You’d be hard pressed to find a person in harness racing who wasn’t delighted to see Ben Settree train the winner of the Junee Pacing Cup last week. If a detractor does exist, he or she is obviously living on another planet. The popular horseman had made the long trip from Bathurst twice in seven days with the genuine pacer Kanena Provlima - a gelding he races in partnership with the remarkable 91 year old breeder Fran Hausfeld. Kanena Provlima had won his qualifier a week earlier and returned to score a tough win in the final, driven in both races by promising concession reinsman Blake Micallef. The Cup final was Ben’s 12th win with the five year old.
Ben had a pretty tight grip on the Junee Pacing Cup trophy - courtesy Cheryl Hancock Photography.
The ever practical Settree made the decision four years ago to ease himself out of race driving on the basis that he simply wasn’t getting enough practice. “I was driving my own horses only, and sometimes I’d go two or three weeks without a drive,” said Ben. “There’s no way I could compete against blokes who were going around on a regular basis. It wasn’t fair to my horses or my owners.”
Benny has never been too proud to stand aside for a driver who was getting plenty of match practice. You’ve only got to reflect on the unselfish decision he made in 2008 when he had a couple of nice two year olds aiming up for the Bathurst Gold Crown. He appointed Glenn McElhinney as Emjayem Grand’s regular driver while he put himself on Bourgeoisie who wasn’t as well educated as his stablemate. Emjayem Grand went into the Gold Crown Final at his sixth race start, Bourgeoisie his second.
It’s now history that McElhinney drove Emjayem Grand a slashing race to win off the second row. The inexperienced Bourgeoisie pulled hard behind the leader, before weakening to sixth. Benny couldn’t have been happier had he driven the winner himself. That’s the kind of bloke he is.
Emjayem Grand wins the 2008 Gr.1 Gold Crown final - courtesy Bathurst Harness Racing Club.
The talented horseman did a sterling job to win sixteen races with Emjayem Grand complimented by eleven placings and more than $200,000. Owner Mick McIlroy later decided to accept an offer for the horse from WA horseman Ross Olivieri who won two races from thirteen starts with the son of Bettor’s Delight. In 2011 Olivieri moved the gelding on to the USA, where he won another $300,000. Ben still regards him as the best horse he’s trained.
To observe Settree’s total dedication to the harness horse today, it’s hard to believe he was well into his twenties before he put a bridle on a pacer or trotter. When it comes to saddle horses, it’s a very different story. He joined a local pony club at a very early age and was so adept with difficult horses that he was frequently asked to “straighten out” somebody else’s problem pony. Every now and again a polocrosse horse would turn up at the Settree farm to receive a lesson in manners from the gifted boy rider.
The Ben Settree story is one of harness racing’s most romantic tales. Born in Hay, Ben was just two years old when his father Tony was killed in a light plane crash near Rankins Springs in the Riverina. His mother Carmel took him and older brother John to her hometown of Goulburn, where she courageously picked up the pieces of her life. Carmel later remarried and was destined to have five more children to Ben’s stepfather Neil Croker. “I called him Dad from the beginning and we are great mates to this day,” said the trainer.
At age 13 young Settree opted for a stint in boarding school and would spend the next six years at the famous St Gregory’s College at Campbelltown where he gained his Higher School Certificate. He was later accepted by Sydney University where he hoped to gain a Bachelor Of Science in Agriculture, majoring in Animal Science.
Three quarters of the way through the course, the 21 year old decided to put his studies on hold while he took a 6 month sabbatical overseas. Ben spent five months in Canada where he worked on farms, followed by a month in Wales doing nothing but playing the tourist. On returning to Australia he resumed his University studies and was delighted to learn that his final year would be spent at the University of Sydney’s Rural Veterinary Centre at Cobbitty.
Within days the young man found himself hopelessly distracted by the presence of a young female student who was also pursuing a Bachelor Of Science in Agriculture Degree. Twenty one year old Melanie Moore was the daughter of Doug and Janet Moore who ran the successful Brooklyn Lodge Trotting Stud at Aberdeen in the Hunter Valley. Ben had the good manners to listen to Melanie’s frequent assurances that standardbreds were very special animals.
Good mates! Ben and Glenn McElhinney were jubilant after the 2008 Gold Crown - courtesy Bathurst Harness Racing Club.
Melanie had two of her father’s “homebreds” stabled at Jim Caffyn’s nearby Menangle property and would work them before or after her University sessions. It wasn’t long before Ben’s education in the training of harness horses began. “For many weeks Mel and I would jog the two horses side by side as I slowly adapted to this new experience,” he said. “One day she decided to work her horses together in the hopples and invited me to drive one of them. I got around satisfactorily, Mel was happy and I was absolutely besotted. It goes without saying that I was feeling the same way about my instructor.”
The University graduates married in 2000 about a year after the bride’s parents had relocated Brooklyn Lodge Stud to The Lagoon near Bathurst. They had produced many winners from their Aberdeen property, but felt a trotting stud in the heart of a massive thoroughbred hub wasn’t an ideal situation. For almost twenty two years now, Brooklyn Lodge has been one of Australia’s most respected nurseries and a major player at yearling sales in Sydney and Melbourne. “I remember one season when Brooklyn Lodge freeze branded 186 foals,” said Ben. “That included the progeny of home mares and a large number of boarders.”
It was inevitable that the Settrees would eventually move onto Brooklyn Lodge and form a partnership with Melanie’s parents Doug and Janet. As a team they have kept the stud at the forefront of the NSW breeding industry and have won the patronage of many loyal clients. Brooklyn Lodge is also home to Ben and Melanie’s children Jessica (17) and Justin (15). Both have a love of horses and are very capable riders, but so far there’s not a trace of the trotting genes that dominate their bloodlines.
Ben and Melanie Settree are a popular duo on western districts tracks - courtesy Bathurst Harness Racing Club.
Melanie actually manages stud operations and plays a major role in foalings, yearling preparation and stallion selection. Apart from his involvement in farming and agriculture on the property, Ben trains a small team of racehorses, and breaks in a number of yearlings each year for the Moores and outside clients. He has earned wide respect for his talents in the latter craft. He’s currently working 14 horses with the able assistance of his good friend Nathan Goulding.
All in the trotting industry were deeply saddened in 2015 when a freak accident left Doug Moore paraplegic. It’s well documented that the respected horseman fell through the roof of the Brooklyn Lodge barn moments after he’d actually secured a couple of loose sheets of roofing iron. With the love and support of family and a fierce resolve, Doug has made a wonderful fist of getting on with life. His consultation on stud matters is keenly sought, and you’d need the Army to get him away from his favourite spot in the lounge area at every Bathurst harness meeting.
Doug’s the first and loudest to cheer when a Ben Settree trained horse looms large in the final lap. He did plenty of cheering during Emjayem Grand’s career, offered hearty encouragement to Bourgeoisie in his 10 race wins and more recently to the very talented San Domino. Ben won three races with this very speedy horse during his two year old campaign. And there have been many other average horses from which Ben has been able to extract a win or two. Each and every winner provides a welcome tonic for the remarkable Doug Moore.
You could fill a decent sized page with the names of successful Australian participants who are second, third and fourth generation trotting people. In fact, trainers and drivers who’ve had no previous connection with harness racing are as rare as a blue diamond.
Ben Settree is the first to admit that twenty five years ago the sport of harness racing was completely foreign to him. Today his entire life revolves around the standardbred horse. His passion for the breed has continued to grow from those heady days on the old Menangle track, when he was given his initial tuition in the art of handling a pacer.
Just as well he had the good sense to take notice of his teacher!
Ben in his race driving days wins on Queen Xena at Penrith 2002. This mare went on to become the dam of Emjayem Grand and Chariot King.
(Banner image - Kanena Provlima and Blake Micallef had the finish to themselves in the Junee Pacing Cup - courtesy Cheryl Hancock Photography)