Hall Of Fame @ Diamond B Farm

Hall Of Fame:

EGO - A tribute to our champion
The tale of Ego has many long family connections.  Chris and I first met while I was doing holiday work at the stables were his mother, Bundarra was campaigned.
Years later we were able to purchase this lovely, hot, talented mare and bred three foals from her.  The first Skyhigh 11, won World Cups and was listed for the 2000 Olympics, the second Ego, who would become our most successful grand prix horse and third, Egos full sister, who replaced Bundarra as our most beloved brood mare. And whose foals will carry on the bloodlines of this successful family.

Ego was by our homebred Voodoo, who was in turn by the very talented imported/exported grand prix horse Valeur.

Ego was something special from the very beginning.  A lovely type with a quiet and self-confident attitude.  He started his career as any rising star should, by winning most of the major futurities of the 97/98  season, including the ‘big one’ the NSW showjumping council futurity.

He made Sydney Royal his show. At his first appearance as a 7 year old in 1998 he was champion section 111 horse and leading young horse, his first of 4 such titles at Royal shows.  The next year in 1999 he won all 5 section 2 events, and was third in the World Cup, an Olympic selection event. In 2000 he won the big double, the EFA cup and World Cup, an Olympic selection event, and was named was Champion Horse. 

An injury at the final qualifier in August 2000 kept him out of competition for 12 months, but in typical Ego style returned with a first up World Cup win in 2001.

Over his 7 year career at the elite level he won 9 world cups and placed 2nd   11 times, He won 22 other major Grand Prix’s
He won the Australian league twice and was Golden Grand leading horse three times. He was instrumental in Chris being leading rider at Sydney royal 6 times in the past 8 years.

With his return to competition in 2001 we decided that Ego only needed to start in World Cups and major Grand Prix,  He only started in an average of 15 events each year, he was rarely out of the money.. In 2006 he had started 8 times for 3 wins, and 5 placings in the top 8.  He had career earnings in excess of  $ 100,000 - not bad for Australia and for a lightly campaigned horse.

His consistency was amazing. He was always careful and brave.
 I read an article once where a German trainer said that brave horses got hot as their career developed, and Ego did.  Like his mother, Ego was a ‘hot’ competitor, he was feisty, always full of running but as soon as the round was over he would drop the bit and walk out on a loose rein.  He was the ultimate professional, he knew his job, got it done and relaxed afterwards. He always ate and drank, traveled long distances without a worry, never had a temperature or a tummy ache his whole career. Chris and he shared a special relationship, they understood each other perfectly, it was a partnership based on trust and talent. Ego was always treated as the number one pony, and rightly so: he loved his food, wouldn’t venture out of his shelter shed when it rained, hated the sound of horses hitting fences, tolerated his dressage work [just!] and was brave and stoic when recovering from injury.
  After 15 years it’s not the same around our place without him and it will take a very special horse to earn the same level of respect we had for him.
  
We would have hoped for a different ending to his story, a long and peaceful retirement with his old partner Navy Seal, but it was not to be. Ego died of an aneurysm on the 15th November 2006, just 4 days after running 2nd in the World Cup at Werribee. We were both with him at the end.
He is buried on the same property he was born on. Ego was a showjumper through and through. He had a tremendous ‘conscience’, always gave 100%, never disappointed us and always approached his job with unending enthusiasm and heart.

We have received many calls and e-mails since his passing and Chris, Bev and I would like to thank everyone for their thoughts.  It is great to know that so many people thought so highly of him.  That is the true beauty of our sport, at the end of the day; it’s all about the horses. This is a special farewell to one of the sports characters.

SKYHIGH
What can I say about the horse that started it all for us.  Shultz [as his friends knew him] was simply a ‘star’.  Lovely natured imported Hannovarian stallion who took Chris from their beginnings together to International competition.  Chris and Shultz had their first World Cup start together in 1982 in Armidale and in true fairly tale tradition, won.  He was a National champion, a World Cup representative and the horse that gave us the chance to turn our passion into a living.  Words can’t really describe what this wonderful horse meant to us or the gratitude and affection we feel for him.  He was a beautiful, generous, talented and lovable character. 

MR CURRENCY
‘Tex’ was a black New Zealand bred TB by Imperial Seal.  He came off the Hawkesbury track as a 6 year old after a modest racing career in the outer metro and country tracks.  Nicknamed Tex – because he was black with lighter brown eyes and if he was an actor would have been right at home playing the ‘baddie in a black hat’ in westerns.  A precocious talent who showed he was a star from his first outing.  He rose quickly thought the ranks and was jumping world cup level within three years.

He won many titles on his way to the top and won 5 world cup events in the 1990 season to finish the season with a total of 136 points from a possible 140!!   He represented Australia at the World Cup finals in Gotebury in 1991 [ finishing 19th] and Spain in the Barcelona Olympics [ jumping a clear round and a 4 fault round in the Nations Cup for a team finish of 4th]

‘Tex’ was a very classical jumper and would be perfect for today’s more technical and careful courses. He had a very strong character and didn’t suffer fools gladly, he could be quite aggressive in the stable and demanded, and got, the respect he thought he deserved!!

NAVY SEAL
‘Blackie’ is a black New Zealand bred thoroughbred gelding by Imperial Seal. He came off the Hawkesbury track from the stables of Robert and Chrissie Johnson.  Not named ‘Blackie’ for lack of imagination, his racing name was Black Magnum. Bought primarily because of his breeding and colour!! He nonetheless has proven to be a very good horse in his own right and holds a very special place in the Chugg household.
Although a somewhat difficult and hot horse, Blackie was a very competitive jumper and always tried his hardest – even when his temperament made it look sometimes ‘hairy’, his aim was always to leave the fences up!  He won several world cups and the National showjumping title in 1995.  He took a career change in  1997/8 and tried his hand at eventing, he had 7 starts for 5 wins and  2 seconds – is graded advanced and won the two star three day event at Adelaide.  An injury in the lead up to Melbourne 3 day put a finish to that episode of  his competition career, he returned 12 months later to World Cup level showjumping.  Now 18, he occasionally heads out as a junior and young rider mount and loves his role of ‘veteran’ of the team.
A quirky and playful type, he relishes his role of nanny to the weanlings and yearlings and runs a very strict paddock where he plays the role of ‘sheik of scrubby creek’ to perfection.

STRETCH
Stretch was purchased by Chris’s mother Bev, as a 2 year old, through the Scone thoroughbred sale for the princely sum of $250 [ one bid above the dogger].  She actually purchased him twice – the first time through the ring for $600 and then had to re-bid when it was discovered he was put through as the wrong horse.  Named Elastic Pac – his  new competition name was obvious. A tall, lean type, he developed into a rangy and attractive horse.  He was always a shy horse in his temperament and needed a lot of quiet riding and training to become a mature and brave competitor. He was a very ‘soft’ jumper with a  lot of easy scope.   Stretch won at World cup level and ran second in the prestigious Bond Derby, to the legend Mr Shrimpton, and was sold to Laurie Connell as an 8 yr old for Guy Crieghton to ride.  He finished his career in New Zealand with ex-pat Jeff McVean where he continued to win at World Cup level into his late teens.

JAYBEE SHULTZ
Bred by Bev at Jaybee Farm, Shultz was from the last crop of Skyhigh and was such a look-alike that he earned his fathers nickname.  Roy Jessop purchased him as a weanling and he came to us to be broken in at two, and never left until his sale to the Hong Kong international Kenneth Cheng.  Shultz was a mega cute horse, with a charming personality and everyone’s favorite.  He was a very competitive horse, winning the NSWSJC futurity, leading young horse at Sydney Royal and moved into the Grand Prix ranks easily.  He won his  first World Cup start [like his father did] and was listed for the WEG in Spain.  He contracted Colitis x before the last trial and spent 12 months recovering, he made a full recovery and returned to Grand Prix competition before being purchased by Kenneth.  He won the young rider challenge at the World Cup final in Kuala Lumpur in 2006.

WS SCANDAL
Owed by good friends Peter and Caroline Wagner of Wagners Saddlery fame.
This feisty black Australian thoroughbred mare is a legend in her own lifetime.  Another precocious talent, her path to the top was jet propelled.  A barrier rogue at the track, Flo, was a girl with a definite opinion and a huge jump.  She won the NSWSJC futurity and had just started her career in open competition when, after a typically successful Sydney royal, she was invited into the final training camp and selection trial for the Australian Touring team to Europe for the 1995 season.  She picked herself with outstanding results and consistency, as a 6 year old!!  She was the most successful horse of the tour placing at every show, and was a member of the winning Nations cup team in Helsinki [ the first Nations cup win in Western Europe for an Aussie team].  The main mission of the tour was to qualify a team for the Atlanta Olympics at the qualifier in Falsterbo, Sweden.  The team didn’t manage to qualify, but Chris and Scandal were the best performed and qualified an individual spot for Australia  [Australia later got a team spot when New Zealand didn’t send a team.]

Flo returned home to wins at World Cup level, but without assurances of a spot on the team to go to Atlanta, she was sold to HRH Princess Haya of Jordan.  Flo was a star in her stable as well and is now retired and enjoying motherhood.  Flo was a star, quick, brave, feisty and talented.  All the ingredients of an elite athlete.