Love Of Racing: Melbourne Cup winner Sheila Laxon

Sheila Laxon is known for training the Melbourne Cup/Caulfield Cup double, but perhaps less known for her adventures up Australia’s east coast in a Greyhound bus or as a hitchhiker around New Zealand.

Laxon was born in Wales and grew up riding ponies on the family farm from age three, starting her love of horses and of racing which famously saw her capture the Caulfield and Melbourne Cup with Ethereal in 2001.

She will always hold a special place in racing history but her first foray Down Under – and then into her adopted New Zealand – were interesting to say the least.

Laxon, now training in partnership with John Symonds on the Sunshine Coast, remembers it fondly.

“When I was young I remember seeing kangaroos on TV and I decided when I had the chance I was going to come over to Australia and have a look around,” Laxon said.

“When I arrived I was in Canberra seeing my best friend from school and then decided I wanted to pop up to Cairns to have a look around.

“I had no idea how far it was.

“I caught a Greyhound bus and got as far as Rockhampton, it was pretty wild and woolly in those days for an 18-year-old kid.

“I went to the cinema and it was dirt floors with tree stumps and there was canvas laying across for seating.

“So I went back to Brisbane and that’s when I flew to New Zealand.

“I landed in Auckland, I was hitchhiking the next day and this chap took me to a farm near Cambridge.

“I loved it and I loved being around horses, always have.

“I can’t remember when I first started riding, but I have got pictures of me when I was little on quite a big horse.”

Laxon climbed horse racing’s most exhilarating peak when winning the Melbourne Cup, becoming the first female trainer to score the Cups double.

These days, she isn’t in the limelight nearly as much but has never lost her love of racing.

She will saddle up her best horse – Knight’s Choice who won the Group 3 Winx Guineas over the Queensland winter carnival – in the $10m Golden Eagle at Rosehill in Sydney on Saturday.

Knight’s Choice is a longshot $126 chance on TAB fixed odds but Laxon and the owners are daring to dream.

“I just adore horses, I wouldn’t do it otherwise,” Laxon said.

“Dreams are free in racing, that’s what it is all about.

“Your last winner is always your best winner.

“I do think Knight’s Choice is a very good horse.

“If it was an 1800m race, I would be very, very confident.

“But I think at 1500(m) those speed horses will probably test him out.

“The owners have been down in Sydney during the week, they went to the barrier draw and they were buzzing.

“They were thrilled to bits, it’s great that racing does that for people.”