Could there have been a more appropriately-named horse to give two 16-year-old schoolboys a taste of hunter chasing at the top than Baby Run?
When it came victory in the most famous races the sport's answer to Mothercare carried first-season teenager Sam Twiston-Davies to victory in Punchestown's Champion Hunters' Chase, and younger brother Willie to the no.1 spot in Aintree's Foxhunters' Chase. In between those two successes the French-bred gelding also won Cheltenham's Foxhunter Chase under Sam, and might well have scored a repeat victory in that race under Willie.
Not that the siblings needed any introduction when stepping onto the racing stage, for their father, Nigel, is one of Britain's top Jump trainers, and the brothers had ridden since they could walk. Pony racing and a handful of point-to-point rides applied the final polish and they were weighing out at the Cheltenham Festival before many of their peers had completed their first lap in a members' race.
Baby Run was bred at Haras De Preaux in France, the result of a mating between the mare Run For Laborie, who won over nine furlongs on the Flat, and the stallion Baby Turk, whose leading performer was the brilliant Azertyuiop. He went on to win the Gr.1 Queen Mother Champion Chase, and had landed the Gr.1 Arkle Trophy two months before Baby Run was offered as an unbroken store horse at Doncaster Spring Sales. His vendor was Mill House Stud's Juliet Minton, whose husband, David, had bought Baby Run as a yearling in France.
Juliet remembers: "He was such a gorgeous young horse, really good looking and very straightforward. Some friends of ours, Peter and Sue Orton came to lunch, said they were looking for a horse and we showed them Baby Run. They fell in love with him, and when he went through the ring at Doncaster they were there to buy him."
'A gorgeous horse' - Baby Run with groom Maddie Webster (Photo - Carl Evans)
Peter Orton, a television executive and media entrepreneur, had sold foreign rights to such hit children's series as Sesame Street, The Muppets and Fraggle Rock, he had marketed Thomas The Tank Engine and Angelina Ballerina, and hit a bigger jackpot when launching the phenomenally successful Bob The Builder under his own brand. A long-standing owner with Nigel Twiston-Davies, it was Orton after whom Raymond Mould's good racehorse Tipping Tim was named. David Minton recalls: "We went on holiday a few times, and when turning up at a restaurant Peter would give the head waiter a very good tip which ensured we were well looked after – hence the [alliterative] name Tipping Tim."
Born in Portsmouth, Orton was a fine example of making a lot from a little, having left school at 16 to sell naval uniforms. In 2005 he sold his HiT Entertainment business for £489m, but two years later, at the age of 64, he succumbed to cancer. His early death was to send the career of his promising, but injury-prone young horse in an unplanned direction.
A smart novice hurdler
Baby Run had been bought by the Ortons for 32,000gns at Doncaster and sent to Twiston-Davies' stables in the Cotswolds. Showing plenty of speed he a won a junior bumper at Exeter in the December of his first season and was placed in similar races at Newbury and Cheltenham under Carl Llewellyn.
The following autumn, on his second start over hurdles, he was pitched into the Gr.2 Sharp Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham and took the runner-up spot before winning a novices' hurdle at Haydock, and one year later his first race over fences resulted in victory in a Listed contest over two miles at Aintree. It was a bitter-sweet win, for jockey Tony Evans said Baby Run had hung slightly, and he was duly rested for nearly 14 months before, in December 2006, tackling a handicap chase at Cheltenham in which he finished third.
A bad stumble after the final fence was a worrying sign for a horse on comeback after a layoff, and it transpired Baby Run's tendon had been damaged. Orton died a year later, and the horse was given to his trainer.
When he reappeared two years and two months later his new role was as a schoolmaster for Nigel's 16-year-old son Sam, who had made his point-to-point debut at Dunthrop eight weeks earlier when finishing second on Grenfell, the horse who was to provide his first jumping victory a couple of weeks later at Cottenham. Grenfell was trained by Sam's mother, Cathy.
Baby Run re-entered the picture in a hunters' chase at Bangor where he and Sam finished second to the Will Biddick-ridden Limerick Boy, and 12 days later they forged a first win in partnership with a Ludlow victory.
Twiston-Davies senior has never been one to duck a racing challenge – with horses or children – and the following month he saw no reason not to pitch nine-year-old Baby Run and his teenage son into Cheltenham's Foxhunter Chase. It was another marked step up in trip for the nine-year-old gelding who was sent off at 14/1, took a prominent early position, led at the 13th of the 22 fences and was still in pole position with two to jump.
At that point the Sheila Crow-trained Cappa Bleu under Richard Burton swept past before drawing clear to win by 12 lengths from the Charlotte Tizzard-ridden Turthen, with Baby Run half a length behind in third.
Amicelli, the winner 12 months earlier, finished fourth, but at the subsequent Cheltenham April meeting he and rider Ollie Greenall gave 11lb to Baby Run and beat him by a neck, yet despite two tough races the runner-up had further assignments. He came back to winning ways when landing Punchestown's featured hunters' chase in which he beat favourite Agus A Vic by half a length, and at Stratford's evening meeting he was second of 14 runners, beaten one and a half lengths, in the Champion Hunters' Chase behind the Neil Harris-ridden Southwestern.
Foxhunter win beats a Gold Cup
A win at Warwick opened Baby Run's second season of hunter chasing under Sam, and they went back to Cheltenham for the 24-runner Foxhunter Chase as the 9/2 favourite. Baby Run made all and won by five lengths from Ireland's Kilty Storm, the victory coming within an hour of stablemate Imperial Commander's win in the Gold Cup.
When asked which of the two wins gave him the greatest pleasure, Nigel said: "To be honest it would have to be the Foxhunter. I am hugely proud of Sam and he rode a beautiful race. The horse was a write-off when I got him, but we managed to get him back," while Sam said: "He's been special to me and looked after me. He was tired coming to the last but was also pricking his ears the cheeky thing."
Sam Twiston-Davies, flanked by his parents, Cathy and Nigel, with the Foxhunter Cup (Photo - Cheltenham Racecourse)
Baby Run was made 5/2 favourite for Aintree's Foxhunters' Chase, but he shot Sam from the saddle at the sixth as victory went to the Tom Weston-ridden 50/1 shot Silver Adonis. Two days later Sam finished fifth on Hello Bud in the Grand National.
That was Baby Run's season finished, and with Sam becoming a conditional it was younger brother Willie's turn. Looking back, Willie says: "I was very supportive of Sam when he rode the horse, but I was looking forward to my chance to get on him."
As precociously talented as his big brother, Willie had turned 16 little more than a month before riding a double with his first two rides in point-to-points, the second leg being victory in the classic Lord Ashton of Hyde's Cup on Naunton Brook. His fourth ride over jumps resulted in a Wetherby hunters' chase win on Baby Run, and two weeks later they teamed up to land the prestigious Walrus Hunters' Chase at Haydock.
Willie Twiston-Davies at 16 during his first and only season in point-to-points (Photo - Carl Evans)
It mattered not to punters that a 16-year-old schoolboy on his 14th ride over jumps would partner Baby Run in the Foxhunter Chase, and the 11-year-old was sent off the 3/1 favourite. At least the tactics were easy for the novice amateur rider – make all and keep making it – and that plan was working until, at the penultimate fence, Willie slapped his mount down the neck as if asking for a long one, Baby Run put down, breasted the birch, pecked on landing and shot his partner over his head. Zemsky, ridden by Derek O'Connor, was poised to challenge and duly won for Ian Ferguson's County Antrim stable, while backers of 100/1 shot Mid Div And Creep were rewarded when she came second under Gina Andrews.
Aintree salvation soon arrived
Willie joined the long list of Cheltenham Festival riders who smelled victory and found defeat in an instant, but with the coolness – and perhaps helpful naivety of youth – showed no signs of nerves when teaming up with Baby Run to win the following month's Foxhunters' Chase at Aintree. Boxer Georg, ridden by Patrick Mullins for his father, Willie, was three-quarters of a length behind in second, while the Nick Sutton-ridden Offshore Account finished third.
Willie Twiston-Davies celebrates as Baby Run wins Aintree's Foxhunters' Chase (Photo - Aintree Racecourse)
Looking back on those two Foxhunter rides, Willie says: "At Cheltenham it was just one of those things. The horse was fine after the race, and at Aintree he did it well. That was a special day, and everything came right with a bit of juice in the ground. He was sure-footed throughout and I just went down to the final fence as if it was any other. He was just a very tough and genuine horse, and a pleasure to be around.
"The fact he had carried two 16-year-old brothers to Foxhunter Chase wins – well you couldn't write it up."
That was the conclusion to Baby Run's time as a hunter chaser, but a couple of weeks later, when reunited with Sam, he finished third in Sandown's Bet365 Gold Cup, and although further side-lined for another 18 months he returned as a 13-year-old to take second place in Aintree's Becher Chase.
A remarkable and versatile horse he was retired two weeks later after finishing fourth, but well beaten, in a handicap chase at Haydock when running off a career high mark of 141.
Sam and Willie's careers continue to develop. Sam has now ridden more than 1,000 winners under Rules, while Willie rode on the Flat and over Jumps and put a Royal Ascot victory on his CV before retiring from the profession. He lives in the Cotswolds, handles breakers and pre-trainers and hoped to run several pointers in the season which recently concluded. He trained his first winner when Panic And Run scored at Cocklebarrow in January.
Willie says: "Baby Run now lives near Carlisle with my aunt, and is used for hacking and hunting. He took to it like a duck to water. He has been a horse of a lifetime for our family."
All-time greats - released each and every Friday!