Hennenman Memorial and Empress Club Stakes

Thunder Dance 2013 winner

The most shocking tragedy in South African racing history, the Hennenman Air disaster which occurred on April 12 1988, will have its annual memorial meeting on Saturday April 11 at Turffontein Racecourse.

The meeting will include the R1 million Gr 1 Laurie Jaffee Empress Club Stakes over 1600m and the most exciting filly in the country, the Mike de Kock- trained Majmu, is due to take her place in this prestigious race. Her presence will likely make it easier for good memories to come flooding back for it was in South African racing's heyday that 24 lives were cut short when a Dakota carrying 13 jockeys together with a trainer, racing officials and owners crashed into a millie field in the early evening near the Free State hamlet of Hennenman with its starboard wing already ablaze. It skidded for 200m and exploded in a mass of flame. Nobody survived. The country and especially the racing fraternity battled to absorb the shocking news the following morning and an air of disbelief pervaded race meetings for a number of weeks. Many of those killed were jockeys under the age of 22 so a mass of riding talent was lost!

The full list of people that lost their lives were:

Jockeys: Keith Basel, Lawrence Riley, Johannes “Rooies” Fourie, Warren Baillie, Bennie de Wet, Greg Holme, Douglas Roper, Danny Lombard, John McMurtry, Mark Nel, Michael Coetzee, Simon Rahilly and Gordon Sterley. Trainer: Hennie van Wyk Officials: Graham Kent, Dave Bullock, Henry Havergall, Ginger Masterton and Johannes van der Linden Owners: Jacobus Viljoen and Neville Blignaut Air Crew: Jacob Kalt, Harold Whitehead and Jacqueline Henderson.

The United Airways charter flight had been returning from a race meeting in Bloemfontein. The meeting was due to have been held the previous week with the racing group booked to travel on a scheduled South African Airways flight. However, when rain forced the postponement of the meeting, a plane was especially chartered to transport jockeys and officials to and from Bloemfontein.

Rooies Fourie is always in the forefront of conversations at the memorial meeting as many believe this mercurial rider would have been at least as good and possibly even better than the golden generation of jockeys that followed, which include Piere Strydom, Douglas Whyte, Anton Marcus, Weichong Marwing and Anthony Delpech.

The Laurie Jaffee Empress Club Stakes is named after one of the greatest fillies to have raced in this country, the nine-time Gr 1 winner Empress Club. Her owner Laurie Jaffee was alongside Cyril Hurvitz and Graham Beck considered to be one of the mighty horseracing millionaires.

The Empress Club Stakes used to be called the Turffontein Fillies and Mares Stakes and the last five winners Mother Russia, Dancewiththedevil, Europa Point, Thunder Dance and Along Came Polly all ended their careers with at least two Gr 1 victories.

The other features on the card are the Listed Spook Express Handicap over 2450m and the Hennenman Memorial Pinnacle Stakes over 1000m

Last years winner



This years Entries

R 1,000,000 1600m (Turf)
L JAFFEE EMPRESS CLUB STAKES (Grade 1)

2 ARCETRI PINK (AUS) Kumaran Naidoo
1 BANBURY Gavin van Zyl
8 ENCHANTED SILK Sean Tarry
3 ERIN Ormond Ferraris
15 FIRE WHEEL Sean Tarry
12 HAMMIE'S HOOKER Mike Bass
10 MAJMU (AUS) Mike de Kock
4 NEGEV Louis Goosen
7 NOT SULKING Geoff Woodruff
6 SAME JURISDICTION Duncan Howells
5 SMART CALL Alec Laird
9 TAMAANEE (AUS) Sean Tarry
11 TROPHY WIFE Sean Tarry
14 WHATALADY Stanley Ferreir
13 WINTER STAR Johan Janse van

Don't want to rain on some parade or throw a damper but there are some serious older fillies in the field and if it rains and the going gets soft, it could be foolish for punters to be taking skinny odds on the 3 y/o filly against say ARCETRI PINK who loves the wet.

Caution to Scotia.............

Will post this years field asap

Memorial on Saturday

.

Lot of the sprinters having a prep in the Pinnacles at this meeting and the KZN one the next day.

Today we remember

RIP

It's 28yrs ago and I remember at the time, tragic, the press and coverage was not what it is today, desperate to try and find out who was missing and what had happened

Very sad times, hearts and prayers to family and friends who lost loved ones .

RIP

RIP

A special dedication along with our prayers goes out to family and friends who lost loved ones .

RIP

35 years ago today.... RIP and thoughts to all the families

Including our good friend Clyde who lost his beloved brother Keith