THE funeral Mass for Eddie Harty Snr is at 10.30am today [Saturday] in St Conleth’s Parish Church in Newbridge, Co Kildare.

Aged 88, he died peacefully at Willowbrook Nursing Home in Newbridge on Wednesday, exactly one week - to the hour - after losing his beloved wife Patricia following 66 years of marriage.

The fourth child and second son born to Captain Cyril Harty and his New York wife Winifred, Eddie grew up in Chapelizod and was educated by the Jesuits in Belvedere. Determined from his earliest days to emulate his father in show jumping, race-riding and then training, Eddie cut his teeth in the ring, winning prizes at the RDS. As soon as he reached the age qualification - then 14 - Eddie followed his older brother Buster onto the racecourse, becoming a prominent amateur jockey and finishing runner-up in the amateurs’ table. Riding 50-odd winners between the flags, Eddie rode in his first steeplechase aged just 16.

At the same time he made his name in the three-day event world, ultimately being selected to represent Ireland in that discipline in the 1960 Rome Olympics. There he joined Buster, who was by then training the American Olympic three-day event team. Eddie had earlier followed Buster to America, spending two years as a cowboy in California, working for Sir John Galvin.

Immediately on his return from Rome, Eddie married his first and only love, Patricia ‘Pat’ O’Neill. She appeared to have been born under a lucky star. Her father, an officer in the Free State army, escorted Michael Collins to Limerick as Collins began his tour of the southwest. In Limerick, Collins instructed his escort to return to the Curragh, saying that he would be safe amongst his own people. Collins met his end soon afterwards.

British career

On turning professional, Eddie moved with his bride to Melton Mowbray to ride for former champion jockey Tim Molony, who had started on the second phase of his career, as a racehorse trainer. Tim was destined to train a two-year-old named Red Rum, who dead-heated on his racecourse debut, in a two-year-old selling race at Liverpool.

Tim did not have many National Hunt performers, so Eddie eked out his existence until surprising the racing world by being appointed Fred Winter’s first stable jockey. The winners began to flow, ensuring a better standard of living for Patricia and their three children, Edward, Eoin and Freda. Because of his frame, Eddie could not dare depart from his spartan regime required to make the weights on his many mounts.

Eddie began to get the reputation as an Aintree expert, riding Hopkiss to win the 1965 Topham Trophy for trainer Alec Kilpatrick. April Rose was another winning mount over those formidable fences, as they were in Eddie’s era. Other headline wins were on Jupiter Boy in the 1988 Mackeson Gold Cup at Cheltenham and Glenn in the Welsh Grand National later that season. Both were supplied by Kinnersley trainer Fred Rimell.

Fairytale start

Displaced at Fred Winter’s by Bobby Beasley, Eddie struck up a partnership with Weyhill trainer Toby Balding. They got off to a fairytale start, reaching its climax at the Aintree meeting in April 1969. On the opening day, they pulled off the Topham Trophy with Dozo. Eddie was adamant they would win the Grand National with Highland Wedding. So it proved.

Eddie supplemented his income by sourcing promising horses in Ireland to sell to English trainers. He took Fred Winter to sit up on I’m Happy in Willie O’Grady’s. Fred rejected the horse, whereupon Eddie sold him to Toby. Meanwhile, Fred had trained Bula to win all 13 of his starts over hurdles, including two Champion Hurdles. That sequence was ended at Newbury, where Eddie and I’m Happy proved a neck too good for Bula and Paul Kelleway. The first to congratulate Eddie was Fred Winter.

Training

Injury saw Eddie turn to training, at Strawhall, the Curragh in 1972. I’m Happy added to Eddie’s tally, successful at the Curragh. Another triumph was with Fort Collins, a winner of a Fairyhouse point-to-point in 1975, owned by one brother-in-law, Pat Hughes, and ridden by another brother-in-law.

While winners materialised, notably Balgaddy, Eddie’s most fortuitous purchase was a foal. That turned out to be Captain Cee Bee - named after Eddie’s father. Captain Cee Bee went on to provide Edward Harty - Eddie’s elder son and successor - with a dream start to his training career, winning the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the 2008 Cheltenham Festival, ridden by ‘Choc’ Thornton for owner J.P. McManus.

In time, Edward was joined on the licence by his son, Patrick. Together they made racing history, becoming the first officially endorsed training partnership in Ireland. Eoin meanwhile had long made his name as a trainer in America.

Eddie is survived by his children Edward, Eoin and Freda and their families, also by his sisters, Una and Anne, the writer’s beloved wife since 1966.

G.W.