a 3rd place. Then, with only three weeks of the season to go, he legged up jockey, Paul Saunders, onto the four year old Welcome Hege for a 1200 metre race in the city, at Victoria Park. He won by a long neck, and Ray had his first city winner in his first year of training. The horse's owners, Ken and Helen Smith, picked up nearly $8,000, and Ray and Lenore nearly $800.

In the newspaper report of the race the next day, in typically modest fashion, Ray was quoted as heaping praise on the gelding's strapper and track rider, Neil Woodford. " Neil is the only one to ride him in his work, and just about sleeps with him," he said.

By the end of his first twelve months as a trainer, Ray and Lenore had made 72 trips to the races, with 18 different horses. They recorded nine wins, seven 2'nds and twelve 3'rds.

There was no respite. There was no holiday break in between racing seasons. The 31st July was a Friday, and the next day it all started again. Ray had no runners on the first Saturday of the new racing season, but on Monday he dragged three horses all the way to the country meeting at Mindarie Halidon – a 2 ½ hour drive away, looking for a win. He finished up with a 2nd, a 3rd and a horse called Exothermic ran 5th. Sometimes, being a good trainer wasn't recognised by some horses, and Exothermic would be one of those horses. His 5th place at Mindarie would turn out to be his best run, after his previous first up run for 9th. His supremely optimistic owners would race him four more times for two more 9th placings, a 10th and a 13th, before finally, in desperation, Ray took him to the small country meeting at Penola in the state's South East to run in a 1600 metre maiden – and he finished last. After finishing last in a maiden at Penola, there was nowhere to go and the horse was retired, despite his optimistic name.

Luckily, Ray didn't have too many Exothermics in his stable. Like every trainer, he just needed one really good horse – or two. He had got lucky with Welcome Hege – his first ever runner – who had already won four races, and three weeks into the new season, Hege won his fifth over 1400 metres at Cheltenham.

Another up and coming star of the stable was a horse called 'Don't Babble On'. She was a big, strong filly who only ran 3rd at her first start in September, but would go on to win five races out of her next 16 starts for the 92/93 season. In fact September would turn out to be a good month all round for the team at Goolwa. Out of his 17 runners for the month, Ray would pick up four wins, a 2nd in the city and four 3'rds. The family horse, 'Sharp Mover', won by two lengths at Gawler two days before part owner Michael's 32nd birthday in October, bringing up three wins in a row for the four year old gelding. 'Sharpie' missed out two weeks later on a city win, in a three horse photo finish. These were exciting times for the Taylor family. Michael was now living in Goolwa, with his soon to be wife, Cheryl, and would start working for his Dad fulltime in 1993 – despite not knowing one end of a horse from the other. He would learn fast, though - just as Lenore had. She had gone from being almost afraid of horses, to becoming a qualified strapper at the races, and could now handle just about any horse with confidence.

In December, Ray revisited his birthplace – Clare – with two runners at the Clare races. Unfortunately, one of them was Exothermic, who was yet to be retired , and ran a consistent 9th. The other runner was a horse called 'Posters', who came 2nd and, according to the diplomatic Ray, was simply beaten by a better horse on the day. It was a long drive to come 2nd, though.

Horse training was proving to be one big roller coaster – full of ups and downs. Ray and Lenore's day would begin around 5 am, and sometimes they wouldn't get home from the races until 7 pm. If it was a raceday with poor results, it was a very long day. And, despite Ray's best efforts, those results were often out of his control. The weather could play a part, the horse's mood could play a part – and once he legged the jockey up onto the horse – the rest was totally out of his control.

Jockeys had one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, and for the most part, they were not rewarded accordingly. There were good jockeys, there were mediocre jockeys, and there were some you could trust, and some – well, you just couldn't be sure. Some stables had a stable jockey who rode trackwork on the horses, and then rode them in their races. Training out of Goolwa, Ray didn't have the luxury of a stable jockey, and appointed who he thought would do the best job for the horse – if they were available – which often, the good ones weren't. In his first season he used 8 different jockeys, and in his second he would use 16 different riders.

January, 1993, saw Ray and Lenore head to the races seven times, and not get a winner. That was one of the downs. One of the ups came three days later, when a horse called 'Estacoux', part owned by son Michael, won at Cheltenham at his fourth start.

Estacoux was no world beater – he was called 'Casper' around the stables because he spooked so easily – but he had an amazing turn of speed at the finish of a race. He would go on to win three more races over the next 18 months, and give his owners plenty of fun.

The star of the stable for Ray's second season as a trainer was undoubtedly 'Don't Babble On'. She was such a consistent racer, that she would earn her owners money every second race. Everyone would be happy with a horse like that – and she wasn't finished yet. But, so far, Ray was yet to have that 'very special' horse walk in to his stables. He had 20 horses in work, and no matter how good a trainer he was, half of them probably had little chance of winning more than one race. His goal this year was to improve on his first season, and by the 31st July, he had done just that. Compared to his first season, he had an extra 7 winners, and 12 more placegetters. This also meant he more than doubled the amount of stakemoney won by his horses, compared to his first year. They were impressive results for a bloke who many in the industry regarded as a novice trainer.

The 93/94 racing season would turn out to be a memorable one for the Taylor stables, for a number of reasons. A horse would finally walk into his stables that was a little bit special. Ray would train his first hurdler, he would train another Taylor family owned and bred horse ( Heart Rain's last foal ), and he would welcome his first grandchild into the world. It was going to be a busy year.

The first race meeting of the season was mid week at Gawler – a track Ray had already had plenty of success at. Ray and Lenore took three horses up, and won with a filly called Lake Venitia. Sharp Mover also made the trip and came in a valiant 4th place, considering he had raced with a foot abcess.

The following Sunday they took two different horses to Gawler – one had the optimistic name of 'Mortgage Breaker' – although he did charge home from the back of the field to come in 2nd – and the other horse was a three year old gelding, named 'Beach Kid'. 'Beachie' had been bred by Ray and Lenore, and was the last foal of their champion mare, Heart Rain. Beach Kid was a gentle giant of a horse with a lovely, placid nature. His only drawback was that he couldn't run very fast. But, Ray didn't know that yet – and after seeing him storm home in his 1200 metre maiden for 3rd place – he was quite encouraged.

As it turned out, 'Beachie' had the heart of an ox - and a similar turn of speed. But, being persistent and ever hopeful owners, the Taylor family kept plugging away. It soon became apparent that Beach Kid was not a sprinter – so Ray set him for distance races. At his 12th start, he would win a 2100 metre Maiden at Balaklava. That would turn out to be the highlight of his racing career. After six more flat races with no result, Ray then set him up as a hurdler. After four hurdle races, which included a couple of 3rd placings, Ray and Michael made the long journey to Warrnambool for a feature hurdle race. Beach Kid was the favourite, but with 1000 metres to go, he was 20 lengths behind the field. He came 2nd, after what could politely be described as an ordinary ride by the jockey. Beach Kid was retired, and given to Michael's wife, Cheryl, as a 'hunting' horse. He seemed much happier in that role.

Meanwhile, back at the start of the season, Ray had plenty of other horses to deal with. They all had their own different personalities and temperament, and Ray would treat them all as individuals. He could often be seen during the day, leaning against a post near a horse yard, just observing a particular horse – trying to work it out. He found that some horses preferred outside yards, and some preferred an inside stable. Some thrived on the beach work, and others did better training on a racetrack. He had use of the local picnic racetrack, as well as the Strathalbyn racetrack, which was only 20 minutes away, and the vast tracts of open bush around Wally Tonkin's winery. Ray believed he could get the best out of a happy horse. He never spoiled them, but he could no more be mean to a horse than he could to his own kids.

Wally Tonkin had a horse in training with Ray, called 'Kinton Provider'. He would turn out to be a very handy runner – Ray would race him 13 times this season, and he would give Wally three wins, two 2'nds and six 3 'rds.

The annual journey to Mindarie Halidon races was made once again – this time with five runners. One was scratched before the race after smashing its nose and bleeding profusely, and another came in 11th. The day was saved by 'Southern Habit', who led all the way to win, and pick up $1375.

Ray didn't have much experience with hurdlers, except for Beach Kid's efforts. Welcome Hege's owners, Ken and Helen Smith had bought a horse from NSW, though, and they wanted Ray to turn it into a hurdler. 'Our Tycoon' was a giant of a horse, and had his first run for Ray in June, over 2100 metres at Balaklava. He came in a respectable 3rd, but it was all part of the build up for his jumping races. It takes a lot of fitness for a horse to run two or three kilometres, jumping over fences on the way around. At his 7th start, with Ray in January 1994, he won a 2000 metre flat race at Morphettville. That was a bonus, but it wasn't the goal. The Smith's wanted a winning hurdler – they had already had plenty of flat wins with their horse, Welcome Hege.

Ray kept building 'Tycoon's fitness up and, in February, sent him over the jumps at Victoria Park. He didn't fall, and ran 3rd, which was encouraging. Three starts later, in April, Our Tycoon was back at Victoria Park on a sunny Saturday afternoon running and jumping over 2800 metres. He won by over 8 lengths, and the Smith's faith in the horse, and in Ray, was vindicated. They had paid $4000 for Our Tycoon, and had just won $8000. Ray wouldn't train too many hurdlers, though – he hated the thought of them falling and being injured.

If Ray was asked which horses stood out over the years he was training, the first one to spring to mind would be 'In The Mist'. A group of young footballers from Adelaide, led by Jeremy Gask, had formed a syndicate and got themselves a pretty little two year old filly for Ray to train. With his keen eye, he knew there was something special about her the first time he saw her striding out along Goolwa beach. He would be proven right, even though she had been passed in at the 1993 yearling sales.

Her first run was on New Years Day, 1994, in a race for two year olds over 1050 metres, at Morphettville. Being young and inexperienced, she misbehaved at the barriers, missed the start, and was running last at the turn with 200 metres to go. She then stormed home to finish 3rd. She raced again, two weeks later in the Balcrest Stakes, a $25,000 Listed Race. The jockey was Danny Kavanagh, who had won this race the year before. Once again, she missed the start, but then looked like winning, before being squeezed out for 4th. According to Ray, "It was a very honest run."

He must have seen something in the filly, because two weeks later, she ran in the Queen Adelaide Stakes, at Morphettville. She came a creditable 4th but, as Ray would later describe...." she went for a run and the gap closed. She nearly fell, was beaten by only ½ a length, and should have won." High praise indeed for a two year old at her 3rd start. It was then time for a spell for the young horse, and she didn't race again until June. This time, over 1000 metres at Murray Bridge, it was obvious she couldn't match the early speed of the other runners, but she ran the leaders down and won her first race.

Ten days later, she backed up in an 1100 metre race in the city, at Morphettville. She started the race as the 16/10 favourite, and won by two lengths, picking up a $9,000 cheque for her cheering young owners. She ran 2nd at her next start, at Cheltenham, and Ray started making some ambitious plans for 'Misty', for next season.

Two days after In The Mist's win at Morphettville, Ray's daughter-in-law, Cheryl, gave birth to Jackson – his first grandchild. Jackson would spend the first five years of his life growing up around 'Pa's horses, and Pa loved every minute of it.

Another notable horse of Rays to run around in this, his third season as a trainer, was Keepara Princess, who only won two races but came 2nd , five times. In her 13 starts, she finished in the first five horses, 12 times. Over the course of the season, Ray won races with 14 different horses – keeping lots of owners happy.

But probably his biggest overall achievement, was that he once again eclipsed his previous year's performance. The Taylor stables finished the 93/94 season with 22 winners, 22 2nd places and 30 3rd places. His stakemoney winnings were nearly $200,000, compared to his first year of $35,000.

What makes it more impressive is, based on those figures, if he was training in 2017, he would have finished the season in 2nd place on the South Australian Trainers Premiership.

Ray's consistent mare, 'Don't Babble On', had been in good form of late, having won in the city again two weeks into the new season, so he made ambitious plans to send her to the big game - the big time - the headquarters of racing – Melbourne. The stake money was nearly twice as much as Adelaide's, but the competition was fierce. The mare's owners were keen, though, so Ray found a suitable race, and off they went. The Qantas Airways Handicap was a 1600 metre race for mares, run at Caulfield racetrack at the end of August. Ray knew the mare raced best when she could drift back in the field, and then wind up with a strong finishing burst. He told the jockey that's what he wanted to see. At the 600 metre mark, she was well back, as instructed, then the jockey wound her up, like an Eveready Bunny, and she stormed home to win. It was certainly a highlight of Ray's training career so far. He left 'Don't Babble On' in Melbourne with another trainer he knew, and returned to Goolwa. She raced again, two weeks later at Moonee Valley for an impressive 3rd, and then returned home.

Meanwhile, In The Mist was back in work – this time as a three year old. Her warm up race was in September over 1200 metres, which Ray knew was too short for her, so wasn't worried when she got blocked for a run, and finished 6th. He was aiming her for the Morphettville Guineas, three weeks later. It would be her first race over 1600 metres, but Ray had given her a barrier trial over that distance ten days before and was confident she could run it. Unfortunately, she drew the widest barrier, but her jockey, Wayne Kerford, wasn't too worried – even though he hadn't ridden the horse before.

" She is the type of filly that always seems to find trouble in her races," Ray said. " ....mainly because she is such a big striding horse and needs plenty of galloping room. I told her rider I don't care how wide he takes her, as long as she has plenty of daylight in the race."

'Misty' had plenty of daylight, as she raced four or five horses wide the whole race. At the 300 metre mark, she took on the leader, and with apparent ease, raced away to win the Listed race, and pick up a cool $20,000 for her owners. Two days later, he had another city winner, with 'Lake Venitia'.

Ray had always seen a potential champion in Misty, and after that run, he set her for some big races. The first was the $30,000 Listed , Hill Smith Stakes, over 1800 metres, at Cheltenham. Unfortunately, Misty had picked up a virus during the week, and was not 100%. She did show 100% courage, though, to fight on for 2nd place. Ray sent her for a spell after that race to get her well for an Autumn campaign.

Back at work, her first up run was over 1200 metres, in February '95, at Morphettville. Once again she drew wide, coming out of barrier 15, but stormed home in 5th, only a length behind the winner. He then put her in a 1500 metre race for 3 year olds, three weeks later, where she was beaten in a photo finish, for 2nd. For her next race, Ray had a choice between a 1400 metre full of three year olds, or a 1600 metre, full of fillies and mares.

" The 1600 metre should suit her better, after two runs from a spell," he said to "The Advertiser journalist. " And to be realistic, if she is to be equal to the races I have aimed her for, she will have to give a top account of herself against the mares. Hopefully, I have pulled the right rein."

Choosing the best race for a horse was an art, and played a major role in a horse's success.

The 'Sunday Mail' reported the next day....... _Goolwa trainer Ray Taylor is on the road to his biggest success as a trainer with In The Mist. The three year old filly yesterday outclassed her older and more experienced rivals to to score a long neck win. In The Mist is being aimed at the $200,000 Australasian Oaks. Winning jockey, Ricky Pietsch, said the filly needed the hit out. She had had enough on the post, but she looks like she is being trained perfectly for her main goals._

After the races that day, Ray and Lenore headed to Murray Bridge, and boarded the riverboat, 'The Proud Mary', for an overnight cruise. On board were 50 of their friends, mostly horse owning clients of theirs, to help Ray celebrate his 60th birthday. As they cruised upstream that night, there was much celebration, not just for Ray's birthday, but for his success so far as a trainer. He had trained nearly 70 winners already – a substantial increase from his goal when beginning, of ' just landing a winner, anytime or anywhere.'

As well as that, he had just welcomed his second grandson into the world – a strapping young colt called Sam, to daughter, Deb. Lenore now had two grandsons to childmind, while she kept the stables running.

Meanwhile, Ray's ever faithful supporter, Lenore, had approached the Chairman of Stewards at the South Australian Jockey Club, Tom Hayles, to see if they would upgrade Ray's Permit to Train, to a full Trainer's License. It wasn't something Ray would have done, certainly not this early in his career, but Lenore felt, justifiably, that he deserved it. Realistically, a full Trainer's License didn't change things a whole lot. It was more a recognition of a trainers ability.

In reply to the application, Tom Hayles wrote,

' I wish to advise that it is the Stewards intention to fully support any application made by you to upgrade your licence from a Permit to Train to a full Trainers licence. This support has come about through the continuing success you have had in the industry since taking out your Permit to Train, and we are of the opinion that you would be a contributing member in the training ranks in South Australia.'

Due to Ray's own consistent form, and 'Misty's success, he was getting plenty of publicity in the Adelaide papers.

The weight of expectation sat heavily on Ray's shoulders as he legged Ricky Pietsch onto 'Misty' in the mounting yard for the Auraria Stakes. All this publicity didn't sit well with Ray who just wanted to go about his business with little fuss. In his favour was that he had ex champion jockey, Des Coleman, riding work for him along Goolwa Beach. Des was retired but knew a thing or two about the Auraria – he had won two of them as a jockey. As it turned out, the 22nd April was a good example of the ups and downs of the racing game. 'In The Mist' was last on the turn, heading for home, and hanging to one side badly, which severely affected her speed. She ran on strongly, but only managed 6th place – her hanging blamed on her getting her tongue over the bit, which would restrict her breathing.

But, Ray's other runner on the day was the ever reliable 'Don't Babble On'.

Her win was a shining example of the benefits of training horses at Goolwa – after a disappointing previous run Ray had changed tactics..........." I thought mixing up her training a bit might do the trick and at her first morning of work after that race, I told her rider to take her out on a dirt road for an hour. He reported an immediate change and since then I've done something different with her each morning," Ray said. He knew that every horse was different, and responded best to different things.

The much hyped Australasian Oaks came around at the end of April. Her regular jockey, R. Pietsch, was out for three weeks on suspension, so a replacement had to be found. Richard Jolly was a handy rider – but had never ridden the horse before. Ray had put a tongue tie on 'Misty', which is a rubber band, designed to stop her tongue going over the top of the bit – but she fought it badly. She was too far back in the straight, and despite running on well, finished a disappointing 9th. It was a long drive home.

The South Australian Oaks was the next feature race for the filly, but it was over 2500 metres, and after much time wasted trying to solve her tongue problem – she ran out of puff and finished her 94/95 season in 5th place. But, she was young – and she had enormous talent. There would be more to come for 'Misty'.

'In The Mist', despite her talent, was only one of Ray's horses to shine during this, his fourth season. He was always happy with the mare 'Don't Babble On', and her efforts, and 'Keepara Princess' never ran a bad race. A horse he trained called, for some reason, 'Self Conscious', picked up three wins out of twelve starts. But, one of his most exciting horses was a filly called 'Peebinga Princess', who came into the stables at the same time as 'Misty'.

'Peebinga' was a sprinter, and had the personality of a serial killer. She seemed to be forever angry, and Ray found himself a challenge. Whatever he did, must have worked, because at her first start over 1100 metres at Morphettville, in September '94, she treated the other 11 horses with the contempt of, well, a serial killer, and romped home. Unfortunately, there was a bit of mutual aggression at the 400 metre mark, and 'Peebinga' was galloped on. She was out for a few weeks to heal.

By the 19th November, she was back, and she was angry. Ray had her in a 1200 metre race for three year old fillies at Cheltenham. After the race he said to the 'Sunday Mail' reporter, " I thought it might be a bit much for her today. She only won a Class 1 at her debut, and has never been under pressure before."

The three year old filly started as the 35/10 favourite, and thundered home to win by a short half head. She earned her owners $11,000, and Ray was very impressed. Two weeks later, with a different jockey because R. Pietsch was on suspension – again – she ran 3rd in a photo finish over 1100 metres, and was sent out for a short spell. Ray was very careful with his young horses – especially the fillies – to over race them could bring about a short career – so he nursed them through their early days to prolong their potential. He gave her a barrier trial at the end of January, 1995, and she won it by ten lengths.

The target for 'Peebinga was the Swettenham Stud Stakes, a Group 3 race for fillies and mares, three years and upwards, run over 1200 metres. It was her first race after a spell, and only her fourth ever race and she bolted home to come 2nd against a very strong field – and still earned her owners $18,000. Showing so much promise, and after successfully taking on the Melbourne races 7 months ago with 'Don't Babble On', Ray sent 'Peebinga' to Caulfield for the Listed, Laurent Perrier Stakes, over 1200 metres. She drew barrier one, and was forced to lead all the way, only to be run down in the last 20 metres, and run 3rd. A week later, she ran in a 1400 metre race at Caulfield, but played up terribly at the barrier, and loped home for 7th. Turns out she was madly in season, and was more interested in boy horses, than running fast.

'Peebinga's next three starts, back in Adelaide, were all disappointing and she was turned out for a spell. Prior to her successful return, the Adelaide newspaper reported that " _the mare developed a mental problem during her last preparation, and her form deteriorated as a consequence_." Ray was a little bit kinder in his summing up, saying, " She's a bit of a hypochondriac, but we have given her a spell, and judging by her trackwork and her attitude, I feel she will find her true form this time in."

After a successful, rollercoaster season, Ray finished up with another 20 winners, but had increased his stakemoney winnings for his owners by nearly $70,000 over the previous season.

One of the most important elements of Ray's training business, along with owners and jockeys, were his staff. He had employed Keith Wotherspoon a couple of years back to run the ground operations at the stables – preparing the horses each morning for their beachwork, and looking after them when they returned. He was always the first one to be at the stables every morning, and was always reliable, being of an age just a bit younger than Ray. He was the same Keith that had worked at the Inman Valley stud, and then had given Ray a job at Mount Barker all those years ago.

Ray had two fulltime track riders, who rode every morning and then helped feed the horses, and he also had the 63 year old ex jockey, Des Coleman, ( winner of 3 Adelaide Cups ) riding horses on the beach most mornings. Son, Michael, was now working for him fulltime, and Lenore was an unpaid, fulltime worker, strapping horses at the races, doing bookwork, and looking after Ray's wellbeing, as she had done for 35 years.

Des was also a part time instructor at the SAJC apprentices school, and it was decided that it was a good time for Ray to take on an apprentice jockey. Cheree Buchiw was an ever smiling, fresh faced 16 year old apprentice, who moved down to Goolwa to work with Ray. The advantages of having an apprentice ride his horses meant a weight advantage of up to 3 kilograms off the back of a horse – and if the theory was true that one kilogram of weight equated to one length in a race – it was worth it.

The 95/96 season would turn out to be another standout for the Taylor stables. Ray was constantly picking up new horses, and new owners, mainly through word of mouth. His consistent results certainly helped, and owners were always looking for that edge – something that would improve their horse's performance. After four years, Ray had started to make a name for himself through his beach work, and individual training approach for every horse. One size did not fit all at the Goolwa stables.

One of those new owners was the well known South Australian winemaker, Wolf Blass. He would have three horses trained by Ray – but the most interesting was a beautiful looking black gelding that had been trained by Bart Cummings in Melbourne – called Corregidor. Three weeks after running 12th, ten lengths behind the winner, in Melbourne, in October – Wolf Blass sent him to Ray. He had good form – prior to his 12th, he had won at Randwick, in Sydney.

Another new horse in the stable was 'Thunderheart', part owned by Chris Dittmar, a former world squash champion. This horse had previously been trained by the leading South Australian trainer, David Hayes, but his foreman, Tony McEvoy, had recommended Ray to Chris, for a change of environment. At his first run for Ray, Thunderheart bolted home for his first win, ahead of a Hayes trained horse.

Ray's 95/96 season had gotten off to a flying start – in the first five weeks he had 18 runners – and 12 of them made money. He picked up three winners, four 2'nds, and five 3'rds with new horses like 'Already A Star', 'Rich Century', 'Sky Llaroo' and 'Thunderheart'. He ran 'Keepara Princess' in the Balaklava Cup over 1600 metres in August, and she looked like the winner 200 metres out, only to be run down and come in 3rd.

By the time October rolled around, 'In The Mist' was back racing as a four year old mare. Her first run back was over 1100 metres at Morphettville – way too short for her – but she came in 2nd last which was unexpected. A vet check after the race showed swollen joints and a bad blood count – the diagnosis was a spider bite! Three weeks later, she ran over 1450 metres with good joints and a normal blood count. At the turn for home, she was six horses wide and running last, but finished strongly to come home 2nd. Ray's only comment after the race was, ".......she's back."

Not before time, Ray and Lenore decided to take a holiday. Son, Michael, had been working for Ray for a while and was able to run the place in his absence. It probably wasn't the best of times to take a holiday because he had the $30,000 Johnnie Walker Classic coming up on the 4th November – with three runners in the race. The race was run over 1600 metres at Morphettville, and Ray had a few good horses who could run a mile. First to enter was the back to form 'In The Mist', followed by the ever consistent 'Don't Babble On', and also the new boy in Goolwa, Wolf Blass's, 'Corregidor'.

The winner of the race the previous year, 'Bordeaux', looked like making it two in a row at the turn, but was picked up by 'Corregidor', carrying the topweight, who had been travelling wide the whole race. He was looking good until a mare ran him down in the last few strides – 'In The Mist'. While Ray was holidaying on a houseboat on the Murray River, he managed to quinella the feature race. 'Don't Babble On', was beaten for early speed, such was the ferocious pace. She made amends a week later, winning over 1800 metres at Cheltenham.

Also in November, Ray's apprentice, Cheree, had her first ride and piloted 'Dancing Desire' to a 4th at Gawler.

The serial killer, Peebinga Princess', returned to racing on the 25th November, and proved what a true champion she was by winning first up over 1100 metres at Morphettville. The newspaper comment the following day described her as a mare of outstanding potential, whose win was effortless.

But, just to show Ray what a fickle game racehorse training was – on the 6th December he had four runners in the same race race at Cheltenham – and two of them were quite fancied. "Thunderheart' came home 4th, 'King Prego' 6th, 'Mrs Magoo' 9th, and 'New Emperor' trotted home in 10th place. Such is racing.

Luckily, the stable champion, 'In The Mist', was always a chance – six weeks after winning the Johnnie Walker, she romped home to win the Listed, O.J. Smith Stakes at Cheltenham, and picked up another $20,000 for her owners.

The feature races in Adelaide around Christmas time were the Christmas Handicap, run over 1450 metres, and the $66,000 Port Adelaide Cup, run over 2400 metres on Boxing Day. There was no relaxing around the Christmas tree this year, as Ray had runners in both races.

Corregidor ran in the Christmas Handicap, and was running well until he got blocked at the 400 metre mark.He was held up for 200 metres, until he was able to break clear, and run home for 3rd. In The Mist was carrying the topweight of 55 ½ kilograms in the Cup, but still started as favourite. The newspaper headline in the racing pages, the day of the race, declared, ' **Rubber glove key to success**.'

Goolwa trainer, Ray Taylor, will place his faith in a rubber strip cut from a surgical glove to give him his biggest training success with In The Mist, in today's Port Adelaide Cup. " She was proving hard to ride, and was swallowing her tongue as bad as any horse I've known," Ray said. "I tried numerous types of tongue ties, new bits and other gear changes, but she resented them all. I bought a pair of surgical gloves from the local supermarket, and cut the end of one of them. It's probably the best $1.35 I've spent."

The rubber tongue tie was successful, however 'Misty' was racing way back in the field, and had to work extra hard from 800 metres out to make up ground – she was beaten by a neck. 'Peebinga Princess' raced on the same day, and fought her usual competitive race, to come in 2nd. She would run two more 2nd places n the city before Ray figured her out too. Wearing blinkers for the first time, six months later, she won by nearly a length at Cheltenham.

The new year of 1996 saw Ray searching for suitable races for another Wolf Blass horse, 'Choice Grey'. In the end, going overseas was the best option. Not too far though – Kangaroo Island is only ten miles off the coast, south of Adelaide, but it is Australia's 3rd largest island. Once a year, in February, they hold a two day race meeting, which includes the 1900 metre Kangaroo Island Cup.

Ray took 'Choice Grey', and 'Rich Century' over on the ferry, and planned to run them on both days.

Ray on Kangaroo Island, still working the horses at 61.

Both horses raced on the Thursday, and both horses won. It was a good start, and he backed them both up for the Saturday. 'Rich Century' ran in a 1750 metre Class 6, but whether it was the hard ground, or maybe just a touch of sea sickness, 4th place was the best he could manage. Choice Grey ran in the Kangaroo Island Cup, with an apprentice on board, and was so far back in the field coming into the straight, he was almost at the other end of the island. Ray was confident the horse could have won, but with so much ground to make up, he ran home for 3rd.

Success in racing was a constant challenge – sometimes Ray thought he had the training game figured out, and then it would turn around and bite him viciously on the backside. During April and March, he would make 17 trips to the races with limited success. Even with six runners at Cheltenham one Saturday in mid April, including champions, 'In The Mist', 'Peebinga', 'Estacoux', and 'Don't Babble On', he still missed out on a winner – owing to one or more of the many variables that all have to fall into place at the right time – falling elsewhere.

There was another feature race coming up, though, which Ray had his eye on for his champion mare, 'In The Mist'. The Metro Meat Cup, run over 2200 metres, at Murray Bridge, was run in early May. Ray wanted to use it as a lead up run before the $50,000 St. Leger Stakes, on the 25th May. The St. Leger was run over 2700 metres, and it would be 'Misty's' first attempt at that distance. She started as 3/1 favourite in the Cup, and after regular jockey, Ricky Pietsch, made his move at the 800 metre mark, it was all over. She bolted to the lead 200 out, and won in fine form – breaking the three year old race record on her way past the post.

The St. Leger was a disappointment – 'Misty' hung badly the whole race, with her jockey having to ride her on one reign all the way. At her vet check after the race, she was found to be a chiropractic mess – she had put her back out all down one side.

Then, in a return to his past, Ray took 'Misty', down to Mount Gambier – the town he left 27 years previously – to run her in the Mount Gambier Cup. Not surprisingly, she was given a lot of weight to carry, and the track was rated heavy. The gallant mare raced strongly over the 2400 metres, slogging her way through the soft ground with 60 kilograms on her back, but could only manage 3rd place.

Ray then set her for the Listed $30,000 John D. Lee Stakes at Cheltenham. This would be run over the shorter distance of 1800 metres.

" To get her mind right, I avoided the track, and the beach, and had her out chasing kangaroos in the bush, or on the picnic racing track," he said. Her mind must have been in the right place on the day, because she won by half a length, and his tactics paid off.

'Misty' had been a leased horse for her syndicate of young footballers, and her lease was coming to an end. But what a ride it had been for them, and for Ray. The beautiful grey mare had run 29 races with Ray, for 8 wins and 8 placings, many of them in Listed races. Her racing finished in July, with a 2nd place at Cheltenham, and the next time Ray saw her, she was pregnant.

Ray's fifth season finished the same as all his others – better than the previous one. With 26 winners, and nearly $300,000 in stakemoney won, this was his best result yet. He had a few good horses, of course, which helped. But he also managed to get many average horses past the post too. He raced 34 different horses this season, and went to the races nearly 100 times, experiencing the usual ups and downs associated with horseracing. Lenore had been by his side all season, as usual, and she had turned in to a pretty good horse handler herself. He was consistently finishing his seasons in the top ten of South Australian trainers, but this year, on the Provincial Trainers premiership, he was only one win off second place, behind the Hayes stable.

While it was sad to see the end of some horses racing careers – there was always the chance another champion might come trotting through the stable doors. Halfway through the new season, it looked like that may have happened. For now, though, the Taylor stables were like a championship football team that kept on winning – but it couldn't last forever, and it was time to rebuild the team. The 96/97 season would turn out to be a year of losing quite a few horses, either through injury, or becoming mothers, or just because they weren't much good. His champion mares, 'Don't Babble On', 'In The Mist' and 'Peebinga Princess' were all destined for motherhood, so Ray needed a new champion. Unfortunately, he wouldn't turn up for a few months.

The new season started slowly for Ray and Lenore. Every year for the last five, the Taylor stables would be out of the gates like a sprinter, notching up wins, and good solid runs. It was unrealistic to expect that to continue happening with animals as fickle as thoroughbred racehorses, trying to win races along with hundreds of others. Things didn't start well for Ray, when his Auntie Verna died in August. Verna was his Uncle Len's wife, who used to pick Ray up in the horse and cart from Gawler train station when he was a ten year old boy visiting for school holidays.

Then, in October, one of Ray and Lenore's first racehorses, that they had bred and named after their daughter, died giving foal. 'Miss Deborah' had won races for them when Ray was pre-training, including a city win on Lenore's 50th birthday – and now, eight years later, it was like losing a member of the family. Luckily, they had kept a filly of hers to race, aptly named, 'Deborah's Daughter'.

Some good news was needed for the Taylor stables – and it came with a win, after many attempts, in Ray's birthplace of Clare. Some horse owners of Ray's came from the South Australian town of Wallaroo – and they had a filly they named 'Princess Llaroo'. Shortly after, they raced her brother, who was, of course, called 'Prince Llaroo. The Princess had her first start at Clare in November, and won convincingly. She returned to the same track two weeks later, and ran 2nd. The brother and sister never raced against each other, but the following year they would both return to Clare to race on the same day. Prince was in an 1100 metre race for two year olds, and his sister was up in class, racing over 1200 metres in a Class Four. Luckily, there would be no arguing between the siblings that night – they both ran 2nd. 'Princess Llaroo' would turn out to be one of Ray's most consistent performers – having 12 starts this season for three wins, three 2nds and two 3rds. Her brother would do even better than her, the following season.

One of the more remarkable stories to come out of the stables this season was the racing comeback of 'Sharp Mover'. The chestnut gelding, owned by Deb and Michael, had started his racing career in 1991, as a three year old. He had raced 20 times, and won a hat trick of provincial races as a four year old. Unfortunately, he had a history of feet problems and his racing career came to an end after running 8th at Gawler. He was still in perfect health, though, so Ray 'lent' him to a girl he knew, who had ridden some trackwork for him. Her plan was to turn 'Sharpie' into a show horse. He finished up winning a swag of ribbons – but then that career too, came to an end, and he was returned to the Taylors.

Being in such good health, Ray put him back in to light work, and he thrived on it. A comeback was planned for the 8 year old family favourite, because he just seemed to love galloping. After a 2 ½ year hiatus, 'Sharp Mover' was saddled up once again – in a Class Four 1100 metre at Naracoorte. He was carrying 56 kilograms, and it was a quick sprint. In the home straight, the rest of the field were looking over their shoulders at 'Sharpie', yelling out..."come on, old man." So he did – and scooted home in 3rd place. Unfortunately, the fairytale didn't continue, and after his next start, old age caught up and he officially retired.

Ray and Lenore had been working hard, seven days a week, for nearly six years, and something had to give. As well as the constant trips to the races twice a week, there were barrier trials to take horses to, usually on Mondays and Fridays. Ray was still breaking in horses that had been bought at the yearling sales by his owners, and that was a very physical activity. Lenore had the emotional stress of dealing with the accounts and paying the bills and the wages – and that too was taking its toll – especially when the stable was reduced to only ten horses in work, at one stage.

Ray's health took a beating, and in April, '97, he was admitted to hospital with pneumonia. While this was not good news, the positive result was, after smoking all his adult life, he finally gave up the ciggies.

The other positive news around this time was that a new horse had entered the stable, by the name of 'Honour Code'. He was a three year old gelding with an impressive pedigree – his father was 'Marscay' – the 1982 winner of the richest sprint race in Australia – the Golden Slipper. Marscay had also won the Group 2, Hobartville Stakes, beating 'Strawberry Road', who would go on to become Australia's Horse of the Year in '82/'83. So, his Dad had been pretty handy in his day – now Ray was going to have a crack at his son.

A trio of mates from their university days – Grant Paterson, Allan Byers and Brian Casey had bought the horse from his NSW owners. 'Honour Code' had won two races – at Canterbury and Hawkesbury- but had then run last over 1350 metres at Rosehill. The blokes would rather go to the races in Adelaide than NSW, and they had heard about Ray's success – so in walked the horse.

He was a giant of an animal, but had a lovely nature, and Ray took an immediate shine to him. It was mutual. Lenore was a big admirer too, and became his strapper at the races – despite his size and the fact he could have pulled a six horse stagecoach all by himself. On the 25th April, Ray took him to Victoria Park to run him in a 1250 metre race for three year olds. 'Honour Code' bolted out of the gates and led all the way – until he got caught 50 metres from the post and finished 3rd, only beaten into 2nd place by a nose. It was an encouraging start, and exciting for his owners – they had been racing horses together for a long time, but hadn't had a winner since 1986!

They didn't have to wait much longer. Ray was sure the big horse needed more distance, so on the 7th June, he ran him over 1500 metres in the city. The bookmakers must have liked what they saw, because they had him starting as the 12/10 favourite. Soon after entering the straight, his jockey, Jeff Maund, gave him a couple of light flicks with the whip, and at the 200 metre mark he took off – winning by nearly five lengths - and it was a heavy track.

" The only concern I had was whether he would have handled the rain affected ground," Ray said. " But I need not have worried, he went through it with no problems."

Not long after the race, Ray was admitted to hospital again – with a mystery virus – similar to one being transmitted by dead birds. For some reason, Ray had an aviary full of budgies, so Lenore raced home, opened the door and let them all go. Test results a few days later showed no sign of the bird disease.

'Honour Code' ran over 1450 metres at Cheltenham for his next start, and ran 2nd, then put in a shocker on Lenore's 59th birthday. It was time for a change of tactic – the horse was fairly bolting out of the gates every time and pulling like a freight train, so Ray decided to run him next time without his blinkers on. It was only a week since his previous start, and Ray had entered him in another race for three year olds – over 1400 metres at Victoria Park. The handicapper saw him coming and allotted him 57 kilograms. Ray countered by putting an apprentice, Paul Gatt, on the horse to claim a few kilograms and reduce his weight.

As it turned out – this particular race – the Prettejohns Plants Handicap – would have in it Ray and Lenore's 1000th runner, since they started in this unpredictable business, six years ago. It would have been perfect if it turned out to be a winner, and gave 'Honour Code's owners another exciting race.

Ray with Honour Code, and retired jockey, Des Coleman

The 12th July, 1997, was the day of Ray's 1000th runner since taking out his trainers licence. Good job the runner was 'Honour Code' – he won with his ears pricked back, and a smile on his face.

There weren't many happier clients of Ray and Lenore's than 'Honour Code's owners. All three couples were lovely people, so it was very rewarding – not just financially – for Ray to have them as part of his stable. He had other horses running around of course – another Wolf Blass horse, 'John's Heritage', had just won his third race for Ray, Mrs. Magoo had won in the city, and was destined to be a broodmare, and another Taylor bred and raced filly, 'Maid Perfect', was showing some good form at the provincial tracks.

Two weeks after 'Honour Code's second win, Ray saddled him up at Cheltenham. It was the last city race meeting for the season, and Ray was keen to finish well, after a slow start. He only had one runner – but it was 'Honour Code'. The big horse had been much more relaxed in his previous start – winning without the blinkers on – so they stayed off.

It was the 8th start for Ray and 'Honour Code', which so far had resulted in two wins, a close 2nd, and two 3rd 's. After 11 years without a winner, Grant, Alan and Brian had picked up two in the last two months. On the 26th July, racing over 1450 metres in the Class 6, 'BP Keeps You Moving Handicap', they stood in the stands and yelled with joy, as they picked up their third.

It had been a rollercoaster season. After finishing the previous training year with 230 runners – this last twelve months had been quiet – with only 109 travelling to the races. But, it had finished on a strong, and encouraging note, thanks to the gentle giant. It seemed the Taylor stables may have a new champion on their hands.

The first race meeting of the '97/'98 season was held at Victoria Park, on the 2nd of August. The feature race was the Listed, 'Lord Mayor's Mile', and 'Honour Code' was at the starting gates for it. The four year old was still eligible for restricted races, but Ray, and the owners, had decided to give the horse a chance to prove himself in a strong field. He was still slugged with 57 kilograms in weight, but his regular rider, Jeff Maund, was confident. Jeff would make the trip down to Goolwa before any big races, and ride trackwork for Ray on the beach – to get a feel for raceday. Today, he was more than confident.

Halfway through the race, 'Honour Code' was out in front by four lengths – Maund had caught his rivals napping – but he was happy to have such a big break in the expectation they would come gunning for him in the run home. They should have known better than to give the big horse such a lead – 'Honour Code' cantered to the line to win by 4 ½ lengths. The newspaper report the following day described the race as a 'romp' for the horse, and an 'armchair ride', for the jockey.

The win brought up a hat trick of city wins for the champion gelding, in the three months that Ray had been training him.

" I guess we'll do with him now what probably 100 other trainers want to do with their horses, and run him in the Balaklava Cup," he said, on the day. " This run will virtually assure him of a start in the race and he will have a couple of days in the paddock this week to freshen him up for the cup."

The Balaklava Cup was another Listed race, worth $51,000, run on the 20th August, and was the richest provincial race in South Australia. There was an 18 day gap before the race, so 'Honour Code' had a few days off. Prior to the race, Ray had Des Coleman working the horse out in the bush to mentally prepare him for the race the next day.

" Even though they are working over four or five kilometres, the horses don't realise it because they are concentrating on the surroundings and the kangaroos, emus and sheep," Ray said.

'Honour Code' was the 3/1 favourite for the 1600 metre race, even though leading trainer at the time, Peter Hayes, had entered an imported horse, 'Court of Honour', to be ridden by an international jockey, Brent Thomson, as part of the horse's build up for the Melbourne Cup.

Ray legged the jockey up in the mounting yard, after giving him some final instructions, and they trotted around to the starting gates. Then, disaster struck. Halfway there, one of the stirrup leathers broke, and Jeff Maund fell off. 'Honour Code' bolted, and ran nearly an entire circuit of the course, before being caught by the stewards. The horse was visibly upset, as well as being exhausted, and was scratched from the race. Ray was devastated, as were the horse's owners. But, that's racing. And, just to show how up and down this game was – Ray had two other runners on the day – and they both won. It should have been three winners that day.

Given his recent form ( without the Balaklava Cup ), the plan was to take 'Honour Code' to the big time, in Melbourne, for his next race. There was another $50,000 Listed race at Caulfield, over 1700 metres, they had their eye on, and booked a horse float for the journey. But, Ray wasn't happy with the horse's mental state, after his incident at Balaklava, so instead decided not to subject him to a long road trip, and entered him in an 1800 metre race at Victoria Park, ten days after the Balaklava Cup.

The horse hadn't run further than a mile yet, but Ray was confident he could handle it – and after five starts at Victoria Park, 'Honour Code' had three wins and two 2nd's there. That may be why he started as the short priced favourite – again. Once again, the weight was set at 57 kilograms, so Ray put apprentice, Paul Gatt, on the horse's back, and brought it down to 54 ½. It turned out to be a good decision – 'Honour Code' was too good for the rest of the field – he led all the way, and won by nearly three lengths – and to show there is some justice in horseracing, he beat a horse that had nearly won the Balaklava Cup. Ray also had a winning double that day, with Jeff Maund winning on 'John's Heritage, a Wolf Blass owned horse.

Four city wins in succession, including a Listed race, was the sort of form every horse owner dreamed of. 'Honour Code's run had to end sometime, but while he was in such good form, and feeling so well, Grant, Brian and Alan, and their wives, Kay, Annette and Ann decided to push on.

Before his next start, Ray had an equally important race to run. " Deborah's Daughter', his three year old filly, bred from his beloved mare, ' Miss Deborah', who had died nearly a year ago, was having a run in a 1400 metre Maiden, at Gawler. She did her Mum proud and won her first race with ease.

The South Australian Jockey Club had decided to trial a city race meeting on a Sunday to attract bigger crowds. The 21st September, 1997, was the date, and only 2000 people turned up, but "Honour Code' couldn't have cared less, and it didn't change the stake money. The biggest race of the day was the Group 3 Hilton Cup, run over 1500 metres. The drop back in distance was a gamble for Ray, and this was Morphettville, not Victoria Park.

Despite that, the bookmakers had him starting at 3/1 favourite, and he had drawn a handy barrier three. 'Honour Code' led early, as was his habit, but a horse called 'Port Watch' whipped around the outside to take the lead at the 200 metre mark. 'Honour Code' muscled his way through, to be challenged by top weight, 'Hero Wind'. And this is where the whole racing game gets a bit weird. Hero Wind was a quality horse, having recently done well in Melbourne. He had also won the Group 3, 'Spring Stakes' at Morphettville in 1994 and 1995, as a youngster. The winner of the 1991 'Spring Stakes', was 'Beau George', the horse Ray had bred, and sold for $3500.

So, as the field straightened up, 'Honour Code' looked across to 'Hero Wind', who was taking him on, and said....." this one's for Ray," and beat him home by a length.

That made five in a row for the new stable champion, including a Listed race and a Group 3 win. Next stop – Melbourne.

Despite the glory associated with training 'Honour Code' – the newspaper headlines and the television interviews, Ray still had a stable full of horses to feed and train and take to whatever race meetings gave them the best chance. He was brought back to earth when 'John's Heritage', who had just completed the owner's dream of a hat trick of wins, came in last at Cheltenham. His annual journey to Mindarie Halidon races rewarded him with a win, with 'Vintage Reef', but it was a long drive for $200 commission, and a long way from a Group 3 win.

The 'Honour Code' story is a good one for the horse, his owners, and his trainer. He started life as a racehorse in NSW, and did have some success, but once he saw the beach at Goolwa, and the kangaroos, and emus out at Wally Tonkin's property, he really began to love life. He was, simply, a big horse who loved to run, and Ray gave him that opportunity. Most owners buy a horse purely to make money, but like many of Ray's horses, ' Honour Code's owners had a connection with the horse, and they now saw the " Waterford Crystal Mile' at Moonee Valley, as being a realistic goal.

No-one knows what a horse thinks – but possibly "Honour Code' was saying.....'actually, I've had enough....I have tried my best and won five in a row but that trip to Melbourne really wore me out and I need a holiday,' but no-one listened.

He ran 8th, out of 11. And, he went for a holiday. On holidays, he stepped in a hole and did a tendon. He was operated on, and came back to Ray, ready to race. It would take a while, though – he would have four more starts 18 months later with little success – then break down again, and retire for good.

But, for now, it was only October, three months into the new season. In November, 'Princess Llaroo' won again, at Clare, in a Class 4, by five lengths, exactly one year since winning a Maiden at the same track. Her brother outdid her, two weeks later, leading all the way in a three year old mile race at Victoria Park.

'Honour Code's owners had a new horse in town called 'Star Aglow', who used to race in Sydney, under the trainer, Jack Denham. " Star Aglow' had been a handy two year old, but then had bad feet problems. They were confident Ray could fix that little problem, so into the stables he limped.

By the time he raced, on the 6th December, he hadn't won a race for nearly a year and a half. He had, however, won his barrier trial two weeks prior- running the fastest time of all six, 100 metre trials. He then raced in a three year old, 1000 metre race at Victoria Park, and much to the delight of his owners – won by a neck.

The new year of 1998, saw the Taylor owned horse 'Maid perfect', break through with a win at Naracoorte. It was a 4 ½ drive, but a win is a win. For nearly six months after that, Ray didn't have a winner. It was a long fall from being a Group 3 winner, to finding it hard to pay the bills. Lenore had a back injury, caused by a chair being pulled out from under her as a primary school teacher in the 70's, and she was struggling. They were having staff problems – when losing a track rider impacted on the whole operation – and owners weren't paying their accounts. In March, the stable had four runners, and only four in April. It was not a profitable way to run a stable.

Then, on the 7th April, Michael's wife, Cheryl gave birth to Charlee-Anne – a grand daughter for Ray and Lenore. She came into the world with a big smile on her face – and it has remained there. Racehorses, and their success, took second place to this beautiful child, who would always shine.

But, there were still five young horses to be educated, and broken in, and as well as going all gooey over his grand daughter, this is what took up most of Ray's time. A break in the routine came in May, through Tom Sweeney. Tom was an agent for a horse owner in Malaysia who bought yearlings at the sales every February for Ray to break in. These young horses would then go to Singapore and Malaysia to race. Mr. Chau offered an all expenses paid trip for Tom and Ray to go to Singapore for a two day race meeting. Ray was keen to return to the whites only swimming pool, and throw a couple of poms in the deep end, so off he went. When he returned, he realised he had been married to Lenore for forty years and, as a good husband, he had taken her to the races 63 times in the last 12 months.

By season's end, Ray was back to his best, recording 22 winners. It had taken a toll on his health, though, and on Lenore's. Stress was a constant bedfellow, with horses losing that should have won, horses leaving the stable that should have stayed, owners who should be paying that didn't, and bank managers who did not understand the industry. It was a tough time, and Ray and Lenore thought about giving the game away - but there weren't too many alternatives.

Ray was 63 years old, and still breaking in horses. If he wasn't taking horses to the trials on a Monday or Friday, he was taking horses to Adelaide to visit the horse clinic for one health reason or another. If he wasn't doing that, he was delivering horses to, or picking them up from, an agistment property. Most Wednesdays and Saturdays were race days – which could be 14 hour days. At the end of every day, there would be numerous phonecalls to, and from, owners – talking about the progress of their horses. Ray was starting to feel a bit weary. He was insulated from the financial stresses to a degree, because Lenore carried most of that. She sent out the accounts every month, and out of that, attempted to pay all the bills. She also drove the horse float to the beach most mornings, went to most race meetings, and looked after three grandchildren, on a regular basis. And, she just hit 60.

The '98/'99 season started well with three winners, five 2nd's and a third out of their first fifteen runners. One of those winners was 'Deborah's Daughter', who was half owned by the Taylor family, and would go on to be one of their best performers of the season, despite having some serious anger management issues.

It would be another season full of highs and lows. "Star Aglow' would have a win in the city, followed by a 2nd place, which was great news for his owners, as 'Honour Code's racing days were about over. The ever consistent 'Prince Llaroo' would win the Listed 'City of Adelaide Handicap', and also, in a beautiful twist of fate – the 'Beau George Handicap', at Cheltenham.

But then, there would be a period where the stable would have 68 runners – without a winner. There would be a whole bunch of 2'nds and 3'rds, but they just couldn't get over the line. It was disheartening. Luckily, Ray and Lenore had many loyal owners – many of them became friends, and some would become lifelong friends. Kim and Barb Hutchins had a horse with Ray, and would still be sending him postcards, 15 years after he finished training. Phillip Nehmy gave up his time for years to help out, and never arrived at the stables without a box of chocolates. Richard Gask and Terry Dickson were long time owners and friends, so too were John and Meredith Sinclair - and Grant Paterson along with Brian and Alan – owners of 'Honour Code' and 'Star Aglow' - were always supportive, and appreciative of Ray's efforts.

More often than not, though, Ray's owners were rewarded with a good run from their horse. By the end of the season, the stable's run of bad luck was obvious, having run 2nd, twenty times. But out of 133 runners, 60 of them earned money, of some amount, for their owners – and that's pretty good odds.

New Year's Eve, 1999, was reportedly going to bring about the end of the world, as we know it. That didn't happen, but for Lenore, it kind of did. Michael, Cheryl and two of Lenore's grandchildren, Jackson and Charlee-Anne, had moved to Queensland. Lenore had always placed a lot of importance on family, and now, a big part of them had left. It didn't make her job any easier.

But, there was a new season afoot – and it started on the 4th August,1999, with two runners for Ray, at Gawler. The first, 'Turbo Jet', bolted in. Then, 'Papyrus', ran 7th. Based on their respective names, it was hardly a surprising result. Whether a horse's name really made any difference is doubtful – but when a horse has a good name like 'In The Mist', or 'Honour Code', or 'Turbo Jet', people expect good things. When an owner wants to name their horse, they have to submit 7 options, and they don't always get their first option. They are usually based on the horse's breeding – but sometimes – you just wonder. Ray had a horse running around this season called, 'Pirate Rifle'. He would run 11th, 12th, 7th and 8th in his first four runs. He had a horse the previous season called 'Sars', like the drink. He ran 11th, 10th and 8th. Then there was 'Perculator', as in coffee – 13th and 10th. You have to wonder.

One horse to confound the theory was 'Denise'. Now, you can't get a more ordinary name for a racehorse than that. She had been in Lee Freedman's stable, in Melbourne, but he thought she was a lunatic. John Sinclair heard she was on the market – so he bought her and sent her to Ray. Once he figured her out, she calmed right down and would have 8 starts this season for two wins and two 2nds.

'Honour Code's owners had another horse in the stable called 'Paid Up'. He was a big grey horse, and Ray would deliver three wins and a couple of 2nds, for the friends, this season. They seemed to be very good at choosing horses – and names.

But the big issue for Lenore was her son and grandchildren moving to Noosa. In January, 2000, only two months after they left, she flew up with their faithful Labrador, Abby, to pay a visit, and accompany the dog to the new home. Even though Ray would continue training for another season, the writing was on the wall. The injuries to horses, the racing disappointments, and the constant struggle with staff, were all combining to make Ray and Lenore think about their future. Towards the end of the season, with only 11 horses in training, they began to think about selling up. Their rough plan was to buy a caravan, and travel around, so they started looking at suitable vans, and in June, had a valuation done on their property.

Their towing vehicles had become a mechanical nightmare, because they worked so hard. At the end of the season they bit the bullet, borrowed money, and spent $24,000 on a red F150 that only had 100,000 kilometres on the clock. It would be a good, reliable towing vehicle, not just for the horse float, but possibly for a caravan.

Ray's final season as a horse trainer would be no less impressive than his previous nine. It started well, in September, with a small, young filly called 'Benediction', winning a Class 1, at Murray Bridge. Two weeks later, he put her in a race at Victoria Park, along with 'Deborah's Daughter', and 'Denise', who were running in a 1450 metre race together.

Girl power was on display for the Taylor stables, and 'Bellediction' got it off to a flying start by demolishing her opposition, and winning easily. And this is where it gets interesting, and shows the unpredictability of horse racing.

There was a betting system in place through the TAB, in Adelaide, called the Fortune 8. It simply required punters to pick the winner of all eight races on the day to win a lot of money. It had not been won the previous Saturday, so had now jackpotted for today's race meeting. Bellediction's win in the first race had kept over 100,000 punters still in with the chance of winning the jackpot. By the time 'Deborah' and 'Denise' flew out of the gates in Race 6, there were only 100 still left with a chance. 'Deborah' was resuming from a spell, and Ray felt she would need the run, as did the bookmakers, who started her at 40/1. 'Denise' was the 4/1 favourite, and most of the 100 punters had their hopes resting on her – and the $1.8 million dollar jackpot.

It was 'Deborah's first race in 9 months, and heading for the post she fought it out with 'Denise' in a photo finish. 'Deborah' won by a neck, Ray got the winning quinella, and 100 punters went home broke.

A week later, Ray had 'Bellediction' running around again, this time in the Listed 'Morpettville Guineas' for $50,000.

" I don't like backing up young horses, it's just not my scene," Ray told the newspaper, " But I took her to the beach on Sunday, and she was dancing around like Jeff Fenech." So he did, and with good reason – she skipped clear at the 300 metre mark and won by 2 ½ lengths.

Then, 'Deborah's Daughter' proved that her previous win was no fluke by sprinting to the line at Gawler, in October, to win the Wolf Blass Barossa Cup, and $13,000. That was followed by a winning double at Cheltenham with 'Denise' and 'Made to Order'. But Ray's health was becoming an issue, as was Lenore's. Along with the many winners there were just as many losers, and the little disappointments were getting harder to take. By March, they were looking seriously at any offers for their property, and in April they got a solid one. Jeremy Gask, son of Richard, who had his promising football career cut short by injury, had taken up horse training with a small place in the city. He had known Ray for a while, having been involved with the 'In The Mist' syndicate, and the young trainer was now hunting for new training premises.

In April, 2001, he made an offer to buy Ray and Lenore's property in Goolwa, which they accepted. A few of Ray's owners elected to keep their horses in training with Jeremy, so everyone was happy.

Ray's last runner as a trainer was at Murray Bridge on the 27th June, with a two year old horse called Sunturwasi, who started at 20/1. The horse won. But there was a protest. It was dismissed.

Ten years after starting out as a racehorse trainer, Ray was done. The ex truck driver who had an interest in, and an ability with horses, along with his schoolteacher wife, had made quite an impact.

Ray Taylor, a highly respected member of the South Australian racehorse training profession, retired at the close of the 2000/2001 racing season, and is heading for the resort town of Noosa.

Affable Goolwa trainer Ray Taylor will retire from training in the next two months to move to the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. It will be a real loss to South Australian racing, but he is taking the opportunity to spend more time with his wife, and their family. Taylor, 66 going on 25, said the opportunity was too good to pass up.

Ray and Lenore are two of the nicest people I have met in my career as a racing writer, and I'm sure the local industry would join me in wishing them well as they frolic on the sands at Noosa.

Ray had nothing left to prove when it came to horse training. He had trained hundreds of horses – on the beach – then taken them to every racetrack in South Australia, and won. He had taken horses with mental issues, physical issues, and limited ability to run fast – and won with them. He had taken horses with ability – and won repeatedly with them. And, he was always honest. For the last ten years he had experienced the highs and lows of horse racing, and earned the respect of the racing industry as he went quietly and confidently about his business – the business of horses. And, he had dragged his wife along with him. Now, it was her turn – because if given a choice – Ray would probably never retire. After travelling to racetracks more than 800 times, to watch nearly 1500 of his runners – it was time for a change.

Forty three years of marriage, ten years of horse training, and still smiling at each other

On the 29th June, 2001, Ray and Lenore drove out of their Kessell Road property in Goolwa for the last time. After all their years in Goolwa, it was a major life change for them both. But, the stress of running a business, and in an industry as volatile as horseracing, had started to take its toll on their health, and it was time to leave. They had no idea what they were going to do next – as retirement seemed quite a foreign concept – but they knew where they were headed. Their shiny, red F150 was going to take them to Queensland and a reunion with their son, and grandchildren.

After a night in Adelaide, and a leisurely drive via Tooleybuc, the Dubbo zoo, and Goondiwindi, they drove in to Noosa. This was a beachside, resort town, and a long way from horseracing, but horses were the farthest thing from their mind at this point. The next day was Lenore's 63rd birthday, and all the family went out to a Greek restaurant to have a celebration, and break some plates - as the Greeks like to do. The next few days were spent buying their new home – a 30' Regal caravan, and getting set up in a local van park.

After a month of settling in, Ray started to wonder what the hell he was going to do next. Michael organised a story in the local Noosa paper, about Ray moving up from South Australia, in the hope it may generate something for his Dad.

' _Well known in South Australian horse racing circles, champion trainer, Ray Taylor, has swapped galloping horses on a wide open southern beach, for semi retirement on the beaches of Noosa.'_

The article went on to talk about Ray's success, and named some of the horses, and the big races they had won, but the important part of the story was to come.

' _But the real beauty of his success was that it was won with horses with previous problems. In fact, much of his later success was due to his ability to diagnose and remedy horse's problems through chiropractic work – hence, semi retirement. " Ray is a true horseman through and through and needs to stay involved with them," said his wife, Lenore.'_

It was true that Ray had learned the art of chiropractic horse work from a man called Rusty Burgess, who used to successfully treat many of Ray's horses. When Rusty was no longer available, Ray carried on the treatments himself. It was hoped this story in the paper may inspire some local horse owners to give Ray a call – and prevent him becoming bored. The trouble with Ray was that he had no hobbies, or interests, outside of horses. He would play the occasional game of golf when he had the time, but it wasn't an activity he wanted to do regularly. He wasn't really interested in volunteering for anything, and the thought of lawn bowls made him break out in a cold sweat.

Not that there was a shortage of things to do – this was Noosa after all – lots of people paid lots of money to fly here and enjoy the beaches. Ray didn't like the beach all that much, either. But they would go on drives together, have picnics, and go to the movies. Lenore had her family nearby, which was all she needed, and soon daughter, Deb and grandson Sam would also move to Noosa, from Sydney.

New home

Ray did eventually treat a few horses – mainly show horses – and they were all successful treatments, but it was very sporadic work. They had bought the van not only to live in, but to travel in, so the following year, they took their first big trip – out to western Queensland and back via the Queensland coast. The F150 towed the monster van with ease, but it was a big rig to manoeuvre, and a thirsty one, and Ray was aware they were spending money – without earning any.

Another fulltime job working with horses, in Noosa, was an unrealistic expectation, and while Lenore was happy looking after three grandchildren again, Ray needed something to do. He got talking to a bloke who owned a maxi-taxi in Noosa, and was looking for a part time driver. Ray was pretty sure this was something he could do, and earn a few dollars at the same time, so he studied for the test, and got the required license. The maxi-taxi was a vehicle set up for wheelchair passengers as well as others, and Ray copped his fair share. It was strenuous work, loading wheelchair bound passengers into the back of the maxi, and Ray's back and knees were not those of a young man – but he enjoyed the work as he got to meet plenty of locals who were always keen for a chat. And, he was bringing home money, to save up for their next trip in the van.

It wasn't until 2004 that would happen, though. Deb had opened up a gym in Noosa, and early in the year, she had her Dad in there a few times a week – getting him in shape for his next adventure. With Lenore's blessing, he had decided to get back in the saddle – in a big way.

The Harry Redford cattle drive was held every year from a town in outback Queensland called Aramac, a small place 1200 kilometres north west of Brisbane with a population of 290. Anyone who enjoyed riding a horse all day for ten days in the heat and dust of the outback, sleeping on the ground every night, and using a hole in the ground for a toilet, was welcome to go along – and pay for the experience. Surprisingly, plenty did. Ray was keen to get back in the saddle, so on Saturday, the 8th of May, he and Lenore hitched up the van and headed west.

Ray had a good quality swag, and got himself a pair of chapps, to prevent chafing, at Biloela, on the way to Emerald for their first night. It was a long drive, passing fields of corn, sorghum, cotton and a crop they hadn't seen before called leucania – which was fed to cattle to fatten them up for market. Effie cruised along effortlessly, chewing through a litre of fuel every four kilometres. She ran on gas too, but with fuel at $1.10 and gas at 70c a litre, it was an expensive way to travel.

They arrived at Aramac, after spending a night at Barcaldine, and the next day, Ray was taken out to the camp, ninety kilometres into the scrub, where the journey would begin. There were 600 head of cattle to take on a 200 kilometre trip – droving on horseback. Lenore stayed in the caravan in Aramac, but after a couple of days was asked to take two Irish backpackers out to camp, to join the cattle drive. She was pretty keen to see Ray, so off she went, despite the numerous cattle grids, corrugations, and dusty roads. After a couple of nights sleeping rough, Ray was pretty keen to see her too, and spent the next couple of nights sleeping in the back of the F150 with Lenore, as she caught up with him at the end of each day.

For the remainder of the trip, though, sixty-nine year old Ray spent up to ten hours a day in the saddle, slept in his swag, and used a hole in the ground for a toilet. He loved it so much, he made plans to return the following year.

They decided to take a scenic route back to Noosa, and headed first for Longreach, then on to Charters Towers, where they went to the races – just for old times sake. Bowen, on the coast, was their next destination, but their van was deemed to be too big for the park, so they continued on down to Airlie Beach. Here, they spent nearly a week, relaxing, shopping and going on a cruise around the Whitsundays, finishing up on Hamilton Island for a cold beer and an $11 cocktail for Lenore. This is what retirement was all about, but it was nearly time for Ray to get back to Noosa, jump in the Maxi and re stock the money coffers. After a month away, they did just that.

On the 16th July, at 7 am, Ray got a phonecall telling him that his mother, ninety-six year old Myrtle, had died. At that age, that phonecall is probably not unexpected – but sad nonetheless. Ray's Dad, Don, had died younger – in 1990, at 85 years of age. Ray and Lenore flew to Adelaide for her funeral, and stayed on for a few days to catch up with old friends. While it wasn't a happy reason for a break, it was short times away from driving the Maxi, that kept Ray on an even keel. He would sometimes work ten hour days, driving hundreds of kilometres with all sorts of different people, and it became very tiring.

So it was, in August, that they left the van unhitched and took a drive to south west Queensland for a few days. The Jondaryan Woolshed Heritage Festival had been held annually for 27 years, and celebrated the more than 100 years of sheep history in the area. This was right up Ray's alley, with old tractors, sheep shearing and lots of displays. They travelled home via a stud farm in Toowoomba, where one of their favourite mares from racing days was now living. 'In The Mist' was now a mother many times over, and was in foal once again. She had been a grey, but was now nearly all white, a bit like Ray, and she was certainly happy to see him again. The following year, Ray turned 70, and celebrated with his family with lunch at a Noosa beachfront restaurant, followed by drinks at the Sheraton, then more drinks at the Reef hotel.

Time hadn't slowed Ray down. The same month, he was treating horses down at Caloundra racecourse, who had chiropractic problems, and working three days a week on the Maxi.

The following year, in January, Ray rewarded himself, with Lenore's approval. He had always been at a loose end on his days off, due to his lack of hobbies. Still not being keen on the idea of lawn bowls, as many of his age were happy with – he went for the next best thing- and bought a Harley Davidson. He hadn't owned a motorbike since about 1955, but this didn't deter him, and apparently it was easier than riding a horse. He and Lenore would go for rides on his days off – her first ride on the back was over the windy road to Noosa Valley Golf Club for lunch. His grandkids were excited – especially eight year old Charlee-Anne, who was the only kid at school being picked up on a Harley.

Ray would often go on rides by himself – meandering through the countryside – and sometimes stopping for lunch. He met up with a whole lot of other Harley riders at a pub one day – who were keen for him to join their club – but he preferred solitary riding. He would keep riding for a couple more years and do thousands of kilometres, but eventually sold it, after keeping him occupied on many of his days off.

The same year Ray bought the Harley, in 2006, he and Lenore decided it was time for another trip away. He had a day on the Maxi where he had worked 11 hours, and drove over 400 kilometres. This was no better than racedays with a horse in the last at Balaklava, so they agreed it was time for a break. It would be a trip down memory lane and, on the 1st October, they headed off for five weeks.

First stop was Canberra, where they would have their regular, 48 year visit. It was 1958 the last time they drove down Canberra's streets, in a much different vehicle, on their honeymoon as a very young newly wed couple. This time, they had friends there, from their racing days, to visit – but still did the Parliament House tour, and visited the War Memorial to see pictures of Ray's relatives, the 'fighting Leanes', hanging on the walls.

Next stop was Wodonga for a couple of nights to see more friends, and on down to Hamilton, in Victoria, where they would spend over $1000 on wheel and axle repairs. Travelling this way wasn't cheap. Their journey took them through the familiar towns of western Victoria, where Ray met, and courted Lenore, and then on down to Portland, to see some old friends. It had been a 2700 kilometre drive so far, so they took a few days off to visit Heywood, where they were married, and their children were born.

Ray towed the monster van to Melbourne, found a caravan park and, through his racing connections, got up early one morning and watched the trackwork at Flemington. Then, once they found their way out of the chaos of Melbourne, it was time for the trek north. With Lenore navigating, sometimes successfully, they found their way to Lakes Entrance, on the Victorian coast, then followed the coast up, bypassing Sydney, getting lost in Newcastle, and finally, after thousands of kilometres, and 18 caravan parks, arriving back in Noosa in November.

Ray went straight back to work on the Maxi, to pay for the trip. It had been an epic journey, and it wouldn't be their last.

The following year, 2007, would see Ray and Lenore heading off yet again. In April, they flew to Melbourne, took a train to Warrnambool, hired a car and drove to Mount Gambier. The reason for the trip was a Kain & Shelton reunion – the company Ray had been a part of for 20 years. He caught up with blokes he hadn't seen for more than 40 years – blokes he used to drive with and work with – and it was a very worthwhile trip because a lot of these blokes wouldn't be around for a whole lot longer.

The remainder of his year saw him back on the Maxi, still fixing the occasional horse for grateful owners, and taking his wife and grandkids for trips on the Harley. In December, they hitched up the van again, this time taking Jackson, their 13 year old grandson, with them. They went west again, showing Jackson the sights of Longreach, exploring Cania Gorge, rounding up goats on horseback, and fossicking for sapphires in Rubyvale.

Ray turned 73, in 2008, and so far – except for many bruises and broken ribs from cantankerous horses – he had maintained pretty good health. Unfortunately, that was about to change. After celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in July with a week long celebration shared with friends visiting from all over the country, Ray woke up one night at midnight with severe pain.

By 6 am it was only getting worse, so Lenore took him to Noosa hospital. By 3 pm, after multiple tests and multiple x-rays, the diagnosis came back as a pulled muscle. This was so far off the mark, it was almost laughable. They hit Ray with a catscan, and within 20 minutes, the correct diagnosis came back as a severely inflamed appendix. Luckily it hadn't burst, and he was whipped into theatre, to have it whipped out. He also had some blood tests while he was in there, which would show up some irregularities in his prostate – possibly cancerous. In the end, after many months of monitoring, it would come to nothing, but it was an added stress. Ray returned to work on the Maxi, minus his appendix, but a few days after Christmas he came home after a hard day and told Nor he wasn't feeling too good. There was also the inconvenience of difficulty breathing, aching teeth and a sore neck. Lenore gave him a back massage which, despite her massage kills, wasn't enough to soothe the symptoms of a heart attack.

Ray was rushed to hospital, again, and this time there was no doubt about the problem. The cardiologist told Ray he was one lucky man – his heart lining had been damaged, but at this stage his heart was okay. He did, however, need to reduce his stress levels. Ray had been working at least three days a week, in hot weather, starting at 6 am and going all day lifting wheelchairs and driving through tourist traffic. It was time for a change of plan.

A few months later, Ray got the all clear from his doctor, after many more tests. He'd had enough of driving the Maxi and so, with Michael's help, he registered online to become a farmsitter.

Farmsitter websites connected property owners all over Australia with reliable, experienced, short term help. It was like house sitting – with lots of animals. There weren't too many animals Ray wasn't confident in handling, and had experience with – especially horses, sheep and cattle. Some farmsitters stayed in the house on the property while the owners were away, but Ray and Lenore had the advantage of having their own house with them, and it wasn't long before they started getting offers.

So, at the end of May, 2009, Ray handed back the keys to the Maxi Taxi, hooked up the van, sat Lenore in the passenger seat, and headed west again. The F150 had clocked up 255,000 kilometres by now, but she still had plenty of life left in her.

The property they had agreed to look after for a month, was 60 kilometres from Moree, in western Queensland, near the cheerily named town of Gravesend. The owner was a slightly eccentric woman called Phillipa, who ran 70 head of cattle and practised what she called holistic agriculture. This meant no chemicals, but lots of prickly weeds. After some very detailed instructions, Phillipa left, and they were on their own. Winter had just started, and the mornings got down to -5 degrees at dawn. Their days were kept busy feeding animals, fixing fences, moving cattle and generally keeping an eye on things.

The house was a bit of a shambles, so they were glad they weren't staying there, and the dog was not too friendly, although Ray eventually won him over. It was hard work, with lots of walking, and Ray dropped down to 84 kilograms – the lowest he had been for a long time. They occasionally went into the small town to get supplies, but otherwise they just had each other for company, and the animals. Lenore worked just as hard as Ray – and for a couple in their early 70's they managed with no problems.

There was another farmsit to do immediately following Phillipa's, which wasn't too far away. This was a 500 acre property, with cattle, horses, dogs and chooks, and was much better maintained than the previous one. Anne owned the property, and her elderly Mother lived nearby. Ray and Lenore met her Mum and got along well because one wall in her house was covered in racehorse pictures – including two Cox Plate winners.

Apart from two dead chooks, the 3 ½ weeks went well, and by the end of August, it was time to head for South Australia.

Part of their farmsitting schedule included looking after a horse property for their friends, John and Meredith, just out of Adelaide. The Sinclair's were former owners of Ray's, having raced a few horses with him. They had a beautifully maintained property, and a lovely home, but Ray and Lenore found a big, shady tree on the property, and parked their van under it. Horses and dogs were their responsibility here, as John and Meredith were heading to England for six weeks. The stay was made more enjoyable by the visits of two of their grandchildren, Sam and Charlee-Anne. Ray and Lenore had no plans after this job, but when the Sinclair's returned, they all went to the races together, and ran in to another former owner of Ray's – who offered him a job.

Ken Smith owned Meadows Park, a 2000 acre training and breeding property on the shores of Lake Albert, near Meningee, south east of Adelaide. Ken was well aware of Ray's abilities with horses, and especially in the educating of young horses – and this is what he had Ray doing for the next four months. It took them through Christmas and into March before Ray and Lenore decided it wouldn't be a long term arrangement for them. There were visits from daughter, Deb, and Sam and Charlee-Anne, but Lenore was clearly missing the rest of the family. They had been keeping their eye out for another farmsit closer to Noosa, and when they were offered one at Moura, a small town 200 kilometres west of Gladstone, they jumped at it.

It was another long drive north – Ray turned 75 on the way - and the F150 must have been starting to feel it too because by the time they got to Moree, she spat the dummy, and the clutch along with it. Since leaving Noosa nearly a year earlier, she had clocked up more than 7000 kilometres, most of it towing the van, so she was forgiven. The property was actually 65 kilometres from Moura and the track in was narrow undulating dirt full of culverts and washaways which would be impassable if it rained. A week after arriving, a huge bank of dark rain clouds settled over them, and they were told that if they didn't get out now, they would be stuck there for a long time. This was the only urging Ray and Lenore needed as they hadn't been enjoying their stay too much. They hastily packed up the van, hitched on and took off. It was a hairy ride out as the rain had started to pour down and they scraped and slipped and slid for 35 kilometres in their trusty F150 followed very closely by their 30' caravan.

After a night in Emerald, they headed for Longreach, 700 kilometres inland, on the banks of the Thomson River, where they would begin yet another adventure together. There was a tourist operation in Longreach that used a stagecoach, pulled by a team of horses to conduct tours around the area and out into the bush. Ray had gotten a job, helped by Michael answering an online job vacancy for him. Ray was to be 2IC on the coach and was responsible for saddling and unsaddling the horses, and went along on each tour. Lenore also got a job working in the café – in period costume.

The business was run by reasonably pleasant people, however they were part of the 'Brethren' religion, a very insular and secular group that shunned television, radio and sporting events. Lenore had replaced a family member who had now returned, and her job was, as she described ' a bit rickety.' Ray was starting to get bad vibes too, especially as his only exposure to religion was driving past a church. After six weeks of stage-coaching and serving billy tea, they couldn't see a future with the 'Brethren', and headed for the coast.

Twelve months after leaving, and after many adventures, Ray and Lenore returned to the peace and quiet of Noosa, and reunited with the rest of their family.

It would be quite understanding and totally acceptable for them to now properly retire, relax and enjoy some quiet time together. But whether they found it difficult to settle down, or Ray just had continually itchy feet – settling down wasn't going to happen yet. Only seven months after arriving back, the day after a big family Christmas Day at Cheryl and Michael's, they headed off once again.

Ken Smith had made them an offer they couldn't refuse – and it meant Ray would be working with racehorses once again. There had been some staff changes at Meadows Park since the beginning of the year, and the arrangements sounded much more attractive. They settled in South Australia once again, in January of 2011, and stayed another four months. One of the reasons for leaving was that their old friends, John and Meredith, offered them a job at their horse property – for as long as they wanted. This was a much more attractive option, and Ray and Lenore spent another four months working there, before it became obvious that Lenore was missing her family too much.

By the time they left South Australia, at the end of August, Ray was 76, and Lenore was 73. Most couples this age were sitting around the fire at night with a blanket over their knees doing the crossword, and maybe a spot of lawn bowling during the day. This couple could have kept on working, but for Lenore, family was very important, and it was time to go home to them.

She had given up her teaching career to help Ray with his training career in 1991. She learned how to handle horses, she mucked out their stables, and she carried the emotionally draining financial obligations of running a small business. After ten years, Ray gave in to his wife – it was her turn - and they moved to Queensland to be closer to family. But he had no idea what to do with all his spare time. So, for the last nine years Ray had been coming and going, always restless, always moving – and Lenore went with him – because she would follow him to the end of the earth, if he so asked. Now, it was her turn again – it really was time to settle down.

Ray kept driving the Maxi Taxi until he was 80, because he could. In 2016, he was knocked down with pneumonia – and his doctor didn't expect him to survive. But, Ray proved he has a heart as big as a horse, and that, combined with his devoted wife of nearly 60 years, means that it will take something extraordinary to slow this horseman down.

Retirement, at last. Noosa Marina 2017.

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