Super colt Vain ran on Australian racetracks for just one year and 3 weeks from October 1968 until early November 1969, yet he is still regarded by many as Australia’s greatest ever sprinter. Yes yes Black Caviar!!!!! But before we go any further it is important to note that after Vain was retired, he became a successful sire, and Black Caviar has his blood on both sides of her family tree.
Vain started his race career at Caulfield in October 1969 as a two-year-old and quickly put together four good wins in Victoria including the Maribyrnong Plate. After Vain’s first start he started odds on in his next three Melbourne starts and beat good fields very easily. In this small streak of wins, Vain also won the time honoured Sires’ Produce at Flemington. The Sires’ was at one time almost as important as the Golden Slipper. Vain’s Sires’ win is still one of the fastest on record. After these Victorian wins the unbeaten two-year-old colt was off to Sydney to have a go at the Golden Slipper.
Usually a Melbourne horse will have a run in Sydney before the Golden Slipper, but Vain did not. As such, there was a bit of scepticism about his chances and as a result Vain started at the longest odds of his career (after his first start) at 9-2. A certain Senior Classics Lecturer from Newcastle University was at the Golden Slipper that day in March 1969 and he tells how he backed the favourite, Special Girl but then saw Vain in the mounting yard and realised the big, angry young colt was fired up and looked almost unbeatable. The lesson is to have a look then place the bet. And he was right. Vain lead throughout and won very easily by four lengths.
The Golden Slipper is the first leg of the Triple Crown for two-year-olds held in Sydney every autumn. Vain was now on his way to attempting to win the Triple Crown. Pierro won the triple crown last year. However, sometimes things don’t go to plan and it seems the Golden Slipper might have flattened Vain a touch because he finished second in the second leg of the Triple Crown, the Sydney Sires’ Produce. Vain was a raging hot 6-1 on favourite but the Senior Classics Lecturer from Newcastle tells how in the mounting yard on this day, Vain’s coat was a bit off and he looked a touch sick. So a sick horse running second was a pretty good effort. But now we move onto the third leg of the Triple Crown, the Champagne Stakes and one of the best wins in a Group One two-year-old race in Australian racing history.
Punters clearly forgave Vain for his defeat in the Sires’ because he jumped in the Champagne the very short priced twos on favourite. And Vain did not disappoint winning the race by ten lengths in the fastest time ever recorded for a two-year-old over six furlongs. A ten length win! Could Black Caviar have beaten a Group One field by ten?
Vain had a super two-year-old career, but it was not as good as Todman’s or Luskin Star’s or ever Pierro’s; however Vain went on with the job as a three-year-old and set records that were simply mind-blowing.
Vain resumed in Melbourne in the early spring of 1969 and quickly won three races, all at odds on and all that would be either Group Ones or Twos now including the Caulfield Guineas. It is interesting to note that Pat Hyland rode Vain in every race he had bar one, a race at Moonee Valley where Vain was beaten for the second and last time in his career. Roy Higgins had the ride this day, and Vain simply did not go as well for champion jockey Higgins as he did for Hyland. So at this stage of his career Vain had been running for one year and had had 11 starts for nine wins. But then came the week. Melbourne Cup week 1969. Yes Rain Lover won his second Cup on the Tuesday, but this week belonged to Vain.
The legendary Phar Lap won a race on each day of the four day 1930 Melbourne Cup carnival. On Derby Day he won the Melbourne Stakes (Mackinnon), on Cup day he won the Cup, on Oaks day he won Linlithgow and on Stakes day he won the St. George Stakes. Four races in one week over distances between 8 furlongs (1600m) and 2 miles (3200m). Vain did not emulate Phar Lap and win four races, but he did win three. Three wins in a week is still a monumental effort. Here is how it panned out.
On Derby Day he won the Craven A Stakes which is today known as the Salinger Stakes. It is an open handicap and Vain carrying 8.0 won by 12 lengths! 12 lengths in an open handicap is a phenomenal margin. This is potentially the best display of sprinting in Australian racing history. Black Caviar only ever ran in one open handicap; the 2011 Newmarket Handicap where she carried 58kg. Anyway, back to Vain. He was obviously going so well after a 12 length win that trainer Jim Moloney backed him up on Oaks day in the 7 furlong Linlithgow Stakes (today the Patinack Farm Classic) at WFA. Vain won this race so easily that Moloney decided to back him up again, for a third time in a week in the George Adams Handicap, which today is known as the Emirates Stakes. Vain, still an early three-year-old was handicapped with an incredible 8.10 (55.5kg) . 8.10 was a staggering 10 pounds over weight for age which is an enormous handicap for a young three-year-old against open company. This together with the facts that Vain was running for the third time in a week and over more ground than normal (a mile instead of his usual sprint distances of 6 or 7f) should have turned the punters away. But they stayed and Vain jumped the 3/1 on favourite ($1.33). And he bolted in. This win may have been even better than his twelve length romp seven day earlier.
Then he was gone. Sent to stud in the Hunter Valley where he sired 370 individual winners, and as mentioned his blood is on both sides of Black Caviar’s pedigree. Vain died on Christmas day 1991. He had just 14 starts for 12 wins and 2 seconds.
By Zeb Armstrong
