ALISON Baker, daughter of TK and Mary Baker, whose lifelong interests were hunting, horseracing and breeding, passed away recently in her 100th year. Described as an elegant lady who was wonderful company, she was generous and always prepared to give her opinion without fear or favour.
Her lifelong friend Phyllis McDowell described her as a lovely kind person, and they enjoyed many great days hunting and racing together. Trainer Jim Dreaper, whose family trained horses for the Bakers as far back as the 1940s, recalled visiting the Baker farm at Malahow as a child and remembered Alison as being so kind to visiting children. He described her as a person who had a wonderful love of humanity and who understood animals. The last horse Jim trained for Alison was the winner Hannah Maud. He pointed to an amazing string of coincidences – Alison Baker was born on April 19th and their wonder horse Arkle was born on April 19th, Arkle won his first Gold Cup on April 19th and the Arkle statue in nearby Ashbourne was unveiled by Jim on April 19th 2014, some 50 years after Arkle’s first Gold Cup win.
Hunting
Alison hunted with the Ward Union Staghounds in her younger days, but the Fingal Harriers became her club. She shared the mastership with racing enthusiast John Purfield and well-known horseman Jimmy Ryan. Her sister Pidgie continued to hunt after Alison retired on her hunter Mister Hudson. During Alison’s mastership when the Fingal Harriers were invited to parade hounds at the Dublin Horse Show, there were still single and double banks in the main arena. After huntsman Paddy Shanahan finished his parade, the crowd encouraged them to jump the banks. Alison duly obliged, and every time they cheered her on, shouting ‘encore’, was music to Alison’s ears as she gave repeated textbook displays of tackling the banks.
It was an extremely proud day for Alison when her nephew David was appointed joint-master of the Ward Union Staghounds that his brother John also hunts with. A few years ago, the Ward Union were subject to a change in the terms of hunting legislation, and the masters and hunt staff decided to change to wearing black hunting coats. They were planning a lawn meet at Alison’s home at Naul. Alison, strict on tradition, reminded them that if they wanted to hunt at Malahow, they better change back into their red coats! A procession of red coats moved off from the meet, and hounds were paraded in front of Alison’s house which brought a wry smile to her face!
Racing
The Bakers were associated with many good horses, like Bomber Command and Kai Lung, both winners at Baldoyle and the Phoenix Park. On Alison’s 21st birthday, her father gave her a present of Mr Richard, out of Greenogue Princess, who went on to win the Fingal Harriers Hunt Cup at Mooreside, ridden by the field-master of the Scarteens, PP Hogan. Alison studied veterinary medicine at Trinity College for two years before she had to return home due to her father’s illness.
Alison will always be remembered for her association with the National Hunt champion racehorse of the century, Arkle.
Bred by her mother Mary from her mare Bright Cherry by Knight of the Garter out of Greenogue Princesss, who was herself by My Prince, the mare had an impressive racing record, winning the Easter Chase at Fairyhouse and five other chases as well one hurdle race and was placed 11 times. Her jockeys included Pat Taaffe, TP Burns and Eddie Newman. She was a fast mare and passed it on to her progeny, Cherry Tang (1952), Cherry Bud (1955), Savel Beg (1963), Golden Sparkle (1964), Cherry Wine (1966) and of course to her star son Arkle, foaled in 1957.
Arkle was by Archive that stood at Loughtown Stud, then owned by the Vard family. He was foaled in Ballymacoll Stud. Alison described Arkle as not a very big foal and not very angular, but she recognised that he was different from the rest as he was curious and had brains and he was always the first over to be fed.
She called him ‘Fellow’, and she did all the handling and driving of him in preparing him for the sales. He was one of two horses purchased by Anne Duchess of Westminster on trainer Tom Dreaper’s advice as he had broken and ridden his dam Bright Cherry.
Arkle’s legacy
ARKLE, standing 16.1hh, had his first win on a very wet day in a three-mile hurdle race at Navan in bottomless conditions, ridden by Liam McLoughlin. He won the Bective Hurdle and then beat Height of Fashion at Leopardstown carrying 12st 7lbs.
Alison, June and Harry went over for Arkle’s first Gold Cup at Cheltenham in 1964. With chicken for lunch, Alison got the wish bone, and her wish was that her special horse would win, and he duly obliged beating the mighty English challenger Mill House ridden by Willie Robinson.
The crowd were ecstatic and Alison could not get to the winner’s enclosure with the people, but he was to go on to win two more Gold Cups in 1965 and 1966.
Arkle raced 35 times winning 27 races, placed second twice, third three times, fourth twice and unplaced once, giving lumps of weight away in many of his races.
His career came to an end when he injured his pedal bone at Kempton Park in the King George VI.
Despite that injury, he was still runner-up to Dormant.
Alison always felt that Arkle was a lucky horse, as he had the advantage of being well minded and fed as a foal by her, as well as having a sympathetic owner, a patient trainer and a top-class jockey.
His dam Bright Cherry is remembered by a specially commissioned granite headstone over her final resting place in the Quarry Field at Malahow.
Parade
Arkle was paraded at the Dublin Horse Show, ridden by Pat Taaffe, and the crowd were asked to be quiet so as not to startle him. At first he paraded at a lacklustre pace, but when the crowd burst into loud cheering, Arkle got on his toes and responded by strutting his stuff!
In her later years, Alison enjoyed the grandstand view from her home of her young bloodstock as the paddocks roll downhill from her home with Howth, Ireland’s Eye, the sea and the Dublin Mountains in the background.
Royal request
WHEN Queen Elizabeth II was on her state visit to Ireland in May 2011, she specifically requested to see Alison at the Irish National Stud where the skeleton of Arkle is on display. Alison had a treasured photo taken of the meeting which she copied and distributed a copy to every member of the family, duly signed by herself!
For many years, the only effigy of Arkle was a weather vane that her friend Standish Collen had erected on the Simmonscourt building in Ballsbridge.
But thanks to trainer Jim Dreaper, whose father Tom trained Arkle and his daughter Lindsay and a group of friends, that omission was rectified in 2014 with a larger than life-size statue of Arkle and Pat Taaffe by the sculptor Emma McDermott erected in the centre of Ashbourne Village.
The whole town turned out with Alison sitting in the front row surrounded by connections of the Dreaper and Taaffe family, including friends and connections, with music provided by the Garda Band.
Alison will be sadly missed by her wide circle of friends. She was predeceased by her sisters DoDo, Pidgie, June and her brother Harry, and is survived by her nieces, nephews, Jeanne, Susan, Patricia, Judy, Nicola, David and John, sister-in-law, Alice, carers and friends. The funeral service was held at St Patrick’s Church Donabate, followed by burial at Clonmethan Church of Ireland Graveyard.