Lord Oaksey R.I.P.

God love him R.I.P.
I enjoyed his autobiography hugely esp his winning the King George on computer and his encounter with Paddy "Wisdom" Sleator.
A fine gent who did racing a great service.
I saw him ride in a veteran jockeys race in Limerick in the mid 1980s on a horse of E P Harty sr. Carruthers , both horse and story will be forever etched in my brain.
 
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Very sad to hear this, Colin. He created and was a tireless worker for the IJF which has done such an incredible amount for jockeys in this country. On the few occasions I met him, I thought he was a thoroughly nice guy .

I was so pleased when his beloved Carruthers won the Hennessy last season - and thankful that he was still alive to be part of it despite not attending.
 
Very sad to hear of this. Rest in peace, Sir Oaksey. He was a true gentleman. So knowledgeable in both tradition and modernism within the racing world. Doubt we'll get his like again.
 
"Legend" is a word often over-used but he was a real legend of racing, and a thoroughly decent man. I was at Ascot the day Carruthers won the Reynoldstown and Lord Oaksey was there to receive the trophy - I think he got the biggest cheer of the day.

RIP Noble Lord.
 
Impossible not to like Oaksey, even if you didn't meet him. The fact that he was always happy recounting stories of being accosted by drunks saying "I know you! You're that bugger that got tired before your 'orse!", or the letter he received at Channel 4 which began "Dear *******" shows that he didn't take himself, or life too seriously. His affability was a huge factor in me falling in love with racing as a sport. Racing is so much richer for his involvement.
 
I loved his retort, when the naturally excited owners of a winner at Cheltenham, cracked open a bottle of bubbly by spraying the audience , Grand Prix Style . Lord Oakseys classic comment was to the best of my memory " How crude, opening a bottle of bubbly should make a sound like a woman satisfied"
 
He was the mainstay of the IJF for many years and was also the main main in setting up a proper insurance scheme for jockeys. He deserves huge admiration for this alone.
 
His character epitomised everything I can remember about horse racing from my youth. An immensely sad loss for the sport.

RIP Noble Lord
 
RIP - his enthusiasm for the sport used to bubble over . On Whitbread day - his favourite day of the year he used to say on the TV - he was like a kid in a sweet shop .

Obviously, he will be remembered not only for his work in setting up and maintaining the IJF, for his excellent journalism, his riding career( I do recommend his autobiography) as well as his broadcasting work but he was very self- deprecating too . I remember as a kid how well he took being teased after saying that Paul Kelleway's Green Girl had no chance in the Park Stakes as it now is at Doncaster and she promptly turned over the hot favourite .

A true gentleman and a sad loss . The Whitbread has never had a name and is now just named after whatever organisation sponsors it from year to year - naming it after him would be a fitting tribute.
 
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