"Sods I Have Cut on the Turf" 1961 Leach, Jack

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LEACH, Jack

[192] pp.

J A Allen

1961

8 3/4" x 5 3/4"

Jacket illustration by Osbert Lancaster

Not only … Read more LEACH, Jack

[192] pp.

J A Allen

1961

8 3/4" x 5 3/4"

Jacket illustration by Osbert Lancaster

Not only does this slim volume win the prize for the best title but it is also streets clear in the category for the best racing book ever written by a jockey or a trainer (Jack Leach was both) not to have been ghosted. In his foreword, Sir Gordon Richards describes Leach as “always the stylist, on or off a horse.” That style is evident throughout the book. I recommend that you beg, borrow, buy or steal a copy.

Leach weaves many amusing little vignettes into this gem of a book, such as this: “The greatest feat of jockeyship I ever saw: Steve Donoghue's perfect ride on Humorist in the Derby will always stick in my memory—the way he nursed the frail horse with the big heart, and slipped through on the inside at the critical moment. Humorist died soon afterwards, Steve has gone, and so has the money I won on them. They were all three wonderful while they lasted.”

He introduces the reader to a host of celebrities and characters from all walks of life, notably his friendship with Fred Astaire.

“Edgar Wallace was a friend of mine, and what a fantastic man he was, but there was one very weak link in his make up—he thought he knew everything about racing. I never met a man who knew less. He fought a continuous battle against the bookmaker and hardly won a round.”

Leach paints a vivid picture of the racing world in the years between the wars—tales of great horses, races, trainers and their methods, legendary jockeys and so much else. It is the perfect read to lighten the mood of any self-isolating racing professional or enthusiast. See less