Major Happy rekindles memories of a great mare

Wearing the same colours that were worn by her great grandmother Hilarious Guest, Major Happy’s (Art Major) win at Rangiora yesterday rekindled memories of that super filly of the early 1980s.

Driver Riley Harrison settled Major Happy last in the outside running line before she moved forward to sit parked. When Foveaux Gambler galloped with just over a lap to run, Harrison was able to slot Major Happy in behind the leader and favourite Dover Terrace.

Once the leading pair went into the home straight, Harrison drove Major Happy up the inside to grab a length advantage. But Dover Terrace came back and the margin on the line was a head.

“She’s just an honest good staying type and if she gets the right run, she’s thereabouts. She’s got a bad habit of knocking off once she gets to the lead. She was just about to throw that one away yesterday. It’s just a quirk of hers. She can’t work in front and she’s just got to do her prelim with another horse. She’s really happy chasing,” trainer Philip Vermeulen said.  

MAJOR HAPPY REPLAY

Philip is retired, runs cattle on his fifty acre block on Gressons Road near Rangiora and works mornings at Robert and Jenna Dunn’s stable at Woodend Beach.

He’s trained eighty five winners with his best being Strike Back, which won eight.

Major Happy is raced by Philip’s sister Lissa Vermeulen, his son Alex and daughter Rachael Vermeulen and Philip’s partner Nic Stevens.

“I was going to go to stud with Major Happy this season. We’d booked her to Always B Miki but he didn’t come out. I hummed and ha’ed but because she’s racing so well I’ll wait until next season.”

Major Happy is the first foal out of the Bettor’s Delight mare Shrieks Of Delight which won four races for Vermeulen and was placed a further nine times in just twenty nine starts.

“She was a nice horse who qualified for the Nevele R Fillies Final but she broke down.”

The mare has left two other foals – a Captain Crunch two year old and a yearling who’s a full sister to Major Happy.

Philip’s father Maurice trained Hilarious Guest who was a trail blazing filly and in 1982 she became the first filly in eighteen years to win the New Zealand Derby.

“I remember the Derby because I was driving the galloping pacemaker (in work) back then. It was exciting stuff.”

She was also the first filly to win both the New Zealand Derby and the New Zealand Oaks and one of a few fillies to qualify for the New Zealand Cup at three. On the way there she recorded four New Zealand records.

Derek Jones was instrumental in putting Vermeulen and his partner John Osborne onto New Guest, the dam of Hilarious Guest. Osborne purchased the filly from Alister Kerslake for $5,000. She had two starts for Jack Smolenski before she went sore.

Consequently she was sent to B.J. Stud in Victoria where she was served by Kentucky before visiting Hilarious Way. Osborne and Vermeulen tossed a coin to see who would get which of her latest foals. Vermeulen got the Hilarious Way filly which he named Hilarious Guest.

Over five seasons of racing, Hilarious Guest raced seventy three times winning twenty one races including the New Zealand Two Year Old Championship, the NZ Sapling Stakes, the NZ Oaks, the NZ Derby, the Ladyship Stakes, the Northern Oaks, the NZ Messenger and the New Zealand Standardbred Breeders’ Stakes.

She also ran second in the Auckland Cup twice, beaten by Roydon Glen (1985) and Armalight (1983).

For complete race results, click here.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink