HORSE racing thrives on statistics – from starts to sectionals, from pedigrees to preparations. It’s all there in the numbers.
But it is the stories behind the stories which mostly give the game its emotional depth.
And when it comes to emotional, veteran Swan Hill trainer Austy Coffey is right up there with the best of them.
At Kyneton last week Coffey was caught live on national TV with his heart right there on his sleeve as he watched son Harry bring Tatsuro back to scale.
A bit of a plodder, Tatsuro, with just three wins in 33 starts, still managed to rise to the occasion to forever hold a special place in the Coffey family success story.
The run on Thursday made this equine also-ran an indelible part of the incredible Coffey centenary, as the clan combined for their 100th win as trainer and jockey.
This story began on Melbourne Cup day in Mildura in 2011, when a teenaged Harry rode Rokeby to its maiden win over 1000m.
It was one of two winning rides for Harry that day, but only one leg was for Team Coffey.
When Harry and Tatsuro saluted on Thursday it was the second leg of another double for the hoop, and again, only one leg was with dad’s horse. Although Harry’s win on Tatsuro was also awarded ride of the day at Kyneton.
One of Victorian racing’s most popular pairings is also one of its most unlikely.
When he was just weeks old, Harry was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, a crippling condition without a cure but also a condition he has never let stand in his way – and has never used as an excuse for anything.
“Such a huge thrill,” Coffey senior said of the milestone.
“It’s a big effort from Harry to ride 100 winners for his old man.
“The industry is very good to us and we’ve had a pretty good time. It’s been amazing, really good and I’m sorry, but I’m getting a bit emotional.
“The other night at the Valley when we had a win together was good, and you forget about all those country cups we’ve won, but there are so many good memories.”
Nights at the Valley, rides in the Melbourne Cup, Group 1 success, it’s all such a long way for their early days together at tracks such as Wycheproof and St Arnaud – and those non-TAB picnic meetings.
Harry, 28, is enjoying another brilliant season in the saddle.
He now rides regularly for some of the country’s premier stables and said success for his dad was always satisfying.
The Kyneton double moved him into equal fourth in the Victorian jockeys’ premiership with 42 wins, putting him on track for his second 100-win season in three years (he missed the ton last year by just two).
“I’ve been very lucky that I’ve had him all the way through and he’s not only a good boss but a good dad,” Coffey junior said.
“I don’t think there are too many father-son partnerships that can put up with each other long enough to get 100 wins.
“My mum, my brother and my wife, we’ve been through all the highs and the lows together, so it’s a pretty good feat to get the ton together.”
Describing his father as “pretty cruisy”, he thinks “that’s shown in my riding”.
“I had a great apprenticeship and I couldn’t ask for a better upbringing and I’ve been very lucky to have him,” Harry said.
On his father’s tears on TV, he said “he’d get emotional over any winner, let alone 100”.
“Racing’s a tough caper and it doesn’t matter where the winners are, or when, it’s really tough to get them and obviously for us to get as many as we have, well that’s a fair old effort,” he said.
“They are all memorable moments, and I can name every one of them, we’ve had a lot of fun.”
