BALLYREGAN BOB: the world champion notched up 42 wins from 48 outings and was undefeated as a stayer.
THE magnificent Ballyregan Bob, perceived by the purists as the greatest greyhound of all time, died from heart failure at owner Jessie Kevern’s Henfield home in April, 1994. He was 10.
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In the sad aftermath of his death, video replays of some of Ballyregan Bob’s races were shown at Coral Brighton & Hove Stadium and any fans unaware of the news were told of the loss in a solemn announcement over the track’s public address system.
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There was no two-minute silence, but greyhound racing fans toasted the four-legged hero in the bar named after him, or visited his bronze statue at trackside, where some appreciative racegoers had laid bunches of flowers.
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Jim Layton, racing manager at Hove from 1978-1994, said: “On that unforgettable night when he set a new world record for consecutive wins, Hove Stadium was absolutely bursting at the seams.
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“I put that race together and, I can assure you, if he had been beaten I think I would have been skinned alive - the cheering for him was absolutely deafening.”
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Ballyregan Bob, trained throughout his career by George Curtis at Hove, won a staggering 42 races from 48 starts.
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The emergence of Ballyregan Bob, a May 03 product of Ballyheigue Moon, put a smile back on the face of greyhound racing in the mid-eighties and, alongside his great contemporary Scurlogue Champ, he was instrumental in bringing racegoers flocking back to NGRC racecourses.
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It is, of course, sometimes a futile exercise trying to compare outstanding champions of different eras, but there is absolute justification in placing Ballyregan Bob at the head of a pantheon of such illustrious stars as Mick The Miller, Pigalle Wonder, Mile Bush Pride, Tico, Hit The Lid, Shanless Slippy, Some Picture, Rapid Ranger and Westmead Hawk.
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Acknowledged as the most celebrated canine since a world famous collie dog first wooed moviegoers alongside Roddy McDowall and Elizabeth Taylor in the 1943 Academy Award-nominated ‘Lassie Come Home’, Ballyregan Bob was undefeated as a stayer and punters are very unlikely to see a greyhound of his calibre again.
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Ballyregan Bob, who was marked up and registered by former deputy Hove RM Phil Grimstone, was seldom out of the headlines - he actually featured on the front cover of the first issue of the Racing Post [April 15, 1986] – and his immortal status eventually earned him a coveted spot in the National History Museum.
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Brough Scott, former Channel 4 racing presenter and founder of racing’s trade newspaper, says: “The National History Museum have done a magnificent job in preserving him so well.”
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At the time of Ballyregan Bob’s death George Curtis, a pure master of his craft, said: “Everyone connected to the dog is absolutely devastated. Bobby was a dear old friend, a wonderful character. He was a gentleman to train, loved his food and possessed a perfect temperament for racing.
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“He had classic pace over four bends, coupled with seemingly limitless stamina and sheer determination.
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“My biggest single regret with Ballyregan Bob was that a wrist injury prevented him taking part in the final of the 1985 Greyhound St Leger at Wembley.
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“After racing unbeaten through the preliminaries of the competition, he was an overwhelming odds-on favourite to take the title.”
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Ballyregan Bob was bought by businessman Cliff Kevern from friends in Ireland at 12 months old for £1,250 and quickly had promoters clamouring for his services.
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His career started over 515 metres at Hove on August 25, 1984. He was favourite or joint-favourite in all his races, and odds-on in 38 of them.
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In the most famous story in the history of the sport, Ballyregan Bob shattered or equalled 16 track records during an unprecedented reign of supremacy in the six-bend division.
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He equalled Westpark Mustard’s UK record of 20 consecutive wins when easily brushing aside Scurlogue Champ, Glenowen Queen and Track Man in the £12,000 John Power Showdown (710 metres) at Wembley in November, 1985.
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The British record of 21 wins in a row arrived ten days later over Hove’s 740 metres, as Ballyregan Bob slammed another high-class field that also included Disco Clipper, Glenowen Queen, Track Man, Wyoming Ivy and Lady Opinion.
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The track career of Ballyregan Bob culminated with an historic win on home soil in front of 7,000 fans in the £2,000 Racing Post World Challenge over 695 metres on December 9, 1986, when he notched up his 32nd successive win to surpass American champion Joe Dump’s world record sequence.
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Owner Cliff Kevern said: “This is the greatest night of my life in 40 years of owning greyhounds and I was never worried at any stage – he’s got terrific pace.”
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This astonishing achievement, which duly earned Ballyregan Bob a place in the Guinness Book of Records, was even screened live on BBC’s Nine O’Clock news.
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“It’s dream come true,” said Curtis. “I’ve been watching dogs since the War, I’ve seen all the greats but never one like Ballyregan Bob.
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“He’s a brilliant dog – I don’t think we’ll see the like of him again.”
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Who but the mighty Ballyregan Bob could be ‘Greyhound of the Year’ in 1986?
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Already bestowed with the same honour in 1985 after being adjudged to have achieved more than his rivals by a panel of greyhound racing journalists, he was an absolute certainty to again be the recipient of that prestigious accolade and so it proved.
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Twelve months after his retirement, Ballyregan Bob was whisked off to stud to America and enjoyed considerable success in this sphere before returning home to Curtis in 1989 to meet demand for public appearances.
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Among the pick of his progeny were dual Golden Jacket winner Bobs Regan, Decoy Regan Lass, Carlsberg Champ and marathon ace Shropshire Lass.
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Ballyregan Bob, simply poetry in motion, was to greyhound racing what the imperious Arkle was to National Hunt racing in the sixties and this track colossus has secured a permanent place in greyhound racing folklore with his incredible performances at NGRC racecourses.
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When the curtain came down on his glittering career, Ballyregan Bob left everlasting memories of determination, versatility, trackcraft and sheer class and those attributes set him apart from other great performers we have seen since greyhound racing first opened its doors to the public in 1926.
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A household name beyond the confines of the sport, Ballyregan Bob annexed big-race successes in the £1,000 Cosmic Orbit Young Puppies Trophy (515m, Hove), £1,500 William Hill Lead (523m, Hackney), £3,000 Courage Greyhound Olympic (515m, Hove), £1,200 E Coomes Test (640m, Walthamstow), £3,500 Essex Vase (575m, Romford), £12,000 John Power Showdown (710m, Wembley) and £2,000 Racing Post World Challenge (695m, Hove).
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He was simply the best!
