Warwick Roberts almost died in a Tākaka farm accident nearly 20 years ago that severely affected his memory.
But the former dairy farm manager never forgot his previous horsemanship skills, and now he has a new lease on life after making a remarkable return to the racetrack in Christchurch this month.
In his youth, Warwick had worked for master Canterbury horseman Cecil Devine, who won New Zealand’s biggest trotting race in those days, the New Zealand Cup, and went on to win eight races with his own trotter, Ceddie.
Warwick later went sharemilking before moving to Golden Bay where he learnt a lot from farmer Jeremy Savage.
“He was simply the best farm adviser. I learnt to unlock food for animals,” recalls Warwick.
But his life was turned upside down when he was found lying underneath an irrigator in the middle of the night, after it had hit him in the head.
“It left me with little memory of the five or six years before and after the accident. I spent a lot of time in Nelson and Tākaka Hospital, but my wife Nicola and local friends helped with my recovery,” says the 65-year-old.
“I tried to go back to work, but was making too many mistakes.”
The couple moved to Ashburton, and later, a childhood friend and racehorse trainer Mark Smolenski rang him and asked if he was doing much.
“I was waiting to die,” quips Warwick.
But instead, he returned to working with horses in Canterbury and has since relocated to the Rakero Racing Stables in North Canterbury where he is clocking big hours, seven days a week.
Another longtime friend, Daryl McLachlan, said if Warwick got his own training licence back, after more than 30 years, he would give him a horse to prepare from his Rangiora base not far from Okuku, where his parents used to have a sheep farm.
Warwick settled on a four-year-old trotter called Sheep, which had managed three third placings in 18 starts.
And that’s where story becomes a fairytale return.
“We paid $4,000 for him and he went from strength to strength at home. I was extremely confident about his chances when we went to Addington Raceway,” says Warwick.
Sheep was the centre of a big betting plunge and duly delivered, running down the hot favourite to win comfortably earlier this month.
“It wasn’t my money. Getting the 10 per cent trainer’s stake was enough,” declares Warwick.
Several of his old mates from Golden Bay were among those to congratulate him.
“It was great to hear from Craig Coleman, Neil Barnes and Logan Solly.”
Sheep then backed up and ran third in a tougher field, and he’s already banked more $10,00 for its new connections.
Warwick is expecting another big run on Friday night, and punters are unlikely to have the wool pulled over the eyes and be fleeced this time.
So, what’s his secret to success.
“I absorbed a lot from Cec Devine. He was light years ahead of other trainers. I am amazed that training and horsemanship seem to have largely stood still in the 30 plus years I had been away,” says Warwick.
The born-again horseman hopes to eventually add up to 50kgs to his lightly-framed trotter.
You could say the former dairy farmer is “beefing up” Sheep.
