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About Thoroughly by Ormond Ferraris with Charl Pretorius

South African horseracing has a rich oral history replete with anecdotes covering the excitement and salacious details of what happened on the thoroughbred scene. But over the last few decades very little of worth has been captured as a written record for posterity.

In a nick of time “Thoroughly!” fills that void. Trainer Ormond Ferraris is a true legend of the turf with an illustrious career spanning seventy years. He is practically the last of the surviving doyens with the experience, reach and gravitas to make sense of such a vast sweep of SA’s racing history.

A rare bounty of insights is contained in these chapters as Ferraris recalls first hand, in typical no-holds-barred style, the horses, events and personalities that shaped his life in racing.

Old time racegoers will relish his reveals of racing scandals and fallouts with powerful owners.

Punters will glean pearls of wisdom as the sage recount’s tales of gambling derring-do, of spectacular betting coups that connected – or went horribly awry.

Aspirant trainers will better understand the nuanced art of getting horses super-fit and primed to compete.

Pedigree boffins can delve into the breeding archives, tapping into Ferraris’ enduring knowledge, to recognise how famously successful SA bloodlines were formed.

And buyers searching for that elusive diamond in the rough can learn from a master horseman about the conformation attributes to look for in an equine athlete.

“Thoroughly!” is a fitting collaboration between the usually taciturn Ferraris, into his 90’s and now willing to share a lifetime of accumulated knowledge; and intrepid journalist Charl Pretorius – never one to shy away from controversy nor averse to dealing with complex characters.

This book remembers a time when the thoroughbred was at the very heart of this great game; jockeys and scheming trainers had to use their wits to survive; and the monopoly that racing had on gambling propelled it into a golden era that may never be seen again.

Multiple factors have since contributed to a steep erosion in racings fortunes, all noted, indeed lamented in this straight-shooting chronicle.

Ormond Ferraris is one of SA’s greatest trainers with a record that withstands even the most critical scrutiny. The fact that people who worked with him (Mike de Kock, son David Ferraris, Mike Clements) have gone on to thrive in their careers around the world is testimony to his training methods and staunch life principles.

“Thoroughly!” is no self-indulgent memoir. Instead, it is an honest, at times cutting account of inspiring or deeply flawed characters and remarkable equine champions in SA, an alternatively magnificent and maddening country constantly riven by political and economic challenges. All of which makes it a compelling, can’t-put-down read – and a valuable literary resource for future generations.

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