There was a feeling of disbelief and numbness last Friday afternoon throughout the Australasian harness racing community when the news began to break that we had lost the biggest figure in Australian Harness Racing with the sad passing of the icon Gavin Lang after a tough battle over the last nine months to cancer.
Jamie Cockshutt reflects on a man that was the idol to so many and in his opinion the most gifted all-round horseman to grace the racetrack.
Early days
Gavin and his brother Chris were destined to follow in the footsteps of their legendary father Graeme who was one of the greats back in the heyday, with the horse that stands out the most being his champion trotting mare Scotch Notch who won 65 races and over $670,000 in prizemoney.
She was a dual Interdominion Trotters Champion as well being crowned Australian Trotter of the Year between 1983-85. She was invited to race in the United States where she took on the best and beat the best, winning 18 races over there before being retired and sent back to Australia in 1989 to start her broodmare career but sadly passed away the following year.
His brother Chris has proven himself as a champion trainer of the square-gaiter having many of the country’s best trotters during the late 90’s and early 2000’s and in recent times has returned to the game after a battle with his own health but has ensured the Lang name will be around for many more years to come.
So, it’s fair to say that Gavin’s mother Dot was a pretty good broodmare in her own right producing two champions of the game.
Gavin drove his first winner back in 1976 at Kilmore being the first of over 6300 career driving wins.
The outpouring of support since his sudden passing is nothing short of amazing and he would sit alongside the greats of Australian sport including the likes of Sir Donald Bradman and Bart Cummings such is the stature that he was held in our great sport of harness racing.
Gavin was part of a trio of champion reinsman in the early 80’s alongside fellow legends in Vin Knight and Andrew Peace. You could nearly say they were treated like rockstars back in the day when everyone lived and breathed harness racing. Vinny was the charismatic one who loved the limelight, Andrew just followed along and was pretty humble, while Gav was quiet and unassuming but on many of occasions after a few beverages he loved to have fun and he did know how to enjoy himself especially when he was around the jukebox or karaoke machine.
He will be remembered by everyone as just an outstanding human being as he was humble and would treat the battling owner equal to the highest profile. I have little doubt he got a lot more satisfaction driving a winner for the battling owners and trainers.
He was a man of few words but when he did speak everybody went quiet and listened, as whatever he had to say was a meaningful message in only the way Gav could get it get across.
The tributes have flowed from all of his peers over the last few days with so many of them having similar words to say about him as he was an idol. Many have mentioned that all they had to do was follow Gav in the run and he would take them right into the race as he would gain runs when nobody else would, but the one thing he had over all of his rival drivers was timing. They all knew if he was coming out wide, he would grab them in the shadows of the post which was just a testament to the great timing of the man.
He was not only a champion driver/trainer, but he was as good as any form analyst around as he was just a genius and knew something about every horse in a field. He was part of many huge betting plunges over the years, back when you could get on to win a quid, and in one of his great mate’s words, Tom Hogan, they certainly did shake the ring on many occasions.
One of his greatest strengths was getting asked by many trainers if he could drive their problem horses as they knew that he would give them the feedback they required to turn that horse around and reach their full potential. He had a great affinity with the trotters, especially the ones that were doing things wrong and within a couple of starts you could guarantee that they would be doing everything right, winning races instead of throwing them away.
Gavin loved venturing all around country Victoria and he has the great record of winning 25 country cups out of a possible 27 which is a testament to his passion for the game. He was a hero to many of the people that lived in those country townships.
Two of the best
The two horses that were close to his heart was the champion trotter True Roman who he drove to a remarkable 65 wins, with 37 of them being at Moonee Valley winning many feature races including the 1988 Trotters Interdominion. Two years earlier he won the Australasian Trotters Championship among all the other feature trotting races on the calendar.
Gavin was an outstanding trainer as well and that was evident with a Safely Kept gelding called Persistency who as a three-year-old had an outstanding season winning many features including the Vicbred 3YO where he defeated the brilliant, Safe and Sound.
They renewed their battle in the 3YO El Dorado final a few months later where they had a two horse battle going right down to the line with Gav lifting him over the line for a brilliant win.
But it was the year 2003 that was his crowning moment when the injury plagued pacer lined up in the Kilmore Cup and went around at double figure odds against a very classy field which included Sokyola. In typical Gavin Lang fashion, he let it all unfold and called on his stable star who timed his run to perfection for an emotional win as he was raced by the family and close friend Tom Hogan.
After that win Gavin turned his attention to Tasmania which was like a second home as he loved coming across Bass Strait whether it was for leisure or to take our prizemoney back to Victoria.
With the Christmas carnival coming around he sent Persistency for the Hobart Pacing Cup and Tasmanian Pacing Championship which were run in consecutive weeks.
He gave Percy a quiet hit-out in the Pacing Cup as he was off the 40m back mark, hitting the line strongly for third knowing the target was next week.
He got into the Pacing Championship off 10m and looked very well placed in a good even field. With a lap to go in the race he looked too far back and I can remember standing near the winning post, looking at this horse charging home out wide on the track and of course it was Percy with Gavin timing his run to perfection like nobody else can to get up in the shadows of the post. I can still see the look of delight on his face when he came around for the presentation, the smile on his face was a sight to behold and it was a great way for Persistency to bow out for a horse that was always held in high regard by Gav.
In recent years he also had his hands on a very nice horse that he had a lot of time for in Sirletic who is worth keeping an eye on. One thing is for sure, if Gav liked him he will make it to the top level. He is trained by his good mate David Aiken so in coming weeks we will get to see his famous colours gracing the racetrack.
The performances
Gavin had some amazing performances in the cart, none more than the 2016 Vicbred Super Series night where he made a clean sweep of the three year and four-year-old finals which started with the Emma Stewart-trained Rocknroll Magic winning the 3YO fillies and then taking out the colts and geldings division with the Mario Attard Don’t Hold Back.
He then teamed up with Emma Stewart to take out both four-year-old finals with the classy Ideal for Real and quality mare Delight Me.
One of the biggest runs I have seen Gavin involved in was the 2016 Sunshine Sprint when he was driving the brilliant Hectorjayjay and I’m sure in saying this, the race didn’t go to plan early. He was shuffled back to last and was still there coming around the corner and he looked to have no chance but we all forgot Gav was in the sulky as he charged down the outside running away from his rivals in a 1:51.8 mile rate and in doing so defeated champion NZ pacer Christen Me. Looking at them crossing the line you can see him shaking his head in disbelief and thinking how did he win that race coming from last.
It was very fitting that his last Group one winner came last season for the Emma Stewart/Clayton Tonkin stable who he had a great association with for many years, even going back to Clayton’s father and close friend Peter.
I can still remember that race as if it was yesterday, the horse I backed looked home on straightening but I spotted this horse ducking and weaving from back in the field and I was trying to pick what it was and it was Out to Play with Gav in the sulky. Even half way down the straight he still looked too far back, but then Gavin waved his magic wand and got a run 50m from the line and charged through in typical G Lang fashion.
There are plenty of great memories, but they are my three in what was a career that produced so many highlights.
Meagan Lang
But his biggest win came around 10 years ago when he met his soulmate and the true love of his life Meagan. They were later married and everyone that knew him noticed the smile on his face and the look in his eye whenever her name was brought up as it was just a match made in heaven and he adored her so much. She was able to get the real Gavin to come out over the last 10 years which saw him rejuvenate his career and start to enjoy life outside of harness racing.
Tasmanian connection
Gavin had some great mates in Tasmania and had a lot of success and it was only last year he won the Easter Cup with a horse owned by his father called Franco Tristan. It was his training ability that shone through as he wasn’t the best horse in the series, but Gav knew he had a horse with impeccable stand start manners and that’s what won him the race.
Deanna Troy was locally owned by Steve Heathcote that was transferred to his stables back in 2006 and went on to win many feature races with the 2008 Ladyship Mile at Harold Park being the pinnacle. A few weeks later he sent her across to Tasmania for a couple of feature races with the first of them being the $50,000 City of Launceston Cup where she raced against the boys but that wasn’t enough to stop her as she proved too classy for her rivals with his good mate Rohan Hadley in the gig.
The state’s biggest mares race was the following week being the George Johnson with the man in the gig himself and she proved too classy for her rivals again racing away for an easy win.
Paul ‘Smiley’ Hill in recent years had a good association with Gavin asking him to come over and drive a couple of his handy youngsters which included star 2YO of his season, Hillview Jake, where he made a clean sweep of the 2YO features. He won the Golden Slipper, followed that up by taking the 2YO Sweepstakes where he beat the likes of Ryley Major but the big one was the Dandy Patch which he also won easily. Gav also won the 3YO Fillies Championship aboard the smart Ideal Bliss.
Talking to Smiley he said he gave Gavin a call as he noticed he was coming over and he was more than happy to take the reins on Jake in the Golden Slipper and impressed Gavin so much he didn’t hesitate to come back over to drive in the upcoming classics.
But the humble man that Gavin was he treated Smiley like he had driven for him for years. He was just the ultimate professional and despite being younger than Smiley, he still looked up to him as an idol as he was just a true bloody legend.
Rohan Hillier was another leading trainer in the state that had plenty of success with Gavin which started back in 1998 when they teamed up to win the Cadbury Sweepstakes Final with Ticket Flow.
But it was 2008 when Rohan sent a smart 2YO filly named Shez Ryleymak over to Victoria for the Vicbred Series and he had rung Gavin to see if he could commit to her for the series. After winning her heat and running second in the semi-final she lined up in the Group one final and proved too classy for her rivals, running away to win easily.
The relationship between Rohan and Gavin continued on as she ran third in the NSW Oaks before returning to Tasmanian to take out our local Oaks with Gavin in the gig. He then had the opportunity to drive her son Ryley Major at Melton and he came back and said I won a Group one on his mother and this fella is heading in the same direction, so it was fitting that he had the brilliant season he has had. They also raced the handy Solid as a Rock together which won numerous races and took on the best of his age group.
As many participants in our great industry have already mentioned, Rohan said it was a dream come true to have such great success with the man as a trainer and driver. He was always a hero and role model in the harness racing Industry, and the success they had together with Shez Ryleymak changed their family’s life for the better.
Rohan Hadley was one of Gavin closest friends and added a touching tribute to his great mate.
“Gavin was a lifelong friend to both my wife Viki and myself. We first met over 30 years ago through the horse industry and from that time on we have had a cherished friendship.
“He was a true and respected mentor to me but there were two sides to the great man. He was the consummate professional on race day and away from the horses his personality was still very relaxed and calm, but he was charismatic, caring and a very likeable human being. He would be the first to call if he knew we needed help, and this was reciprocated throughout our friendship.
“He was truly a natural horseman and I doubt we will see another one like him, the love he had for his horses and his ability to get the best out of them on race day is a gift that only Gavin had.
“He is always in our hearts and always will be and will be very sadly missed by all,” said an emotional Rohan Hadley.
Final word
In closing, it’s only fitting to hear from a few of the people that were close to him throughout his career.
John Caldow
“He was my role model and then he became my best mate but what I always did was when he spoke, I listened. As Gav was a wealth of knowledge, the one thing I will miss is our trips to the races and visiting the local bakeries for brekkie and then call into the local for a couple of travellers on the way home”
Andy Gath
“I lost a true friend, shattered and saddened like everyone else as we lost a true legend of harness racing. He was an absolute professional at his craft but was just a champion all-round bloke”
Kerryn Manning
“The legend has gone but will never be forgotten. Gav didn’t often say much but when he spoke you listened because you usually heard something worth knowing”
Greg Sugars
“He was my idol and was the greatest of all time and it was an honour to wear his colours for a win aboard Like a Wildfire on Saturday night to victory and it’s something I will cherish forever.”
Gav fought his battle with all the strength he had and never complained, but sadly for everybody that he touched in his remarkable life he wasn’t able to weave his magic like he did on the track for over thirty years.
He will be remembered as a man of few words, but you knew what he was on about if he was there shaking his head. He was a great human being who always had a presence like nobody else did as he demanded respect and his record shows why he was a hero for so long and as time went on became a legend and will leave his life going down as an Icon.
A quote from Dan Milecki sums it up “the G in G Lang is for genius as that’s exactly what he was in the gig”
Let’s hope the powers that be can remember Gavin Alexander Lang in a way he should be as he was affectionally known as Group One Gavin and a race in his honour would be a fitting tribute to the man that made our great industry what it is today.
My sincere condolences to his wonderful parents Graeme and Dot, his beautiful wife Meagan along with their children Danielle, Brayden, Courtney, Baylie, Montana and Ruby along with their grandchildren Jaxen and Arlie.
