It’s 1pm and Australia’s trainer of the moment David Vandyke has just finished a 1km swim, an important part of his daily ritual.
For this session, Ryan Maloney, the regular jockey of his star horse Alligator Blood (All Too Hard), decided to join him.
The competitive spirit that comes so naturally to these two horsemen on the racetrack took over and the pair moved along at a serious clip.
“I usually do 20 x 50s on a 1min 15 sec. Ryan stuck with me the whole way. It was a bit like Catalyst and Alligator Blood in the last 250 metres,” said David.
"Ryan stuck with me the whole way. It was a bit like Catalyst and Alligator Blood in the last 250 metres." - David Vandyke
For more than a decade now, it’s this type of rigorous and regular exercise that has helped save David from tumbling down a slippery slope of self-destruction fuelled by alcohol and drug addiction.
David feels he is 'the best [he has] ever been'
“If we took into account mental and physical wellness, I’m the best I have ever been. I am at the top of my life tree.
“I’ve got some strategies that have helped me to recover and find peace. It’s been progressive. I have always had a belief in a Higher Power. I have been sober from alcohol for 21 years and I have been clean from drugs for 11 years.
“Meditation, doing some reading and listening to some of the things that give me peace and motivation has helped me.”
The top of the racing mountain
Through unwavering focus and determination David has clambered his way back from rock bottom in life and now, thanks to the deeds of Alligator Blood, he finds himself at the top of the racing mountain.
But extraordinary self-awareness tells him this lofty position is not without its own set of dangerous pitfalls.
Jockey Ryan Maloney and David Vandyke
“I’ve had a lot of counsellors but one in particular said; 'I’m not worried when you fail because you are used to it, but it’s when you have success and what you are going to do with it.'
“Those words are ringing in my ear at the moment and I need to do what I can to remain at peace, grounded and detached from the lure of the ego ride that I’m on to a degree.
"I need to do what I can to remain at peace, grounded and detached from the lure of the ego ride that I’m on to a degree." - David Vandyke
“It’s easy to get caught up and believe all the hype and accept the accolades and feel like I'm someone I’m not.”
Racing is a roller coaster and David has strapped himself in tight for the ride that is about to see him and Alligator Blood front up at Caulfield for the $5 million All-Star Mile (1600 metres).
David Vandyke and Alligator Blood's connections
“Racing is almost bred on it, the highs and lows. The words used in the media sensationalise a person’s performance, good or bad.
“One minute you can be a superstar trainer and the next a disgraced trainer and it can all refer to the one person who has not done much different.”
The darkest period of his life
David knows all too well what it’s like to be painted in a bad light. He’s faced charges under the Australian Rules of Racing and met the heavy penalties that went with them. A two-year disqualification from training for a horse returning a positive swab was the darkest period of his life.
“I was really wounded and I couldn't find myself. It took my complete abandonment of self and reaching the point of where I had to say I can’t do this anymore I need help and will go to any lengths to get it.
David (left) when Yankee Rose won the G1 ATC Sires Produce S.
“I walked into a recovery setting and started to learn to lead with my weaknesses and allow people to know who I was and share the shame pain and guilt that I had been carrying.
“There’s a great relief in letting people know where I have been, what I've done and what I think, and then feeling someone put their arms around me and say that’s all fine. You are in a place of love and we will help you from this point.
“There’s a great relief in letting people know where I have been, what I've done and what I think, and then feeling someone put their arms around me and say that’s all fine." - David Vandyke
“So many people, and indeed myself, felt if anyone knew who I was and how I thought and behaved in the past they would not talk to me.”
Horses didn’t judge him though, and his relationship with them never changed. If anything, they were the very thing that took him from a place of self-loathing and helplessness to the happy and balanced place he finds himself in today.
“I think I have always had a great relationship with horses. The more peaceful I become the better relationship I have with all animals and indeed the horse. It’s enhanced by my recovery.
“There’s a great energy there with horses. There’s such a mystery surrounding the way they think and behave and it’s hard to put into words what a horse is made up of.
“The relationship I have and how we connect and interact is beyond words. I can’t explain, it’s like asking an artist why did you put that brush stroke there and why did you do this and that,” he said.
What's in a name?
It’s obvious David has a special bond with Alligator Blood and the irony of the horse’s name given his own life story and the personal health challenges facing his owners, is certainly not lost on him.
Alligator Blood is one of the oldest poker terms and refers to the tenacity and resilience of alligators to take big blows and still keep fighting on. A player with alligator blood is one who refuses to give up, whether they are winning or losing.
“It’s almost been a divine sign and was like a pre-meditated universal thought to call a horse something that he could become.
“It’s almost been a divine sign and was like a pre-meditated universal thought to call a horse something that he could become." - David Vandyke
“What I thought initially was a silly name has turned into something very prophetic and right. It’s quite amazing.”
David has been based in Melbourne with the horse they call ‘Al’ for many weeks now and during that time their rapport has become stronger than ever. By his own admission, David mostly prefers the company of Al and his other horses to most people.
Alligator Blood
“I feel that the problem with people is we are always wanting things. With Alligator Blood I think to myself you just won $2.8 million. What can I do at this point in time to give you some joy and more reward for what you are doing.
“His needs are basic. He’s not looking for a new iPhone or front page of the paper. None of that matters to him so why does that have to be such a big thing for me.”
Whilst his needs are simple, Al does have his fair share of quirks says David;
“He’s unpredictable in a good way. He can be like a lamb and just wants to snuggle and he can be a real terror and push boundaries.
“He has Ninja-like qualities. He can throw himself around, he’s agile strong and smart and one of the smartest horses I have had anything to do with.”
Emma Lehmann gives Alligator Blood a well deserved pat
David dotes on Al and so too does his partner and second in charge at the stable, Emma Lehmann.
Emma is the only other person he trusts to take care of the horse when he’s waylaid with commitments to manage the rest of their boutique stable.
A gifted horseman, it takes a lot for David to trust others with his horses. He says that right from when he first met Emma, he knew she was the type of person that was aligned with his training style and values.
“When she first started working for me and we were down swimming horses she asked me a question and I had a whinge that my staff don’t listen and she said, 'well, I will listen if you tell me.'
“And two years later she has been a brilliant student. I’m very conformable whenever I am not with Alligator Blood and she is with him. She can assess him almost as well as I can, she's absolute gold.
"I’m very conformable whenever I am not with Alligator Blood and she is with him. She can assess him almost as well as I can, she's absolute gold." - David Vandyke
“She runs the stable when I’m away and brilliant at taking horses away. She’s exactly what I need to manage Alligator Blood and horses back home at the same time.”
Keeping calm and level
David has enjoyed recent weeks with Al in Melbourne and the one on one time they have had together on the journey towards a first Group 1 win in the Australian Guineas (1600 metres).
“It has been great being down in Melbourne because I don’t have the numbers and I can take my time and give him a brush and a cuddle and stand there with him basically.
“He likes me there. We don’t need to say or do anything we can just hang out together.”
Ryan and Al returning to scale after winning the Magic Millions 3YO Guineas
It’s very clear that David, Emma and Al are in a bubble together right now and simply enjoying each day as it comes. Keeping calm and level is the focus.
“I’m not really feeling the pressure that an observer might think I’m feeling. For the owners and horse, he's won a Group 1 and a $2 million Magic Millions Guineas.
“He’s done an incredible job and exceeded expectation so whatever happens from here in my mind is a bonus and I don’t want to detract from that feeling of gratitude for the road we have come along by getting optimistic about what lies ahead.”
Win, lose or draw on Saturday in the All-Star Mile, most of us will continue to feel a sense of gratitude for this great horse and life story. Racing and the world needs it right now.
