IN just a few short years, they have proved a dynamic combination!
And Newcastle trainer Jason Deamer is hoping he can build further on his association with Dynamic Syndications by claiming a city victory with Ottilie at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
The four-year-old mare, an excellent first-up second at that track a fortnight ago, again will have Brett Prebble on board when she lines up in the Midway Benchmark 72 Handicap (1200m).
A $100,000 yearling purchase at the Gold Coast in 2020, Ottilie joined Deamer’s stable last year from a major Sydney yard after winning races at Hawkesbury and Canberra.
He won a Benchmark 66 Handicap (1300m) with her at Taree on January 3, and almost made it two on end when narrowly beaten 18 days later in a Kembla Grange Benchmark 68 (1400m).
Ottilie was resuming when she looked a likely winner at Randwick until the promising Crafty Eagle (a three-times winner who has never been unplaced in six starts, and also starts on Saturday in a Benchmark 78 Handicap, 1400m) charged home.
“Ottilie has taken nice improvement from that run, so we’re hoping she can get a city breakthrough this time,” Deamer said.
Stablemate Rebel County, another Dynamic arrival from a Sydney stable, will contest a Provincial Benchmark 68 Handicap (1600m) at Newcastle on Saturday, with Brodie Loy aboard.
It was a phone call out of the blue which eventually led to Deamer forming what has proven a very successful association with Dynamic.
“They gave me a horse called Decroux, which was also originally trained in Sydney, four years ago,” Deamer said.
“When he ran nearly last at Newcastle after leading at his first start for me, Dynamic thought seriously about moving him on.
“They decided to keep him in work when I suggested riding him differently, and it worked.
“He flew home at Mudgee and ran second next time, and then ran another two seconds at Hawkesbury.
“We took him to Kembla Grange for a 2000m Benchmark 64 Handicap, and Nash Rawiller, just back from Hong Kong, won on him with 61kg.
“Nash also won two 1900m races at Canterbury on Decroux, and Christian Reith rode him to win the 2020 Taree Cup.
“I can’t thank Dynamic enough for their great support as eight of the 12 horses I have here are theirs.”
Deamer has prepared a career 327 winners – an outstanding achievement considering his boutique stable which has largely comprised tried horses from other barns.
Miss Shalaa, yet another of the Dynamic team, was his 14th winner this season (and there have been 38 placings) when first-up over 1412m at Taree earlier in the week.
Whilst the training side of Deamer’s racing life came later, he will never forget his first winner as an apprentice jockey on Australia Day 1991.
As a 15-year-old schoolboy, he rode his first winner Classic Benny on his home track at Newcastle Racecourse – and the horse was part-owned by his parents John and Chrstine and trained by his father, to whom he was indentured.
“It was a special day for sure as I had started my apprenticeship only toward the end of Year 9 at school and had my first ride at Muswellbrook the previous month,” he recalled.
Whilst both Deamer’s father and grandfather Carl rode and trained successfully, it was never a given that the then youngster would follow in their footsteps.
“I always rode ponies as a kid, but didn’t really have my mind set on becoming a jockey,” he said.
“I tried a few other things, and it wasn’t until I was 13 or 14 that all of a sudden I decided I wanted to do that.
“Back then you only had to ride in 10 trials to obtain your licence, and I was able to do that in a fortnight.”
Deamer rode more than 100 winners in a career that promised so much, but unfortunately his time in the saddle was short-lived.
“I was 42kg when I started, but was tall and kept going up and up,” he said.
“After outriding my country claim, I transferred to Jack and Allan Denham at Rosehill to get more opportunities.”
Deamer had another memorable moment on his 16th birthday when he won the Country Cup at Randwick on Escaped (backed from $101 t0 $41), a horse trained at Wyong by Neville McBurney (of Lord Hybrow fame).
Coincidentally, Deamer trained another horse with the same name (now racing in Darwin), and also won a race with him at Randwick in September 2021 – but on the Kensington track.
As increasing weight began to take its toll, he returned home and began riding work for legendary Newcastle trainer, the late Max Lees.
“I had a dream job with Max, riding work and also being a travelling foreman and taking horses to a couple of Melbourne carnivals for him,” he said.
“One of the horses I was riding work at Broadmeadow was Nurmi, and mentioned to Max that I thought he would get enough weight to ride him in a race if I lost a bit of weight myself.
“Max was agreeable, but unfortunately the horse got 57 or 58kg, and I couldn’t make that but still managed to get back riding in races for a while and rode four or five winners.”
Around that time, Deamer began an association with owner-trainer David Throsby, who was being troubled for trackwork riders, and travelled to Cessnock to work his horses.
“Dad had vacant stables at the time, and I suggested to David that we could prepare them at Newcastle as he had a few good ones.”
At least one really good one indeed! Her name was Lovely Jubly (pictured)
and, acting as Throsby’s assistant trainer, the combination landed the 2002 Magic Millions 2YO Classic at the Gold Coast with the grey daughter of Lion Hunter.
With Scott Seamer aboard, Lovely Jubly ($12) beat Sydney filly Chuckle and Melbourne youngster Cool Trent.
After a break, the Newcastle star went back to Queensland and won the Group 3 Champagne Classic at Doomben first-up before a narrow defeat there in the Listed Doomben Classic.
Lovely Jubly then took all before her across the road at Eagle Farm the following month, carrying off the Group 1 double (1400m Sires Produce Stakes and 1600m TJ Smith Classic).
Ottilie’s rider Brett Prebble, then based in Melbourne, partnered her in all four races.
Following a subsequent stable transfer to another legendary horseman Kevin Robinson at Berry on the NSW South Coast and after only three starts, Lovely Jubly found her way back to Newcastle as Deamer took out his own licence well into the 2002-03 season.
He almost pulled off another major victory with her. At only Lovely Jubly’s second start for Deamer, she finished second to Bollinger in the Group 1 feature for fillies and mares, the Coolmore Classic, at Rosehill Gardens in the autumn of 2003.
Deamer, as he did in the saddle, quickly made his mark in his outright training venture, clinching a breakthrough Randwick victory in May that year.
“A filly named Joyce won a 2YO race for me on a very heavy track, and she was ridden by Darren Beadman,” he said.
Deamer’s training career was off and running – and 20 years later it hasn’t abated.
Lovely Jubly aside, Deamer regards Bon Amis and Gorgonite as the best horses he has trained on hos own.
“A Newcastle syndicate purchased Bon Amis very cheaply in 2017 from Coffs Harbour as an unraced young horse, and he won his first four races at Cessnock, Muswellbrook, Newcastle and Rosehill for us,” he said.
“He had a real liking for Rosehill as his five city wins were all there, and he also qualified for the 2018 Provincial Championship Final, and ran third in the first running of the $1m The Hunter at home in 2019.
“Gorgonite was owned by a close family friend Bill Grace, who raced him with fellow friends in the building industry. We won two Listed races (the Royal Parma and Civic Stakes) in 2006 with him.”
Understandably, though Deamer would have liked to continue his riding career longer, he gets great satisfaction out of training winners, especially as he rides them in trackwork.
“I still enjoy riding, and it’s definitely an advantage for me anyway,” he said. “I can change a horse’s work when I’m out there if things don’t feel right, rather than sending someone else out with instructions.”
Quietly spoken, one who has always gone about his business in a professional manner, and given his obvious talent with a horse, there’s no doubt he could attract bigger numbers.
But he prefers to limit himself to a boutique stable with no more than a dozen in work – and it’s a real family affair.
“Mum and Dad both help out, and keeping a small team enables me to balance work and a life outside racing,” he concluded.
*Words John Curtis - June 8, 2023 - Pics Bradley Photos*
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