Rag Trade

Foaled in 1966, Rag Trade was bred by Ian Williams. He was by Menelek out of The Rage, whose sire was Cagire.

As a gelding, his reputation would rest entirely on the racecourse. His career eventually took him through three training establishments: George Fairbairn handled him during his early career, Arthur Pitt trained him at the time of the 1975 Grand National, and Fred Rimell had charge of him during the decisive 1975–76 period. Rag Trade later returned to Fairbairn in 1978.

The horse became associated with P. B. Raymond, the racing name of Pierre Raymond Bessone, alongside co-owners William Lawrie and Herbert Keane. They acquired him for 18,000 guineas at Doncaster in 1975, shortly before he developed into a leading long-distance chaser.

Rag Trade’s career was defined by stamina rather than precocious achievement. He emerged as a late improver, with his best performances coming over the demanding distances and sustained tests of jumping that characterized Britain’s major staying chases.

His profile was not that of a polished, economical jumper. He could be clumsy at his fences, an important vulnerability in races where one mistake could undo several miles of work. Yet he possessed the strength to race prominently, conserve enough energy for the closing stages and produce a powerful late run. That combination made him particularly effective when races became tests of endurance.

By the middle of the 1970s, Rag Trade had developed into an accomplished marathon chaser. Victories in the Welsh Grand National and Midlands Grand National demonstrated that his effectiveness was not confined to a single race or course. Those performances established the depth of his staying ability and supplied the foundation for his most famous success at Aintree.

Rag Trade’s first recorded association with the Grand National came in 1975, when he was trained by Arthur Pitt. Although that appearance did not provide his defining Aintree result, it placed him in the setting that would ultimately shape his reputation.

The Grand National presented a particularly severe challenge for a horse whose jumping could be clumsy. Its distance and distinctive fences demanded not only stamina but repeated accuracy under fatigue. Rag Trade’s participation therefore formed an important stage in his development: he had encountered the race before returning as a more formidable contender.

His ownership changed during 1975 when Pierre Raymond Bessone, William Lawrie and Herbert Keane bought him for 18,000 guineas at Doncaster. He subsequently moved into the care of Fred Rimell, under whom he reached the height of his career.

Rag Trade’s victories in the Welsh Grand National and Midlands Grand National established him as more than a horse suited only by Aintree’s peculiar demands. Both races belonged to the marathon-chase division in which stamina, jumping and the ability to keep competing under prolonged pressure were essential.

These successes were especially significant in the arc of his career because they confirmed his late improvement. Rag Trade had matured into a powerful stayer capable of winning major races across different courses. His prominent racing style allowed him to remain involved rather than relying entirely on a late surge from the rear, while his strength enabled him to sustain his challenge deep into long contests.

The two regional Nationals also placed his eventual Aintree victory in context. By the spring of 1976, he had already shown that the longer and more exacting a steeplechase became, the more his central asset—endurance—could influence the outcome.

Rag Trade’s defining performance came in the 1976 Grand National, when he defeated Red Rum. That rival was already the dominant Grand National horse of the decade, having won the race in 1973 and 1974. Beating him gave Rag Trade’s victory an enduring distinction beyond the prestige of the race itself.

The contest brought Rag Trade’s qualities together on the sport’s most famous staying-chase stage. He was able to race as a prominent stayer and still deliver strongly at the end of the extreme distance. His powerful late effort proved decisive against a rival renowned for his own exceptional suitability to Aintree.

For Rag Trade, the result completed a notable transformation from late-developing marathon chaser to Grand National winner. His previous staying victories had demonstrated his credentials, but defeating Red Rum made the Aintree success the central event of his career. It also ensured that his name would remain linked to one of the defining rivalries and eras in Grand National history.

Rag Trade’s training history crossed several significant phases of his career. George Fairbairn was responsible for his early development, while Arthur Pitt prepared him for the 1975 Grand National. The move to Fred Rimell preceded his peak period in 1975 and 1976, culminating in the Grand National victory. He was back with Fairbairn in 1978.

Those changes coincided with Rag Trade’s emergence as a mature staying chaser. His rise was not built on speed over shorter distances, but on his ability to keep galloping through severe tests. He could race close enough to the pace to apply pressure and then use his reserves late, a pattern well suited to major long-distance handicaps.

His jumping remained the contrasting element in his profile. Rag Trade was powerful but could be clumsy, so his greatest performances required him to combine endurance with sufficient efficiency at his fences. That imperfection makes the range of his major successes particularly notable: he won three races carrying the “Grand National” name, including the most celebrated of them all.

Rag Trade belongs firmly to the 1970s generation of British National Hunt stayers. His principal legacy rests on a compact but distinguished group of marathon-chase achievements: victories in the Welsh Grand National, Midlands Grand National and Grand National itself.

The 1976 Aintree result remains the clearest measure of his standing. Red Rum became the only three-time winner of the Grand National, making any horse who defeated him in the race part of its wider history. Rag Trade did so at the peak of his own late-developing career, underlining that a chaser did not need flawless technique to become exceptional when stamina, resilience and sustained finishing power were decisive.

Rag Trade died in 1978. As a gelding, he left no stud legacy, but his racing record supplied a lasting one. He is remembered as a powerful, sometimes imperfect jumper who improved with maturity, excelled over extreme distances and reached his summit by overcoming the era’s most celebrated Aintree specialist.